By Thin Lei Win
ROME, Oct 14 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – From using custom-made, biodegradable fabrics and ‘living’ clothes that photosynthesize to polyester created from planet-warming carbon dioxide, European start-ups are on a quest to transform one of the world’s most polluting industries: fashion.
The business is responsible for 10% of global carbon emissions, more than all international flights and maritime shipping combined during the pre-pandemic period, said the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
A sizable chunk of fashion’s emissions – up to 40% – come from the manufacture of polyester, the most-used fabric, said Benoit Illy, co-founder and CEO of French start-up Fairbrics.
“If we can bring emissions from polyester to zero or negative value, we can significantly reduce industry emissions,” he said in a telephone interview.
Illy and co-founder Tawfiq Nasr Allah, both chemists, aim to replace existing polyester-producing processes, which use fossil fuels, with their new technology.
It uses electricity and a catalyst to turn carbon dioxide – emitted when fossil fuels are burned and a major driver of climate change – into synthetic fibres, Illy said.
In some respects, the process is similar to trees capturing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and using sunlight and natural enzymes to produce fibre, he said.
By the beginning of next year, Fairbrics – its name refers to a “fairer” way of producing fabrics – expects to be able to produce a kilogram of polyester yarn a day, he said.
The firm’s aim is take the effort to industrial scale in early 2024, he said.
The room for scale-up is clear: The fashion industry currently consumes more than 60 million tonnes of polyester a year, Illy said.
