EURO 2025 Leeds
Abstract Submission

2082. A bilevel programming approach to optimizing textile recycling strategies

Invited abstract in session MC-42: Sustainable apparel supply chains, stream Circular & Sustainable Supply Chains.

Monday, 12:30-14:00
Room: Newlyn GR.02

Authors (first author is the speaker)

1. Dámaris Arizhay Dávila Soria
Faculty of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Universidad de los Andes
2. Mario A. Aguirre-López
Faculty of Sciences in Physics and Mathematics, Autonomous University of Chiapas
3. José-Fernando Camacho-Vallejo
Escuela de Ingeniería y Ciencias, Tecnologico de Monterrey

Abstract

In this work, we propose a bilevel programming problem enhancing collaboration between society, recyclers and re-manufacturers to promote longer garment life cycles within the supply chain. In this problem, a private recycling company collects used garments through strategically placed collection containers. The collected garments are sorted for upcycling and material extraction. This recycling company aims to maximize its profit by selling textiles to remanufacturers, who bid on the entire contents of the containers without prior inspection, considering location and expected quality. The allocation process of the collection containers is subject to capacity and accessibility constraints. The bilevel model frames recycling company as the leader and remanufacturers as the followers. Due to the characteristics of the resulting model, it is then reformulated as a single-level problem using KKT conditions. For small instances, an exact method is proposed, while a metaheuristic is designed to handle large instances. Computational experiments are conducted to validate the algorithm’s efficiency, and a case study in Chile is presented, analyzing the trade-off between maximizing the recycling company's profit, strengthening the link with local remanufacturers, and minimizing the environmental impact of the collected garments. Through this analysis, we highlight key insights that can guide more sustainable and economically viable decision-making in textile recycling.

Keywords

Status: accepted

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