Characterisation of structural and chemical degradation of regenerated cellulose textiles degradation via accelerated aging Louise Garner 1 , Simoni Da Ros 2 , Daren Caruana 3 , Teresa Aparisi Domenech 4 , Katherine Curran 1 1 UCL Institute for Sustainable Heritage, University College London, UK, 2 Sustainable Materials and Manufacturing, University of Warwick, UK, 3 Department of Chemistry, University College, London, UK, 4 UCL Institute for Sustainable Resources, University College London, UK There has recently been renewed interest from the fashion industry in regenerated cellulose (RC) fibres despite their use as textiles since the early 1900s. Regenerated cellulose fibres are expected to play a key role in replacing synthetic fibres in the textile industry. Equally, these fibres are increasingly being found in heritage collections from the early adoption of semi-synthetic fibres and now due to the move toward more sustainable textiles. While cellulose remains the core chemical composition of these fibres they are distinguished by their supramolecular properties. The degradation of types of regenerated cellulose fibres is not fully understood, particularly concerning abiotic environments. It is consequently challenging to predict how these fibres will degrade in the long term. This study investigates the degradation of three types of RC fibres lyocell, modal and viscose. Samples were aged for 35 days under 85°C and 78%±1.0 relative humidity whereby samples were analysed at 7-day intervals using FTIR, colourimetry and mass loss. The use of FTIR microscopy is explored to map the distribution of carbonyl formation associated with oxidation on the surface of the samples. Samples were also analysed using powder XRD to understand the relationship between crystallinity and degradation of these fibres. The results show that modal and viscose fibres show exponential increases in carbonyl formation while lyocell exhibits a more linear increase. These results show a positive correlation between discolouration of the samples and physical and chemical markers for degradation. XRD results suggest that the proportion of crystalline material decreases as the fibres degrade, this occurs most significantly in lyocell. Mapping of the textiles surface suggests the textiles are more prone to oxidation in certain regions, allowing researchers to potentially predict where the material will lose mechanical integrity. This study confirms the different rates of degradation for types of regenerated cellulose fibres, and how this impacts their chemical and structural properties as they degrade. Future work will look at how these fibres break down under various environments to establish optimal degradation and preservation conditions. References 1. Zambrano, M. C., Pawlak, J. J., Daystar, J., Ankeny, M., Goller, C. C., & Venditti, R. A. (2020). Aerobic biodegradation in freshwater and marine environments of textile microfibers generated in clothes laundering: Effects of cellulose and polyester-based microfibers on the microbiome. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 151. 2. Quye, A. (2014). Factors influencing the stability of man-made fibres: A retrospective view for historical textiles. Polymer Degradation and Stability, 107, 210–218.
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