Cotton-polyester blends are popular fabrics, combining the comfort of cotton with the performance of polyester. But once you've combined those things—cotton fibers and fibers spun from PET—they're virtually impossible to separate, making recycling difficult.
However, a group of Chemistry students at the University of Copenhagen have figured out how to do it. The group had developed a method of breaking down PET bottles using hartshorn salt (a leavening agent used by bakers), an unspecified solvent (that they say is non-toxic), and high heat. They found that their process successfully depolymerized the PET bottles, breaking them down into their monomers. Latex-Coated Fabric
Incredibly, when they tried their process on cotton-poly-blend clothing, they found that their salt/solvent mixture not only broke the polyester down, but left the cotton perfectly intact. "Due to the mild nature of the chemicals involved," the write, "the cotton fibers remain intact and in excellent condition."
Cotton fibers successfully left intact
The group says their process is both practical and scalable.
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