Innovation


Worn Again demonstrates its polycotton recycling process at Accelerator plant in Switzerland


Worn Again Technologies has unveiled the Accelerator, which it says could be the next major step towards commercialising its textile-to-fibre recycling process and prove the technical and economic feasibility of polycotton recycling. The Accelerator plant, which has been started up in Winter- thur, Switzerland, showcases Worn Again’s proprietary chemi- cal recycling technology at scale, providing real-world validation of a process that recovers and regenerates polyester and cellulose from end-of-life textiles. “The fashion industry is at a


pivotal point,” said Michael Weiss, CEO of Worn Again. “Blended polycottons, once nearly impossible to recycle efficiently, are now being reimagined through our groundbreaking process. This


The Accelerator plant, which has been started up in Winterthur, Switzerland, showcases Worn Again’s proprietary chemical recycling technology at scale. Image: Worn Again


technology maintains material value, minimises waste, and unlocks significant economic opportunities.” In recent years, Worn Again


has refined the process chemistry and engineering design behind the Accelerator, optimising solvent systems and


separation techniques, to enable efficient, high-purity recovery of polyester and cellulose fibres. It is claimed that the process recovers over 95% of solvents. The technology’s multi-


solvent approach allows effective separation of complex materials, including dyes and


elastane, which are major challenges for traditional recycling methods. Ongoing scale-up activities continue to enable process efficiencies that were not feasible in the laboratory. The Accelerator plant is being delivered in modules. The first module is to recover spinnable polyester from waste textiles, including post-consum- er polycotton blends sourced from Switzerland, the EU and the UK. The next module will produce Next-Gen Cellulosic Fibres and other advanced cellulosic materials. Worn Again said the


Accelerator provides a platform to test real-world applications, allowing partner companies to evaluate their feedstocks and validate the process across diverse textile streams. • www.wornagain.co.uk


Blended textiles


tender The European Commission is seeking proposals for a collaborative project for advancing recycling technolo- gies for mixed post-consumer textiles waste from blended products.


Under the EU’s Horizon


Europe funding program, project results are expected to contribute to these outcomes: European textiles manufactur- ers have access to novel technologies for fibre-to-fibre recycling of post-consumer textile waste; local authorities


34 Textiles Loop • Summer 2026


and consumers benefit from resource- and cost-efficient waste management of post-consumer blended textiles; and European recyclers are equipped with properly characterised mixed post-con- sumer textile waste. Proposals are expected to


contribute to the objectives of the Textiles of the Future partnership and to build on/ coordinate with EU projects funded under the partnership and previous textile-related Horizon Europe calls. Clustering with other relevant Horizon Europe projects is encouraged. Deadline for proposals is 17 September 2026. •www.ec.europa.eu


New catalysts used for


polyester Finnish institute VTT has launched a new research project, PETcovery, which focuses on the chemical recycling of PET plastics and polyester-based textiles based on new types of catalysts. The main objective of the PETcov- ery project is to demonstrate how the use of newly devel- oped catalysts enables chemical recycling of polyester to be carried out faster and at a lower temperature than in conven- tional glycolysis processes. The process has already


been implemented on a laboratory scale and is intended to be scaled up. In addition, the project will focus on the cleaning needs of materials, including colour removal and ensuring the quality of the recycled material. The PETcovery project, with a


budget of over €1m, began in December 2025 and will continue until November 2027. VTT’s company partners in the project are Valmet Technologies, Alta Performance Materials, Inos- ence Polyol, Sumi and Brightplus. VTT intends to scale up the process directly with companies or in broader cooperation, for example an EU-funded project. •www.vttresearch.com


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