Textination Newsline

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New conductive, cotton-based fiber developed for smart textiles

Photo: Dean Hare, WSU Photo Services

29.12.2023

New conductive, cotton-based fiber developed for smart textiles

A single strand of fiber developed at Washington State University has the flexibility of cotton and the electric conductivity of a polymer, called polyaniline.

The newly developed material showed good potential for wearable e-textiles. The WSU researchers tested the fibers with a system that powered an LED light and another that sensed ammonia gas, detailing their findings in the journal Carbohydrate Polymers.

“We have one fiber in two sections: one section is the conventional cotton: flexible and strong enough for everyday use, and the other side is the conductive material,” said Hang Liu, WSU textile researcher and the study’s corresponding author. “The cotton can support the conductive material which can provide the needed function.”

A single strand of fiber developed at Washington State University has the flexibility of cotton and the electric conductivity of a polymer, called polyaniline.

While more development is needed, the idea is to integrate fibers like these into apparel as sensor patches with flexible circuits. These patches could be part of uniforms for firefighters, soldiers or workers who handle chemicals to detect for hazardous exposures. Other applications include health monitoring or exercise shirts that can do more than current fitness monitors.

“We have some smart wearables, like smart watches, that can track your movement and human vital signs, but we hope that in the future your everyday clothing can do these functions as well,” said Liu. “Fashion is not just color and style, as a lot of people think about it: fashion is science.”

In this study, the WSU team worked to overcome the challenges of mixing the conductive polymer with cotton cellulose. Polymers are substances with very large molecules that have repeating patterns. In this case, the researchers used polyaniline, also known as PANI, a synthetic polymer with conductive properties already used in applications such as printed circuit board manufacturing.

While intrinsically conductive, polyaniline is brittle and by itself, cannot be made into a fiber for textiles. To solve this, the WSU researchers dissolved cotton cellulose from recycled t-shirts into a solution and the conductive polymer into another separate solution. These two solutions were then merged together side-by-side, and the material was extruded to make one fiber.

The result showed good interfacial bonding, meaning the molecules from the different materials would stay together through stretching and bending.

Achieving the right mixture at the interface of cotton cellulose and polyaniline was a delicate balance, Liu said.

“We wanted these two solutions to work so that when the cotton and the conductive polymer contact each other they mix to a certain degree to kind of glue together, but we didn’t want them to mix too much, otherwise the conductivity would be reduced,” she said.

Additional WSU authors on this study included first author Wangcheng Liu as well as Zihui Zhao, Dan Liang, Wei-Hong Zhong and Jinwen Zhang. This research received support from the National Science Foundation and the Walmart Foundation Project.

More information:
Washington State University Smart textiles cotton Fibers wearables

Source:

Sara Zaske, WSU News & Media Relations

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Chemist Unlocks Plastic Alternatives Using Proteins and Clothing Scraps

Photo: Challa Kumar, professor emeritus of chemistry, in his lab. (Contributed photo)

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21.12.2023

Chemist Unlocks Plastic Alternatives Using Proteins and Clothing Scraps

Challa Kumar has developed methods to create novel plastic-like materials using proteins and fabric.

Every year, 400 million tons of plastic waste are generated worldwide. Between 19 and 23 million tons of that plastic waste makes its way into aquatic ecosystems, and the remaining goes into the ground. An additional 92 million tons of cloth waste is generated annually.

Challa Kumar, professor emeritus of chemistry, “fed up” with the tremendous amount of toxic waste people continually pump into the environment, felt compelled to do something. As a chemist, doing something meant using his expertise to develop new, sustainable materials.

“Everyone should think about replacing fossil fuel-based materials with natural materials anywhere they can to help our civilization to survive,” Kumar says. “The house is on fire, we can’t wait. If the house is on fire and you start digging a well – that is not going to work. It’s time to start pouring water on the house.”

Challa Kumar has developed methods to create novel plastic-like materials using proteins and fabric.

Kumar has developed two technologies that use proteins and cloth, respectively, to create new materials. UConn’s Technology Commercialization Services (TCS) has filed provisional patents for both technologies.

Inspired by nature’s ability to construct a diverse array of functional materials, Kumar and his team developed a method to produce continuously tunable non-toxic materials.

