Environmental Analysis of Polyester Fabric for Ticking

The production system developed by men is in stark contrast to the protection of the ecosystem as it is based on the exploitation of limited resources. Much work has been done in the direction of sustainable development, and now , the green and circular thinking should guide development in SMEs, who need support to optimize its products through an eco-friendly design that will lead to a competitive advantage. The purpose of the study is to analyze the life cycle performance of a 100% PET fabric used for the outer cover of bed mattresses made by an Italian company. Lifecycle assessment methodology was used, considering processes from cradle to grave. The emissions defined in the Community labeling system for textile products and mattresses have been taken into account, and the mid and final impact categories established under the European Union's Environmental Impact Assessment Guide. The results show that the fiber and yarn production process is the most impacted by transport, and the rich Chinese coal mix, and another critical point is the disposal phase. To evaluate the improvements in the environmental sustainability of supply of PET yarns and the disposal phase, a number of scenarios were analyzed. Finally, a Monte Carlo simulation was performed to evaluate the sensitivity of the data uncertainty results. The paper provides a number of recommendations for the textile sector that are useful to produce in a sustainable way while at the same time being competitive on the market. It provides the critical points of the processes to be improved in order to get the environmental labeling of the product, furthermore there are new data from the chain that is not contained in databases and literature, and finally highlights how best to recycle the product. Government policies should encourage recycling in home textiles, which are not yet very active in Europe. In the future, it would be useful to deepen the studies on recycling and alternative raw materials.