Everything started in 2011 when two Sicilian girls in Italy came to know that over 700,000 tonnes of citrus juice by-products were getting wasted every year. They came up with an idea of how to convert this waste into something useful.
Two students in Milan, Adriana Santanocito, specialized in design and innovative textile, and Enrica Arena, an expert in communication and marketing invented orange fiber by extracting the cellulose from the fibers that are discarded from the industrial pressing and processing of the oranges. This Green startup is based in Catania and Rovereto of Italy which was financed by Trentino Sviluppo became Orange Fiber in 2014. In September of the same year, they presented a prototype at the Expo Gate of Milan.
They developed three prototypes during Vogue’s Fashion’s Night Out :
Black and white lace silk
Cream colored satin for summer clothes
Viscose-like fabric for daily use clothes like shirts
The yarns produced from citrus juice by-products are 100% biodegradable fabric that is lightweight feels soft to touch and has a shiny appearance. Through the use of nanotechnology techniques, the fiber is also infused with essential oils and vitamin C that are present in the citrus fruit peel. This makes the textile rich in vitamins that nourish the skin like a non-greasy body lotion. The oils on these vitaminic textiles last for at least twenty washing cycles. The yarns can also be blended with other materials to produce products as per designer needs.
Orange fiber has patented the production process which they innovated, in collaboration with Politecnico di Milano University. The raw material for their fabric is citrus juice by-product, the so-called “pastazzo”. Pastazzo is processed to extract the citrus cellulose, after which they are spun into yarn in Spain. From Spain, these yarns are sent back to Italy to the fabric producer Como, which converts these sustainable yarns into exclusive fabrics.
Source: Orange fiber
The first fashion collection created with orange fiber was by the Florentine Maison Salvatore Ferragamo in 2017. Orange fabric has won several awards at the national and international levels such as the UNECE Ideas for Change Award in April 2015, H&M Foundation’s Global Change Award in 2015, the Technology and Innovation Award, presented by Derek Blasberg and Miroslava Duma, etc. This innovative idea has a lot of potential in the sustainable textile market which not only targets environmental issues of citrus waste production but also brings job opportunities in a disadvantaged land.
What do you think of Orange Fiber? Share your thoughts in the comments below. I’d love to hear from you!
Textile finishing is the stage in textile production concerned with processing the textile products to make them fit for end use. Fabric Finishes are not only done to make the clothes more appealing to the customers but also to improve their properties and possible applications. This could be to improve the appearance – color, pattern, or sheen, or to improve the functional properties like antimicrobial, UV protection, etc. But, do you know that fabric finishing has a large impact on the environment?
The finishing companies had to deal with important issues like energy and water consumption, air emissions, water emissions, the chemical load of the water, and waste (i.e., textile waste and chemical waste). Environmental and energy-saving concerns have made the researchers and industrialists to develop new greener technologies which are more efficient and less costly.
Eco-friendly finishes refer to suitable textile processing methods that deliver not only Eco-friendly finished products but also do not hamper the surrounding atmosphere and environment due to emissions of harmful gases and effluent water discharges. Let’s talk about various textiles finishes employed in the finishing of garments with a major concern on the environment.
1. Plasma Technology
The Plasma technique is based on ionized gases produced by electrical discharges. In fact, the coupling of electromagnetic power into a process gas generates the plasma medium comprising a dynamic mixture of ions, electrons, neutrons, protons, free radicals, and metastable excited species which enable a variety of surface process, e.g. surface activation for creating real-time etching, dissociation of surface contaminants (scouring/bleaching), deposition of coatings for specific applications, induce both surface modifications and bulk property enhancements of textile materials.
Plasma treatments have been shown to enhance dyeing rates of polymers, improve colorfastness, micro-roughness, and wash resistance of fabrics, as well as change the surface energy of fibers and fabrics. It also enhances properties like adhesion, wettability, crosslinking, biocompatibility, printability, dyeability, protection, anti-wear, and chemical affinity to inertness. It is also used to remove the sizing agents applied to warp yarns to withstand the mechanical forces introduced during weaving.
