WILTON – Worn Again has advanced industry efforts to replace the use of virgin materials in textiles with the commissioning of its first pilot-scale facility that can separate, decontaminate and then extract polyester (PET) and cellulose from mixed fabric waste.
The step up from the laboratory to the new pilot scale facility is significant, as it now allows the company to refine and optimise its production process prior to further scaling up; as well as enabling it to make meaningful amounts of both recycled PET and cellulosic pulp for its partners to test and evaluate.
During a tour of the new polymer recycling facility last week at the Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) in Wilton, near Redcar, UK, Cyndi Rhoades, Founder of Worn Again Technologies told Ecotextile News: “The new pilot plant brings us much closer to commercialisation of our technology and its location at the Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) in Wilton gives us access to world leading chemical engineering expertise for which this region is noted.”
Located on Teeside, the Wilton site is one of the largest chemical R&D sites in Europe – built on the site of the former multinational ICI Chemicals.
