Winning Combination
Two are better than one when it comes to reducing water and energy usage in the textile dyeing process. That is what Huntsman Textile Effects found with its latest innovation that combines two technologies in a new dyeing process for polyester-cellulosic blends.
The SE Fast Process uses AVITERA® SE, Huntsman’s award-winning reactive dye that helps textile mills reduce water and energy consumption by up to 50%, and TERASIL® W/WW, a washfast disperse dye for polyester, polyester/cotton and microfiber and elastane blends.
With TERASIL® W/WW dyes allowing alkaline clearing and AVITERA® SE delivering high-speed, low-temperature wash-off, the time required to dye polyester-cellulosic blends reduces from nine to six hours while lowering water consumption, energy demand and carbon dioxide emissions by up to 50%.
Huntsman’s SE Fast Process provides a sustainable solution that helps textile manufacturers achieve the best possible production efficiency and operational excellence. For example, a plant with production capacity of 100 tons per day, of which 40% is polyester-cellulosic blend, can potentially save more than 150,000 cubic meters of water per year, along with more than 16,000 tons of steam by switching to the AVITERA® SE Fast process. Furthermore, the plant will be able to produce an additional 2,700 tons of fabric each year without making any other production changes—the equivalence of an extra month of production annually.
One Huntsman customer in Asia, that manufactures performance apparel for a leading fashion brand, recently implemented AVITERA® SE Fast to dye its navy-colored shades. Compared to its existing process, the customer was able to save 30 liters of water and 3 kilograms of steam per kilogram of textile, while reducing 240 minutes in processing time.
As more people work from home and pursue outside sports and leisure activities, consumer demand for performance attire, active sportswear and leisure wear is on the rise. The polyester fiber demand is projected to grow up to 5% annually.