# Narbaal > EVIDENCE TAG #001: POLYMER DEGRADATION Your backpack will still be in that watershed in the year 2502.Summit Zero won't. Iron-Hemp bio-composite. Stress-tested across 5,000 miles.20% stronger than Cordura Nylon. Compost-grade hardware.Returns to eart... ## Site Directory & Summaries ### [The Evidence — Summit Zero Technical Dossier | NarBaal](https://narbaal.com/evidence/?view=raw) Home > The Evidence The Evidence. This is not a marketing page.Every claim on this page is testable, measurable, and documented.If you find an error, contact us. We will correct it publicly. The outdoor gear industry runs on unverifiable superlatives."Ultra-durable." "High-performance." "Responsibly made." We don't use those words. What follows is the forensic dossier on Summit Zero —materials, tests, certifications, and the comparative datathat makes synthetic gear look like what it is:a slow-r... ### [Summit Zero Backpack — Iron-Hemp Bio-Composite | NarBaal](https://narbaal.com/summit-zero/?view=raw) Home > Summit Zero Summit Zero Backpack The first pack that outperforms syntheticswithout leaving a 476-year chemical legacy. ✦ Iron-Hemp bio-composite — OEKO-TEX certified✦ 20% higher abrasion resistance than Cordura Nylon✦ Stress-tested: 5,000 miles, Appalachian Trail to Denali✦ 20,000mm water resistance — Biomimetic wax. Zero PFAS✦ Composts in 18 months. No microplastic residue✦ 100 units per model. Ships April. [Product Image Placeholder] Choose your assignment. MODEL A — SUMMIT ZERO 40L The... ### [Privacy Policy](https://narbaal.com/privacy-policy/?view=raw) Who we are Suggested text: Our website address is: https://narbaal.com. Comments Suggested text: When visitors leave comments on the site we collect the data shown in the comments form, and also the visitor’s IP address and browser user agent string to help spam detection. An anonymized string created from your email address (also called a hash) may be provided to the Gravatar service to see if you are using it. The Gravatar service privacy policy is available here: https://automattic.com/... ### [Pre-Order Summit Zero](https://narbaal.com/preorder/?view=raw) Home > Pre-Order Summit Zero.Pre-Order Now. 100 units per model. Ships April.When they're gone, there is no restock confirmed. ✦ OEKO-TEX Certified ✦ Zero PFAS ✦ Iron-Hemp Bio-Composite ✦ Composts in 18 Months ✦ 5,000-Mile Stress Tested Choose your model. Both models. Same material. Same standards. Different assignment. SUMMIT ZERO 40L Multi-day expeditions. Full load capacity. $149 Volume40 litres Weight1.2 kg Side pockets2× large — fits 1L water bottles Front pocketElastic quick-access — ra... ### [NarBaal | Summit Zero — Gear Built to Endure or Return](https://narbaal.com/?view=raw) EVIDENCE TAG #001: POLYMER DEGRADATION Your backpack will still be in that watershed in the year 2502.Summit Zero won't. Iron-Hemp bio-composite. Stress-tested across 5,000 miles.20% stronger than Cordura Nylon. Compost-grade hardware.Returns to earth in 18 months. Leaves no fossil record. 100 units. Ships April. $149. SECURE YOUR SUMMIT ZERO Inspect the Evidence → The pack on your back is a slow-release contaminant. UV exposure. Rainfall. Trail abrasion.Every hike you do, your synthetic pack sh... ### [About NarBaal — Built to Endure or Return](https://narbaal.com/about/?view=raw) NarBaal.Built to endure or return. Everything we make does one of two things:it outlasts synthetic alternatives,or it decomposes without a chemical trace. Nothing in between. It started with a calculation. ⚑ [FOUNDER NOTE — Insert here: 3–5 sentences about the specific moment or realisation that started NarBaal. Be concrete: where were you, what were you doing, what did you calculate or discover? Examples of the right register below. Do NOT write: "We have always been passionate about nature." W... ### [476 Years: The Hidden Lifespan of Your Synthetic Backpack](https://narbaal.com/2026/03/01/476-years-synthetic-backpack-lifespan/?view=raw) Your backpack has two lifespans. The first one you know: 3 to 5 years of hard use before the seams start to fail, the buckles crack, and the fabric loses structural integrity under load. That is when most people replace it. The second lifespan starts the moment it enters the waste stream. And it runs for approximately 476 years. This article is about the second lifespan — what your pack is doing after you stop carrying it, and what it is doing while you are still carrying it. The Material You Ar... ### [Iron-Hemp vs Cordura Nylon: The Abrasion Test Data](https://narbaal.com/2026/03/01/iron-hemp-vs-cordura-nylon-abrasion-test/?view=raw) Cordura Nylon has been the default fabric for technical backpacks since Invista commercialised it in the 1970s. Its market dominance is not an accident. Cordura is a high-tenacity nylon — it resists abrasion, holds its structure under load, and has a well-documented performance record across decades of expedition use. When we set out to build Summit Zero, we did not assume hemp was better. We tested it against Cordura because that is the honest way to make the argument. This is what the data sho... ### [What PFAS Does to Watersheds — And Why It’s In Your Rain Jacket](https://narbaal.com/2026/03/01/pfas-outdoor-gear-watersheds/?view=raw) There is a class of synthetic chemicals in the water-repellent coating of most technical outdoor gear — jackets, backpacks, tents, trousers — that does not break down in natural environments. Not slowly. Not eventually. Not in 476 years the way synthetic fabric fibres do. PFAS — per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — are chemically