SurfToGreen EU Project Welcomes CHT Group as Key Partner for Sustainable Textile Innovation
The SurfToGreen EU project, a pioneering initiative focused on developing sustainable bio-based surfactants, today announced its partnership with the CHT Group.
As a major global player in specialty chemistry, the CHT Group will bring its extensive expertise in the textile industry to advance the project's mission of creating environmentally friendly alternatives for widespread use.
This collaboration marks a significant step in validating and scaling up the bio-based ingredients developed by SurfToGreen.
The CHT Group will play a crucial role in testing the newly developed hydrotropes and chelating agents, analysing their physical-chemical properties for textile applications, and integrating them into effective wetting and washing agent formulations.
This work is essential for ensuring the new surfactants meet the high-performance standards required by the modern textile industry.
The partnership extends to critical environmental analysis and scalability.
The CHT Group will conduct thorough toxicity assessments on the new formulations to confirm their ecological benefits.
Furthermore, they will manage the scale-up process in their advanced pilot plant, producing barrel-sized batches for real-world testing with their customers.
This phase is vital for demonstrating the commercial viability and operational effectiveness of SurfToGreen's innovations, paving the way for their broader adoption.
By joining forces, SurfToGreen and the CHT Group are set to accelerate the transition towards a greener chemical industry.
This partnership leverages CHT's established market presence and technical capabilities to bring innovative, sustainable surfactant solutions from the laboratory to the global market, directly addressing the industry's need for high-performance, eco-friendly materials.
The textile dyeing industry plays a crucial role in fashion and fabric innovation. However a significant environmental impact due to the extensive use of petrochemical sustainable surfactants is associated to many fashion and fabric processes.
Conventional textile processes rely on petrochemical surfactants which contribute to alarming levels of pollution as they ultimately end up in wastewater.
These surfactants are commonly used for achieving uniform colours in textiles, enhancing dye affinity for materials like polyester and acrylic, and managing foam during heating.
SurfToGreen will minimise the ecological footprint by replacing conventional additives from petrochemical resources with eco-friendly alternatives that respect the environment without compromising on performances and costs
Although bio-based surfactants like rhamnolipids are often suggested as more sustainable alternatives, their widespread use is still hindered by cost challenges in various industrial applications.
SurfToGreen project will overcome these limitations by developing innovative and sustainable alternatives for stain and oil removal on textile, control of the wetting behaviour of textile, and levelling formulations.
The project synthesises bio-based surfactants using glycerol as a platform; surface active polymers derived from side streams of the forest industry (lignin, sugar, hemicellulose-based materials) are additionally investigated as potential platforms for surfactant synthesis.
About SurfToGreen
The SurfToGreen project is a European Union-funded initiative aimed at developing novel, bio-based surfactants and other ingredients from renewable resources.
By focusing on sustainable chemistry, the project seeks to provide high-performance, environmentally friendly alternatives to fossil-based products for various industrial applications, including textiles, detergents, and personal care.
About CHT Group
Founded in Tübingen, Germany, the CHT Group is a global, industry-leading innovator in speciality chemicals.
The organisation is committed to delivering high-quality chemical solutions that enhance sustainability across multiple sectors, including textiles, construction, and personal care. By merging cutting-edge technology with ethical business practices,
CHT aims to create long-lasting value for its partners and the environment.
