About two-third of garments contain mixed fibres, significantly limiting their recycling potential, Moreover, of all used clothes from the bins, 62% are reusable and 37% are recyclable, according to a study conducted by the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya's INTEXTER department.
The findings:
- The most common fibre was cotton, with 50% in recyclable clothes and 60% in reusable clothes. Polyester followed, with 30% in both types. Therefore, cotton and polyester account for about 80% in recyclable clothing and 88% in reusable clothing.
- Acrylic fibres accounted for a much lower percentage. The study showed a large difference between recyclable clothing (12.4%) and reusable clothing (3.1%), because clothing made from these fibres was the most readily deteriorated.
- INTEXTER's new form of characterisation has been possible through an innovative methodology based on crushing garments and standardising the mixture by means of two steps: (1) automatic carding and (2) analysing the resulting webs using the standardised chemical methodology. The result allows for the determination of the composition of textile products, including the standard moisture regain of every fibre.
- INTEXTER also carried out an extensive bibliographic review of existing studies on how much CO2 is saved by reusing clothing. It concluded that reusing 1kg of clothing saves 25kg of CO2, unlike EU estimates so far, which suggested only 3.169kg.
The study: About 550 kg of clothes from the Formació i Treball Foundation clothing bins were analysed to characterize the fibers that make up T-shirts, shirts, coats, trousers, jackets and other kinds of clothing that are dumped in textile collection bins.
- A total of 701 garments were analysed, corresponding to the first 30 items in six major categories (T-shirts, jumpers, jeans, underwear, socks and shirts) at Zara, H&M, C&A and Mango. The analysis did not include jackets or coats.
What they said:
If we could double the lifespan of garments, we would be reducing the fashion industry's greenhouse gas emissions by 44%. Extending the active life of clothing by just nine months would already reduce carbon, water and waste footprint by 20–30%. An increase of 10% in second hand sales could save 3% of carbon emissions and 4% of water, according to data from the report Valuing our clothes: the cost of U.K. fashion, published by WRAP in 2017.
— Enric Carrera
Director
INTEXTER
