Sustainable fibres material sourcing

The starting point in the textile supply chain is the raw material preparation. Textile fibres are obtained from two main sources natural (cellulose or animal) fibres or synthetic fibres. Natural cellulosic fibres include conventional and organic cottons, rayon, linen, hemp, jute, ramie and sisal. Cotton is used to produce 40% of world textile products (Saicheua et al., 2012). The major environmental concern in cellulosic fibre production, especially for cotton fibre, is the chemical fertilizers and pesticides used during cultivation. The second concern is the high level of water consumption (Dave and Aspegren, 2010 Muthu, 2014). Cotton is one of the most popular natural fibres used in the world. Three percent of the world s cultivated land is used for cotton production and 16% of the world s insecticides are used on this crop alone (Saicheua et al., 2012 Muthu, 2014). Moreover, the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, machinery and electricity causes some human health and environmental problems. Also cotton growing requires 7—29 tonnes of water per kg of raw cotton fibres (KaUiala and Nousiainen, 1999). Other types of cellulosic fibres are hemp and flax, which can be considered to be the most significant sustainable fibres in the non cotton natural fibre sector (Werf, 2004 Muthu, 2014). 

In terms of fibres, a sustainable fibre is one that ideally involves completely renewable chemicals in its production and non-fossil-fuel-derived energy in the production processes. Renewable sources of polymeric materials offer an answer to maintaining sustainable development of economically and ecologically attractive technology. Vink set out a number of factors that the ideal sustainable material should meet it should ... 

Starch is the major carbohydrate reserve in higher plants. In contrast with cellulose that is present in dietary fibres, starch is digested by humans and represents one of the main sources of energy to sustain life. Bread, potato, rice and pasta are examples of the importance of starch in our society. Starch has also been extremely important for centuries in numerous non-food applications, for example, as glue for paper and wood [1] and as gum for the textile industry [2, 3]. Together with wood, natural fibres and leather, starch has been one of the choice materials since the inception of human technology. 

Other than animals, agricultural materials can also be cmisidered as an ideal source of protein and are prospective materials for the preparation of fibres. Fibres of regenerated protein were produced commercially in between 1930 and 1950, and by today s standards, they would be considered natural, sustainable, renewable, and biodegradable. Casein from milk was used by M/s Courtaulds Ltd. to make Fibrolane and by M/s Snia to make Lanital groundnut (peanut) protein was used by... 

The reliance on petrochemicals for nonwovens is destined to change with increasing material consumption with movement towards polymers sourced from regenerative processes (Wiertz, 2014). There is already evidence of this shift, as the production of nonwoven materials from renewable resources is increasing, along with the number of biopolymers available. Where petrochemical-derived polymers remain economical or essential, the production of nonwoven products can be made more sustainable by including recycled polymers and fibres. 

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