Odlo and DePoly pilot chemical recycling for circular base layer
- Uses 20 kg of cut-off Active Warm base-layer fabric as feedstock.
- Project funded by a CHF 24,000 Innosuisse Innovation Booster grant.
- DePoly will depolymerise PET into PTA and MEG and reassemble the outputs into recycled PET yarn.
- Proof-of-concept runs Oct–Dec 2024; potential capsule collection targeted for 2026 or 2027.
Project scope
DePoly and Odlo will run a proof-of-concept to convert 20 kilograms of cut-off fabric from Odlo’s Active Warm base layers into knitted fabric by chemically recycling polyester/PET into virgin-quality recycled PET yarn.
Technical approach
The process will attempt to break down the material into its monomers—Purified Terephthalic Acid (PTA) and Mono Ethylene Glycol (MEG)—and then reassemble those building blocks into recycled PET yarn suitable for knitting.
Funding and timeline
The trial is funded by a CHF 24,000 grant from Innosuisse’s Innovation Booster ‘Applied Circular Sustainability’ and will run from October to December 2024.
Commercial outlook
If successful, the knitted recycled yarn could form the basis of Odlo’s first circular base-layer capsule collection targeted for 2026 or 2027 and feed into the company’s ReWEAR programme and waste-reduction targets.
Source: dePoly