Tech News: #8 Issue
Attention! The article is forbidden to read by over-emotional people! Everything you’ll read can just totally amaze your mind. So, we’ll talk about fabrics of the new generation: the recycling ones. Could you possibly imagine that fabrics could be made from spoiled milk? Or fermented wine? No? We too. But it IS possible! About such unusual materials for fabrics production you’ll read here in our #8 issue of Tech News.
1. Fabric from Fermented Wine
A group of scientists at the University of Western Australia has produced fabric by letting microbes go to work on wine. The scientists culture bacteria called Acetobacter in vats of cheap red wine, and the bacteria ferments the alcohol into fibers that float just above the surface. These fibers can be extracted and fashioned into clothing. The only catch? Acetobacter produce vinegar as its end product, so the garments have a definite odor.
Photo by: Huffingtonpost
2. Naoron, Durable Fabric Made of Wood Pulp
This leather alternative is not only animal-friendly, it also eschews the chemicals required to create conventional faux leather. Naoran is a water-resistant textile derived from wood pulp and recycled polyester. It’s soft, flexible, and tear- and water-resistant.
Photo by: Nalatanalata
3. Hagfish Slime Thread
The slimy substance in the photo above is defensive goo attached to a hagfish, an eel-shaped bottom-dwelling animal of the deep seas that is the only known creature to have a skull, but no vertebral column. Scientists have discovered that proteins within this slime have mechanical properties rivaling those of spider silk, and can be woven into high-performance biomaterials.
Photo by: Youtube
4. Electroluminescent Garments
For this unusual fabric in a collection by fashion designer Vega Wang, silk was printed with images of constellations and other space-related themes, and then the fabric was lined with electroluminescent paper. Programmed controllers enable the paper to shine through the silk for a dreamy, ethereal effect.
Photo by: Pinterest
5. Spider Silk Made from Metabolically Engineered Bacteria
Known for its tremendous strength – three times stronger than both steel and Kevlar, yet thinner than a human hair – spider silk is a highly valuable material for textiles. But farming and harvesting spider silk is a definite challenge. Instead, geneticists have found a way to chemically synthesize the silk gene and insert it into E. Coli bacteria.
Photo by: Machprinciple
6. Ingeo, Fabric Made from Corn
Synthetic fibers are most often petroleum-based, but recycled fibers and those sourced from natural substances are on the rise. Ingeo, a fabric by Natureworks derived from fermented corn starches, can be spun into fibers for apparel and home textiles, and also used for bioplastics.
Photo by: Animalnewyork
7. Silk-Like Fiber Derived from Spoiled Milk
Few of us would willingly walk around wearing spoiled milk, but it might just become all the rage in the near future. A company called Qmilch makes fabric from protein found in soured ‘secondary milk’ that’s no longer suitable for human consumption, and would normally be thrown away. This zero-waste fabric requires no harmful chemicals to make and uses less water in the production process than other milk-based fabrics.
Photo by: Kpmg
8. Newlife Polyester Yarn Made of Recycled Plastic Bottles
New life is a polyester yarn made from 100% post-consumer recycled plastic bottles, which is processed by mechanical rather than chemical means. Made in Italy, the fabric is used in fashion, sportswear, underwear, medical garments and other clothes and furnishings. Giorgio Armani used it to create a fashionable, eco-friendly gown for Livia Firth at the 2012 Golden Globe Awards.
Photo by: Britsunited
9. Used Coffee Pods
Inspired by the resourcefulness of locals in Kerala, India, who repurpose waste in surprising ways, designer Rachel Rodwell discovered a material that wasn’t living up to its potential: used coffee pods. Rodwell gathers pods from friends and family and smashes them with a meat tenderizer, reconfiguring them into geometric-inspired designs in colors that reflect India’s cultural aesthetics.
Photo by: Wikipedia
10. Recycled Newspaper Yarn
Artist Ivano Vitali tears recycled newsprint into strips and twists it into balls of yarn without the use of glue, dyes or silicone, crocheting them into textile art with custom-made wooden knitting needles and hooks as long as 8 feet. Recently, Vitali has expanded into wearable art, achieving certain colors for dresses, jackets and even bikinis by painstakingly sorting his printed materials by color.
Photo by: Np-mag
11. Self-Repairing Textile
Once a protective garment like a raincoat or lab wear is ripped or torn, it’s useless. But the total loss of these garments may become a thing of the past with the creation of ‘intelligent’ fabric that can heal itself. Researchers at SINTEF added microcapsules containing a glue-like substance to the plastic polyurethane that is applied to modern rainwear, so that if the garment snags, the capsules release a sealant that fills in the gaps and hardens with contact to air and water.
Photo by: Recojeans
12. Cocona, Made of Coconut Husks
It was only a matter of time before tough, fibrous coconut husks were made into durable fabric. Cocona is one trademarked example, made of coconut husk waste disposed of by the food service industry. The fabric is lightweight and breathable, making it ideal for sportswear. It’s used in Nau’s insular jacket.
Photo by: Black
13. Lab-Grown Biological Textiles
How will biotechnology change the fashion industry? Designer Amy Congdon believes that in the future, we’ll be able to grow textiles like ethical fur in laboratories. Her series ‘Biological Atelier’ imagines a workshop, circa 2082, where high-fashion garments are grown from cells.
Photo by: Maverickcult
14. Recycled Cassette Tapes
All of the strands of cassette tape still floating around in the world could not only be reused for fabrics but spun into ‘audio textiles’ that play back under a tape head. Artist Alyce Santoro weaves this unlikely material on antique looms in a family-run textile mill in England to produce ‘Sonic Fabric’, including purses made from sound collages based on life in New York City.
Photo by: Abs4fun