Welton Fernando Zonatti

Social and economic importance of textile reuse and recycling in Brazil

Brazil is an important world producer of textiles. However, this industrial activity, combined with additional import and trade, generates millions of tons of textile scraps, unsold clothing and discarded post-consumption garments. There is a great potential for the recycling and reuse industry in the context of solidarity and circular economy. The present study aimed to present examples in Brazil related to waste reduction, reuse and recycling of textiles in the context of solidary economy. In this way, some representative initiatives, from Sao Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro states are presented and discussed based on these principles and approaching responsible lifestyles and environmental awareness and the refusal to waste resources in general. The main socioenvironmental benefits are related to the training of labor and local income generation, the populations awareness of consumption patterns, saving of natural resources and raw materials, and mitigation of environmental impacts.

Brazilian Scope of Management and Recycling of Textile Wastes

Brazil is one of the largest world producers of textiles and clothing. It is an important producer of cotton fiber , yarn, plain and knitted fabrics. This stimulates the country’s GDP generating millions of direct and indirect jobs in this sector. However, such activity generates various environmental problems, such as the generation of solid wastes from textile and clothing industrial processes, as well as the post-consumer clothing, which are discarded commonly in landfills. Thus, the present study presents considerations about mechanical processes for textile recycling , recycled cotton yarn and jeans characteristics, the generation of solid wastes in textile and clothing Brazilian industry and the actions directed toward sustainability. The textile reuse and recycling may contribute to the reduction of environmental problems, in addition to being economically viable source of income and social benefits for all involved in this chain, from street collectors to the industrial sector.

Study of the potential employment of Malvaceae Species in composites materials

The employ of vegetal fibers for textiles and composites represents a great potential in economic and social sustainable development. Some Malvaceae species are considered tropical cosmopolitans, such as from Sida genus. Several species of this genus provide excellent textile bast fibers, which are very similar in qualities to the jute textile fiber. The objective of the present study is present the physicochemical characterization of six Brazilian vegetal fibers: Sida rhombifolia L.; Sida carpinifolia L. f.; Sidastrum paniculatum (L.) Fryxell; Sida cordifolia L.; Malvastrum coromandelianum (L.) Gurck; Wissadula subpeltata (Kuntze) R.E.Fries. Respectively the two first species are from Brazilian Atlantic Forest biome and the four remaining from Brazilian Cerrado biome, despite of present in other regions of the planet. The stems of these species were retted in water at 37oC for 20 days. The fibers were tested in order to determine tensile rupture strength, tenacity, elongation, Young’s modulus, cross microscopic structure, Scanning Electronic Microscopy (SEM), regain, combustion, acid, alkali, organic solvent and cellulase effects, pH of the aqueous extract, Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC) and Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA). The obtained values were compared with those from fibers of recognized applicability in the textile industry including hemp. The results are promising in terms of their employment in thermoset and thermoplastic medium resistance composites.