Monday, August 26, 2013

Water-Free Textile Dyeing

In the USA, the textile dyeing industry has invested more than one billion dollars in the past decade on environmental technologies designed to ensure that by-products of textile manufacturing do not pollute the environment. 

This investment is paralleled in other parts of the world, notably Taiwan and Korea. Initially, this effort focused on reducing the large quantities of water needed in current processes, for even the most economical use of water requires 100L/kg material. 

Supercritical carbon dioxide is an alternative dyeing technology that eliminates the use of water while achieving results comparable to current dyeing processes. Supercritical CO2 is harmless ecologically, available, non-toxic and non-explosive.

For more information about this environmentally friendly method of dyeing, view the Applied Separations Application Note on Textile Dyeing.