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from the be-environmentally-conscious-go-naked dept.
Wearing clothes could release more microfibres to the environment than washing them:
In a first-of-its-kind study, scientists from the Institute for Polymers, Composites and Biomaterials of the National Research Council of Italy (IPCB-CNR) and the University of Plymouth compared four different items of polyester clothing and how many fibres were released when they were being worn and washed.
The results showed that up to 4,000 fibres per gram of fabric could be released during a conventional wash, while up to 400 fibres per gram of fabric could be shed by items of clothing during just 20 minutes of normal activity.
Scaled up, the results indicate that one person could release almost 300million polyester microfibres per year to the environment by washing their clothes, and more than 900million to the air by simply wearing the garments.
In addition, there were significant differences depending on how the garments were made, which the researchers concluding that clothing design and manufacturer has a major role to play in preventing microfibres from being emitted to the environment.
The research, published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, was conducted by scientists at the National Research Council of Italy and the University of Plymouth. It builds on their previous studies which showed substantial quantities of fibres are released during the laundry process.
More information: Francesca De Falco et al, Microfiber Release to Water, Via Laundering, and to Air, via Everyday Use: A Comparison between Polyester Clothing with Differing Textile Parameters, Environmental Science & Technology (2020). DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.9b06892
Journal information: Environmental Science and Technology
(Score: 2) by SomeGuy on Friday March 13 2020, @11:20AM (11 children)
Perhaps I'm just looking in the wrong place, but it seems like almost everything out there these days is made of extra-thin polyester. The stuff is really light weight, might be fine for sports type stuff or something, but I like to feel like I'm actually wearing clothes. Recently I had to hunt all over to find a few shirts that at least had some cotton in them. There are not many clothing stores around here - at least not for people who were unfortunately born with penises. :P
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 13 2020, @12:23PM
Walmart where I live sells wrangler mostly cotton shirts, admittedly there may be some synthetic fiber in it and style selection is low.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 13 2020, @03:02PM (7 children)
Lots of 100% cotton at these places. There are many more too, these are just the two that popped into my head immediately:
https://www.llbean.com/ [llbean.com]
https://www.brooksbrothers.com/ [brooksbrothers.com]
I don't wear polyester. Ever. It's uncomfortable. Cotton is definitely the way to go.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 13 2020, @03:56PM (6 children)
Unless it is cold and there is a possibility of your garment getting wet (including by your own sweat), in which case cotton clothing is dangerous.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 13 2020, @04:16PM (2 children)
It hasn't killed me or made me sick in the more than a half century yet.
But thanks for your expert advice Doctor AC. I'll give it the weight it deserves.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 13 2020, @04:37PM (1 child)
When wet, cotton loses almost all of its insulating value. This puts you at much greater risk of hypothermia when wearing wet cotton clothing, particularly while you are resting and not using as much energy.
Basically no other fiber used in clothing has this particular problem.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 13 2020, @04:42PM
When I'm living on the street I'll worry about that.
Until then, I'll keep wearing cotton and *change clothes* when necessary.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 13 2020, @05:33PM
I'll keep that in mind the next time I'm scaling Mt. Everest.
(Score: 2) by dry on Saturday March 14 2020, @05:36AM
That's why I wear wool when it's cold and damp. We have this thing called a Stanfield which works wonders, https://www.stanfields.com/men/underwear/winter-shirts/heavy-weight-wool-henley.html [stanfields.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 14 2020, @07:13AM
Lol, all the negative hating on you... but you didn't mention that wet polyester's insulative value (R-value) drops off a cliff.
The answers are natural fibres from wool and hemp, and/or waterproofing.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday March 13 2020, @03:42PM
Cotton stuff wears well. Around here there is plenty of it available used in the thrift (Goodwill, etc.) stores--if you haven't looked there you might be surprised at the selection. Some times the original tags are still attached which I guess means that it was a gift that the receiver didn't want?
(Score: 2) by Phoenix666 on Friday March 13 2020, @06:29PM
Make your own, you big weanie.
Washington DC delenda est.