Decolorization of Post-consumer PET by Non-Aqueous Solvent Medium (NASM)

The aim of this project is to develop a green approach for decolourisation of post-consumer PET by Non-aqueous Solvent Medium (NASM), namely Supercritical Carbon Dioxide (ScCO2).

Objectives of this project are:

1. Develop a labouratory scale NASM based decolourisation system for post-consumer PET
2. Study the conditions of parameters (e.g. temperature, pressure, time, fabric weight per treatment) in the decolouring process
3. Estimate the operating cost of the decolouring process

Over 75% of total fabrics are made of or involve PET. After recovery or separation, the PET fibres usually retain their original colours. As a matter of fact, mixtures of PET fibres of different colours may not be easily woven together to form new textiles and therefore, are commercially required to be decoloured before being reused to make new textiles. The success of this project offers a sustainable approach to decolourise post-consumer PET fibre and thus encourages textile recycling.