Recycling of Mixed Post-Consumer Textiles: Opportunities for Sustainable Product Development

The Waste Framework Directive mandates that, starting from January 1, 2025, separate collection of textiles must be introduced in all Member States of the European Union. The aim of separate collection is to promote the circular economy in the textile system by creating favorable conditions for recycling and reuse. However, in order to promote recycling, there are still challenges in terms of textile variety and mixtures. Currently, there are no commercially viable technologies to recycle mixed textiles without sorting back into textiles or high value-added products. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine if there are products in the research process that could be obtained from post-consumer mixed textile waste and, if so, to assess which is the most suitable for further development based on economic, environmental, social and technical factors. Two methods were applied: literature analysis and multi-criteria decision analysis. A total of 27 research articles were identified, but only four were selected for further analysis based on their relevance to the research objective. The products obtained in the selected studies were (1) bio-oil and terephthalic acid, (2) textile-reinforced composite for building applications, (3) mycelium-based composite for thermal insulation and (4) textile fibers (cotton and nylon), spandex monomers and bis(2-hydroxyethyl) terephthalate. The multi-criteria decision analysis showed that mycelium-based composite has the highest potential for further development. Future research should focus on scaling up the production of mycelium-based material and conducting a more detailed assessment of the economic, social and environmental impacts.