Storm Over Raincoats Draws Attention, Textile De-fluorination in Progress

 

With the concept of sustainable development deeply rooted in people's minds and consumers' demand for healthy and safe products surging, compared with fluorinated products, fluoride-free textiles are gradually emerging due to their safety and environmental protection advantages.

"At present, green and low-carbon transformation has become a global consensus," pointed out Chen Zhihua, Supervisor of the China Printing and Dyeing Industry Association, at a previous industry conference. The implementation of the "List of Key Controlled New Pollutants (2023 Edition)" marks that fluorinated textiles are gradually withdrawing from the historical stage in China.

It is understood that China has included PFOS, PFOA, PFHxS (all belonging to PFAS compounds) in the "List of Key Controlled New Pollutants (2023 Edition)", and their production, processing and use are prohibited except for some purposes. In textile-related applications, only PFOA substances are exceptionally allowed to be used in "oil- and water-repellent textiles that protect workers from health and safety risks caused by hazardous liquids".

Under this trend, stepping up the development and use of fluoride-free waterproofing agents has become a key choice for many textile enterprises to seek long-term development.

"As the world's largest textile waterproofing agent market, China's market size in 2023 was about 1.6 billion to 2 billion yuan, of which fluoride-free waterproofing agents accounted for 400 million to 500 million yuan, showing a strong growth momentum," introduced Song Fujia, Chief Engineer of the National Textile Product Development Center. In recent years, the global control over PFAS has become increasingly strict. China, the United States, the European Union and other countries and regions have issued relevant policies to restrict or prohibit the use of PFAS. These policies have promoted the research, development and application of fluoride-free waterproofing agents, and promoted the industry to develop in a more environmentally friendly and sustainable direction.

Chen Zhihua pointed out that with the gradual strengthening of rigid constraints on the ecological environment, in recent years, many domestic auxiliary enterprises have been accelerating the research and development and process optimization of differentiated, high-end and green textile chemicals. As a typical product, fluoride-free waterproofing agents have achieved a series of innovative results.

In recent years, more and more textile auxiliary enterprises have begun to research, develop and promote fluoride-free textile auxiliaries to meet consumers' demand for environmentally friendly and healthy life.

Guangdong Qiantai Chemical Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Qiantai Chemical") is one of the outstanding ones. The fluoride-free waterproofing agent developed by the company, which is compounded by polyurethane and macromolecular compounds, has excellent water repellency and high peel strength. It can be used for fluoride-free waterproofing finishing of all fiber fabrics, especially chemical fiber fabrics.

Not only upstream textile auxiliary enterprises are stepping up the research and development of fluoride-free products, but also China's printing and dyeing enterprises are actively taking measures to reduce the number of fluorinated products and planning future "de-fluorination" goals.

"The application development and research trend of waterproof fabrics is predictable, and factors such as safety and comfort, green environmental protection, and composite functionality are the keys to pay attention to." The use of fluoride-free waterproofing auxiliaries is not only a manifestation of enterprises' fulfillment of social responsibilities, but also will become one of the core advantages in market competition. Nowadays, more and more consumers tend to choose safe and environmentally friendly products, which undoubtedly opens up a broad market space for fluoride-free waterproof fabrics.

In the clothing field facing consumers directly, relevant enterprises are even more unwilling to fall behind. Anta plans to increase the proportion of sustainable products to 50% by 2030; Xtep is actively exploring the use of recyclable and bio-based materials in sports goods; Li-Ning also promises to gradually phase out long-chain fluorides in response to environmental policies...

It is believed that in the future, with the active innovation of enterprises in the upper and lower reaches of the textile industry, environmental protection and health will no longer be optional items for consumers when purchasing clothes, but will become the basic standard sewn into the warp and weft of each piece of clothing, integrating into every detail of daily dressing.