Synergistic mechanical–enzymatic processing of polycotton fabric towards a circular textile economy

Rapid expansion of the fast fashion industry has intensified global concerns regarding the environmental impact of polycotton textile wastes, particularly aggregate greenhouse gas emissions and microplastic pollution. To address these concerns, a closed-loop textile recycling system was developed based on a simultaneous enzymatic hydrolysis and bead crushing (EHBC) process. EHBC enhanced the enzymatic hydrolysis of textile waste through two key mechanisms: i) physical disruption of the surface of cotton yarns to liberate cotton fibres, and ii) enhanced cellulose–cellulase interactions that increased enzyme affinity, as evidenced by a reduction in K_m from 27.1 to 11.7 g/L. Building on these findings, EHBC was further applied to separate polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and cotton in homemade polycotton textiles, achieving 99.8% PET recovery and 73.1% cotton preservation within 4 h. Additionally, a bacterial cellulose-producing strain Komagataeibacter sucrofermentans was employed to valorise the reducing sugar and cotton fibres, yielding a novel cotton fibres reinforced bacterial cellulose with nearly quantitative recovery of cotton. This integrated approach establishes a circular economic model for sustainable textile production and waste management, offering a practical strategy to address the environmental challenges associated with fast fashion waste valorisation.