engineered to be so stable that biological and environmental degradation systems cannot process them. That stability is a feature, not a defect. It is precisely what m... ### [Why We’re Building Cast Iron Gear Next](https://narbaal.com/2026/03/01/cast-iron-gear-next-narbaal/?view=raw) Summit Zero was not a difficult decision. The case against synthetic backpacks is documented and measurable: microplastic shedding, PFAS coatings, 476-year persistence in the environment. The case for a natural bio-composite alternative with better abrasion resistance and an 18-month compost timeline is straightforward to make once you have the test data. The cast iron decision was easier. The Problem with Your Current Camp Pan If you cook in the field with a standard camp cookset, you are almos... ### [Default Kit](https://narbaal.com/?elementor_library=default-kit&view=raw) ### [Iron-Hemp Bio-Composite — The Material | NarBaal](https://narbaal.com/iron-hemp/?view=raw) # Iron-Hemp. The material that ends the compromise. ## For decades, the outdoor gear industry told you that performance required petrochemicals. That was not an engineering conclusion. It was a supply chain habit. Iron-Hemp is a proprietary bio-composite weave developed by NarBaal as the structural material for Summit Zero. It outperforms the synthetic industry standard on abrasion resistance. It matches or exceeds standard DWR-coated synthetics on water resistance — without a single fluorocarbon molecule. And when its useful life ends, it decomposes. Completely. In 18 months. This page explains exactly how. ## What Iron-Hemp is. And what it is not. **Iron-Hemp is not raw hemp fabric.** Raw hemp has been used in rope, sail, and load-bearing textiles for centuries — precisely because its tensile strength exceeds most natural fibres. But raw hemp alone does not meet the performance envelope required for technical mountaineering and expedition gear. **Iron-Hemp is a bio-composite.** A bio-composite is a material system where natural fibres are engineered in combination with other elements — in this case, through a proprietary weave structure and surface treatment — to produce mechanical properties that exceed what either component achieves alone. The result is a load-bearing technical fabric that: — Outperforms Cordura Nylon on abrasion resistance by 20% — Achieves 20,000mm hydrostatic water resistance without PFAS — Carries OEKO-TEX certification at every production stage — Decomposes in industrial compost in 18 months without synthetic residue It is not a compromise between performance and material ethics. It is a material that eliminates the need to choose between them. ## Why hemp. The structural case. Hemp (*Cannabis sativa*) produces one of the highest tensile-strength natural fibres available. Its structural properties have been documented and used in load-bearing applications for over ten thousand years — sails, rigging, and cargo systems across maritime history. It was replaced in industrial applications not because synthetics outperformed it, but because petrochemical production was cheaper to scale at industrial volume. **What hemp fibre brings to Iron-Hemp:** **Tensile strength.** Hemp fibre has a higher tensile strength-to-weight ratio than cotton and comparable to several mid-grade synthetic fibres. In a woven structure under load, this translates directly to seam and panel integrity under sustained pack weight. **Natural UV resistance.** Hemp fibre degrades more slowly under UV exposure than most synthetics. Nylon, by contrast, loses tensile strength progressively under UV radiation — a failure mode that accelerates in above-treeline and high-altitude conditions where UV intensity is significantly higher than at sea level. **Natural antimicrobial properties.** Hemp fibre resists bacterial growth without chemical treatment. In a pack that operates across multi-day expeditions in humid conditions, this matters for both hygiene and long-term material integrity. **Improved performance over time.** Unlike synthetic fibres that degrade from first use, hemp fibre structures develop improved cohesion with use and washing cycles. The material does not "break in" — it consolidates. **Biodegradability.** Hemp fibre is plant-derived cellulose. In the right decomposition conditions, it returns to organic matter without synthetic persistence. This is the biological baseline that makes the 18-month compost specification possible. ## The composite structure. What "Iron" means. The "Iron" designation refers to the proprietary engineering applied to the hemp fibre base — the weave architecture and surface system that produces the final mechanical specification. **Weave architecture:** The structural geometry of the weave determines how load is distributed across the fabric under tension, abrasion, and impact. Iron-Hemp uses a tight, high-density weave structure that maximises the contact surface between fibres, reducing the micro-movement that causes abrasion wear at the fibre-to-fibre level. This is the primary mechanism behind the 20% abrasion resistance advantage over Cordura Nylon. Cordura is a high-tenacity nylon — it is not a weak material. The fact that Iron-Hemp exceeds it on abrasion is a function of weave geometry as much as raw fibre properties. **Biomimetic wax surface treatment:** The water resistance of Iron-Hemp is achieved through a surface treatment that replicates the molecular microstructure of natural plant surface waxes — specifically the architecture that causes water to form high-contact-angle beads and run off the surface rather than penetrate the