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What's recycled cotton, pros and cons for a textile alternative
When it comes to recycled cotton, you may ask, is cotton recyclable? I will say yes, it is. But it’s not easy to tell the difference among recycled cotton, virgin cotton and organic cotton with the naked eye. Today, let’s know it together.
The concept of recycled cotton
Recycled cotton usually refers to cotton fibers obtained by recycling waste textiles such as old clothes, discarded textiles, towels and other textile waste, etc. These waste textiles are then sent to processing plants for processing, where the cotton fibers are extracted, cleaned, processed and spun into recycled cotton. Recycled cotton gives people a alternative for conventional cotton. Not only does it reduce the demand for natural resources, but also it is a concept of sustainable development.
Manufacturing Process
The manufacture of recycled cotton often contains 6 steps, as follows:
1. Collect
The first step in recycled cotton is to collect cotton scraps 、used cotton fabric、old clothing, etc.
2. Select
After collecting cotton scrap and other accessories, they are sorted by different color and composition. This classifications allows us to obtain brightly colored yarns without dyeing again.
3. Clean
Remove irrelevant items such as metal hardware, buttons, zippers and other non-recyclable items.
4. Chopped
Waste fabrics are cut into strips and inserted into fiber machines, which mechanically take them back to fibers, so they are inevitably weaker than conventional cotton.
5. Mix
As recycled cotton fibers are weaker than conventional cotton, they will be blended with other fibers, such as conventional cotton, organic cotton, or other fibers. It depends on it depends on each person's needs.
6. Spin
These "new" recycled cotton fiber blend is then spun back into yarn, and then woven or knitted into new textile products, to be reused in other products.
Pros and Cons of Recycled Cotton
The Pros :
Better for sustainability.
Uses fewer resources to make
Save large amounts of water
Avoid using hazardous chemicals
Promote circulation economy in fashion
Too short fiber, it still can be downcycled
Less CO2 carbon, avoid environmental pollution
The cons:
Not as durable as virgin cotton
Requires blending to increase service life
Difference among recycled cotton, virgin cotton and organic cotton
Recycled cotton is different from virgin cotton and organic cotton in production and properties.
Virgin cotton is conventional cotton, a kind of fiber material that is picked directly from the cotton balls of planting cotton. It is usually obtained through planting, growing, harvesting, and processing, while recycled cotton is recycled and obtained through used cotton fabrics. Because of the demand for cotton planting, water resources, pesticides, chemical fertilizers, etc. are used, which causes environmental pollution to a certain degree.
Organic cotton is obtained from growing cotton without using chemical fertilizers, or pesticides, and under the situation of genetic modification. It is environmental friendliness and ecological sustainability in the whole process of growing up. So organic cotton is higher quality and purity cotton, but the price of organic cotton is relatively high, and not as cost-effective as recycled cotton. So,for some small business brands,organic cotton might not be a perfect option.
Conclusions:
So far, recycled cotton has been widely used in the bag industry. If you have a limited budget, compared to organic cotton and virgin cotton, perhaps recycled cotton is a great option for your business development. Below is the recycled cotton from criterion-bag.com. For more details, Please leave your messages on the website.
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