Acrylic

The environmental impacts of acrylic greatly outweigh its benefits. This lack of balance indicates the necessity of exploring more sustainable options—from using other fibres entirely, to working with partners to develop recycling capabilities for acrylic. Recent reports have indicated that acrylic is gradually decreasing in usage, but it still represents a large portion of overall synthetic fibre use. In 2010, world production of acrylic fibres was at 1 billion tonnes, most of which is produced in China and Europe.[1] 567,000 tonnes of acrylic fibre was produced in Europe in 2012.[2]

Acrylic is a man-made synthetic fibre in which the fibre-forming substance is any long-chain synthetic polymer.3 Acrylic production is a multi-step chemical process that is produced from 85% acrylonitrile. Acrylonitrile is made through a chemical process from propylene gas.[4] Propylene is a gas that is produced from the byproduct of refinery operations.[5] Acrylic is reasonably comfortable and has a wool-like aesthetic, and is less expensive than wool. Due to its durability, and excellent sunlight and general wearability resistance, acrylic fabrics have the potential to last and be worn many times, optimizing the energy and resources embodied in the garment. Acrylic is machine washable, and acrylic products are generally washed in cold water and drip-dried, thereby minimizing water and energy use associated with consumer care and washing.

Processing

Acrylic fibres contain at least 85% acrylonitrile. Studies done by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) show that workers repeatedly breathing small amounts of acrylonitrile over long periods of time may develop cancer. Acrylonitrile enters the body through inhalation or absorption through skin contact.6 The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggest preventing skin contact.[7] Acrylic processing emits high amounts of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). Air emissions from the acrylic process include volatilized residual monomer, organic solvents, additives, and other organic compounds used in fibre processing.[8]

Dyeing and finishing

Certain types of dyes are suspected carcinogens and mutagens, while other dyes are known to have a sensitizing effect on skin and should be avoided. Untreated dye water can negatively impact receiving water bodies and harm aquatic ecosystems if left untreated before its release.

Anti-pilling treatments

Acrylic fibres are highly likely to pill. Some fabrics are chemically treated during the manufacturing process in order to reduce their propensity to pill.

Consumer care/washing

Acrylic is typically machine-washed. Certain at-home products have been reported to have detrimental effects on humans and the environment and contribute to ozone depletion and can pollute wastewater.

End of use

Acrylic has durability to last the wearer several years; however, it is typically used in inexpensive, fast-fashion garments that are worn and quickly discarded. Synthetic fibres are from a carbon-based chemical feedstock and are considered non-biodegradable. [9] There is no sufficient data supporting how long it takes acrylic fabric to decompose in landfills. Comparing acrylic degradability to polyester degradability could be sufficient, since they are both synthetic polymers originating from oil. There are, however, conflicting opinions about how long polyester takes to decompose and estimates range from 40 years to 1000 years. This is because degradability is dependent upon a number of conditions including how much air, temperature and sunlight the fibre is exposed to.

OEKO-TEK certified acrylic [10]

OEKO-TEK is an independent, third party certifier that offers two certifications for textiles: OEKO-TEK 100 (for products) and OEKO-TEK 1000 (for production sites/factories). OEKO-TEK 100 label aims to ensure that products pose no risk to health. OEKO-TEK certified products do not contain allergenic dye-stuffs and dye-stuffs that form carcinogenic aryl-amines. The certification process includes thorough testing for a long list of chemicals. Specifically banned are: AZO dyes, carcinogenic and allergy-inducing dyes, pesticides, chlorinated phenols, extractable heavy metals, emissions of volatile components, and more.

Most of the global acrylic fibre capacity is in Asia, with a concentration in China. North America and West Europe together now account for less than 20% of global capacity. [11] OEKO-TEK certified acrylic is available in China.

Sweaters, women's and children's apparel, sportswear, socks, knitted underwear, pajamas, gloves, carpets, rugs, upholstery, cushions, blankets, outdoor umbrellas, tents.

OEKO-TEK® Standard 100 certified If verified and used.

1. Shift to existing environmentally beneficial fabrics when possible. These fabrics include fabric derived from organic wool, recycled fabrics and TENCEL.®

2. Recycled fibres, such as cotton, wool and polyester, lose strength when they are shredded. Use acrylic with different blends of recycled fibres to strengthen the yarn and promote durability.

3. Investigate alternative technologies for colouring acrylic fabrics, such as transfer printing, which eliminates water from the dyeing process.

4. Design garments and products with reusable elements—such as trims and tags. Design the product so that trims and tags can be easily separated from the main body of the product at the end of its useful life to enable easy recycling. Create collection systems for the products. Collect, disassemble, reuse.

5. Create internal store collections of acrylic garments and products. Use fabric from collected garments and products to innovatively redesign new products.

6. Work with partners to develop closed loop recycling of acrylic fibres and infrastructure to label, collect, sort and purify garments.

7. Get your product Cradle to Cradle Certified. The Cradle to Cradle CertifiedTM Product Standard is a multi-attribute, continuous improvement methodology that provides a path to manufacturing healthy and sustainable products. The Standard rewards achievement in five categories and at five levels of certification. An accredited assessor will help to assess and optimize your product.

8. Create garments that emphasize natural pilling of acrylic in order to increase lifespan of product, and divert waste from landfills.

1. http://www.textileworld.com/Issues/2004/September/Fibre_World/A_Polyester_Saga_Geography_And_All
2. http://www.cirfs.org/KeyStatistics/AcrylicinEurope.aspx
3. Cohen, Allen and Ingrid Johnson. Fabric Science. New York: Fairchild Books, 2010.
4. http://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/whatischemistry/landmarks/acrylonitrile.html
5. http://www.dow.com/productsafety/finder/pro.htm
6. http://www.epa.gov/chemfact/acry-fs.txt
7. http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npg/npgd0014.html
8. http://www.epa.gov/ttnchie1/ap42/ch06/final/c06s09.pdf
9. Grose, Lynda and Kate Fletcher. Fashion & Sustainability: Design for Change. London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd, 2012.
10. http://www.OEKO-TEK.com/media/downloads/Factsheet_OETS_100_EN.pdf
11. http://www.yarnsandfibres.com/preferredsupplier/spreports_fullstory.php?id=527