Axens, IFPEN and JEPLAN have conducted a semi-industrial demonstration of a polyester recycling process, converting post-consumer textile waste into base monomers for new polyester production. The initiative involved processing several tens of tonnes of polyester-rich textile waste sourced from European post-consumer streams.
The collected materials were sorted and prepared in France before being transferred to a semi-industrial facility in Japan. At this site, the waste was treated using the Rewind PET technology, resulting in the production of BHET, the base monomer used in recycled polyester manufacturing. The output is intended for further conversion into yarns, fabrics and garments.
The demonstration took place at a JEPLAN-operated facility with a processing capacity of 1,000 tonnes per year. Input materials were supplied through French collection systems and prepared by Nouvelles Fibres Textile and Mapea. According to the partners, several tens of tonnes of BHET were generated during the process.
This outcome confirms the technical feasibility of recycling post-consumer polyester textiles under representative industrial conditions. The project is identified as an early example of textile-to-textile chemical recycling carried out at this scale.
The process is designed for integration into existing polyester production infrastructure. It enables the replacement of fossil-based feedstocks with recycled intermediates derived from textile waste streams. The technology had previously been commercialised for PET packaging, including food-contact applications, and its application in textile recycling has now been validated.
Axens holds a worldwide license for industrial deployment of the process under agreements with IFPEN and JEPLAN.
Recycled polyester produced through this method is intended for use across multiple textile segments, including sportswear, home furnishings and selected luxury applications.
Polyester and other synthetic fibres account for approximately 60% of global textile production, while less than 1% of fibres are currently recycled back into textiles. In this context, the demonstrated process provides a pathway for scaling circular polyester production using post-consumer waste.
The approach focuses on shorter recycling loops by directly converting textile waste into reusable monomers. It is expected to support reduced reliance on virgin raw materials and contribute to improved resource efficiency across the textile value chain.