NSF Convergence Accelerator Track I: Sustainable Materials for Global Challenges: Recycled Textile and Apparel Manufacturing Ecosystems (RETAME)

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Clothing is a basic human need, yet the way we clothe ourselves today is fundamentally unsustainable. The fashion industry is one of the largest contributors to global carbon emissions and water contamination, and the industry yields more than 100 million tons of textile waste each year. The Recycled Textile and Apparel Manufacturing Ecosystems (RETAME) project brings together academic researchers from engineering, design, and the social sciences, industry partners, and the non-profit organization, Goodwill Industries, to build a sustainable recycled materials model for the textile and apparel industry. By converting post-consumer fashion waste into new products, RETAME keeps clothing out of landfills, generates revenue from existing waste streams, and reduces the need for virgin materials. The project focuses on the development of 1) novel mechanical recycling technologies, 2) product prototypes made from recycled fibers and textile pieces, and 3) educational and skills training programs for job seekers and students, especially those from underrepresented and disadvantaged groups. The project will yield a model recycling ecosystem to grow the Delaware Valley regional economy and improve the environmental sustainability of our clothing. Team members will document and evaluate the project at every stage to develop best practices for implementing the model in other regions.The overarching goal of RETAME is to gather proof of concept for a sustainable recycled materials model for the textile and apparel industry that can be replicated in regions across the United States and around the world. RETAME accomplishes this goal by leveraging regional expertise and locally available waste materials. Team members are experts in sustainable textile design; engineering design; textile science; cultural anthropology; textile manufacturing and recycling; educational curriculum development and implementation; diversity, equity, and inclusion; and non-profit management of used clothing collection and retail. The project involves the following methods and approaches: 1) the recruitment of collaborators in areas of waste and recycling policy, waste management, consumer science and behavioral economics, supply chain and logistics management, regional economic development, and environmental justice; 2) the design and testing of an aggregation, sorting, and mechanical textile recycling supply and production chain in the Delaware Valley region in partnership with Goodwill Industries; 3) the advancement and piloting of mechanical recycling technology and equipment for converting post-consumer clothing waste into reusable fibers; 4) the development of next-generation recycled textile composite prototypes; 5) analysis of the materials properties of recycled textile samples and the collection of initial data on the life cycle impact of relevant processes and products; and 6) ethnographic research and analysis of team-building, knowledge sharing, and convergence research strategies to yield results that will support the ecosystem model’s transfer and application to other regions. Broad-based convergence research is necessary to build robust partnerships that can generate circular, sustainable ways of clothing ourselves. RETAME leads this effort by modeling the development of post-consumer fashion waste recycling and manufacturing systems that also support sustainable, regional economic development.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.