“Chemistry is the only thing standing in our way,” Kumar says. “If we understand protein chemistry, we can make protein materials as strong as a diamond or as soft as a feather.”

The first innovation is a process to transform naturally occurring proteins into plastic-like materials. Kumar’s student, Ankarao Kalluri ’23 Ph.D., worked on this project.

Proteins have “reactor groups” on their surfaces which can react with substances with which they come into contact. Using his knowledge of how these groups work, Kumar and his team used a chemical link to bind protein molecules together.

This process creates a dimer – a molecule composed to two proteins. From there, the dimer is joined with another dimer to create tetramer, and so on until it becomes a large 3D molecule. This 3D aspect of the technology is unique, since most synthetic polymers are linear chains.

This novel 3D structure allows the new polymer to behave like a plastic. Just like the proteins of which it is made, the material can stretch, change shape, and fold. Thus, the material can be tailored via chemistry for a variety of specific applications.

Unlike synthetic polymers, because Kumar’s material is made of proteins and a bio-linking chemical, it can biodegrade, just like plant and animal proteins do naturally.

“Nature degrades proteins by ripping apart the amide bonds that are in them,” Kumar says. “It has enzymes to handle that sort of chemistry. We have the same amide linkages in our materials. So, the same enzymes that work in biology should also work on this material and biodegrade it naturally.”

In the lab, the team found that the material degrades within a few days in acidic solution. Now, they are investigating what happens if they bury this material in the ground, which is the fate of many post-consumer plastics.

They have demonstrated that the protein-based material can form a variety of plastic-like products, including coffee cup lids and thin transparent films. It could also be used to make fire-resistant roof tiles, or higher-end materials like, car doors, rocket cone tips, or heart valves.

The next steps for this technology are to continue testing their mechanical properties, like strength or flexibility, as well as toxicity.

“I think we need to have social consciousness that we cannot put out materials into the environment that are toxic,” Kumar says. “We just cannot. We have to stop doing that. And we cannot use materials derived from fossil fuels either.”

Kumar’s second technology uses a similar principle, but instead of just proteins, uses proteins reinforced with natural fibers, specifically cotton.

“We are creating a lot of textile waste each year due to the fast-changing fashion industry” Kumar says. “So why not use that waste to create useful materials – convert waste to wealth.”

Just like the plastic-like protein materials (called “Proteios,” derived from original Greek words), Kumar expects composite materials made from proteins and natural fibers will biodegrade without producing toxic waste.

In the lab, Kumar’s former student, doctoral candidate Adekeye Damilola, created many objects with protein-fabric composites, which include small shoes, desks, flowers, and chairs. This material contains textile fibers which serve as the linking agent with the proteins, rather than the cross-linking chemical Kumar uses for the protein-based plastics.

The crosslinking provides the novel material with the strength to withstand the weight that would be put on something like a chair or a table. The natural affinity between fibers and proteins is why it’s so hard to get food stains out of clothing. This same attraction makes strong protein-fabric materials.

While Kumar’s team has only worked with cotton so far, they expect other fiber materials, like hemp fibers or jute, would behave similarly due to their inherent but common chemical properties with cotton.

“The protein naturally adheres to the surface of the protein,” Kumar says. “We used that understanding to say ‘Hey, if it binds so tightly to cotton, why don’t we make a material out of it.’ And it works, it works amazingly.”

With the support of TCS, Professor Kumar is currently seeking industry partners to bring these technologies to market. For more information contact Michael Invernale at michael.invernale@uconn.edu.

More information:
polymers plastics natural fibers cotton

Source:

Anna Zarra Aldrich '20 (CLAS), Office of the Vice President for Research

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$A cotton knit fabric dyed blue and washed 10 times to simulate worn garments is enzymatically degraded to a slurry of fine fibers and "blue glucose" syrup that are separated by filtration - both of these separated fractions have potential recycle value.$ A cotton knit fabric dyed blue and washed 10 times to simulate worn garments is enzymatically degraded to a slurry of fine fibers and "blue glucose" syrup that are separated by filtration - both of these separated fractions have potential recycle value. Credit: Sonja Salmon.

