Textile industry is a majorsource of revenue generation in many countries. It is one of the important industrialsectors in a country utilizing enormous resources of water and energy. Theindustry is also prone to the image of emissions. Impact on the environment bytextile industry is being recognized both in terms of water and energyconsumption, and also in terms of discharge of effluents. The operating processof textile industries consume enormous amount of water. Apart from this, yarnand fabric treatments undertaken in textile industries result in effluents thatpollute the environment and are also hazardous to human health.

 

GlobalWater Shortage:

 

Water is said to become scarcein the forthcoming years. Demand for water is growing more than the growth ofhuman population. During the past century, there was a three fold increase inpopulation, whereas the demand for water has increased by seven times. In atextile industry, finishing is a major source of emission. It takes 2500 litersof water for manufacturing one cotton shirt. Wet processing not only consumeslarge volumes of water, but also discharges effluents that pollute theenvironment. Water scarcity is already felt by the textile industries. Due tothis, proposed textile projects are given permission by the Government, only ifthey are able to show that they can solve water issues, and have adequatefacilities for treating waste water.


EnergyCrisis:

 

With the growth of mechanization,energy consumption has simultaneously increased. Textile industry being moreenergy intensive is vulnerable to a high rate of energy loss across variousproduction processes thereby resulting in increased energy bills andproductivity losses; which ultimately results in a profound financial impact.Technological advancements and functioning abilities of machineries of replacinghuman labor with electric power have increased the energy cost for every unitof output comparatively over the past years. Textile industries require bothelectric and thermal energy for their functioning. Wet processing techniquesalso consume higher amount of thermal energy. Singeing operations employed todestroy singes on the fabric surface consumes a lot of energy. On an average,electricity bill contributes to approximately 40-45% of the total utility billbeing paid by a textile industry.

 

Energyand Water Conservation:

 

Global textile industries are nowfacing a tough challenge. The intimidating shortage of water and energy levelsurge the need for optimum utilization of water and energy resources andadopting environmentally friendly production methods.

 

  • Eco friendly textiles consume less energy and resources. Using eco-friendly fabrics and sustainable printing processes, alleviates the need for cost prohibitive energy and water consumption.

 

  • Usage of water for wet processing can be minimized by adopting techniques like waste water heat recovery, dryer equipments, fabric moisture control, reuse of singeing cooling water, and reduction of stenter exhaust gas etc.

 

  • Initial moisture retention of wet fabric at the inlet of the conventional drying system can be minimized by adopting Convective Air Pre-drying (CAPD) System, which has been developed using atmospheric convective air with less energy cost. This will further minimize the drying load of the main dryer and reduce the usage of thermal energy in the conventional drying system.
  • Presently, in the textile industry waste water is not treated and reused. This can be made possible by employing effluent treatment plant for recycling and reusing waste water. This will reduce fresh water consumption and also enable optimum utilization of the available resource.

 

  • In the process of manufacturing textile yarn, and fabrics, humidification plays and integral part. Hence, installation of efficient systems for energy control will help to save energy to a considerable extent.

 

  • Many industrial heating processes produce waste energy. They can be reduced by adopting waste heat recovery systems.

 

Adequate steps must be taken by the textile industries for the optimum utilization of energy and water resources. Training the employees and creating awareness among them regarding the importance of water and energy conservation is also essential. By saving on the energy and water resources, textile industries can not only save on the costs, but can also help to slow down the climate change.

 

References:

 

  1. Energy and Water Optimization in Indian Textile Industry Textile Times, Volume V, No 7, October-November 2008.
  2. http://www.projectsmonitor.com
  3. http://www.textileworld.com
  4. http://www.sciencedirect.com/