Process for manufacture of biodegradable textile yarn from recycled materials and textiles made by the process

Abstract

A process for making a biodegradable textile yarn from recycled materials is disclosed. The process includes drying a recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) and a biodegradable PET additive; mixing the rPET and the biodegradable PET additive into a mixture, where the biodegradable PET additive is between 0.5 and 3 weight % (wt %) of a total weight of the mixture; extruding a biodegradable rPET (bio-rPET) fiber from the mixture; blending the bio-rPET fiber with a recycled natural fiber into a biodegradable recycled fiber blend, where the bio-rPET fiber is more than 1 wt % of a total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend; and spinning the biodegradable recycled fiber blend to the biodegradable textile yarn. Further disclosed are biodegradable textile yarns and biodegradable textiles made by the process.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A process for making a biodegradable textile yarn from recycled materials, comprising:
 drying a recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) and a biodegradable PET additive;   mixing the rPET and the biodegradable PET additive into a mixture, wherein the biodegradable PET additive is between 0.5 and 3 weight % (wt %) of a total weight of the mixture;   extruding a biodegradable rPET (bio-rPET) fiber from the mixture;   blending the bio-rPET fiber with a recycled natural fiber into a biodegradable recycled fiber blend, wherein the bio-rPET fiber is more than 1 wt % of a total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend; and   spinning, the biodegradable recycled fiber blend to the biodegradable textile yarn.   
     
     
         2 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the bio-rPET fiber is between 5 wt % and 95 wt % inclusive of the total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend. 
     
     
         3 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the bio-rPET fiber is between 10 wt % and 75 wt % inclusive of the total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend. 
     
     
         4 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the bio-rPET fiber is between 40 wt % and 60 wt % inclusive of a total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend. 
     
     
         5 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the bio-rPET fiber is between 50 wt % and 60 wt % inclusive of a total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend. 
     
     
         6 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the rPET has an intrinsic viscosity between 0.25 dL/g and 0.85 dL/g. 
     
     
         7 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the bio-rPET fiber has a linear mass density between 0.05 tex and 0.5 tex. 
     
     
         8 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the recycled natural fiber comprises at least one selected from the group consisting of a mechanically recycled cotton fiber, a mechanically recycled hemp fiber, a mechanically recycled linen fiber, a chemically recycled cellulose fiber, and a recycled wool. 
     
     
         9 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the blending the bio-rPET fiber with the recycled natural fiber further comprises blending the bio-rPET fiber and the recycled natural fiber with a recycled cellulose fiber into the biodegradable recycled fiber blend. 
     
     
         10 . The process of  claim 1 , wherein the biodegradable PET additive is between 1 wt % and 1.5 wt % of a total weight of the mixture. 
     
     
         11 . A biodegradable textile yarn, made by a process comprising:
 drying a recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) and a biodegradable PET additive;   mixing the rPET and the biodegradable PET additive into a mixture, wherein the biodegradable PET additive is between 0.5 and 3 weight % (wt %) of a total weight of the mixture;   extruding a biodegradable rPET (bio-rPET) fiber from the mixture;   blending the bio-rPET fiber with a recycled natural fiber into a biodegradable recycled fiber blend, wherein the bio-rPET fiber is more than 1 wt % of a total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend; and   spinning the biodegradable recycled fiber blend to the biodegradable textile yarn.   
     
     
         12 . The biodegradable textile yarn of  claim 11 , wherein the bio-rPET fiber is between 5 wt % and 95 wt % inclusive of the total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend. 
     
     
         13 . The biodegradable textile yarn of  claim 11 , wherein the bio-rPET fiber is between 10 wt % and 75 wt % inclusive of the total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend. 
     
     
         14 . The biodegradable textile yarn of  claim 11 , wherein the bio-rPET fiber is between 40 wt % and 60 wt % inclusive of a total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend. 
     
     
         15 . The biodegradable textile yarn of  claim 11 , wherein the bio-rPET fiber is between 50 wt % and 60 wt % inclusive of a total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend. 
     
     
         16 . The biodegradable textile yarn of  claim 11 , wherein the rPET has an intrinsic viscosity between 0.25 dL/g and 0.85 dL/g. 
     
     
         17 . The biodegradable textile yarn of  claim 11 , wherein the bio-rPET fiber has a linear mass density between 0.05 tex and 0.5 tex. 
     
     
         18 . The biodegradable textile yarn of  claim 11 , wherein the recycled natural fiber comprises at least one selected from the group consisting of a mechanically recycled cotton fiber, a mechanically recycled hemp fiber, a mechanically recycled linen fiber, a chemically recycled cellulose fiber, and a recycled wool. 
     
     
         19 . The biodegradable textile yarn of  claim 11 , wherein the blending the bio-rPET fiber with the recycled natural fiber further comprises blending the bio-rPET fiber and the recycled natural fiber with a recycled cellulose fiber into the biodegradable recycled fiber blend. 
     
     
         20 . A biodegradable textile, made by a process comprising:
 drying a recycled polyethylene terephthalate (rPET) and a biodegradable PET additive;   mixing the rPET and the biodegradable PET additive into a mixture, wherein the biodegradable PET additive is between 0.5 and 3 weight % (wt %) of a total weight of the mixture;   extruding a biodegradable rPET (bio-rPET) fiber from the mixture;   blending the bio-rPET fiber with a recycled natural fiber into a biodegradable recycled fiber blend, wherein the bio-rPET fiber is more than 1 wt % of a total weight of the biodegradable recycled fiber blend;   spinning the biodegradable recycled fiber blend to a plurality of biodegradable textile yarns; and   manufacturing the biodegradable textile from the plurality of biodegradable textile yarns.