Sustainable Solution for Recycling Polycotton Fabric with CIRC’s Innovation to Cut Textile Waste

A Breakthrough in the Build A Waste-Free World EARTHSHOT of the EARTHSHOT Prize A Breakthrough in the Build A Waste-Free World EARTHSHOT of the EARTHSHOT Prize

The EARTHSHOT Prize was launched by Prince William in 2020 to search for sustainable and innovative solutions to the world’s environmental challenges, inspired by President John F. Kennedy’s “Moonshot” challenge in 1962. The Urgency + Optimism = Action formula is the vision and mission of Earthshot, which recognizes the Urgency of climate change. The EARTHSHOT Prize categories, known as Earthshots, are Revive Our Oceans, Fix Our Climate, Clean Our Air, Protect and Restore Nature, and Build a Waste-Free World, all aimed at achieving sustainable solutions to our environmental problems. This article is about one of the runner-ups from the Build A Waste-Free World Earshot. It has created an innovative solution that enables the recycling of polycotton fabrics, which account for half of all textiles. The textile industry sends 92 million tonnes of textiles to incinerators or landfills yearly and only recycles less than one percent of textile waste into new clothing. Cotton production uses 3.3 million acres of land and six billion cubic meters of water annually, and polyester production uses 70 million barrels of oil annually. Circ & Zara Over-consumption and fast fashion are significant challenges in creating a more sustainable industry. Still, technical barriers also prevent the recycling of textiles and our ability to reuse them to create new clothing. Textile recycling can’t process polycotton, a blend of cotton and plastic. It takes 200 years to biodegrade and releases toxic chemicals when burned. Circ has developed an innovative method for recycling polycotton. The US-based company completely separates the polyester from the cotton fibers using its patented hydrothermal process. This process transforms polyester fibers into a liquid polymer while preserving and separating the polyester without damaging the cotton. Producing new textiles can reuse cotton and polyester fibers, significantly reducing carbon emissions. For more on EARTHSHOT and the winners and runner-ups in all categories, click here.