Hydrothermal liquefaction of post-consumer mixed textile waste for recovery of bio-oil and terephthalic acid

TY - JOUR

T1 - Hydrothermal liquefaction of post-consumer mixed textile waste for recovery of bio-oil and terephthalic acid

AU - Matayeva, Aisha

AU - Biller, Patrick

PY - 2022/10

Y1 - 2022/10

N2 - Fast fashion trends lead to significant quantities of textiles produced and discarded, its waste is incinerated or landfilled due to a lack of recycling technologies for mixed textiles. Recycling of mixed textiles by hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is a novel approach to produce bio-oil and monomers, as no prior sorting or color removal is required. Herein, post-consumer polyester (polyethylene terephthalate (PET)) and cotton garments were subjected to HTL to produce bio-oil and terephthalic acid (TPA). The effects of blending ratio of PET and cotton, temperature and alkali catalyst on the product distributions are investigated. A maximum bio-oil yield of 26% was attained at 325 °C for a 95% Cotton/ 5% PET mix under alkali conditions. TPA yields ranged from 48 to 91%, where 50/50% PET/cotton resulted in a higher TPA yield than 95/5% PET/cotton textile wastes. The results obtained contribute to the development of sustainable recycling processes of mixed textiles.

AB - Fast fashion trends lead to significant quantities of textiles produced and discarded, its waste is incinerated or landfilled due to a lack of recycling technologies for mixed textiles. Recycling of mixed textiles by hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is a novel approach to produce bio-oil and monomers, as no prior sorting or color removal is required. Herein, post-consumer polyester (polyethylene terephthalate (PET)) and cotton garments were subjected to HTL to produce bio-oil and terephthalic acid (TPA). The effects of blending ratio of PET and cotton, temperature and alkali catalyst on the product distributions are investigated. A maximum bio-oil yield of 26% was attained at 325 °C for a 95% Cotton/ 5% PET mix under alkali conditions. TPA yields ranged from 48 to 91%, where 50/50% PET/cotton resulted in a higher TPA yield than 95/5% PET/cotton textile wastes. The results obtained contribute to the development of sustainable recycling processes of mixed textiles.

KW - Bio-oil

KW - Cotton

KW - Hydrothermal liquefaction

KW - Polyester

KW - Terephthalic acid

KW - Textile

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85133900336&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.resconrec.2022.106502

DO - 10.1016/j.resconrec.2022.106502

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:85133900336

SN - 0921-3449

VL - 185

JO - Resources, Conservation & Recycling

JF - Resources, Conservation & Recycling

M1 - 106502

ER -