From the Sector

The current European Football Championships 2024 in Germany will be played on natural turf, which is very costly to maintain, does not tolerate high frequency of use and has a limited service life of only 6 months in some cases. Artificial turf is easier to maintain and correspondingly popular. In Germany, there are estimated to be more than 5,000 artificial turf pitches and as many as 25,500 across the EU. The drawback: the enormous annual emission of microplastics in the form of infill material, the high CO2 impact and the not environmentally friendly disposal. Researchers in Aachen presented a sustainable alternative: BioTurf is a new artificial turf system made from bio-based polymers that no longer requires polymer infill material!

"Every year, around 500 kilograms of plastic granules are produced per artificial turf pitch, which have to be refilled as infill. This also corresponds to the amount that potentially enters the environment as microplastics per sports pitch," explains Dr Claudia Post from TFI. With an estimated 25,000 artificial turf pitches in the EU, artificial turf in Europe alone produces 12,750 tonnes of microplastics that end up in the environment every year! The TFI - Institut für Bodensysteme an der RWTH Aachen e.V., Institute for Research, Testing and Certification in Europe for Indoor Building Products, has developed the innovative artificial turf system together with the ITA (Institute for Textile Technology at RWTH Aachen University) and in collaboration with the company Morton Extrusionstechnik (MET), a specialist in artificial turf fibres.

"New artificial turf pitches will be phased out by 2031 at the latest due to the ban on plastic granules. Even now, artificial turf pitches with infill material are no longer being subsidised," says Dr Claudia Post. For grassroots sports, clubs, cities and local authorities, converting their existing artificial turf pitches will be a mammoth task in the coming years, as artificial turf pitches have to be replaced every 10-15 years. With BioTurf, an environmentally friendly alternative is now available! The surface can be played on like any other, whether running, passing or kicking. Short, heavily crimped blades support longer blades and this simple approach increases playing comfort. BioTurf fulfils all quality requirements and standards for the highest footballing demands.

"BioTurf is an innovative, holistic solution," emphasises Dirk Hanuschik from TFI. "We use rapeseed oil and agricultural waste that does not compete with food production. BioTurf is also almost completely recyclable".
This is in stark contrast to conventional artificial turf, which can currently only be thermally utilised, i.e. burned to generate heat.

As BioTurf does not require the traditional latex process at all, the energy-intensive drying process can be dispensed with, which has a positive effect on the price. Latex is also difficult to recycle. In contrast, BioTurf uses the new thermobonding technology. Here, the thermoplastic pile yarns are thermally fused to the backing. Further development steps still need to be taken in the endeavour to develop a 100% mono-material artificial turf, as a few percent polypropylene still needs to be processed in the backing in addition to the polyethylene fibre material in order to protect it during thermobonding. However, this does not hinder its recyclability.

The German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research Denkendorf (DITF) are coordinating the research project, which is funded as part of the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation program. The aim of BioFibreLoop is to develop recyclable outdoor and work clothing made from renewable bio-based materials. The kick-off event took place in Denkendorf on June 26 and 27, 2024.

The textile industry is facing two challenges: on the one hand, production must become more sustainable and environmentally friendly and, on the other, consumers are expecting more and more smart functions from clothing.

In addition, the production of functional textiles often involves the use of chemicals that are harmful to the environment and health and make subsequent recycling more difficult.

Intelligent innovations must therefore ensure that harmful chemicals are replaced, water is saved and more durable, recyclable bio-based materials are used, thereby reducing the usually considerable carbon footprint of textile products. Digitalized processes are intended to ensure greater efficiency and a closed cycle.

For example, the BioFibreLoop project uses laser technology to imitate natural structures in order to produce garments with water and oil-repellent, self-cleaning and antibacterial properties. At the end result of the research work will be affordable, resource and environmentally friendly, yet high-performance and durable fibers and textiles made from renewable sources such as lignin, cellulose and polylactic acid will be available. All processes are aimed at a circular economy with comprehensive recycling and virtually waste-free functionalization based on nature's example. In this way, greenhouse gas emissions could be reduced by 20 percent by 2035.

The technology for the functionalization and recycling of bio-based materials is being developed in three industrial demonstration projects in Austria, the Czech Republic and Germany. At the end of the project, a patented circular, sustainable and reliable process for the production of recyclable functional textiles will be established.

The BioFibreLoop project has a duration of 42 months and a total budget of almost 7 million euros, with 1.5 million going to the coordinator DITF.

The consortium consists of 13 partners from nine countries who contribute expertise and resources from science and industry:

• German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research Denkendorf (DITF), Coordinator, Germany
• Next Technology Tecnotessile Società nazionale di ricerca R. L., Italy
• Centre Technologique ALPhANOV, France
• G. Knopf’s Sohn GmbH & Co. KG, Germany
• FreyZein Urban Outdoor GmbH, Austria
• BEES - BE Engineers for Society, Italy
• BAT Graphics Vernitech, France
• Interuniversitair Micro-Electronica Centrum, Belgium
• Idener Research & Development Agrupacion de Interes Economico, Spain
• Teknologian tutkimuskeskus VTT Oy, Finland
• Det Nationale Forskningscenter for Arbejdsmiljø, Denmark
• Steinbeis Innovation gGmbH, Germany
• NIL Textile SRO, Czech Republic

The Supervisory Board of Lenzing Group has appointed Rohit Aggarwal as a new member of the Management Board of Lenzing Group. He will assume responsibility for the fiber division during the third quarter. After the departure of Stephan Sielaff, Aggarwal will take over the position of CEO of Lenzing Group.

