Post-consumer Nylon 6 and 6,6

This Common Product is intended to capture content that may be found in materials commonly recycled to generate post-consumer nylon 6 or nylon 6,6. Different recycling processes will be expected to remove some or most of the non-nylon chemicals. Some content manufactured from recycled nylon may be tested to meet certifications such as STANDARD 100 by OEKO-TEX®, which places thresholds on the levels of a number of toxic chemicals allowed in textiles. It is important to check with suppliers to identify what type of testing a recycled feedstock has undergone. This Common Product may be used to identify residual chemicals and chemical functions to screen for in recycled nylon 6 and nylon 6,6 after it has been washed and processed and before it is incorporated into new materials. This is not a complete list of all the potential chemicals that may be found in post-consumer nylon before washing and further processing. 

Nylon can be recycled from various materials such as carpets, abandoned fishing nets, and clothing. It can then be reincorporated into new products such as carpets, clothing, plastic lumber composites, automotive applications, small appliances, and furniture. Nylon 6 can be chemically recycled using a depolymerization process that generates a caprolactam monomer and removes non-nylon components. Chemical recycling of Nylon 6,6 is generally viewed as economically unfeasible. It is more difficult because Nylon 6,6 it is made from two different monomers and can require large volumes of reagents while yielding low volumes of monomers. 

Nylon carpet can be recycled through mechanical recycling that incorporates processes such as shredding and cleaning the carpet to remove debris and other contaminants like fly ash from the backing. Processes also exist to cut the face fiber from the backing resulting in less contamination of the fibers with the backing material. These fibers are then purified further before being melted and extruded. Nylon fibers that are recycled mechanically can be used in products such as carpet backing and plastic lumber composites.