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11.04.2023

Researchers Separate Cotton from Polyester in Blended Fabric

In a new study, North Carolina State University researchers found they could separate blended cotton and polyester fabric using enzymes – nature’s tools for speeding chemical reactions. Ultimately, they hope their findings will lead to a more efficient way to recycle the fabric’s component materials, thereby reducing textile waste. However, they also found the process need more steps if the blended fabric was dyed or treated with chemicals that increase wrinkle resistance.

“We can separate all of the cotton out of a cotton-polyester blend, meaning now we have clean polyester that can be recycled,” said the study’s corresponding author Sonja Salmon, associate professor of textile engineering, chemistry and science at NC State. “In a landfill, the polyester is not going to degrade, and the cotton might take several months or more to break down. Using our method, we can separate the cotton from polyester in less than 48 hours.”

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, consumers throw approximately 11 million tons of textile waste into U.S. landfills each year. Researchers wanted to develop a method of separating the cotton from the polyester so each component material could be recycled.

In the study, researchers used a “cocktail” of enzymes in a mildly acidic solution to chop up cellulose in cotton. Cellulose is the material that gives structure to plants’ cell walls. The idea is to chop up the cellulose so it will “fall out” out of the blended woven structure, leaving some tiny cotton fiber fragments remaining, along with glucose. Glucose is the biodegradable byproduct of degraded cellulose. Then, their process involves washing away the glucose and filtering out the cotton fiber fragments, leaving clean polyester.

“This is a mild process – the treatment is slightly acidic, like using vinegar,” Salmon said. “We also ran it at 50 degrees Celsius, which is like the temperature of a hot washing machine.
“It’s quite promising that we can separate the polyester to a clean level,” Salmon added. “We still have some more work to do to characterize the polyester’s properties, but we think they will be very good because the conditions are so mild. We’re just adding enzymes that ignore the polyester.”

They compared degradation of 100% cotton fabric to degradation of cotton and polyester blends, and also tested fabric that was dyed with red and blue reactive dyes and treated with durable press chemicals. In order to break down the dyed materials, the researchers had to increase the amount of time and enzymes used. For fabrics treated with durable press chemicals, they had to use a chemical pre-treatment before adding the enzymes.

“The dye that you choose has a big impact on the potential degradation of the fabric,” said the study’s lead author Jeannie Egan, a graduate student at NC State. “Also, we found the biggest obstacle so far is the wrinkle-resistant finish. The chemistry behind that creates a significant block for the enzyme to access the cellulose. Without pre-treating it, we achieved less than 10% degradation, but after, with two enzyme doses, we were able to fully degrade it, which was a really exciting result.”

Researchers said the polyester could be recycled, while the slurry of cotton fragments could be valuable as an additive for paper or useful addition to composite materials. They’re also investigating whether the glucose could be used to make biofuels.

“The slurry is made of residual cotton fragments that resist a very powerful enzymatic degradation,” Salmon said. “It has potential value as a strengthening agent. For the glucose syrup, we’re collaborating on a project to see if we can feed it into an anaerobic digester to make biofuel. We’d be taking waste and turning it into bioenergy, which would be much better than throwing it into a landfill.”

The study, “Enzymatic textile fiber separation for sustainable waste processing,” was published in Resources, Environment and Sustainability. Co-authors included Siyan Wang, Jialong Shen, Oliver Baars and Geoffrey Moxley. Funding was provided by the Environmental Research and Education Foundation, Kaneka Corporation and the Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science at NC State.

More information:
cotton blended fabric polyester enzymatic North Carolina State University Wilson College

Source:

North Carolina State University, Laura Oleniacz

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Photo: pixabay, Hilary Clark

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01.02.2022

Cotton Fibers 2.0: Fireproof and comfortable

A new chemical process developed by Empa turns cotton into a fire-resistant fabric, that nevertheless retains the skin-friendly properties of cotton.

Conventional flame retardant cotton textiles suffer from release of formaldehyde and are uncomfortable to wear. Empa scientists managed to circumvent this problem by creating a physically and chemically independent network of flame retardants inside the fibers. This approach retains the inherently positive properties of cotton fibers, which account for three-quarters of the world's demand for natural fibers in clothing and home textiles. Cotton is skin-friendly because it can absorb considerable amounts of water and maintain a favorable microclimate on the skin.

