Professional guide

Something old, something new...

Many new and innovative fibres that are being embraced as eco-friendly, may actually have been around for a long time. They may have been forgotten since they have not been as easy to process as cotton in a modern industrial setting. But now they are finding their way back in to the fashion business because of their sustainable profiles.

Briefly - bamboo
Just to make this quite clear: Yes, bamboo is a raw material. No, it is not a textile, But for the most part bamboo is the raw-material in a viscose process, which is not exactly eco-friendly. So even if the raw-material is one of the quickest-growing plants out there, recent claims have been that the bamboo-farms in China are not necessarily sustainable. Evidently it depends on where in China the farms are located; but more important: Bamboo is just the raw-material and the textile must be labelled according to the process. Mechanically developed bamboo can be labelled bamboo, but chemically processed bamboo must be labelled rayon or viscose.

Banana Fabric
Banana trees were widely used for making fabrics before cotton was affordable and readily available. Now “jusi” banana fabric is made in only a handful of places in Southeast Asia. The raw materials come from the stem that farmers leave in the garden after a banana harvest. The tree stalks and leaves are removed and processed into a pliable fibre. Different layers of the stem yield fibers for specific uses: the outer layer's fibers are generally used for table cloths while the third layer makes the finest, silkiest fabric, suitable for kimonos and saris. Many Nepalese rugs are made from bleached and dried fibers of the banana plant that are hand-knotted into silk-like rugs. (Source: Ethical Fashion Forum)

Coffee Grounds
In Taiwan the textile firm Singtex has begun using discarded coffee grounds from Starbucks and 7-eleven to produce melt-spun polyester yarns and fabrics that are said to give improved UV-, odour- and moisture-management properties. Which is perfect for sportswear, and keeps coffee waste from landfills. The fabric is perfect for mid and base layers for adrenalin-powered sports, and the S.Café treatment meets Bluesign standards and is said to use the grounds of only one cup of coffee to make material for a couple of t-shirts. S.Café yarns come in the shades “latte” and “decaf”. (Source: EcoTextileNews)

Milk fiber
This is actually not a new fiber at all. Milk fiber was invented in 1930’s in Italy and America to compete with wool. The fiber known as ARALAC, Lanatil, Merinova all different brands for the same fiber manufactured from milk casein fell victim to their minor flaws and the war.Though in the 1940’s the fibers were quite popular in America and Europe the market for it collapsed due to World War II. Now regenerated, these fibers are by some said to be more efficient and durable than any other fiber invented before or existing today. Milk fiber is a new synthetic fiber, which adopts milk protein as main material and high-technical process. Milk fiber has the advantages natural fiber combined with synthetic fiber. Milk fiber pH is 6.8 which is the same to human skin. Milk fiber contains seventeen amino-acids and natural anti-bacterial rate is above eighty percent. So milk fiber has sanitarian function.

Aquatic Pest ‘Suitable for Textiles’
The stalks of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) are a viable natural source of alternative textile material, according to the Philippine Department of Science and Technology’s Philippine Textile Research Institute (PTRI). Researchers at PTRI are studying water-hyacinth fibers as raw material for the manufacture of clothing and home-textiles. Processing the fibers with polyester staples initially produced blended yarns with a 20–35% water hyacinth component. The stalks went through a series of chemical and mechanical treatments to achieve the crimp properties of wool, to reduce the plant’s glue-like or gum content, and to soften the fibers to make them finer and fit for knitting and weaving. According to PTRI, for a yarn count of 15 Ne, suitable for apparel, blends of 80/20 and 65/35 of polyester/water-hyacinth fibers were used. In the Philippines, the proliferation of water hyacinth – an invasive nuisance in fresh-water bodies such as lakes and ponds – has led the researchers to study the plant’s effective uses as a natural wastewater purifier and an indicator of the level of pollution in the water, in addition to its potential as a natural source of fiber. (Source: Impact)

Nylon textiles from castor beans
After two years of research and development, French nylon yarn specialist Condamin Prodon has developed a new commercially available range of high performance nylon yarns, produced using bio-polymers derived from the castor oil plant. The new ‘Greenfil’ bio-polymers have been developed by Condamin’s parent company Sofila in partnership with chemical company Arkema which has supplied its ‘Rilsan’ polyamide 11 polymer to produce the yarns. They were shown in fabrics at Premiere Vision in Paris last autumn but have now become commercially available and are currently being trialled with French hosiery brand Dim.The castor plants are from Africa and Asia and are grown on land which cannot be farmed. There is no irrigation of the crops, they are not produced from genetically modified seeds and they are 100% renewable biomass. Rilsan is not new technology and has been previously used in the plastics industry since 1942. It is produced from the castor bean and has good thermal, physical, chemical and mechanical properties. But what is new is that Rilsan has been used for the first time to make nylon yarns. In apparel, Rilsan has been used for plastic components – in bras and clips for example – but this is the first time it has been used to make nylon yarns on a commercial scale. (Source: EcoTextile News)

Soybean
Soybean fiber was invented by Henry Ford in 1937 and was termed as soy “wool”. Henry Ford also made a suit and necktie from soybean fiber and used this unique fiber in car upholstery. Soybean, like wool, was a victim of the war and the cheaply available man-made fibers. Soybean was being manufactured in Poland until the 60’s. The new soybean fiber was invented in 1998 and is a by-product from food-production. It is controversial since most soybean from the US is GMO, though this is not the case for European soybeans. Here are som of the claimed advantages of soybean fiber blends with other fibers:
1. Soybean/cashmere (80/20): Enhances the hand as well as lowers the manufacturing cost of cashmere products. Gives superior luster and comfort, as well as anti-pilling and drape properties.
2. Soybean/wool (50/50): Produces excellent results taking advantage of both fibers, the lustrous, soft hand and strength of soybean fiber, and the elasticity and heat-retaining properties of wool. Spinning of high-count yarn is possible.
3. Soybean/silk (50/50): Provides a solution to problems of silk, such as poor resistance to staining from perspiration and water, poor light fastness and moisture permeability. Higher quality can be achieved at a lower cost.
4. Soybean/cotton (50/50): Enhances the comfort, luster, moisture-permeability, quick-dry and drape properties of cotton.
Development : Spinning methods have already been established for 100% soybean fiber, its blends with natural (cotton, linen, wool, cashmere and silk) and chemical (modified polyester, viscose, tencel, polynosic etc.) fibers, and used in plants dealing with cotton, silk and wool. Fabrics: Geat potential in its use in high-grade knits and innerwear. Weaves made of soybean fiber blends with other natural or chemical fibers have so far been used in shirting and home textiles. Good mechanical property: Breaking strength of the single soybean protein fibre is over 3.0cNdtex, which is higher than that of wool, cotton and silk and only lower than that of polyester fibre of high intension.
(Source: EuroFlax.com)

More soybeans
A new ecofriendly company formed by two college students, is launching its first line of soy underwear for women under the brand name Uranus. The garments are boyshort-style and have been appropriately named ‘soyshorts’. “The idea for Uranus Apparel was developed by two University of Florida students, who sought to create a product that would promote sustainability with a sense of humor,” said co-founder Natalie San Andres. “Despite the funny name, the company is seriously committed to utilising soy as a more sustainable alternative to cotton fibre.” Soy fabric is manufactured from the by-products of soy food production such as tofu and soybean oil. According to Uranus, it is extremely soft and comfortable, often being compared to silk or cashmere, while it is also more durable and dries more quickly than cotton. Uranus Apparel soyshorts are packaged in a burlap drawstring pouch that is both reusable and 100 percent biodegradable. (Source: Impact)