World’s first plant-based polyester t-shirt created from Virent’s BioFormPX paraxylene

April 25, 2016 |

In Wisconsin, Virent’s BioFormPX paraxylene was used in the world’s first 100% plant-based polyester shirts, demonstrating the potential of bio-based polyester for production of garments and textiles.

A key raw material for the production of polyester is paraxylene, which today comes exclusively from crude oil.  Virent’s technology produces BioFormPX paraxylene from plant-based materials, resulting in much lower greenhouse gas emissions. Virent worked with Far Eastern New Century (FENC) to produce the bio-poyester fabric. “Virent’s BioFormPX paraxylene has previously been used to produce 100% plant-based PET plastic bottles.   This project demonstrates how our technology and products can also be used to produce crude oil free polyester for use in everyday fabric and fiber applications” said Lee Edwards, Virent CEO. “

Virent currently has the capability to produce large quantities of BioFormPX paraxylene and other bio-based aromatic chemicals (benzene, toluene, and mixed xylenes) for application development in areas such as packaging, fabrics, and textiles.  Virent also has produced sizable biofuels samples (gasoline, jet and diesel) for customer sampling and product development.

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Category: Fuels

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