The common forms of atmospheric plasma used in the textile industry are Corona discharge and Dielectric barrier discharge (DBD). Even though the plasma treatment of textiles offers several advantages, its application in the textile industry is limited because of the intrinsic properties of textile materials. The plasma modified polymeric materials can be used as membranes, foils, nonwovens, composites, medical, etc.
2. Laser Treatment
Another physical surface treatment method is Laser, a water-free physical treatment that provides precision in processing by exposing the textile fabric to laser radiation using efficient intensity. This method is used to create the hydrophilic groups on hydrophobic fibers and enhance the dyeing process by the photo-degradation of dye without damaging the textile material.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) lasers are particularly suited to textiles which is a mixture of gases such as CO2, nitrogen, hydrogen, and helium. Many types of research have been carried out into the possibility of surface finishing of different kinds of fabrics by laser irradiation. A laser type must be selected which irradiates in a strongly absorbing spectral region of the high polymers. With the use of laser surface structuring ca be obtained without affecting the thermal and mechanical properties of the body of the fiber. This treatment can be used in almost all types of textiles for artistic decorating and the unique design of any surfaces of textiles. Surface properties affected include particle adhesion, wettability, and optical properties.
3. Nano-Technology
Nanotechnology has a lot of potential in the textile industry and is one of the most rapidly emerging key technologies of the 21st century. The most widely used example of textile finishes by nanotechnology is anti-microbial finishing. Textile finishing agents have been known and used fordecades but only in recent years attempts have been made on finishing of textiles with nano-particles as antibacterial compounds. Due to an increase in awareness about health and hygiene, people increasingly want their clothing to be hygienically fresh.
Nanofinishing of textiles provides durable surface coatings that are sustainable and cost-effective. It produces textile materials with various functional properties, making the materials water/oil repellent, self-cleaning, stain-resistant, flame retardant, antibacterial or abrasion resistant, which can help prolong the life of textile materials. These functional finishes also reduce aftercare problems resulting from washing, dry cleaning, or ironing. Also, they save a lot of energy and water.
These properties are imparted by nano-metal oxide coatings using complex metallic compounds based on metals like copper, silver, zinc, etc. Even though there are several finishing or coating methods available, the most widely used methods are padding, sol–gel and layer-by-layer (LbL) processing.
4. Bio-Technology
Since late 1980s Enzymes have been used in the textile industry. They are used in various stages of textile processing, such as desizing, scouring, bleaching, denim washing, and biopolishing. Enzymes are task-specific, quick in action, and required in small quantities, which can save large amounts of raw materials, energy, and water.
A variety of finishing effects can be achieved through the use of enzymes, such as surface cleaning, improved surface appearance, anti-pilling, improve hand feel, and softening. One of the most significant innovations is the use of enzymes for denim stone washing in replacement of pumice stones. Cellulase enzyme is used for this purpose and is usually used alone or combined with pumice stones to produce a faded effect. Cellulase loosens the indigo dye on the denim surface, and the process is termed “bio-stoning”. Enzyme usage reduces the damage caused to denim fabrics, reduces the wearing of processing machinery, and generates less pumice dust.
Biostoning of Denim
5. Bio-Polymer
Biopolymers are derived from biological origins such as agricultural feedstock and marine food resources. They are suitable and renewable materials for the development of bioactive textiles. Polysaccharides, chitosan, and sericin proteins are examples of biopolymers used for functional finishing of textile materials as alternatives to chemical-based finishing agents. The key advantages of biopolymers include abundant availability, biocompatibility. and biodegradability. Biopolymers are suitable for finishes with antimicrobial, UV protective, insect repellent, and flame retardant properties.
