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Review
. 2025 Jun 26;30(13):2758.
doi: 10.3390/molecules30132758.

Impact of Chemicals and Processing Treatments on Thermo-Mechanical Recycling of Polyester Textiles

Zara Standring  1 , Lisa Macintyre  2 , Gigi Jiang  2 , David Bucknall  1 , Valeria Arrighi  1
Affiliations
Review

Impact of Chemicals and Processing Treatments on Thermo-Mechanical Recycling of Polyester Textiles

Zara Standring et al. Molecules. .

Abstract

The textile industry is among the world's largest, producing an estimated 124 million tonnes of fibres in 2023, with more than half of these being made from virgin polyester. Less than 0.1% of polyester fibres are recycled into new textiles at the end of their lives. Mechanical, thermo-mechanical, and chemical textile-to-textile polyester recycling are all technically possible, but thermo-mechanical recycling is reported to provide the most promising compromise between cost and quality. Myriad chemicals are used in polyester production, and this paper is the first to review the related academic literature to better understand their impact on recyclability. It has been demonstrated that chemicals used during the production and processing of polyester textiles can either provide resistance to, or catalyse, the degradation of polyester during thermo-mechanical recycling processes. However, the effect of combinations of these chemicals on recycling is largely unknown. Limiting, standardising, and transparently reporting the chemicals used during textile production would simplify research and could lead to better quality products after recycling.

Keywords: circular fashion; contamination; degradation; fiber to fiber recycling; fibre to fibre recycling; mechanical recycling; polyester textile waste; sustainability; textile to textile recycling.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 7
Figure 7
Contamination from finishing treatments of polyester textiles. References: (a) (1): [142]; (b) [139,142]; (c) [71,140]; (d) [30]; (e) [143]; (f) [144,145]; (g) [101,107]; (h) [146]; (i) [106]; (j) [71,108]; (k) [147]; (l) [148,149].
Figure 1
Figure 1
Optimising sustainability and circularity of polyester textiles, adapted from the R-strategies framework in reference [9].
Figure 2
Figure 2
Major categories of intentionally added substances (IASs) in polyester textiles. Examples of chemical compounds for each category are given. References: (a) [65]; (b) [63,66]; (c) [66,67]; (d) [68,69,70]; (e) [69]; (f) [28,34,71]; (g) [21]; (h) [72,73].
Figure 3
Figure 3
Major categories of non-intentionally added substances (NIASs) in polyester textiles. Examples of chemical compounds for each category are given. References: (a) [64]; (b) [60,69]; (c) [76]; (d) [82]; (e) [64]; (f) [21,83]; (g) [83]; (h) [69].
Figure 4
Figure 4
PET plastic contaminants from production, use, and recycling. References: (a) [68]; (b) [43,79,81,89,90]; (c) [68,69,70,83,90]; (d) [69]; (e) [83]; (f) [43]; (g) [69]; (h) [44,91]; (i) [68,92].
Figure 5
Figure 5
Contamination from colouration of polyester textiles. References: (a) [43]; (b) [101]; (c) [102]; (d) [27]; (e) [103]; (f) [104]; (g) [105]; (h) [106].
Figure 6
Figure 6
Contamination from colouration of polyester textiles. References: (a) [126,127]; (b) [119]; (c) [128]; (d) [129]; (e) [130]; (f) [131,132]; (g) [131]; (h) [14]; (i) [27]; (j) [133]; (k) [124]; (l) [126,131]; (m) [104]; (n) [131,134]; (o) [126].
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