fibre matrix. This is not a coating that sits on top of the fabric. It is integrated into the surface structure of the weave. **What this means for performance:** Standard DWR (Durable Water Repellent) coatings on synthetic fabrics wash out. The fluorocarbon molecules that create water repellency are surface-deposited and degrade with repeated washing and abrasion. The biomimetic wax treatment in Iron-Hemp does not wash out in the same way. The water resistance is structural — it is a property of the surface geometry, not a deposited chemical layer. Result: 20,000mm hydrostatic head. Zero PFAS. Zero fluorocarbon treatment. Zero chemical runoff into the watersheds you cross. ## OEKO-TEX. What it actually means. OEKO-TEX is an independent international textile testing and certification organisation. **What the certification covers:** OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certifies the absence of harmful substances at every stage of production — not just the finished product. This includes: | SUBSTANCE CATEGORY | OEKO-TEX TESTS FOR | |---|---| | Pesticide residues | Present in raw fibre from agricultural stage | | Heavy metals | Lead, cadmium, chromium, and others | | Formaldehyde | Used in some textile finishing processes | | Allergenic dyes | Synthetic colorants with allergenic or carcinogenic properties | | PFAS compounds | Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances | | pH value | Skin compatibility | | Colour fastness | Dye stability under sweat and friction | **Why this matters for Iron-Hemp specifically:** The certification is not applied to NarBaal as a brand. It is applied to the Iron-Hemp material at the fibre, yarn, weave, and finished fabric stages. This means the absence of harmful substances is verified by physical sample testing in an accredited external laboratory — not declared by the manufacturer. It is the only form of material certification that cannot be self-issued. ## What happens when it's done. Every material has an end-of-life outcome. Most technical outdoor fabrics have one outcome: landfill or incineration, followed by 400–500 years of slow fragmentation into microplastic particles. Iron-Hemp has a different outcome. **Industrial composting:** Industrial compost facilities operate at controlled temperature (55–70°C), controlled humidity, and managed microbial activity — conditions that accelerate the decomposition of organic materials to their base components. In these conditions, Iron-Hemp bio-composite fabric — including the biomimetic wax surface treatment — reaches full decomposition in 18 months. **What "full decomposition" means:** — No synthetic polymer fragments — No microplastic residue — No chemical contamination of the compost output — Final output: organic matter that returns to soil **What you need to do:** When Summit Zero reaches end of life — which, based on the stress test data, should not be for several years of hard use — the entire pack (fabric, stitching, and compost-grade hardware) can be submitted to an industrial compost facility as a single unit. No disassembly. No sorting. No synthetic components to separate. ⚑ *[OPERATIONAL NOTE: Add here a list of industrial compost facilities or services in your key markets, or a take-back/return program if you plan to implement one. This is a significant conversion driver for the ICP — make it actionable, not aspirational.]* ## Iron-Hemp vs the alternatives. The full picture. | PROPERTY | CORDURA NYLON 500D | DYNEEMA COMPOSITE | Iron-Hemp Bio-Composite | |---|---|---|---| | Material origin | Petrochemical (crude oil) | Petrochemical (crude oil) | Plant-based (hemp fibre) | | Abrasion resistance | Baseline | Lower than Cordura | +20% above Cordura baseline | | Water resistance method | DWR coating (PFAS) | Laminate construction | Biomimetic wax — zero PFAS | | Water resistance rating | ~10,000–15,000mm | High (varies) | 20,000mm | | PFAS content | Yes (DWR treatment) | Varies by laminate | Zero | | UV resistance | Moderate — degrades over time | Low | High — natural fibre stability | | Microplastic shedding | Active during use | Active during use | None | | OEKO-TEX certified | Varies by manufacturer | Rarely | Yes — all production stages | | End of life | 400–500yr decomposition | 400–500yr decomposition | 18 months (industrial compost) | | Improves with use | No | No | Yes — fibre consolidation | *Dyneema included as it is the premium synthetic alternative used in ultralight technical packs at significantly higher price points.* ## What we are still measuring. *Iron-Hemp bio-composite has a documented 5,000-mile stress test result and OEKO-TEX certification across all production stages.* *What we do not yet have is decade-scale field data.* *Iron-Hemp is a new material system. The 5,000-mile test covers the pre-launch period. Long-term wear behaviour — UV degradation curves, seam integrity over 5+ years, and wax treatment longevity under repeated use cycles — will be documented as Summit Zero units accumulate field time in the hands of real users.* *We will publish that data here as it becomes available. We will not fabricate projections to fill the gap.* *If you need a decade of third-party performance data before you buy, we understand. Summit Zero is a first-generation material system. It is backed by the best available test data. It is not backed by 30 years of sales history.* *That is the honest answer.* ## The material is documented. The pack is ready. 100 units. Ships April. $149. [SECURE SUMMIT ZERO 40L — $149] [SECURE SUMMIT ZERO 20L — $149] [← Back to The Evidence] [← Back to Summit Zero]