Development of 3D Printed Products from Enzymatically Degraded Cotton Waste
Project Snapshot
Research Goal
Transform cotton textile waste into robust, 100% bio-based 3D-printed objects.
Project Description
Use micro-scale cotton fiber fragments produced from enzymatically degraded cotton fibers to produce feedstocks for all-cellulose additive manufacturing.
Impact
Enzyme-based textile recycling enables efficient separation of difficult-to-recycle fiber blends and the use of a waste stream for the development of 3D-printing feedstocks has the potential to support responsible waste management and promote the development of bio-based manufacturing strategies in construction, electronics, and beyond.
Project Progress
Project Outputs
Discover the tangible outcomes and impact of this project.
Sonja Salmon
NC State University
Professor, Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science, NC State University
Sonja Salmon’s research explores what happens when textile fibers act as biological systems rather than passive materials. As Professor in NC State’s Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science, she leads work in biocatalytic textiles, a class of materials in which enzymes are immobilized within fibers to enable functions including CO2 capture, water treatment, and waste remediation.
Her research centers on enzyme-fiber interactions: enzymatic modification, degradation, and processing of fibers, enzyme-catalyzed synthesis of fiber-forming polymers, and the development of bio-based materials for textile applications. The work draws from biotechnology and textile science in equal measure, shaped in part by her earlier career at Novozymes, a leading biotech firm.
Since joining Wilson College’s faculty, Salmon has attracted more than $11 million in research funding from NSF, USDA, and the Novo Nordisk Foundation, and contributed to securing an NSF grant that could total up to $160 million for Wilson College over the next decade. She holds five issued patents with 13 more filed.
Education
- Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Fiber and Polymer Science, NC State University, 1995
- Bachelor of Science (BS), Textile Chemistry, NC State University, 1989
- Albelo, I., Raineri, R. Materials and Methods for All-Cellulose 3D Printing in Sustainable Additive Manufacturing. Sustainable Chemistry 5(2), 98–115 (2024).
