Bio-based fiber refers to fibers made from renewable organisms or biological extracts. Different from non-renewable petrochemical resources such as coal and petroleum, the fiber is produced as a raw material.
There are many varieties of bio-based fibers. For the convenience of research and use, they can be classified from different angles:
1) According to the biological properties, it can be divided into animal fiber, plant fiber and microbial fiber;
2) From the industry classification, it can be divided into agricultural and sideline production material fibers and sea sideline production material fibers;
3) According to the production process, bio-based fibers can be divided into three categories:
Bio-based virgin fiber, animal and plant fiber that is directly used after being processed by physical methods;
Bio-based regenerated fiber is made of natural animals and plants as raw materials, made into spinning solution through physical or chemical methods, and then prepared by appropriate spinning technology;
Bio-based synthetic fiber uses biomass as a raw material to produce high-purity monomers through chemical methods, and then undergo polymerization to obtain high-molecular-weight polymers, which are then processed by appropriate spinning processes.
Bio-based regenerated fibers and bio-based synthetic fibers are collectively referred to as bio-based chemical fibers. So what is the difference between these two types of fibers? Bio-based regenerated fiber does not change the original chemical structure of biomass macromolecules. The spinning process is the reconstruction of its physical form, which only changes the aggregated structure. The chemical and physical properties of bio-based synthetic fibers depend on the monomer used, and it has nothing to do with the source of the monomer.
In other words, synthetic fibers can use bio-based monomers or petroleum-based monomers, and fibers made from the same monomer have the same properties. Bio-based synthetic fibers emphasize that their monomers are derived from organisms.
What are the characteristics of bio-based fibers?
Bio-based fibers have always been regarded as "green fibers", "ecological fibers" and "environmentally friendly fibers". So what are the characteristics of bio-based chemical fibers?
First of all, the raw materials are by-products of plants and animals, which are renewable and can achieve sustainable development.
Secondly, bio-based fibers have a low carbon footprint: all or part of the carbon atoms contained in bio-based fibers are derived from biomass. Taking plant biomass as an example, plants absorb CO2 in the earth’s atmosphere during the production process and use photosynthesis to synthesize new carbon-containing natural macromolecules.
After it is discarded, whether it undergoes biodegradation in the environment or is converted to carbon dioxide by combustion, there will be no additional carbon emissions from the perspective of the entire life cycle. Therefore, bio-based fibers have the characteristics of reducing carbon emissions as a whole or not increasing carbon emissions.
Thirdly, most bio-based fibers can exhibit excellent biodegradability and biocompatibility: Depending on the specific chemical structure, some bio-based fibers can be degraded in compost, natural environment and organisms, and have good biological characteristics. Capacitive and can be used in biomedical and other fields.
What is the relationship between bio-based fiber and biodegradable fiber?
In recent years, as the world pays attention to the serious environmental pollution caused by traditional plastics that are difficult to degrade in the natural environment, and the increasingly severe microplastic pollution problem, the development of biodegradable plastics and fiber products has become particularly important. In particular, with the gradual implementation of "plastic bans" in various countries, some products that have the potential to cause microplastic pollution will be banned from use.
However, bio-based chemical fiber mainly refers to its raw materials containing renewable plant biomass or animal biomass components, and biodegradable fiber can be derived from bio-based or petroleum-based, so bio-based synthetic fiber ≠ biological Degradable fiber.
