Electrospun Nanofibers and Mushroom Mycelium for Circular Textile Material Concepts: Opportunities and Research Gaps

Abstract

The transition toward circular textile systems requires the development of materials that combine functional performance with biodegradability and reduced environmental impact. Electrospun nanofibers and fungal mycelium-based materials have emerged as two promising approaches in this context. Electrospinning enables the fabrication of highly controlled fibrous architectures with tunable morphology, the ability to process a wide range of bio-based and synthetic polymers, high surface area, and application-specific functionality. In parallel, mycelium-based materials offer renewable, low-energy production and intrinsic biodegradability, and can be cultivated on lignocellulosic agricultural waste streams, making them attractive candidates for sustainable material design.

Initial studies indicate that mycelium can grow on fibrous substrates, including textile nonwovens, and that hybrid systems combining nanofibers and fungal components are technically feasible, although systematic investigations remain limited. However, this research direction is still in an early stage, with existing studies remaining fragmented and rarely developed with a specific focus on textile-engineered systems. Existing research predominantly treats fibrous materials as passive substrates or reinforcement phases, rather than as engineered textile systems with defined structural and functional properties.

This paper critically reviews recent advances in electrospun nanofibers, mycelium-based materials, and their emerging combinations. It identifies key challenges and open questions characteristic of an emerging research field, including the lack of systematic material design frameworks, limited understanding of nanofiber–mycelium interactions, insufficient evaluation of textile-relevant properties, and the lack of circularity and end-of-life assessments for hybrid materials.

The analysis highlights the potential of electrospun nanofibers have the potential to act as tunable textile architectures that influence the structural organisation of mycelial networks and composite formation. Bridging the gap between biofabrication and textile engineering could enable a new class of biohybrid materials, supporting the development of circular textile systems.