Interview with Tjeerd Veenhoven

Tjeerd Veenhoven
CEO
Studio Tjeerd Veenhoven

Growing textile fibre under water

Tjeerd Veenhoven is an industrial designer of a special kind. In his hands, materials change their shape like they do in the hands of an alchemist. He has made shoes from palm leaves, woven fabric from fungus and, being Dutch, he has extracted colour pigments for industrial use from tulips.

With his project 'Growing textile fibre under water', Veenhoven is making use of a natural resource that his home country, the Netherlands, has plenty of: water. Within this resource, he discovered that algae, specifically a variety by the name of Cladophora, are rich in cellulose. June to August were the perfect months for harvesting these algae. Fibre2Fashion spoke to him about his goals, the industrial application of his algae-material and the possible effect on the environment he could have with it.

What is the goal of your project?

Our goal is to develop an alternative resource of cellulose to contribute to textile production and simultaneously offer a solution for the regions where algae are a pest and destroying local flora, fauna and livelihoods. In my opinion, algae should be perceived as a (even more) valuable commodity for the future.

What is your background?

My background is in product design, and I have had my own design studio now for over 15 years where I and my small team are dedicated to implementing design-thinking in existing and new value chains in a wide variety of markets.

How did you get the idea of growing textile fibres under water?

The question of 'What's in your own backyard' has been a driving theme for our material innovations for many years, and our other projects such as Palmleather and Bio-Laminates are successful examples of this.

Algae caught my eye many years ago, and I was stunned by their growth rate and how much material is around. Obviously, not all algae are suitable for our current project, but to me it was clear that this material in my own backyard must be utilised. After the initial explorations, I was amazed by how little affinity we have with these green slimy organisms, while there is so much of it.

Which steps have you taken so far in this project?

After an extensive literature study, my conclusion was that the algae are specifically suitable for cellulose extraction. Even though algae are suitable for many things, the application to fabrics is, in my opinion, a good value increase and essential to solve some huge sustainability challenges in the fashion value chain.

The literature study resulted in a roadmap for development, which got me the Global Change Award. Currently, we are doing more research on what the ideal conditions are for growth of the specific algae species, and how we can optimise the cellulose extraction through a circular separation system.

On the total opposite of the value chain, we are also looking at what type of applications this filament can be used in, what type of clothing, or perhaps also in carpets or upholstery. Even though fashion is the big goal, it of course depends on the final wearability and the price.

What are the characteristics of the fibre you are trying to grow?

Well, obviously this depends on those future results. But I hope it will resemble a cotton-type material. Most likely, however, it will feel and behave like hemp at first.

What was the biggest breakthrough for you in this project?

Discovering how much cellulose was in the algae was our biggest breakthrough. Our Cladophora algae species has up to 70 per cent cellulose in its cell wall, this is much more than for example the Eucalyptus tree has (up to 45 per cent).

What applications do you see for the fibre in the future?

As I mentioned, fashion is indeed the highest challenge for its volume and wearability are so specific and technically challenging. But developing any fibre based on cellulose is a good addition to the textile producing industry. In my opinion, cellulose is the bio-polymer of the future and current research by many specialists in a wide variety of fields will unlock its potential in the coming decade.

What is the biggest challenge you are facing with the project at the moment?

We are confident in the technology, and I think this will solidify in the coming years. My biggest current challenge is mapping out the entire value chain. Where do you get all this algae; how does it grow; is there enough to support large scale production; how is it harvested?

I love to solve these questions for they are what makes or breaks this future material. Explorations in cellulose are plentiful, but finding the right material to extract it in a sensible and affordable way is, in my opinion, the biggest challenge. So, by far the challenges in my project are how to start up the upstream part of the value chain. To do this, we plan to start a small scale harvest in China, with local farmers (from that moment onwards they will be algae farmers) and at a very local scale. If it works there, I am confident I can make it work on the bigger scale. Also, this experience will give me crucial data for the life-cycle assessment (LCA) analysis I have planned. The LCA analysis will determine whether making filament, and eventually yarn, from algae-based cellulose is truly a good idea.

What impact can this project have, if you succeed?

Algae are such an important part of the global carbon flux, these organisms absorb large parts of CO2 and produce in their peak seasons staggering amounts of oxygen. Retrieving their cellulose is a fantastic renewable system. It is, in any case, not a linear system such as petro chemistry.

Besides that, as I mentioned, it is all about how to accumulate the algae. In my mind, this is going to be most successful in an agricultural setting, with farmers in coastal or tidal communities growing and harvesting the Cladophora algae and drying it. If this matter of collection is possible, the value chain is super-sustainable and can contribute to a stable regional resource for many communities.

Are there companies that have shown interest in an industrial use of it?

This is all in an early stage, and I am very careful with making any big promises. It is up to me to prove it is viable and sustainable. Of course, there is much attention for this type of innovation, but it has little value in the lab stage; only when you have successfully passed a medium scale implementation in the field does it work. I take my own time-being one of the winners of the GCA gives me the opportunity to check, double check and expedite my plans, which is great; but for now, let's be humble and first do the field tests! But yes, of course I am a firm believer of algae being the future commodity for our fashion industry.

Published on: 03/11/2016

DISCLAIMER: All views and opinions expressed in this column are solely of the interviewee, and they do not reflect in any way the opinion of Fibre2Fashion.com.