A new chemical process developed by Empa turns cotton into a fire-resistant fabric, that nevertheless retains the skin-friendly properties of cotton.

For firefighters and other emergency service personnel, protective clothing provides the most important barrier. For such purposes, cotton is mainly used as an inner textile layer that needs additional properties: For example, it must be fireproof or protect against biological contaminants. Nevertheless, it should not be hydrophobic, which would create an uncomfortable microclimate. These additional properties can be built into the cotton fibers by suitable chemical modifications.

Durability vs. toxicity
"Until now, it has always taken a compromise to make cotton fireproof," says Sabyasachi Gaan, a chemist and polymer expert who works at Empa's Advanced Fibers lab. Wash-durable flame retardant cotton in industry is produced by treating the fabric with flame retardants, which chemically links to the cellulose in the cotton. Currently, the textile industry has no other choice than to utilize formaldehyde-based chemicals – and formaldehyde is classified as a carcinogen. This has been an unsolved problem for decades. While formaldehyde-based flame retardant treatments are durable, they have additional drawbacks: The -OH groups of cellulose are chemically blocked, which considerably reduces the capability of cotton to absorb water, which results in an uncomfortable textile.

Gaan knows the chemistry of cotton fibers well and has spent many years at Empa developing flame retardants based on phosphorus chemistry that are already used in many industrial applications. Now he has succeeded in finding an elegant and easy way to anchor phosphorous in form of an independent network inside the cotton.

Independent network between cotton fibers
Gaan and his colleagues Rashid Nazir, Dambarudhar Parida and Joel Borgstädt utilized a tri-functional phosphorous compound (trivinylphosphine oxide), which has the capability of reacting only with specifically added molecules (nitrogen compounds like piperazin) to form its own network inside cotton. This makes the cotton permanently fire-resistant without blocking the favorable -OH groups. In addition, the physical phosphine oxide network also likes water. This flame retardant treatment does not include carcinogenic formaldehyde, which would endanger textile workers during textile manufacturing. The phosphine oxide networks, thus formed, does not wash out: After 50 launderings, 95 percent of the flame retardant network is still present in the fabric.

To render additional protective functionalities to the flame retardant cotton developed at Empa, the researchers also incorporated in situ generated silver nanoparticles inside the fabric. This works nicely in a one-step process together with generating the phosphine oxide networks. Silver nanoparticles provide the fiber with antimicrobial properties and survive 50 laundry cycles, too.

A high-tech solution from the pressure cooker
"We have used a simple approach to fix the phosphine oxide networks inside the cellulose," Gaan says. "For our lab experiments, we first treated the cotton with an aqueous solution of phosphorus and nitrogen compounds and then steamed it in a readily available pressure cooker to facilitate the crosslinking reaction of the phosphorus and the nitrogen molecules." The application process is compatible with equipment used in the textile industry. "Steaming textiles after dyeing, printing and finishing is a normal step in textile industry. So it doesn't require an additional investment to apply our process," states the Empa chemist.

Meanwhile, this newly developed phosphorus chemistry and its application is protected by a patent application. "Two important hurdles remain," Gaan says. "For future commercialization we need to find a suitable chemical manufacturer who can produce and supply trivinylphosphine oxide. In addition, trivinylphosphine oxide has to be REACH-registered in Europe."

Contact:
Dr. Sabyasachi Gaan
Advanced Fibers
Phone: +41 58 765 7611
sabyasachi.gaan@empa.ch

Contact:
Prof. Dr. Manfred Heuberger
Advanced Fibers
Phone: +41 58 765 7878
manfred.heuberger@empa.ch

A gel that releases drugs
The novel phosphorus chemistry can also be used to develop other materials, e.g. to make hydrogels that can release drugs upon changes in pH. Such gels could find application in treating wounds that heal slowly. In such wounds, the pH of the skin surface increases and the new phosphorus-based gels can be triggered to release medication or a dye that alerts doctors and nurses to the problem. Empa has also patented the production of such hydrogels.

