04 | 2008

Fibers | Textiles
Fiber and Fabric Applications
Sorona ® Renewably
Article contributed by
Dawson E. Winch, Global Brand
Manager, DuPont Applied BioSciences,
Wilmington, Delaware, USA
Now in its third century, DuPont has evolved into a
leader in industrial biotechnology. The company is
leading the way in industrial biotechnology with more
patents in this field than any other company. DuPont is also
unique in that it operates throughout the entire supply chain -
from seed to agricultural feedstock to product or in the terms
of life cycle analysis, from cradle to gate. Being a leader in
sustainability in October 2006 DuPont announced new 2015
Sustainability Goals. Most of the previous sustainability goals
for 2010 had been met or exceeded. One of these goals is to
reduce dependency on non-depletable resources – this includes
petroleum. DuPont Sorona ® renewably sourced
polymer was the first commercialized product that used renewable
resources – instead of petroleum – to produce both
ingredients and materials.
Natural fibers such as wool, linen, silk and cotton have long
been a part of fashion history. In the mid 20th century synthetic
fibers hit the market and women enjoyed wearing stockings
made with nylon from DuPont. For over 60 years DuPont
has been a leader in polymer and fiber innovation and this
innovation continues in the 21st century with the introduction
of DuPont Sorona renewably sourced polymer
DuPont has known about Sorona, known generically as
PTT (polytrimethyl terephthalate) for many years but didn’t
believe it was economically viable to make it using traditional
petrochemical feedstocks. So, DuPont scientists developed a
way to make this product by combining biology with polymer
science to find alternative production methods. Since the
production of PDO (propanediol) – the key ingredient in
Sorona, occurs in nature, it was a matter of maximizing and
simplifying that process to produce commercial quantities of
1,3 propanediol, in one step.
Bio-PDO (1,3 propanediol) is the first of several base
monomers or building block molecules developed by DuPont
using renewable resources instead of petrochemicals. Not
only does Bio-PDO have direct applications it is also the key
ingredient in Sorona renewably sourced polymer. Sorona
offers ‘Performance PLUS Environmental Responsibility’ to
the fiber and fabric industries.
As a fiber, Sorona offers a unique combination of attributes
not found in any other single fiber. Many markets and end
uses including apparel, home and office interiors, carpeting
and automotive interiors and carpeting can benefit from the
many attributes and benefits of Sorona.
30 bioplastics MAGAZINE [04/08] Vol. 3