Are you wondering how your clothing styles affect the environment? Then in this article, you’ll find out is synthetic fiber biodegradable?
Most synthetic fibers are not biodegradable because they are made from synthetic materials such as petroleum. Naturally occurring organisms cannot break these down.
Synthetic fibers generally do not break down. But the more we know about synthetic materials the better we will be at handling and disposing of them.
You’ll find out everything you need to know about synthetic fibers coming up next.
Do Synthetic Fibres Break Down?
Do you want to know what happens to your clothes once you have gotten rid of them? Clothes made from materials such as cotton, wool, and silk break down and do not cause any harm to the environment.
But what about the clothes you throw away that are made from synthetic fibers? What happens to them?
Synthetic fibers do not break down. So, clothes made from synthetic fibers end up in landfills. Since the materials do not decompose, they degrade over very long periods of time.
It could take a synthetic item of clothing 200 years or longer to degrade into microplastics. Unfortunately, this process is extremely slow and harms the environment.
What is the difference between synthetic and nonsynthetic material breakdown times? Take a look at the following information to find out.
| Material | How long it takes to break down |
| Cotton Rayon Linen Wool Silk Synthetic fibers | 5 months A few weeks A few weeks 3 to 4 months Up to 4 years 200 years |
Which Fibre Is Biodegradable?
We’ve spoken a lot already about nonbiodegradable fibers and their impact on the environment. So, let’s change direction a little bit now.
What about biodegradable fibers? Which fibers are biodegradable? Take a look at the list below to find out.
- Jute. This fiber is biodegradable because it originates from natural cellulose.
- Hemp. This fiber is biodegradable because it originates from natural cellulose.
- Cotton. This fiber is biodegradable because it originates from natural cellulose.
- Rayon. This fiber is based on viscose. Although it is artificially altered it still originates from cellulose and is normally biodegradable.
- Cupro. This fiber is based on viscose. Although it is artificially altered it still originates from cellulose and is normally biodegradable.
- Linen. This fiber is biodegradable because it originates from the flax plant.
- Wool. This fiber is biodegradable because it originates from sheep.
- Silk. This fiber is biodegradable because it originates from silkworms.
So, we’ve gotten to know a couple more biodegradable fibers and where they come from. Now, it’s time to see just how well they break down.
Find out how long this process takes coming up next.
| Material | How long it takes to break down |
| Jute Hemp Cotton Rayon Cupro Linen Wool Silk | 4 to 20 months 2 weeks 5 months A few weeks 6 to 24 months A few weeks 3 to 4 months Up to 4 years |
Are Synthetic Materials Compostable?
We are now in a world that buys new clothes instead of repairing the old ones. We throw our old clothes out and replace them instead of handing them down to others.
Because of this trend, fashion is now less expensive as more synthetic clothing materials have come into the market. But what should you do with these materials once you have finished with them?
We should start by saying that synthetic materials are not compostable. So, if you are looking for a way to dispose of them, putting them on your home compost heap is not the way forward.
Why’s that? Take a look at the following reasons.
- Synthetic materials do not decompose; they only degrade over time. The materials break down into microplastics This process takes hundreds of years so it cannot be classed as decomposition.
- Synthetic materials harm the environment as they degrade. They harm the soil they’re in and pollute the ecosystem. Instead of doing good for our planet, they do the opposite.
- Synthetic materials cannot be degraded by naturally occurring organisms and bacteria. Once you are done with them, they are taken to a landfill where they will sit for hundreds of years.
So what does compostable mean? It means that a material can break down into non-toxic components.
This is something synthetic fibers cannot do. It also means protecting the environment as the material breaks down.
The material should decompose into water, carbon dioxide, and biomass. Unfortunately, synthetic materials do not meet these criteria.
Why Are Synthetic Fibers Non-Biodegradable?
Synthetic fibers are non biodegradable. This means that they do not biodegrade like natural materials.
They are also non compostable. But why? Here are a couple of reasons.
- Synthetic fibers are made from synthetic materials such as petroleum
- Synthetic fibers cannot be broken down by microbes and naturally occurring bacteria
- Synthetic fibers degrade and cause harm to our environment and ecosystem as they sit for hundreds of years in landfills
What can you do to reduce the number of synthetic fibers that end up in landfills? Here are a couple of tips.
- Recycle your synthetic clothes. After all, one man’s trash is another man’s treasure!
- Mend your clothes instead of automatically buying new ones. You can save money and help the environment.
- Only buy what you need. Limit the number of synthetic materials you buy.
- Purchase more natural fibers like cotton, wool, silk, and hemp. These materials decompose and break down a lot faster than synthetic fibers.
Final Thoughts
The fashion industry is booming. Instead of handing down clothes or even repairing them, we have entered an era of throwing our clothes away and buying new ones.
And with the increasing use of synthetic fibers across the world, we all want to know what happens to our clothes once we have thrown them away. Is synthetic fiber biodegradable?
As this article has pointed out, synthetic fibers are not biodegradable. This is because they are made from materials that are not naturally occurring.
Microorganisms and bacteria struggle to break these fibers down in their natural habitat. They often take hundreds of years to degrade.
