Mönchengladbach. As part of the graduation ceremony for the Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology at the Hochschule Niederrhein (HSNR), two graduates were awarded distinctions for their outstanding theses. Nora Torst received the distinction for the best Bachelor's thesis, whilst Fernanda Katharina Baum was honoured for the best master's thesis. Both distinctions are worth 1,500 euros each.
The prize for the best Bachelor's thesis was awarded to Nora Torst from Mönchengladbach, a graduate of the Textile & Clothing Management degree programme. In her thesis, which was awarded an overall mark of 1.0, she investigated the chemical recycling of PET textiles treated with phosphorus-based flame retardants. The aim of her research was to identify ways in which textile waste can be recycled to a high standard whilst simultaneously recovering valuable raw materials.
To this end, she analysed both different flame retardant chemistries and various ways in which the flame retardants bind to the polyester fibre, and investigated their behaviour during a multi-stage chemical recycling process. Particular attention was paid to the fate of the phosphorus, as well as the purity of the recycled terephthalic acid, an important feedstock for the production of PET.
The bachelor's thesis was written as part of the SiWerTEX research project at the Research Institute for Textile and Clothing (FTB) at the Hochschule Niederrhein, in collaboration with the Institute for Chemical and Thermal Process Engineering (ICTV) at the Technical University of Braunschweig.
The prize money was donated by the Association of the Rhenish Textile and Clothing Industry e. V. and presented by Dr Uwe Kirchhoff. Nora Torst intends to invest the prize money in her forthcoming Master’s degree programme in Australia.
Fernanda Katharina Baum (Textile Products degree programme) from Düsseldorf was also granted a distinction for her master's thesis, which was awarded an overall mark of 1.2. The graduate investigated the influence of various spinning agents on the spinning process and the yarn properties of lyocell-algae rotor yarns. To this end, she produced yarns from Lyocell fibres and cultivated algae and analysed how different rotors and draw-off nozzles influence the spinning process. The focus was on both the flow characteristics during yarn production and the strength of the finished yarns. The results provide important insights into the processing of sustainable fibre materials.
The prize money was donated by Textile and Fashion Network e. V. (TFN), the faculty’s support association. Having successfully completed her Master’s degree, Fernanda Katharina Baum is now working on the Algacore research project at the Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology at The Hochschule Niederrhein. She intends to invest part of the prize money in the purchase of a new sewing machine.
