Sustainable alternatives for COVID-19 PPE: Biodegradable wipes and reusable masks made of pineapple leaf fibre.
Project summary
Funding period: November 2020 - July 2021
Funding type: Collaborative Research and Development (R&D)
Funded by: UKRI: Innovate UK - Sustainable Innovation Fund
Lead partner: Ananas Anam Ltd
During the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic it was reported that 53 million face masks were being thrown away every day in the UK.
This project proposed the use of pineapple leaf fibres to be used to produce new textiles for biodegradable hygienic wipes and reusable masks as a positive climate-friendly alternative to existing synthetic options.
By embedding life-cycle assessment into the innovation process at Ananas Anam, design researchers from Chelsea College of Arts assessed the environmental impact of different elements being considered for the development of a new commercial product called Piñayarn.
This helped inform design decisions by highlighting how end-of-life routes would be affected by product specifications, processing methods and material choices.
Outcomes
- An in-depth review of the best available sterilisation methods for Piñayarn in relation to effectiveness and environmental impact.
- Analysis of the most appropriate fibre blend choice based on aesthetic and performance qualities in addition to understanding their environmental impact and end of life recovery.
- Mapping of the end-of-life recovery options including differentiating between the materials themselves and the resulting knitted and nonwoven products.
- Recommendations for further research and infrastructure development to enable circular textile systems in the UK.
- New methods for integrating circular design principles into a commercial R&D process.
Project team
- Professor Kate Goldsworthy - Principal Investigator
- Laura Solomon - Research Fellow
- Laura Knight - Researcher
- Sanne Visser - Researcher
Partners
- Dr Raquel Prado - Head of Research and Sustainability, Ananas Anam
- Melissa Braithwaite - Piñayarn Product Development Manager, Ananas Anam
- Alexandra Richardson - Branding and Communications Manager, Ananas Anam
Related links
Research outputs
- Laura, Knight, Ananas Anam (2021) Visualising the Piñatex Lifecycle: An information design sprint about the visual communication of product lifecycles.
- Knight, Laura and Goldsworthy, Kate (2023) Thinking beyond circles: Developing collaborative, cross disciplinary design education for circularity. In: CHEAD Annual Conference - Creative Graduates: What is the Future Now?, 15-16 March 2023, Kingston University.
- Knight, Laura and Goldsworthy, Kate and Visser, Sanne and Hall, Cathryn (2023) Thinking beyond circles: developing visual research methods for circularity. In: PLATE 2023, 31 May - 2 June 2023, Aalto University, Helskini.
- Knight, Laura and Goldsworthy, Kate and Visser, Sanne and Hall, Cathryn (2023) Thinking beyond circles: Developing visual research methods for circularity in design education. In: Proceedings, 5th PLATE Conference. Aalto University publication series ART + DESIGN + ARCHITECTURE, 3/2023. Aalto University, pp. 505-511. ISBN 978-952-64-1367-9