From wood to fiber
For more than 80 years, Lenzing has produced fibers from the renewable raw material, wood. These can be used in the textile industry and for hygiene products such as wet wipes as a sustainable alternative to oil-based basic materials. It goes without saying that there is a great deal of know-how behind the production of these fibers.
There are different processes and methods to produce wood-based cellulose fibers. The Lenzing group combines its extensive competence in the field of cellulose fiber production with its experience of the basic fiber production technologies for Viscose, Modal and Lyocell. All three fibers have the same source material in common – certified sustainable wood. All of them are also compostable again at the end and can return to nature.
Wood-based cellulose fibers are made from wood in a two-stage process. The manufacturing process for pulp is similar to that of paper. In a second stage, pulp is dissolved, and cellulose fibers are regenerated from the solution and formed into corresponding fiber lengths for processing into textiles and fleece materials, which are used for wet wipes, makeup removal wipes, feminine hygiene products or beauty face masks.
Viscose process
LENZING™ Viscose fibers are produced from pulp (cellulose) in a multi-stage process. Here too, the origin is sustainable, and the process is always environmentally friendly.
In a first step, the pulp is dissolved by means of cellulose derivatization to become a honey-like, viscous solution. The cellulose fibers „viscose“ are regenerated by spinning the viscose solution through fine nozzles into the spinning bath. The cellulose originally used is completely regenerated in precisely defined process conditions, resulting in fibers with specific properties and quality features. Further on in the process, the fibers are cut, subjected to a specific washing procedure and dried.
Modal process
LENZING™ Modal fibers are manufactured in a process very similar to the viscose process. By making certain changes to the relevant process settings when producing the spinning solution as well as in the spinning process, it is, however, possible to produce fibers which stand out above all due to their high dry and wet resistance. A high fiber strength is necessary, on the one hand to attain dimensional stability in the textiles and on the other hand to produce very fine yarns.
Lyocell process
The Lyocell process is the latest process for the production of cellulose fibers of wood. It has been used with success for around 25 years. It is particularly environmentally friendly and is the most innovative and sustainable production process. The pulp, which is extracted from wood, is dissolved in a closed circuit by the addition of an organic solvent and processed – completely without the derivatization of the cellulose. With the process developed by Lenzing, the solvent remains in a closed loop and is recovered by more than 99 percent and re-introduced to the production process. Moreover, throughout the years Lenzing has continuously worked on the Lyocell-production process and constantly reduced the energy consumption as a result of continuous optimizations.
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