Chemical Fiber Industry Association: Focusing On New Quality Productivity Of Polyester Industry Chain

From raw material production to fabric processing, from being widely used in civilian fields such as clothing and home textile, to rapidly expanding to industrial fields such as industrial use, each link of the polyester industry chain contains new quality elements, which has unlimited possibilities.

On November 8, China Chemical Fiber Industry Chain Innovation Conference and Development of Textile Modernization System (Hongze) Action Index Release Sub forum - Polyester Industry Chain New Quality Productivity Forum was held. Experts and representatives from China Textile Federation, Jiangnan University, Donghua University and upstream and downstream enterprises of the polyester industry chain gathered in Hongze District, Huai'an City, centering on the demand and trend of the international textile market The new technology/new progress/new application of functional polyester and recycled polyester, and the development path and trend of new quality productivity of polyester industry chain are discussed in depth.

▲ Yang Tao, Marketing Department of China Chemical Fiber Industry Association, presides over the forum

Demand pull

▲ Zhao Mingxia

In recent years, the demand side of the domestic and foreign textile industry has continued to bear pressure, and weak demand and insufficient orders are common. Zhao Mingxia, Director of the International Trade Office of the China Textile Industry Federation and Vice President of the Industrial Economics Research Institute, said that in 2023, the world's total fiber consumption will be about 120 million tons, and its growth rate will slow down. This is mainly due to the dual drive of economic development and population growth, but the distribution of driving forces has changed, in which natural population growth will drive about 30%, The increase of consumption level and expansion of fiber application fields have driven about 70%. As the primary driving force of global fiber consumption, China's fiber consumption accounts for up to 30% and its incremental contribution rate exceeds 55%.

The demand of the international textile and clothing market is also affected by a variety of factors, including the slowdown in the medium and long-term growth of the world economy, the reduction of the working age population in major economies, and the lack of private capital formation. These factors together lead to insufficient power for expansion of fiber consumption demand. Based on this, Zhao Mingxia suggested that China's textile industry should be based on the long-term response to fierce and complex international competition, accelerate the transformation and upgrading of foreign trade, develop trade in textile intermediates, and stabilize the international market share; Deeply integrate into the international textile supply chain system and build a safe, efficient and stable international production network system and resource allocation system; To independently master the core links of the textile supply chain and improve the security and stability of the supply chain system; Objectively treat the market law and cautiously treat the scale expansion decision.

▲ Jiang Gaoming

Polyester is widely used in knitting industry due to its high strength, abrasion resistance, chemical resistance, easy dyeing, good elasticity, lightweight, fast drying and other advantages, and shows diversified innovative application potential and market value. Jiang Gaoming, director of the Engineering Research Center of the Ministry of Education for Knitting Technology of Jiangnan University, introduced the performance characteristics and innovative applications of ordinary polyester knitted fabrics, superfine polyester plush fabrics, elastic polyester knitted fabrics, liquid dyed polyester fabrics, recycled polyester knitted products and degradable polyester knitted products in detail with examples. For example, in the fields of knitted sports shoes, swimwear, sun proof clothes, mattresses and car interiors, polyester has become the preferred material because of its lightweight, durable, fast drying, UV resistant linearity, color stability and other characteristics. Polyester large gauge knitted spacer fabric and weft knitted sports leisure fabric also show great application potential. Innovative products such as ultra-fine polyester plush fabrics and warp knitted high-low plush fabrics have enriched the design possibilities of household clothes, fashion, etc., and improved the comfort and beauty of products through unique technical means. PTT and PBT knitted products represent the latest development of elastic polyester knitted fabrics and meet the diversified needs of people for underwear, sportswear, household goods and other products. In addition, polyester intelligent wearable fabric perfectly combines technology with textile, realizes multi parameter monitoring and intelligent feedback, and injects new vitality into the development of the textile industry.

In the context of the current advocacy of sustainable development, Jiang Gaoming particularly recommended that fiber enterprises develop a main material that meets the needs of multiple functions and is easy to recycle and reuse to replace the traditional mixed use of multiple materials, which can be called "universal materials".

Innovation leading

▲ Wang Lixia

The distinctive feature of new quality productivity is innovation. It focuses on the key core links of the industrial chain, promotes revolutionary breakthroughs in technology, promotes innovative allocation of production factors, and accelerates the in-depth transformation and upgrading of the industry. Wang Lixia, the engineering technical director of the National Advanced Functional Fiber Innovation Center, introduced that after 40 years of development, the polyester fiber industry has formed two main production processes: melt direct spinning and chip spinning. Melt direct spinning enterprises are developing towards petrochemical refining integration, with competitive advantages in the whole industrial chain layout; The chip spinning focuses on the development of differentiated and functional products. Polyester enterprises are increasing their investment in intelligent manufacturing and green manufacturing, forming a competitive pattern with different characteristics. In this process, innovative design plays a crucial role. The development of the polyester industry chain is led by scientific and technological innovation and industrial design, through strengthening the chain by reinforcing the weak points, developing the strong points, giving full play to the advantages, and chain master innovation to drive the innovation of the whole chain.

The innovation system of the innovation center, the construction of public service platform for scientific and technological innovation, and the practice of multiple core technology breakthroughs such as efficient esterification of multi chamber return process, five kettle low-temperature continuous polymerization, efficient flexible polyester preparation, new antimony free polyester fiber melt direct spinning engineering provide strong support for the high-quality development of the polyester industry chain.

For shaping the new quality productivity of the polyester industry chain, Wang Lixia specifically mentioned that it is necessary to carry out industrial design for polyester fiber products, especially functional fiber products, from the source, to establish a key technology system for high-quality manufacturing of polyester fibers, and a certification system for carbon emissions of polyester fibers. It is also necessary to break through key common technologies, such as large capacity continuous polymerization of functional polyester The preparation of functional polyester fiber and bio based polyester fiber, the creation of low-carbon circular green industrial chain, etc., contribute to the safe and harmonious development of the industrial chain supply chain.

▲ Ji Peng

The polyester fiber material industry is facing the severe challenge of homogenization competition. By strengthening technological innovation, R&D and paying attention to consumer demand, it is expected to achieve a differentiated and functional development path. Ji Peng, associate researcher and doctoral supervisor of the Textile Science and Technology Innovation Center of Donghua University, said that the polyester functional differentiation technology increasingly emphasized the integration of raw materials, polymerization, spinning and application technology, and discussed the in-situ polymerization of pigment/functional materials, co esterification/ester exchange copolymerization, functional masterbatch addition spinning, profiled/two-component composite spinning, fiber blending and texturing and other technologies. In the process of polymerization and spinning, modification, stability control and application effectiveness are key factors. In order to solve the problems of spinnability and self forming rate of new polymerization, copolymerization, morphology control and other technical means have been applied in practice, and some achievements have been achieved.

In addition, combined with the team's research, Ji Peng shared the innovative work of new polyester materials of thermal and wet comfort, safety protection and low-carbon green. He stressed that with the continuous development of the market, single function products have been difficult to meet the demand, and multi-functional composite and extreme function professional customization will become a trend. In the future, the polyester fiber material industry should focus on core technology, strengthen the integrated design of process and device, and subdivide the application scenarios of functional terminals to meet the increasingly diversified needs of consumers. In addition, enterprises should also pay attention to consumer experience and aesthetic trends, improve the market competitiveness of functional products, and jointly promote the transformation, upgrading and sustainable development of the industry.

Green practice

▲ Wang Zhipeng

"At present, the world is facing severe challenges in plastic waste disposal, the growing demand of global brands for renewable materials, and driven by the value of environmental protection, which together bring historic opportunities to the high-end recycled polyester industry," said Wang Zhipeng, general manager of Jiangsu Peipu Technology Group Co., Ltd. As an environmental protection technology company that recycles polymer materials, Pep now has four production lines of recycled polyester chips, with an annual output of 150000 tons of polyester chips; A 40000 t/a 3A level production line for bottle tablets is the first enterprise in China to realize the mass production of 10D-15D ultra-fine denier fiber chips. At the same time, it has a global marketing and production system, has sales and after-sales service points in many countries and regions, and cooperates directly with 37 global brands. The Peipu brand REO-ECO has become the world's leading regenerative brand.

Looking forward to the future, Wang Zhipeng shared the three-step development strategy planned by Peipu Group. First, Pep Polymer will continue to make breakthroughs in the physical recovery of polyester technology to prepare high-quality recycled polyester chips with the quality basically consistent with the original polyester. Second, the Kale textile project will realize the whole industrial chain production from waste bottles to regenerated polyester yarn (FixDye). The spinning capacity of the first phase will reach 100000 tons, and the total capacity will reach 250000 tons. The third step, BioCulus will explore biological regeneration technology, use the power of nature's powerful catalyst enzyme, and combine advanced regeneration technology to transform waste resources into new products, so as to achieve the sustainable regeneration of clothing. It is estimated that in 2025, Yishengyuan will build a 30000 ton/year biological regeneration functional slicing project, making more contributions to environmental protection.