Study of the potential use of textile waste in composites

The increase in population, and consequently the increase in demand, the industrial evolution and the rapid change in clothing trends explain the increase in the quantities of textile waste generated each year. Recycling is the best action to deal with this waste taking into account its ecological and economic advantages. This book presents a contribution to the valorisation of different types of textile waste (cotton, polyester, cotton/polyester blend and acrylic) in order to use them as reinforcements for composite materials. The properties of the waste materials, which have been pre-processed into nonwovens, have been studied, namely their mechanical, thermal and acoustic performances. Secondly, the nonwovens were used as reinforcement for different composite materials. The experimental parameters, mechanical, thermal and acoustic performances of the composite materials were studied. The adhesion between the reinforcement and the matrix was also evaluated.