Porous, colorful and gas-adsorption powder from wool waste for textile functionalization

Abstract

Textile waste is a fast-growing challenge and a large quantity of used textile ends up in landfills and incineration plants, which can pollute the environment through the production of toxic substances and greenhouse gases. This work explores the utilization of waste wool in a circular context by mechanically transforming it into wool powder for reusing as sustainable additives for textile functionalization. A comprehensive investigation was conducted to understand the performance of fabrics coated with wool powder in adsorbing ammonia and formaldehyde based on monitoring their dynamic adsorption behavior using time-resolved infrared spectroscopy. In addition, the application of dyed wool powders as eco-friendly colorants for surface modification of textiles was explored and the performance of the colored powders in gas adsorption was investigated. Compared with ordinary wool fibers, the prepared powders possessed increased surface area, higher surface energy and a more heterogeneous surface. These properties made wool powder an ideal candidate for gas adsorption applications. The adsorption efficiencies of 66% and 62% were achieved in removing ammonia and formaldehyde by coated fabrics, respectively, which are significantly higher than the performance of ordinary wool fibers. Furthermore, the coated polyester fabrics showed an excellent cycling performance for both ammonia and formaldehyde (recovery yield up to 68.1%). The reuse of waste wool for functional modification of fabrics not only extends the practical applications of waste resources, but also alleviates the negative effect of textile disposal on the environment.