Turning Unrecyclable Textiles Into Circular Chemical Building Blocks

Across Europe, more than 70% of textile waste still ends up in incineration or landfill. This is not because the material lacks value, but because recycling technologies struggle with complex waste streams. Post-consumer textiles often combine cotton, polyester and elastane. They also contain dyes, flame retardants, buttons and zips.

Dutch research organisation TNO has developed a thermochemical recycling technology that tackles this issue. The process converts mixed textile waste into valuable chemical building blocks. It opens up a new circular route for materials that previously had no high-value destination.

Capturing Value At The Molecular Level

TNO built this innovation on its experience with thermochemical recycling of plastics and biomass. The process heats shredded textile waste without oxygen in a fluidised bed reactor. Temperatures range between 700 and 850°C. Within seconds, polymer chains break down into smaller molecules.

Unlike conventional gasification, this method operates at lower temperatures. As a result, it preserves more of the material’s chemical value. The process produces different outputs depending on the conditions. These include syngas for fuels and methanol, olefins for plastics, and aromatics such as benzene for polyester production.

The system does not require pre-sorting. It removes contaminants such as dyes and flame retardants during gas cleaning. Metals from buttons and zippers remain in the ash fraction.

From Waste Textiles To New Materials

TNO tested the technology using real post-consumer textile waste. This included T-shirts, workwear and denim that would normally be incinerated. In a multi-hour trial, the team processed 1.5 kg of mixed waste. This yielded around half a litre of aromatic compounds. About 70% of this output consisted of benzene.

These results show how complex textile waste can become a feedstock for the chemical industry. This reduces dependence on fossil resources and supports circular material flows. For designers in fashion, product and packaging, this creates opportunities for materials with recycled carbon content.

A Timely Solution For Circular Textile Systems

The timing of this development is significant. In the Netherlands, around 215,000 tonnes of textiles are discarded each year. More than half enters residual waste streams. At the same time, EU legislation will introduce extended producer responsibility (EPR) for textiles by 2028.

Thermochemical recycling could fill an important gap. It offers sorting companies an alternative to incineration. It also provides the chemical industry with a non-fossil carbon source. In addition, the technology may handle complex waste streams such as medical textiles and PFAS-containing workwear more safely.

Scaling Towards Industrial Application

TNO has proven the concept at laboratory scale. The organisation now seeks industrial partners to scale up to demonstration level. Its ambition is clear: transform waste processors into raw material suppliers and make textile incineration unnecessary.

Source: Duurzaam Ondernemen
Photos: TNO