Nylon (synthetic polyamide) was commercially introduced in the late 1930s/early 1940s as the first 100% synthetic fiber. It was initially used mainly in women’s hosiery. Currently, nylon is mainly known under this original brand name and is the second most-produced synthetic fiber after polyester.(5) There are several types of nylon, the difference being their constituting polymers. The most commonly used are Nylon 6 and Nylon 6.6, each with slightly different applications and characteristics. Like the production of polyester and other synthetic materials, the manufacturing of nylon relies heavily on non-renewable resources such as petroleum and carbon-based fossil fuels. Nylon is linked with significant CO2 and other greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the manufacturing process also puts high demands on energy use. On the other hand, nylon production requires less water and land use in comparison to cotton and many other natural materials. As a fully synthetic material, nylon cannot biodegrade and when deposited in landfills it takes hundreds of years to decompose. However, Nylon 6 can be recycled in a closed-loop chemical process that enables infinite repolymerization, resulting in yarn of equal quality to virgin material.(1-5)
NYLON