More information:
Empa cotton Fibers fire-resistant Protective Textiles

Source:

EMPA, Rainer Klose

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10.11.2020

Fashion and textiles industry keen to go green despite COVID-19 pandemic

New research shows business leaders at top fashion, retail and textile businesses are putting sustaina-bility drive first, despite COVID-19 pandemic
The power of data in the effort to ‘go green’ is well recognized, but patchy performance suggests more access to better quality data needed to help turbocharge change
Despite Covid-19, fashion leaders are confident that fast, affordable and sustainable fashion is realistic, with crisis seen as opportunity to recharge sustainability efforts

New research reveals the extent of the global fashion industry's commitment to sustainability, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, with sustainability ranked as the second most important strategic objective for businesses in the sector .

New research shows business leaders at top fashion, retail and textile businesses are putting sustaina-bility drive first, despite COVID-19 pandemic
The power of data in the effort to ‘go green’ is well recognized, but patchy performance suggests more access to better quality data needed to help turbocharge change
Despite Covid-19, fashion leaders are confident that fast, affordable and sustainable fashion is realistic, with crisis seen as opportunity to recharge sustainability efforts

The new research, from the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol and the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), is like Puma, H&M and Adidas. Explored in a new report, ‘Is Sustainability in Fashion?’ the research comes at a time when the industry finds itself at a crossroads: whether to continue to invest in sustainability, or row back in light of the pandemic.

Sustainability is business critical, say fashion, retail and textile leaders
In defiance of the pandemic, the new data shows that for many of the world's biggest brands, sustaina-bility is now business critical. The majority of fashion, retail and textile leaders surveyed (60%), named implementing sustainability measures as a top two strategic objective for their business, second only to improving customers’ experience (ranked first by 64%). This contrasts starkly with the fewer than one in six (14%) that listed 'rewarding shareholders' as a top objective.

Leaders report they’re introducing sustainability measures throughout the supply chain, from sourcing sustainably produced raw materials (65%), introducing a circular economy approach to their business and cutting greenhouse gasses (51% apiece) and investing in new technologies like 3D printing and blockchain (41%). Overall, the majority (73%) were optimistic that sustainable, fast and affordable fash-ion is achievable.

Data matters
A key finding of the research is that data matters for sustainability. When asked what measures they were implementing today to be more sustainable, collecting data from across the business and in the supply chain to measure performance was listed at the very top of business leaders’ list of priorities by 53%, second only to developing and implementing an environmental sustainability strategy with meas-urable targets, favoured by almost six in ten (58%).

And data is not important for the immediate term only – three in ten (29%) said the availability of relia-ble data holds the key to greater sustainability over the next decade, while almost three-quarters of industry leaders (73%) stated their support for global benchmarks and thresholds as an effective means of measuring sustainability performance and driving progress in the industry.

But data collection is patchy
However, although brands clearly recognize the importance of data, the research’s findings on data collection indicates that top fashion brands, retailers and textile businesses may find sourcing good quality data a challenge.

While business leaders report relatively high rates of data collection on supplier sustainability practices based on a survey of 150 leading executives from top fashion, retail and textile business across Europe and the US and interviews with leading brands (65%) and worker rights and workplace health and safety in the supply chain (62%), a significant proportion (45%) of businesses do not track greenhouse gas emissions across production, manufacturing and distribution of the products they sell, while 41% don’t track the amount of water and energy being used to produce the raw materials they source.

Looking to the future, over a quarter (26%) of respondents saw a lack of available, easily-accessible data as hampering collaboration on sustainability across the industry. As some respondents in interview pointed out, while collecting data could be hard it is important.

Commenting on the findings, Gary Adams, President of the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol, said: "It is clear that brands are faced with a challenge on driving forward their sustainability efforts. At the U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol we know that accurate, reliable data supports businesses in this work - providing not only the evidence to show hard work and progress, but the insight to drive further improvements. We pro-vide one of the most robust data collection mechanisms available for an essential material – cotton – for unparalleled transparency.”

Partnership offers path to further progress
An additional key finding is that fashion, retail and textile business clearly cannot drive change in isola-tion: collaboration is needed. According to one respondent, from Reformation, this is already happen-ing. “We’re energized to see collaboration and cooperation across the industry and believe that will only increase over time.”

However, when it comes to external support to help guide that progress, business leaders do not nec-essarily perceive further regulation as the answer. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and government regulation were each given equal weight in driving sustainability change, both cited by a quarter of respondents (24% apiece). Regulatory requirements were also ranked by only a third (33%) of the business leaders surveyed as being within the top three factors that will drive sustainability pro-gress over the next decade.

