Scientists from Japan said they may have discovered a process that supports sustainable polyester recycling. While real-world testing still needs to be done, the process, if it works in the field, would be groundbreaking.

The research was conducted by Jianhua Ren, senior assistant professor at the Headquarters for Carbon Neutral Initiatives, University of Fukui, along with Professor Kazumasa Hirogaki and Researcher Isao Tabata from the School of Engineering, University of Fukui, Japan.

In a research briefing report, the scientists said colored polyester is extremely difficult to recycle because the dyes “are hard to remove without using large quantities of chemicals, water or energy.” But they developed a “supercritical carbon dioxide treatment” that redistributes existing dyes between the polyester fibers, “creating uniform colors without removing the original dyes,” they said. By controlling fiber proportions, researchers tuned shades and developed a model that accurately predicted color strength.

“This approach could support sustainable polyester recycling, although testing with real textile waste is needed,” the report noted.

“From the clothes we wear to our living spaces, colorful textiles add vibrancy to our everyday lives,” the researchers said. “The textile industry is evolving rapidly, embracing cutting-edge techniques to drive innovation and explore sustainable approaches. However, more than 92 million tons of textile waste are generated each year, yet less than 1 percent of colored textiles undergo closed-loop recycling.”

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