Effect of Recycled PET Fibers on the Performance Properties of Knitted Fabrics

PET (polyethylene terephthalate) is mostly used in textile and packaging industries. PET Bottle wastes are separated from other wastes and after that some processes are applied to obtain PET flakes, such as breaking, washing, drying and etc. r-PET fibers are produced by melt spinning method from these recycled PET flakes. r-PET fibers have already been used for secondary textile products like as carpet bottoms, sleeping bags and insulation materials. In this study usability of recycled PET fibers in apparel industry were researched. Comparative investigations of bursting strength, abrasion resistance, air permeability, surface friction, circular bending rigidity and dimensional stability properties were done to knitted fabrics produced from r-PET and blends with PET and cotton fibers. It was found that, instead of PET, r-PET fibers can be blended in certain amounts without compromising fabrics performance.