Introduction
Wet processing is of extreme importance in textile industries, which influences the finished
products and their quality. Enormous measures of water, chemicals and energy are needed for different phases of wet processing activity. In wet processing, water
is used as the solvent for the chemical substances and dyes, in light of its low cost and accessibility. In any case, during the process, water gets polluted with synthetics and unspent dyes and gives an end product- effluent. The toxic effluent is not anything but difficult to treat or biodegrade and is harmful to humans and wildlife, especially the aquatic life. This sort of contamination and medical conditions emerge typically in the conventional method of wet processing. Thus, the elective strategies are important to improve the sustainability of the wet processing process in textile industry.
Following is the collated list of some potential wet processing technologies which can change the wet processing industry into a completely sustainable one-
Digital printing
As the world awakens to the pollution brought about by conventional textile processing, the energy efficient alternatives offered by Digital Textile Printing are what a few onlookers state is, the solitary route forward for the Textile Industry. The biggest positive commitment is from Dye-sub and Pigment based printing systems, where 70-80 litres of water savings for every meter printed are normal. For instance, if these innovations were accepted around the world, it would convert into a possible saving of more than 2 trillion litres of water for each year. Nonetheless, water volumes are likewise much lower in the Digital printing of Disperse, Reactive and Acid ink frameworks, where water reserve funds are less, yet around 30-40 litres for each meter printed. Without question, as the cost of water increases and its availability diminishes yearly, this potential saving ha demonstrated imperative to the Textile Industry, particularly as it improves the environmental component of wet processing production. On an average, the digital printing machine will utilize around 0.14 kw per meter printed, while a conventional rotating screen printer will use on normal 0.46 kw per meter printed. This speaks to a potential of saving over 63% energy. (Texintel, 2020)
Bio-Pigments
While heading to sustainable choices, one should not ignore the ecological impact by the wet processing effluents. According to a study, only 80% of the dyes is retained by the fabric being dyed and the rest 20% fits itself in effluents which is not treated in most of the industries. Many young enthusiastic scientists have developed bio-dyeing solutions based on organic matter.
The start-up, PILI has created environmentally friendly solutions to dyeing, using biotechnology and the well known process of fermentation. The fermentation o organic matter like sugar or wood, allows it to be reshaped into dyes and pigments, which under controlled conditions in laboratories, can be used for bulk productions.
PILI’s technology can offer these 4 essential building blocks : sustainability,
high-scale production, high performance and accessibility to the greatest number of people (PILI, 2020)
Naturally coloured cotton
Out of thousands of varieties of cotton, 40 are hued, giving a scope of shading including mocha, tan, dark, earthy coloured, dark, mahogany, red, pink, blue, green, cream and white. In any case, because of their short fibre length which is unacceptable for modern processing, these assortments are fairly obscure. The adequately length fibre long enough to process was created by Sally Fox and is called FoxFiber. It’s available in shades of green, beige, earthy coloured and blue and is sold by Vreseis Ltd. It’s developed naturally but we don’t yet know whether it is watered economically. Normally earthy colored cotton is filled in Peru, Ecuador, Central America, Mexico and South-eastern USA, so it could have some social advantages with the reduced need to colour the fabrics made from this cotton.
Naural dyeing
In present situation ecological cognizance of individuals about natural products, renewable resources, less ecological harm and sustainability of the products they buy has restored the utilization of natural colors in coloring of textiles. Natural dyes are having some characteristic preferences: No health risks, Simple extraction and purification, No harmful effluent, mild dyeing temperatures and Sustainable sources .
There are some issues and impediments identified with the use of natural dyes which has decreased its applications – generally applicable to natural fibres only (cotton, cloth, fleece and silk) , poor colourfastness, shades cannot be reproduced exactly, and unavailability of standard dyeing procedures which can be followed everywhere.
Natural dyes are having wide application in the colouration of a large portion of the natural fibres for example cotton, cloth, fleece and silk fibre, and to some extent for nylon and polyester. Be that as it may, there are significant issues for naturally coloured textiles . To accomplish great colourfastness to washing and light are likewise a test to the dyer. A few analysts had proposed diverse colouring strategies and process parameters, yet at the same time these data are insufficient, so this requires the need of examination to build up some standard colour extraction method and standardisation of entire cycle natural dyeing on fabrics.
Conclusion
Industries of India have been developing at a fast pace, with a large appetite for advancements. The onset of pandemic might have shut off the industry for a while, but the pause has given a second perspective to the industrialists, managers and the end users on the conventional production processes & consumerism involved in the textile industry.
The consumer demand is slowly shifting towards values and experiences. The consumer of today is interested in knowing the ‘impact’ of the materials they wear and use
at their home. This value shift has forced the retail businesses and likewise the manufacturing industries to ponder over the ways the products can be made more environment friendly, with an optimized approach for production. As anyone would know, overnight changes are not possible in a large industry like India’s , but small collective steps towards a common goal would definitely do the trick.
References
PILI. (2020, Dec 28). Color . Retrieved from PILI: https://www. pili.bio
Texintel. (2020, Dec 28). Waterless Digital Textile Printing-A New Starndard in Sustainable Textile Processing. Retrieved from Texintel:
https://www.texintel.com/blog/ fwaterless-digital-textile-printinga- new-standard-in sustainabletextile-processing
Article By:
PRACHI GHELOT
Trainee at TVC