Rohit Aggarwal has a sound understanding of the strategic development of international markets and the establishment of efficient management teams through global management positions in Europe, the USA and Asia. Thanks to his experience in the global textile and fiber market, he is well versed with Lenzing's core business in all its facets, both in terms of content and geography.

Stephan Sielaff, CEO of Lenzing Group, will leave the company at the latest when his contract expires at the end of March 2025 and devote himself to new tasks.

As part of the European Erasmus+ project AddTex, the partner organisations organised several hackathons at the universities of Boras (Sweden), UPC (Spain), PIN (Italy) and TUS (Ireland) in May. The aim is to connect students with real challenges in the industry and promote innovation in the areas of ecology, sustainability, digitalisation and design. The participants had received basic information in advance through the 45 training videos and training sessions of the free and public Smart, Digital and Green Skills Academy at https://addtex.eu.

The hackathon at the Italian university PIN (Polo Universitario Città di Prato) was organised and held together with the technical textiles department of the Industrieverband Veredlung - Garne - Gewebe - Technische Textilien e.V. (IVGT). Eight teams competed to develop innovative, sustainable ideas in just a few hours for the German family business Schmitz Textiles GmbH & Co. KG, Emsdetten. Schmitz Textiles, an expert in complete textile solutions for indoor and outdoor use for over 100 years, plans to offer exclusively sustainable products in the medium term and is looking for solutions to continuously increase the existing recycled share of yarns to 100 per cent.

Stefan Schmidt from IVGT presented the challenge via Teams Conference: "We are looking for a new business model for textile recycling at awning manufacturer Schmitz-Textiles in order to increase the existing proportion of recycled yarns and go beyond the exclusive use of recycled PET bottles. Schmitz Textiles has had an awning fabric made from 100% recycled polyester in its range since the end of 2023. The medium-term goal is to switch the entire range of awning fabrics to 100% recycled yarns. The company is looking for suitable solutions to achieve this.

In small teams, the 30 students specialising in eco-design, textiles/sales and textiles/technology developed proposals and presented them in five-minute online pitches. Ralf Bosse for Schmitz Textiles and Iris Schlomski for the IVGT acted as the jury and assessed the individual presentations in the categories of degree of innovation, presentation, industrial application potential and potential for commercial success. Each idea presented and each presentation scored more or less points in the individual categories. In the end, the points scored were added up to determine the winning team, which can further develop its idea together with the company. For Schmitz Textiles, these are Eleonora Boccherini, Ilaria Ioja, Giorgio Gacci and Marianna Butera.

The Lectra Group company announced a new collaboration between TextileGenesis, the textile traceability platform and the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC®). It will enable the implementation, via the TextileGenesis platform, of new solutions to ensure the traceability of cellulose fibers from responsibly managed forests.

In fashion, many textiles such as viscose, lyocell and modal use man-made cellulose fibers. These fibers are themselves made from wood pulp, the production of which can contribute to deforestation.

Founded in 1994, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC®) is an international NGO whose mission is to promote responsible forest management worldwide. In particular, the organization offers certification for products and raw materials which have been obtained from wood grown in responsibly managed forests, and comes from supply chains where social rights of workers, communities and indigenous peoples have been safeguarded.

Amit Gautam, founder and CEO of TextileGenesis, explains: "We've already been working with Man Made Cellulosic Fiber Producers for several years to facilitate, thanks to our blockchain-inspired technology, the traceability of fibers manufactured by the most virtuous producers, and we've integrated their analysis criteria into our platform. By also becoming an FSC® partner today, we're taking things a step further. This new collaboration will support companies in the traceability of FSC certified fibers and support the administration and data management of FSC Chain of Custody certification. All players in the value chain will benefit from increased transparency and much more reliable upstream data. Fashion brands will be able to demonstrate much more easily that their garments use textiles made from responsibly sourced man-made cellulose fibers."

Fabian Farkas, FSC International Chief Commercial Director, adds: “We are seeing a rapid increase in interest in FSC certification from the textile industry, marking a very positive trend. Through this collaboration with TextileGenesis, we aim to simplify the administrative part of FSC certification for companies within the textile supply chain by automating many required data processes. Our goal is to empower brands to identify opportunities for seamless progress in meeting their FSC procurement policies.”

Following the signature in October 2023 of a memorandum of understanding with the International Cotton Association (ICA) and the launch last January of two consortiums with footwear and leather players, and more recently the announcement of its partnership with the Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF), the initiator of The Good Cashmere Standard® (GCS), TextileGenesis confirms, with this new collaboration with the FSC®, its central place in the ecosystem of players mobilizing for more sustainable and responsible fashion.