BIOTEXFUTURE

Copyright: © adidas   Copyright: © adidas

The Textile Industry is not sustainable yet. Annually, over 120 million tons of textile fibres are being processed worldwide, 73% of those are man-made fibres. Over 90 % of those man-made fibres are created on a petroleum basis. A raw material that causes significant environmental damages as well in the production process, as during the use and in the end-of-life phase of the textile product.

The ITA Institut für Textiltechnik of RWTH Aachen University is convinced that by engaging in ground-breaking research we are able to pave the way for innovation in the textile industry. This research is partly at an early stage today, but will be crucially relevant tomorrow. The production of plastics from crude oil causes a wide range of ecological, social and economic challenges. Thus, a fundamental industrial turnaround is needed. BIOTEXFUTURE is an innovation space funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) for a duration of 5 years. Since November 2019, adidas and ITA have been co-leading the program. We are collaborating with industrial and scientific partners who share our vision to convert the textile value chain from petroleum-based to bio-based and strive every day to create the change needed in the textile industry.

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Individual projects are dealing with new bio-based materials. These are ALGAETEX, using algae as a new raw material basis for textile production, BIOBASE for the evaluation of new bio-based polymers, CO2TEX, developing new elastic fibres based on CO2, and BIOCOAT, on environmentally friendly textile finishes. However, not only new raw materials are being tested, but also, as in the BIOTURF project, new environmentally friendly manufacturing processes, using the example of artificial turf pitches. These are currently in the focus of attention because the EU in about to ban plastic granulate as an infill material throughout Europe in the upcoming years, meaning that potentially thousands of new artificial turf surfaces for ball sports will have to be replaced throughout the EU. Thus, the projects funded by BIOTEXFUTURE provide a valuable contribution to numerous current environmental challenges.

The last BioTexFuture Autumn Forum 2022 focused on the topic of "textile recycling of bio-based materials" and discussed it with industry experts. Please find a summary of the event here.

We are pleased to be able to publish calls for projects within the framework of BioTexFuture again:

• Project outlines (2 pages) can be submitted at any time. They are a prerequisite for project submission.
• The deadlines for submitting full project proposals are 31.01.2023 / 30.04.2023 / 31.07.2023 / 30.10.2023 respectively.
• Only German companies can apply for funding.
• Further information can be found under the following link.