What is "lyocell"

n. A semisynthetic fibre (and associated fabric) made from wood pulp

Lyocell is a form of rayon which consists of cellulose fibre made from dissolving pulp (bleached wood pulp) using dry jet-wet spinning. It was developed beginning in 1972 by a team at the now defunct American Enka fibers facility at Enka, North Carolina. This development was recognised by the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) in 2003 by the awarding of their Henry E. Millson Award for Invention. The operating name for the fibre inside the Enka Organization was "Newcell", and the development was carried through pilot plant scale before the work was halted. The fibre was developed further as Tencel in the 1980s by Courtaulds Fibres in Coventry, UK and at the Grimsby, UK pilot plant. The process was first commercialised at Courtaulds rayon factories at Mobile, Alabama (1990) and at the Grimsby plant (1998). In 1998 Courtaulds was acquired by Akzo Nobel, who combined the Tencel division with other fibre divisions under the Acordis banner, prior to selling them off to private equity (CVC Partners). In 2004 CVC sold the Tencel division to Lenzing AG, who combined it with their "Lenzing Lyocell" business but maintained the brand name Tencel. , Lenzing's Tencel brand is perhaps the most widely known lyocell fiber producer throughout the world.

The US Federal Trade Commission defines Lyocell as a fibre "composed of cellulose precipitated from an organic solution in which no substitution of the hydroxyl groups takes place and no chemical intermediates are formed". It classifies the fibre as a sub-category of rayon. The fibre is used to make textiles for clothing and other purposes.