biostudies-literatureLeenders NDutch Research Council (NWO)738https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC11779930biostudies-literatureUnknown16(1)As a result of the current high throughput of the fast fashion collections and the concomitant decrease in product lifetime, we are facing enormous amounts of textile waste. Since textiles are often a blend of multiple fibers (predominantly cotton and polyester) and contain various different components, proper waste management and recycling are challenging. Here, we describe a high-yield process for the sequential chemical recycling of cotton and polyester from mixed waste textiles. The utilization of 43 wt% hydrochloric acid for the acid hydrolysis of polycotton (44/56 cotton/polyester, room temperature, 24 h) results in a 75% molar glucose yield from the cotton fraction, whereafter the hydrolysate solution is easily separated from the solid polyester residue. The reaction is scalable, asNature communicationsPolycotton waste textile recycling by sequential hydrolysis and glycolysis.PMC11779930KICH1.ED01.20.006Gruter GMPuijk MJBronkhorst RJAvan Klink GPMMoerbeek RMLeenders NBueno Moron JfalsePolycotton waste textile recycling by sequential hydrolysis and glycolysis.As a result of the current high throughput of the fast fashion collections and the concomitant decrease in product lifetime, we are facing enormous amounts of textile waste. Since textiles are often a blend of multiple fibers (predominantly cotton and polyester) and contain various different components, proper waste management and recycling are challenging. Here, we describe a high-yield process for the sequential chemical recycling of cotton and polyester from mixed waste textiles. The utilization of 43 wt% hydrochloric acid for the acid hydrolysis of polycotton (44/56 cotton/polyester, room temperature, 24 h) results in a 75% molar glucose yield from the cotton fraction, whereafter the hydrolysate solution is easily separated from the solid polyester residue. The reaction is scalable, as2025-01-01T00:00:00Z2025 Jan2025-04-22T10:29:59.774Z2025-04-05T23:34:36.922ZS-EPMC117799303988082910.1038/s41467-025-55935-6