@article{20491,
  abstract     = {Global fibre production has expanded rapidly, with polyester and cotton dominating, significantly contributing to textile waste and increasing demand for sustainable solutions. This study presents innovative method to recycle polyester/cotton (PET/CO) blends using hydrophobic deep eutectic solvents (DESs), eliminating the need for toxic chemicals while achieving high dissolution yields. PET was completely dissolved within 5 min, substantially outperforming state-of-the-art methods and facilitating the efficient and selective recovery of both components, PET (97%) and CO (100%). SEM imaging confirmed no morphological changes in cotton fibres after treatment. The thermal stability of the recovered materials was validated using DSC and TGA analyses, while ATR-FTIR spectroscopy indicated no chemical changes. Mechanical testing confirmed recovered cotton’s tenacity and elongation are within expected ranges despite showing a decrease of 28% in tenacity and 34% in elongation. Hence, the proposed process provides an efficient and sustainable recycling solution for PET/CO blends, retaining both polymers in a condition similar to virgin materials used in textile manufacturing with minimal processing time.},
  author       = {Depope, Nika and Depope, Al and Archodoulaki, Vasiliki Maria and Ipsmiller, Wolfgang and Bartl, Andreas},
  issn         = {1879-2456},
  journal      = {Waste Management},
  publisher    = {Elsevier},
  title        = {{Deep eutectic solvent as a solution for polyester/cotton textile recycling}},
  doi          = {10.1016/j.wasman.2025.115177},
  volume       = {208},
  year         = {2025},
}