The efficacy of alkaline hydrolysis on selective degradation and recovery of high-purity terephthalic acid and cotton cellulose from postconsumer polyester/cotton waste

IF 6.3 2区化学 Q1 POLYMER SCIENCE Polymer Degradation and Stability Pub Date : 2025-02-10 DOI:10.1016/j.polymdegradstab.2025.111261

Rivalani Baloyi Baloyi , Bruce Bishop Sithole , Mufaro Moyo

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Abstract

Textile waste is one of the biggest global waste problems requiring innovative and sustainable solutions. This study focused on developing a potential sustainable solution to textile waste by recycling of blended polyester/cotton fabric waste. The blends were pretreated prior to selective alkaline degradation and then vacuum filtered into constituent materials. Terephthalic acid (TPA), ethylene glycol (EG), and cotton were the constituent materials. The effects of the processing conditions and determination of optimum conditions were ascertained by analysis of the constituent materials’ properties. Electron microscopy (SEM), Ultraviolet spectroscopy (UV–VIS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermogravimetric analyses (TGA-DSC) and viscometer were utilized in characterizing the recovered materials. The optimum processing conditions were found to be 15 % (w/v) NaOH in the presence of 1 mol BTBAC: 1 mol per repeating unit of polyester phase transfer catalyst and processing temperature and time of 80 °C and 270 mins, respectively. These conditions resulted in complete hydrolysis of the polyester in polyester/cotton blended fabrics waste achieving a TPA recovery rate of 80 % and recovery rate of 97 % for cotton fibres. The recovered cellulose had viscosities between 340 and 520 ml/g which is within the range of pulp utilized in the production of regenerated fibres. The successful separation of TPA and cotton fibres implies that the recycling of blended textiles can be accomplished contributing to sustainable textile waste management and circular economy. The research indicates significant potential for scalable textile waste solution to confront the increasing crisis of textile waste globally.

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纺织废物是全球最大的废物问题之一，需要创新和可持续的解决方案。这项研究的重点是通过回收利用涤纶/棉混纺织物废料，为纺织废料开发一种潜在的可持续解决方案。混合物在选择性碱性降解前进行预处理，然后真空过滤成成分材料。对苯二甲酸 (TPA)、乙二醇 (EG) 和棉花为组成材料。通过分析组成材料的特性，确定了加工条件的影响和最佳条件。在分析回收材料的特性时，使用了电子显微镜（SEM）、紫外光谱（UV-VIS）、X 射线衍射（XRD）、傅立叶变换红外光谱（FTIR）、热重分析（TGA-DSC）和粘度计。最佳加工条件是在 1 摩尔 BTBAC 的存在下，加入 15%（w/v）的 NaOH：每重复单位聚酯相转移催化剂 1 摩尔，处理温度和时间分别为 80 °C 和 270 分钟。在这些条件下，涤纶/棉混纺废料中的涤纶完全水解，TPA 回收率达到 80%，棉纤维回收率达到 97%。回收的纤维素粘度在 340 至 520 毫升/克之间，属于再生纤维生产中使用的纸浆范围。TPA 和棉纤维的成功分离意味着可以实现混纺纺织品的回收利用，从而促进可持续的纺织废物管理和循环经济。这项研究表明，可扩展的纺织废物解决方案具有巨大潜力，可应对全球日益严重的纺织废物危机。

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来源期刊

Polymer Degradation and Stability 化学-高分子科学

CiteScore

10.10

自引率

10.20%

发文量

325

审稿时长

23 days

期刊介绍： Polymer Degradation and Stability deals with the degradation reactions and their control which are a major preoccupation of practitioners of the many and diverse aspects of modern polymer technology. Deteriorative reactions occur during processing, when polymers are subjected to heat, oxygen and mechanical stress, and during the useful life of the materials when oxygen and sunlight are the most important degradative agencies. In more specialised applications, degradation may be induced by high energy radiation, ozone, atmospheric pollutants, mechanical stress, biological action, hydrolysis and many other influences. The mechanisms of these reactions and stabilisation processes must be understood if the technology and application of polymers are to continue to advance. The reporting of investigations of this kind is therefore a major function of this journal. However there are also new developments in polymer technology in which degradation processes find positive applications. For example, photodegradable plastics are now available, the recycling of polymeric products will become increasingly important, degradation and combustion studies are involved in the definition of the fire hazards which are associated with polymeric materials and the microelectronics industry is vitally dependent upon polymer degradation in the manufacture of its circuitry. Polymer properties may also be improved by processes like curing and grafting, the chemistry of which can be closely related to that which causes physical deterioration in other circumstances.