SBIR Phase I: Sustainable textile manufacturing through protein engineering

The broader impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will demonstrate the promise of transforming proteins found in agricultural waste into high-performance, cost-effective and environmentally friendly cotton, silk and polyester-like fibers. Textile production negatively impacts the environment and wastewater. Structural proteins found in agricultural waste are a substitute to natural silk, cotton, and theoretically polyester.

The proposed project will advance a new, tough, cost-effective, environmentally friendly, protein-based textile fiber. The proposed textile will be both recyclable and biodegradable. Protein-based fibers will transform the $981 B global textile industry and enable new use of billions of pounds of agricultural waste.

The proposed project will advance a technology to maintain protein primary structure (backbone chemistry) for synthetic textile development. The challenge is to simultaneously restore the protein secondary and tertiary structure responsible for the excellent balance of mechanical and aesthetic properties inherent in natural plant and animal sourced fibers.

The proposed process integrates protein molecular biology with novel, ecologically sound fiber formation engineering. Advanced manufacturing will be used to recreate fibers in a closed-loop process recycling chemicals and water without harmful byproducts.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.