Virtual Wash Plant Simulation for Textile Sustainability

Solution Overview

Problem

The textile industry faces challenges in reducing CO2 emissions and water usage while navigating complex interdependencies and high costs, with existing solutions often counterbalancing environmental benefits with negative impacts, and lacking efficient tools for holistic sustainability assessments.

Innovation Solution

A process involving a virtual wash plant simulation to evaluate and compare different textile processing recipes based on energy, water, and cost parameters, allowing for the identification of more sustainable alternatives and guiding physical changes to equipment and inputs.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Quantity of substance

If chemical products are used to reduce water usage, then water footprint is reduced, but negative environmental impacts from chemical use increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvewater usageVSAvoidenvironmental impact from chemicals

Core Design Contradiction:

Quantity of substanceVSObject-generated harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a virtual copy of the textile processing system that replicates all physical equipment, processes, and parameters. This virtual model allows for simulation and comparison of different processing recipes without physically implementing changes, enabling assessment of environmental impacts including chemical usage before actual deployment.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The system performs preliminary simulation and evaluation of processing recipes in the virtual environment before physical implementation. By pre-assessing the environmental impacts, water usage, and cost implications of different chemical products and processing methods, the system enables informed decision-making that avoids detrimental changes.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If physical changes to equipment and inputs are implemented, then sustainability may improve, but high costs and process complexity make changes difficult

Engineering Contradiction:

ImprovesustainabilityVSAvoidprocess complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a virtual copy of the textile processing system that replicates all physical equipment, processes, and parameters. This virtual model allows for simulation and comparison of different processing recipes without physically implementing changes, enabling assessment of environmental impacts including chemical usage and cost implications before actual deployment.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The system provides feedback by comparing baseline processing data with simulated alternate recipe data across multiple parameters including water usage, energy consumption, cost, and environmental impact. This feedback mechanism guides users in making informed decisions about which changes to implement while understanding the trade-offs involved.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Productivity

If conventional processing methods are used, then current production levels are maintained, but environmental impact and water footprint increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveproduction levelVSAvoidenvironmental impact

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSObject-generated harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a virtual copy of the textile processing system that replicates all physical equipment, processes, and parameters. This virtual model allows for simulation and comparison of different processing recipes without physically implementing changes, enabling assessment of environmental impacts including chemical usage before actual deployment.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The system enables evaluation of processing recipes with modified parameters such as reduced water usage, lower energy consumption, and decreased chemical input while maintaining production output. By simulating these parameter changes in the virtual model, users can identify optimized recipes that reduce environmental impact without sacrificing productivity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS20240303393A1Systems and methods for simulating, comparing, and adjusting textile processing systems to have improved impact on financial and environmental sustainability

Publication Date: 2024.09.12 KEMIN INDUSTRIES INC

AI summary

A process for evaluating changing an overall textile processing facility to be more sustainable that includes the steps of: defining a virtual wash plant having virtual pieces of equipment and virtual wash inputs; defining a baseline recipe for the production of a textile using the virtual wash plant; defining an alternate recipe for the production of the textile that is different than the baseline recipe using the virtual wash plant; determining a set of processing sustainability related cost and input usage differences between the baseline recipe and the alternate recipe; and changing the textile processing facility used recipe at the textile processing facility to correspond to the alternate recipe if the alternate recipe is determined to be more environmentally sustainable, more financially sustainable, or both more environmentally sustainable and financially sustainable than the baseline recipe.