Textiles

In the textile industry, large quantities of water, energy and (sometimes toxic) chemicals are used to manufacture finished textile products from materials such as cotton. Raw materials like these must be bleached, washed and dried before they can be processed further. This involves the use of chemicals at high temperatures. Enzymes perform this work in a more environmentally friendly way and at low temperatures. When textiles become soiled, enzymes such as proteases, amylases, cellulases and lipases are used to clean them. These enzymes are found in detergents and help to remove not only protein and starch residues but also grease stains – also at low temperatures.

The production of protein-based materials, such as spider silk, can be achieved through biotechnological processes using renewable raw materials. The underlying silk proteins are produced by microbial fermentation, spun into protein fibres using spinning processes and converted into textile fabrics by modern looms. The products are characterised by their biodegradability and mechanical, high performance properties.

In the production and care of textiles, biotechnological processes can contribute to achieving the following SDGs: