HOLISTIC SUSTAINABLE CONCEPTS WITH MORE SAVING POTENTIAL

WeAr interviews Thomas Aplas, Head of Application Field Garment, CHT Germany GmbH. CHT is a global player for specialty chemicals active in their development, production, and sales.

How important are sustainable products in CHT’s range?

We are increasingly offering our customers products and process solutions that have a sustainable impact within the subsequent value chain. The share of ECO Range products will increase to at least 80% within the CHT product ranges by 2025.

What are CHT’s latest innovations and products?

One of our most important and latest innovations is a top-level ecological system for jeans treatments, the organIQ EMS Jeans (EMS - Ecological Modular System), which offers almost infinite jeans finishing possibilities.

Can you explain these products and also their sustainable and strategic impact?

The "rst product to replace potassium permanganate with an ecological alternative in jeans "nishing was introduced in 2015 as part of our strategy. Potassium permanganate is considered extremely harmful from an ecological point of view and is used for local bleaching to create so-called "used spots" on almost every pair of jeans. Through this newly developed, innovative, and ecological alternative organIQ EMS Jeans, we as a company can drastically reduce the use of this harmful substance for jeans bleaching and the associated health consequences and environmental impact.

What was the main issue thus far?

Potassium permanganate is transformed into manganese dioxide (brownstone), which can only be neutralized by adding other chemicals that pollute the wastewater. This is usually followed by the stonewash "nishing method where a lot of stone abrasion, thus sand, enters the wastewater and combines here with "bre !u#, detached indigo, etc., to form a kind of sludge. After the stonewash, the jeans are often brightened with chlorine bleach. This bleaching process must also be neutralized, which requires the addition of chemicals that pollute the wastewater.

This seems to be an important step towards sustainable jeans production. Have you faced any challenges along the way?

Our original goal was to launch an ecological alternative for the harmful potassium permanganate. However, it turned out that the market does not accept higher product prices. This is frustrating from an ecological point of view but partly understandable from a purely economic perspective. So, we tried to use the organIQ system to replace other process steps, such as bleaching with chlorine, to create a holistic concept with more savings potential.

How does that work in detail? What exactly is the special feature of the organIQ system?

Compared to potassium permanganate, OrganIQ BLEACH does not require any complex neutralization but can simply be rinsed out. In addition, it is biodegradable and does not additionally pollute the wastewater with toxic substances. Consequently, wastewater treatment costs are drastically reduced. We have developed the treatment of jeans with organIQ BLEACH for the significantly water-saving application technique of fogging. Combining the organIQ system with modern fogging systems allows substituting potassium permanganate, chlorine bleaching lye, and even pumice stones to a large extent by ecological processes - and with enormous savings in water and energy.

What are your sustainability projections and future strategy?

The answer is the expansion of our organIQ range. Under the umbrella brand organIQ, a second ecological bleaching system for jeans called "organIQ seek" was already launched at the end of 2021. Both organIQ systems can be combined to form organIQ EMS Jeans, opening further possibilities to bring jeans to all imaginable looks at the highest ecological level. Furthermore, we see innovative machine technology rising. Indeed, the treatment of a pair of raw jeans can also be brought to an ecological level, unimagined until recently by the machine "nishing side of laundry, with a high potential of drastic water and energy savings. The positive aspect is that machine and specialty chemical manufacturers are collaborating more closely, which will create greater synergies for environmentally conscious jeans treatments in the future.