Lyocell is the generic name for a biodegradable fabric that's made out of treated wood pulp,It's is a solvent-spun cellulosic fiber-an innovation of the 1990s in this oldest group of manufactured fibers It's commonly sold under the brand name Tencel®, which is made by Lenzing AG. Known for its versatility, durability, and strength when both wet and dry, this material is used in everything from clothing to cars. . Research went on at Courtaulds
Fibres Plc., U.K.
from the late 1970s, with the pilot plant stage reached in 1988; during this
time the fiber was referred to by the name "Genesis." The first of
this type marketed in North America was TENCEL®, a staple fiber made by Courtaulds, with the first
commercial production plant in Mobile ,
Alabama , in late 1992. By the
late 1990s, Courtaulds had turned over this fiber to the Dutch firm, Akzo
Nobel, which had held the original patent on the solvent spinning process, and
Tencel Fibres Europe was formed to forward applications of TENCEL staple
there. TENCEL is used alone and blended with cotton, flax, polyester, and wool,
plus some blends with spandex. Akzo Nobel, expert in high-speed spinning of
filament yarns, and building on work done by American Enka, formed a separate
fibers company and introduced the first filament lyocell under the trademark
name NEWCELL® (by Acordis), with resulting wider applications of
this fiber type in "silky" fabrics.