GEELONG, Australia — August 8, 2025 — Australia’s war on waste has a powerful new ally, Deakin University’s Recycling and Clean Energy Commercialization Hub (REACH).
REACH has joined forces with Samsara Eco to fast-track world-first technology that could recycle plastics and textiles, previously considered unrecyclable, that would take centuries to eliminate from the environment.
Textile waste is one of the world’s most persistent environmental issues, driven by fast fashion, high consumption and poor disposal practices. In Australia, synthetic fibres like nylon and polyester make up almost 60 per cent of the materials used in clothing, yet with less than one per cent of discarded garments recycled into new clothes, most end up in landfill or are incinerated, adding to pollution and harmful emissions.
Samsara Eco’s AI-designed enzymes break down fossil-fuel derived materials like synthetic fibres, including nylon 6,6 and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) into their original building blocks or monomers – allowing them to be rebuilt into new products with virgin-quality performance.
The collaboration will see Samsara Eco lean into Deakin’s advanced chemical analysis and polymer processing expertise to better understand and find recycling solutions for specific additives like dyes, finishes and coatings present in textile waste.
‘We are laser-focused on creating true circularity and that means finding a solve for all plastics,’ said Founder and CEO at Samsara Eco Paul Riley. ‘This research supports our efforts to make this a reality. We’ve already come a long way with our enzymatic recycling technology, which can infinitely recycle PET and nylon 6,6 plastics used for clothing and other textiles, including mixed fibres and plastics. Our research collaboration with Deakin will support our efforts to recycle more waste at speed, scale and with precision.’
Unlike mechanical recycling, which degrades the quality of materials and limits recyclability, Samsara Eco’s enzymatic depolymerisation technology is making it possible to rebuild worn or contaminated textiles into virgin-equivalent materials.
Distinguished Professor Colin Barrow, Chair in Biotechnology at Deakin’s School of Life and Environmental Sciences said:
‘Our research tackles a critical challenge in textile recycling – understanding how dyes, textile finishes, coatings and other chemical treatments affect the breakdown and rebuilding of synthetic fibres, including other types of polyester and nylon to repurpose into new products.
‘We are exploring solutions by analysing these contaminants and determining their impact on textile recycling processes, to make it possible to produce high-performance recycled materials from all types of waste feedstock.’
Associate Professor Chris Hurren from Deakin’s Institute for Frontier Materials is also collaborating on the project and said:
‘By testing how these materials perform in real-world polymerisation and processing, we’re helping to refine the recycling pipeline and bring closed-loop textile recycling closer to commercial reality.’
With growing global pressure on the textile industry to cut emissions and reduce waste, Associate Professor Hurren says this technology could revolutionise the sector – delivering both environmental and economic benefits.
‘We’re working to unlock a scalable, circular future for fashion – one that reduces reliance on harmful inputs and keeps textiles out of landfill.’
Samsara Eco has a 10-year agreement with global activewear brand lululemon to support approximately 20 per cent of its overall fibre portfolio with its recycled materials. This builds on previous collaborations between the two, launching the world’s first enzymatically recycled nylon 6,6 garment, recreating their iconic Swiftly top, and a limited-edition Packable Anorak jacket – the first retail garment made from enzymatically recycled polyester.
With their first commercial facility set to open in Jerrabomberra later this year, Samsara Eco’s 2030 vision is to recycle half a billion clothing items and 10 billion plastic bottles annually, avoiding hundreds of thousands of tonnes of carbon emissions.
‘We’re uniquely positioned to recycle mixed plastics and fibres,’ said Mr Riley. ‘We’re taking post-industrial and post-consumer waste to create new products and are already working with helping brands to swap virgin inputs for our low carbon, enzymatically recycled materials, which plug directly into existing supply chains.
‘Together with Deakin’s researchers, we can find further recycling solves to keep more out of landfill and in circulation.’
Posted: August 8, 2025
Source: Deakin University’s Recycling and Clean Energy Commercialization Hub (REACH)