- Going off the beaten track? Outdoor manufacturer VAUDE literally took this idea twice: For its latest pair of trekking pants, the company uses a bio-based plastic fiber made from the oil of the castor plant - VESTAMID® Terra from Evonik.
According to the company’s website press release on February 1, 2023, "textile manufacturing starts at the borehole," says Benedikt Tröster from VAUDE. The trenchant phrase quite aptly reflects the reality of the modern textile industry: Synthetic fibers are ubiquitous in our clothing, whether they are called elastane, polyester or polyacrylic. And synthetic fibers almost always mean petroleum. This is now true for many types of underwear, sweaters and T-shirts, and it is even more true for that sub-sector of the industry to which VAUDE also belongs - the outdoor industry. After all, the outdoor industry is particularly dependent on textiles fulfilling certain outstanding functions: They have to be elastic, not tear and, if possible, be water-repellent. Until now, the answer to this requirement profile was petroleum-based plastics. But the outdoor professional based at the foot of the Alps on the shores of Lake Constance in Southern Germany is already on its way into the post-fossil age. "We want to move away from petroleum," says Tröster. "Toward renewable or recycled raw materials." By winter 2021, half of VAUDE's new collection should be made from such materials. Currently, it is already one-third.
Crude oil is finite. This is one of the key reasons why the specialty chemical company Evonik developed VESTAMID® Terra more than ten years ago - a plastic that can be produced entirely from renewable raw materials. In this case, from the oil of the castor bean plant. VESTAMID® Terra can be used in a variety of industries and applications, from plastic buckles to toothbrush bristles. In addition to that, however, it turned out that the polyamide has outstanding properties for textiles and can also be spun into filaments. "The result is a fiber that is very comfortable to wear, has good water management properties, can be dyed well at low temperatures, and also contributes to CO2 savings," says Uwe Kannengießer, Director of Optics & Filaments in the High Performance Polymers Business Unit at Evonik.
NOT ONLY MORE SUSTAINABLE, BUT ALSO BETTER PERFORMANCE
The novel, 62 percent bio-based fabric of VESTAMID® Terra used in the Skarvan Biobased Pants has higher abrasion resistance, better tear strength and more elastic stretch than conventional polyamide fabrics. (© VAUDE)
So, in its extensive search for suitable sustainable plastics, VAUDE landed at Evonik: "That's unusual for our industry. We approached a chemical company directly, not a fabric manufacturer," says René Bethmann, Innovation Manager Materials and Manufacturing at VAUDE. The first test phase followed: could VESTAMID® Terra really be used as desired? "In the end, we found the plastic is not only more sustainable, but also has better properties compared to conventional polyamide fabric," says Bethmann. Above all, the yarn's lower moisture absorption is attractive for outdoor clothing, where a pair of pants should be ready for forays in damp grass or against short rain showers - and it is also an advantage if they dry faster after getting wet and after washing. "VESTAMID® Terra is actually a completely new material in our industry," Bethmann emphasizes, "Which is not at all common." VAUDE consequently decided to design a pair of trekking pants from the material - the "Skarvan Biobased Pants" will be launched in spring 2021. This also fits in with the company's own claim. "We want to be pioneers and leave the beaten track," says Tröster. "However, the ecological footprint of our products should always be as small as possible. Climate neutrality is one of the very big corporate goals we have at VAUDE."
However, bio-based raw materials always have to face the question if any other factors may contribute to destroying their sustainability balance - for example, because costly irrigation is required to grow the plant, or because the raw material could also be used as animal feed instead. "None of these issues apply to the castor bean plant," says Bethmann. It doesn't require fertilization or artificial irrigation, grows in dry areas that aren't suitable for other types of agriculture in the first place - and is a popular food for caterpillars but inedible to humans and other mammals. The oil is made from the seeds, but unlike the seeds is completely non-toxic.
Dr. Ursula Keil
Head of Market Communications
High Performance Polymers
Phone: +49 2365 49-9878
