Bio-based

Offering a sustainable alternative for current cotton-polyester textile materials based on cellulose from bio-waste sources and bio-polyesters, combined with bio-based coating & finishing

The vast majority of clothing is made of two types of fibres; polyester and cotton. These, however, have considerable disadvantages and shortcomings. Polyester is oil-based and mainly sourced in the Middle East, whilst cotton is mostly grown in e.g. India, with a large environmental impact because of pesticides and high water consumption. More sustainable alternatives, possibly based on bio-based materials, are thus of high need.

The HEREWEAR project aims at the development of clothing made from bio-based resources. Emerging sustainable technologies for wet and melt spinning of cellulose and bio-based polyesters, for yarn and fabric production and for coating and colouring are developed and piloted at semi-industrial scale.

Suggested reading & viewing

Waterbased PLA dispersion for inks and coatings
Slide desk of Centexbel presentation on development and properties of waterbased PLA & PHA dispersions and their use in coatings and screen-printing inks.
Introduction to biopolymers for coating applications
Centexbel paper introducing biopolymers, their use in coating applications and commercial availability.
https://portal.sirris.be/nl_BE/coock-biocoat-paper-download,
Understanding “bio”-material innovations: a primer for the fashion industry
Report from Fashion for Good to clarify definitions of biomaterials and share insights on their use in the fashion industry.
https://reports.fashionforgood.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Understanding-Bio-Material-Innovations-Report.pdf
Coming full circle: innovating towards sustainable man-made cellulosic fibres (Fashion for Good)
Report from Fashion for Good on man-made cellulosic fibres.
https://reports.fashionforgood.com/report/coming-full-circle-innovating-towards-sustainable-man-made-cellulosic-fibres/
Spinning Future Threads
Report & link on the potential of agricultural residues as textile fibre feedstock.
https://www.laudesfoundation.org/learning/research/2021-07-01-spinning-future-threads
Twin projects approved in the same call as HEREWEAR
Two other projects were funded in the same call: MYFI (My-Fi – The mycelium revolution. Reinventing a smart, circular and competitive textile industry) & New Cotton (https://newcottonproject.eu).