Studies on Energy Recovery of Textile Waste

In this work, the thermal and energy properties of four types of textile wastes were evaluated: cotton, wool, polyester and acrylic. For this purpose, thermogravimetric analysis in nitrogen atmosphere with three heating rates in the temperature range 25-600ºC was used. The processing of the thermogravimetric curves allowed the determination of the temperatures at which 5% (T_5%) and 30% (T_30%) of the sample mass was lost, with which the statistical heat resistance index (T_HRI) of the textile waste was evaluated. Using the recorded thermogravimetric curves, the activation energy for the main stage of thermal decomposition was calculated by applying the ASTM E-698 standard method. The enthalpy of combustion of the textile waste was also determined using the Berthlot-Mahler-Krocker calorimeter.