Chitosan is a polysaccharide biopolymer obtained from the alkaline deacetylation of chitin. It is widely used to impart antimicrobial properties in cotton, polyester, and wool fabric. Metal ions such as zirconium and titanium are combined with chitosan to impart antibacterial and UV protection properties to the cotton fabric. Cyclodextrins (CDs) are cyclic oligosaccharides produced as a result of enzymatic degradation of starch. They are used to display fragrance release, odor absorption, controlled-release (antibacterial, insect repellent), or UV-resistant properties.
Sericin is a natural protein derived from the Bombyx mori silkworm that inherent properties such as biocompatibility, biodegradability, UV resistance, antibacterial activity, and moisture absorption. Sericin has been used to improve the functional properties of synthetic fibers. Alginate is another nontoxic sustainable biopolymer with excellent biocompatibility and bioactive properties. It is specially used in textile finishing to impart antimicrobial properties to wound dressings.
6. Microencapsulation Method
Micro-encapsulation is a process in which small capsules of many useful properties are made by using tiny particles or droplets surrounded by a coating. This technique is now widely used in Textile finishing. The material inside the microcapsule is called as the core material whereas the wall is called a shell, coating, or membrane. Usually, microcapsules have diameters between a few micrometers and a few millimeters.
This process is more advantageous to conventional processes in terms of economy, energy-saving, eco-friendliness, enhanced stability, targetted release, and the controlled release of active compounds. Many special and functional properties can be imparted to fabrics like herbal finishing, fragrance finishes, fire-retardants, antimicrobial, insect repellents, etc. microencapsulation can be done using several techniques like spray-drying, air-suspension coating, solvent evaporation, etc. The core material can be released by external pressure which breaks the microcapsule wall like abrasion in antistatic and fragrances for textiles, or heat in the case of fire retardant where microencapsulated is released by the burning of capsule walls.
7. Herbal Textiles
Herbal extracts have gained huge popularity for luxury textile products and are used to impart fragrance and antimicrobial, skin nourishing, and moth-proofing properties. Herbal extracts from aloe vera, neem, grape, mulberry fruit, banana pseudostem, peel sap, and citrus oil are used for finishing sustainable luxury textiles.
Aromas for apparel and home furnishing applications are extracted from sandalwood, jasmine, lavender, and Champa. Plant extracts containing phenols and oxygen derivatives can act as antimicrobial and insecticidal agents such as neem, pomegranate, and prickly chaff flower. Tulasi and Alovera extract also contains antimicrobial compounds and can be applied to the cotton fabric by direct treatment, crosslinking, or micro-encapsulation. Methanolic extract of Meconopsis napaulensis D.C. leaves is used to dye cotton fabric to impart antifungal properties. Denim fabric is also treated with microencapsulated and nano-encapsulated extracts of Ricinus communis, S. auriculata and Euphorbia hirta to impart antibacterial properties.
8. Ultrasonic assisted wet-processing
Ultrasound reduces processing time and energy consumption maintains or improves product quality, and reduces the use of auxiliary chemicals. In essence, the use of ultrasound for dyeing will use electricity to replace expensive thermal energy and chemicals, which have to be treated in wastewater. Ultrasonic desizing reduced the fiber degradation while the degree of whiteness and wet ability of the cellulosic fabric remains the same.
Ultrasonic scouring of wool fibers reduced the fiber damages. Similarly, in bleaching of cotton fiber with hydrogen peroxide using ultrasound technique at the frequency of 20 kHz, increased the bleaching rate, and enhanced the degree of whiteness. The mercerization of cotton material using the ultrasonic technique swelled 35% fiber diameter. The use of ultrasonic energy in dyeing optimizes the dyeing process. Moreover, it can be used for dyeing both hydrophilic and hydrophobic fibers.
Shrimali, K., & Dedhia, D. E. M. (2015, Mar-Apr). Microencapsulation for Textile Finishing. IOSR Journal of Polymer and Textile Engineering (IOSR-JPTE), 2(2), Manoj. 10.9790/019X-0220104
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