A University of Michigan-led team developed woven-in labels made with inexpensive photonic fibres as a solution to make a truly circular recycling system work. That will only be possible when the precise composition of a fabric is known. The team developed a technology by combining photonic expertise – usually applied to products like displays, solar cells and optical filters – with the advanced textile capabilities at MIT’s (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Lincoln Lab. This lab integrated the photonic features into a process that would be compatible with large-scale production.
Max Shtein – a professor of materials science and engineering at UM- explained that it is like a barcode that is woven directly into the fabric of a garment. “We can customise the photonic properties of the fibres to make them visible to the naked eye, readable only under near-infrared light or any combination.”
Shtein stated that in addition to making recycling easier, the photonic labelling could be used to tell consumers where and how goods are made, and also to verify the authenticity of brand-name products. In that respect, woven-in labels may be useful for consumers as well as recyclers.
Patent protection has been applied for and the team intends to move forward with the commercialisation of the technology.
