Eco-properties of Textiles and Contemporary Quality Requirements

Abstract

Ecology in textiles is discussed, with the accent on textile end-products quality evaluation. The causes for the increasing importance of environment-friendly textile products are presented. Eco-properties of textiles are analysed as an integral part of of the whole production-consumption chain, and ecological requirements in certain segments of the chain, important for the ecological reliability of the products during their usage, are presented. The paper is primarily concerned with human-environmental properties of textiles, specifying of these properties, their testing and labeling. A survey is given of the most important eco-labels, used in European countries for denoting ecological reliability and environment friendliness of various textile products. Credibility and objectivity of individual eco-labels is discussed. Criteria for accepting the products, concerning eco-properties and environmental parameters, are given for some of the labels. A number of references (43) gives the reader a possibility to seek additional information on the subject.