Textiles
Used clothing, linens and textiles by-products provide an important source of raw materials for the textile and paper manufacturing industries.
It was in China, more than 2,000 years ago, that paper was first made using cotton rags as raw material.
Today, rags and certain vegetable fiber by-products are still used in making top-quality paper, such as that from which bank notes are made.
For more than 100 years, the textile industry has economized on the use of more costly primary raw materials by recycling woolen cloth and fibers. The technique of 'pulling', in which cloth is taken apart and the fibbers separated ready for respinning, has played an important role in the development of this sector.
Used clothing and textile by-products for recycling have first to be sorted with great care because they will be used for specific purposes. Old clothing collected from households, for example, is graded into a number of categories. Garments that are still in good condition can be resold at modest prices, very often in parts of the world where people cannot afford more expensive clothing. Cotton rags can be made into wiping cloths for use in industry. Knitted or woven woolens and similar materials are 'pulled' into a fibrous state for reuse by the textile industry.
These are no more than some of the most important uses and the special needs of consumers are catered for by sorting - which defies attempts at mechanization and must rely on the very great skill of experienced workers.
Textile manufacturing by-products are also important raw materials. These are threads or fibers from spinning, weaving and finishing plants. They are collected, graded and baled before being delivered to manufacturers for conversion into a wide range of new products.
Besides natural fibers, like wool, cotton, silk and linen, artificial fibers such as rayon, are of considerable importance. Among these synthetics, vast quantities of polyamides, polyesters and acrylics are used in the manufacture of garments and in industry - all of them can be recycled.
Textile recycling provides raw materials for upholstery, for filling mattresses, for wadding and other absorbent products, and for the manufacture of felt as well as fiber from which new cloth can be made.
In this way, primary resources are conserved and, because the recycled materials always have a price advantage, the cost to the consumer is held in check.