Jonathan Birdwell, Regional Head of Public Policy and Thought Leadership, The Economist Intelligence Unit: “It’s clear from the survey results and our interviews with business leaders that the industry is committed to driving progress on its sustainability performance. We were particularly struck by the fact that sustainability is largely considered as pre-competitive – behind the scenes brands are sharing re-sources and lessons learned.”

The impact of Covid-19
This determination on sustainability flies in the face of COVID-19 uncertainty, although when asked their view on the pandemic, just over half (54%) of respondents said they thought it would make sustainabil-ity less of a priority within the industry.

The U.S. Cotton Trust Protocol is a new initiative that sets a new standard in sustainably grown cotton. By working closely with growers, the U.S. Trust Protocol provides clear, consistent data on six key sus-tainability metrics, including GHG emissions, water use, soil carbon, soil loss, independently audited through Control Union Certification. For the first time, brands can access annualized farm level data and trace their cotton from field to 'laydown'.

Research based on quantitative survey of 150 executives in the fashion, retail and textile industry based in Europe and the United States undertaken by the Economist Intelligence Unit between 9th July and 28th July 2020. The survey was complemented by qualitative insight from interviews with ten professionals in the fashion and sustainability space.

More information:
Sustainability Covid-19 US Cotton Trust Protocol cotton

Source:

Hill+Knowlton Strategies GmbH

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TEXTILE INDUSTRY IN PAKISTAN MUST MODERNIZE

Photo: OpenClipart-Vectors at Pixabay

26.03.2019

TEXTILE INDUSTRY IN PAKISTAN MUST MODERNIZE

The cultivation of cotton is to be expanded

Pakistan's textile industry has lost competitiveness. Investments in new textile technology are necessary. Exports of German machinery increase.

The textile industry is Pakistan's most important industrial sector. In Pakistan's fiscal year 2017/18 (July 1st 2017 to June 30th 2018), the textile industry accounted for 8.5 percent of gross domestic product. The sector accounted for about a quarter of the total industrial value added. It is by far the country's most important export sector. Textile exports accounted for 58 percent of total exports in 2017/18.

The cultivation of cotton is to be expanded

Pakistan's textile industry has lost competitiveness. Investments in new textile technology are necessary. Exports of German machinery increase.

However, the international competitiveness of the sector is currently declining. This trend should turn around. Prime Minister Imran Khan met with representatives of the textile industry at the end of January 2019. Economic policy aims to expand and modernize the textile industry. Production costs are to be reduced and productivity increased. In addition, quality improvements, production expansions and higher added value are necessary.

The textile industry's value chain begins with around 1,300 companies that are ginning, process and bale raw cotton. In addition to the demand for cotton, the demand for synthetic fibers is also increasing, although there are only three manufacturers of polyester fibers in Pakistan to date.

The number of spinning mills is estimated at 517 in 2017 and the number of weaving mills at 124 large and 425 medium-sized and small mills. Ten large and 625 medium-sized and small companies process fabrics. Towels were produced by about 400 companies, knitted fabrics by 2,500 companies. Clothing made of woven fabrics was supplied by 50 large factories and 2,500 medium-sized and small factories.

Export transactions stagnate
Pakistan's textile exports grew by 8.7 percent to USD 13.5 billion in 2017/18. This level was already reached in 2013/14 and 2014/15. Textile exports in the first seven months of fiscal year 2018/19 (July 18th to January 19th) increased slightly by 1.2 percent year-on-year to US$ 7.8 billion.

**Pakistan: exports of yarn, fabrics and clothing (USD million) ^*)**
Products	2013/14	2014/15	2015/16	2016/17	2017/18
Total	13,733	13,471	12,447	12,452	13,530
.Cotton yarn	1,997	1,849	1,265	1,244	1,372
.Cotton fabrics	2,770	2,453	2,214	2,136	2,204
.Towels	767	797	803	801	797
.Bed linen	2,138	2,103	2,020	2,136	2,261
.Clothing	1,906	2,095	2,195	2,319	2,579
.Knitted goods	2,294	2,406	2,364	2,361	2,720
.Other products	1,858	1,767	1,586	1,452	1,597

^*) Fiscal years (July to June)

Sources: All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA); Pakistan Bureau of Statistics; Textile Commissioner's Organization

The All Pakistan Textile Mills Association (APTMA) aims to increase exports to USD 28 billion by 2023/24. This requires consistent state support and long-term export promotion, according to the association.

