Viscose fiber, as the most produced regenerated cellulose fiber, enjoys widespread popularity and is deeply rooted in the concept of sustainability. However, its sustainability is controversial. This article focuses on the definition of viscose fiber sustainability and discusses how to further develop fibers with a more sustainable approach.
Viscose fiber generally refers to man-made cellulose fiber made from natural wood or plant pulp through chemical dissolution and regeneration processes. It possesses characteristics such as a soft feel, moisture absorption and breathability, and excellent dyeing properties, making it widely used in various fields from high-end fashion to fast fashion. From a raw material perspective, it originates from renewable biomass; from a biodegradable perspective, it is biodegradable. These qualities often lead to its being marketed as “eco-fiber” and “derived from nature but superior to nature.”
1. Viscose Fiber Production Traditional viscose fiber production begins with wood pulp. The main processes include alkalization, aging, xanthation (reaction with CS₂), dissolution and curing, and finally, acid bath spinning to regenerate the fiber. The core environmental pressures of this process are:
Chemical Pollution: Carbon disulfide (CS₂) is a highly toxic and volatile solvent, difficult to fully recover during production, and is emitted as waste gas, harming worker health and the surrounding environment. Substances such as zinc sulfate from the acid bath are also discharged with the wastewater.
Resource Consumption: The entire process consumes a huge amount of water and energy. Although the raw material is wood, if the wood comes from illegal logging or deforestation, it will trigger a chain reaction of ecological disasters such as biodiversity loss and increased carbon emissions.
Waste: Production ultimately generates various forms of waste. As research indicates, almost all chemicals used in the process eventually enter the environment as “three wastes” (waste gas, wastewater, and solid waste).
2. Sustainability: Viscose fiber exhibits a clear “polarization” in its environmental performance: its endpoint (biodegradation) is excellent, but its process (production) performance is worrying. A 2025 carbon footprint assessment study clearly indicates that among common cellulosic fibers, viscose fiber production has the highest global warming potential. This is mainly attributed to the greenhouse gas emissions and related energy consumption generated during its chemically intensive production process.
In summary, viscose fiber can meet sustainability requirements at the raw material level through sustainable forestry management and its excellent biodegradability at the end. However, its production process still emits a significant amount of waste and may even exacerbate the greenhouse effect.
3. Fundamental Technological Changes
The promotion of the Lyocell process: This is considered the most disruptive solution. It uses a non-toxic, nearly fully recyclable N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO) solvent to form a closed-loop physical dissolution production process, completely eliminating CS₂. Although currently more expensive, it represents the future direction of clean production of regenerated cellulose fibers.
Currently, there are two main types of fibers on the market using the Lyocell process: Tencel Lyocell and Bamboo Lyocell. These two fibers are very environmentally friendly, but require a high level of technical expertise in fabric dyeing. Fortunately, ecoprinture’s factories have many years of production experience.
Original article, author:Devin
