Viscose Carbon Footprint: Fibre, Knit & Woven Fabric

Viscose, also called rayon, is a regenerated cellulosic fibre made from wood pulp. It is widely used in dresses, blouses, shirts, linings and printed fabrics because it is soft, smooth and has good drape.

The carbon footprint of viscose fabric depends on how the fibre is spun, knitted or woven, dyed and finished. Viscose knit fabric has a carbon footprint of 14.31 kg CO₂e per kg of fabric, while viscose woven fabric has a footprint of 17.96 kg CO₂e per kg.

The viscose fibre itself has a global-average footprint of 2.14 kg CO₂e per kg before it is turned into yarn and fabric.

What is the carbon footprint of viscose?

2.14 kg CO₂e per kg of viscose fibre, global average
Fibre Range across regions: 2.14 to 6.87 kg CO₂e per kg

Knit viscose fabric: 14.31 kg CO₂e per kg
Woven viscose fabric: 17.96 kg CO₂e per kg

These figures cover the production of the fibre and the main processes needed to turn it into fabric. They include spinning, knitting or weaving, preparation, dyeing and finishing.

The fibre stage accounts for only part of the final fabric footprint. Most of the emissions are added during textile processing, particularly knitting or weaving and dyeing.

For knit fabric, the production stages in this example are:

The calculation uses one production route: ring-spun yarn, circular knitting, batch dyeing and a light finish.

Different production methods will give different results. The type of spinning, knitting or weaving, dyeing method and finishing process can all change the footprint.

Why does viscose fabric have this carbon footprint?

Viscose starts with wood pulp, which generally has a lower carbon footprint than petroleum-based raw materials used to make synthetic fibres such as polyester.

However, producing viscose fibre requires several chemical and energy-intensive processes. The pulp is processed into a solution, spun into fibre and then processed into yarn and fabric.

The fabric-making stages add further emissions. In the example above, circular knitting adds 6.97 kg CO₂e per kg, while dyeing adds 2.36 kg CO₂e per kg.

This is why the carbon footprint of the finished fabric is much higher than the footprint of the fibre alone.

Viscose fabric carbon footprint by region

The location where viscose fibre is produced can have a significant effect on the final fabric footprint.

The global-average viscose fibre has a footprint of 2.14 kg CO₂e per kg, while viscose produced in India has a footprint of 6.87 kg CO₂e per kg.

Using the same knitting, dyeing and finishing processes, this increases the finished knit fabric footprint from 14.31 to around 19.04 kg CO₂e per kg.

A major reason for the difference is the carbon intensity of electricity used during fibre production. Electricity has a larger effect on viscose because the conversion of pulp into fibre requires substantial processing.

Indonesia, China and Austria are also major viscose-producing countries, but a separate factor is not available for them in this dataset. The global average is therefore used as the default.

Knit vs woven viscose fabric

The construction of the fabric also changes its carbon footprint.

The woven fabric has a higher footprint in this example because weaving adds 10.18 kg CO₂e per kg, compared with 6.97 kg CO₂e per kg for circular knitting.

The difference does not come from the viscose fibre itself. It comes from the additional energy and processing required to make the fabric.

Where the same viscose fibre can be used for either knit or woven fabric, the construction method should therefore be included in the footprint calculation.

What is the carbon footprint of EcoVero fabric?

EcoVero fibre: 1.07 kg CO₂e per kg

EcoVero is a branded viscose fibre made using certified wood sources and a process with high solvent recovery. Its reported fibre-stage footprint is 1.07 kg CO₂e per kg, compared with 2.14 kg CO₂e per kg for generic viscose.

This does not mean that EcoVero fabric has a carbon footprint of 1.07 kg CO₂e per kg. The figure is for the fibre before spinning, knitting or weaving, dyeing and finishing.

The final footprint of EcoVero fabric will depend on the textile processes used after the fibre is produced.

The two fibre figures also come from different types of sources. The generic viscose figure comes from an independent life cycle assessment, while branded fibre figures generally come from the producer. They should therefore not be treated as directly comparable measurements.

What is the carbon footprint of bamboo viscose fabric?

Bamboo fabric is usually bamboo viscose. Bamboo is converted into pulp and then processed into fibre using a chemical process similar to conventional viscose.

The bamboo viscose fibre in this dataset has a carbon footprint of 6.23 kg CO₂e per kg, compared with 2.14 kg CO₂e per kg for generic viscose.

The higher fibre footprint means that bamboo viscose fabric will also have a higher footprint than fabric made from the global-average viscose fibre when the same textile processes are used.

Bamboo grows quickly and can require less irrigation than some agricultural crops. These characteristics do not remove the emissions from converting bamboo into fibre. The full production process needs to be considered when assessing bamboo fabric.

How does viscose fabric compare with other fabrics?

Carbon footprints should be compared at the same stage of production. A fibre factor should not be compared directly with a finished fabric factor.

For viscose, the global-average fibre footprint is 2.14 kg CO₂e per kg, but the finished knit fabric in this production route is 14.31 kg CO₂e per kg.

For a meaningful fabric comparison, the same processes and system boundary should be used for each material. Where the available factors use different production routes or boundaries, the numbers should not be treated as directly comparable.

At fibre stage, the factors in this dataset are:

These figures help explain differences in the fabric footprint, but they are not finished-fabric footprints.

How much water does viscose fabric use?

Viscose fibre uses 0.05 m³ of water per kg, compared with 0.75 m³ per kg for global-average cotton in this dataset.

Viscose has lower water use at the fibre stage because it is made from wood pulp rather than an irrigated agricultural crop.

However, water consumption does not describe the full water-related impact of viscose production. The chemical process used to make viscose produces wastewater, so water use and wastewater management need to be considered separately.

What does the viscose fabric footprint mean for a garment?

The fabric footprint gives a more useful estimate for a garment than the fibre number alone.

For example, if a dress uses 250 grams of viscose fabric, the fabric-stage emissions would be approximately:

These figures cover the production of the fabric. Cutting and sewing, transport, packaging, use and end of life are not included.

The actual footprint of a garment will also depend on how much fabric it uses and how much material is lost during cutting.

What about printed viscose fabric?

Printing adds emissions after the fabric has been produced.

The 14.31 kg CO₂e per kg figure above uses batch dyeing and a light finish. Printed viscose can have a higher footprint because printing requires additional materials, energy and processing.

The final number depends on the printing method, number of colours, ink or dye chemistry, drying process and finishing.

For a product-level footprint, the actual production process should therefore be used where supplier data is available.

What these viscose fabric figures cover

Fibre production. The viscose fibre figure covers forestry and pulp supply through to fibre production.

Fabric production. The fabric figures add yarn production, knitting or weaving, preparation, dyeing and finishing using the production route stated above.

Garment production is not included. Cutting, sewing, transport, use and end of life are outside these figures.

The figures are industry averages. They can be used to estimate a viscose fabric footprint. They do not represent the footprint of a specific mill or supplier.

Production location matters. The dataset provides separate factors for global-average viscose and viscose produced in India. The global average is used where a country-specific factor is not available.

Forest sourcing is not reflected in the carbon figures. Different wood sources can have different environmental impacts, including impacts on forests and biodiversity. These factors require separate assessment.

Production methods affect the result. Spinning, knitting or weaving, dyeing and finishing processes can all change the final footprint. The figures above are based on a specific production route and should not be treated as a universal footprint for every viscose fabric.