The leading foreign customer is the USA. Other important customers include the United Kingdom, Germany and Spain. In 2017 and 2018, Germany imported textile materials and goods worth EUR 1 billion from Pakistan.

Machine imports still declining
Imports of textile machinery in 2013/14 amounted still to USD 599 million. In the following three years it was USD 449 million (2014/15), USD 462 million (2015/16) and USD 557 million (2016/17). Imports are not currently showing an upward trend despite the need for modernization. According to the statistics authority, they fell by 42 per cent to USD 325 million in 2017/18. There are still no signs of a recovery in 2018/19 either.

**Pakistan: Imports of selected textile machinery (USD million)**
HS-Positions	2014	2015	2016	2017
84.45 Spinning machines etc.	230	162	162	246
84.46 Looms	84	73	107	90
84.47 Knitting machines etc.	70	84	65	75
84.48 Auxiliary machinery for HS headings 84.44 to 84.47	85	70	77	82

Sources: Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, UN Comtrade

Business trip to the fifth largest customer of German spinning technology
According to calculations by the German Engineering Federation (VDMA), German textile machinery exports to Pakistan increased to EUR 53 million in 2017. The previous year's figure was EUR 48 million, EUR 39 million of which was attributable to spinning machines.

A business trip of German companies from the textile machinery and accessories sectors will take place to Karachi and Lahore from November 11th to 15th 2019. The Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy will promote and the company SBS Systems for Business Solution will organize the trip (contact: Thomas Nytsch, e-mail: thomasnytsch@sbs-business.com).

Cotton production to be strongly increased
The local cotton production is the base of the textile industry. After India, China and the USA, Pakistan is the fourth largest cotton producer, followed by Brazil and Uzbekistan. Without an increase in local crop yields, the growth of the textile industry is limited. Increased imports of cotton would further reduce the industry's struggling international competitiveness.

In an international comparison, the country is one of the cotton producers with the lowest yields per hectare. Australia, Turkey, China and Brazil form the leading group with about 1,600 to 1,700 kilograms per hectare. Pakistan only reaches 600 to 800 kilograms.

**Pakistan: Cotton production**
Year	Cultivation area (in hectares)	Production (in 1,000 bales) ¹⁾	Yield per hectare (in kilograms)
2013/14	2,086	12,769	774
2014/15	2,961	13,960	802
2015/16	2,902	9,917	582
2016/17	2,489	10,671	730
2017/18	2,699	11,935	752
2018/19 ²⁾	2,500	11,000	748

¹⁾ one bale = 170 ^{kilograms, 2)} Forecast
Source: Pakistan Bureau of Statistics; research by Germany Trade & Invest

The government has set a production target of around 15 million bales for 2019/20. APTMA believes an increase to 20 million bales is possible by 2023/24. The association assumes that there will be about 2,800 hectares of cultivated land and an increase in yields per hectare to 1,200 kilograms.

Problems with the supply of cotton

Baumwolle wird vor allem in den Provinzen Punjab und Sindh angebaut. Die Baumwollproduktion erreichte 2014/15 noch rund 14 Millionen Ballen. Die Ernte fiel 2015/16 auf unter 10 Millionen und lag 2017/18 bei 12 Millionen Ballen. Die Produktion ist 2018/19 wieder gesunken, ein Wert von etwa 11 Millionen Ballen wird prognostiziert. Als Gründe werden unter anderem Wassermangel, eine schlechte Qualität der Pflanzenschutzmittel und minderwertiges Saatgut genannt. Zudem sei die finanzielle und regulatorische Unterstützung der Regierung unzureichend, so Branchenvertreter.

The local supply could therefore no longer cover the annual cotton demand of the textile industry of 15 to 16 million bales in recent years. Textile manufacturers therefore imported cotton mainly from India and China, about 3 million to 4 million bales a year. However, imports from India have been stopped since February 2019. The background to this is the political tensions and recent military conflicts between the two states.