The Materials Technology Section (MTS), with the support of the Environment Technology Section and the Marketing and Business Development Department of the Industrial Technology Institute (ITI) has designed and installed a boiler which c-an use waste polyester material from the garment factories processed into briquettes, as the fuel source for the boilers.

Polyester waste from the garment factories cause a huge environmental problem by ending up in land fill sites and remaining in the soil for a long period of time. Burning these is also not an acceptable solution as it produces harmful smoke and residues. Further, unlike cotton waste, polyester waste cannot be used for cleaning purposes due to its non-absorbent nature.

Discussions with the Garment Industry led scientists at the MTS to identify this problem and formulate a method to produce a burnable material from the waste polyester which could be used as a source of energy. When a garment factory, Sanchia (Pvt.) Ltd. was approached with this concept and proposal, ITI was given the contract to devise a method to recycle the polyester waste generated in their factory into a fuel source, and to use this as a substitute for the electrical power presently operating the boilers used in the pressing operation.

This led to the signing of an MOU between ITI and Sanchia (Pvt) Ltd. whereby the MTS undertook to study the factory process, develop a fuel briquette, carry out the technical and financial feasibility study, and then proceed with the design and installation of a special boiler that could generate the steam required for ironing and pressing processes. The fuel briquette was developed after a detailed study of the properties of Polyester waste, including analysis of combustion products and examination of it’s thermal properties. Polyester waste, compacting studies were then carried out and a process devised to formulate a high calorific value briquette which leaves minimum residue on combustion. The boiler was specially designed to minimize emissions hazardous to human health, especially Suspended Particulate Matter (SPM). The construction of the ITI designed boiler was sub contracted and installed at the client’s site. The steam lines were connected to the existing presses in the ironing department. Several trials were run in the factory premises, and it was demonstrated that the emissions were within the limits stipulated by the draft standard for boiler (steam generating units) emissions in Sri Lanka.

It is gratifying to note that Sanchia (Pvt.) Ltd has begun to use these polyester briquettes in the specially designed boiler for the pressing and ironing of garments. Recognizing the environmental friendly approach of Sanchia (Pvt.) Ltd., the company has been awarded a grant of 50 % of the cost of this project by the Promotion of Eco-efficient Productivity (PEP) Project of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce. The PEP project was started in 2006 with the financial support from the Royal Netherlands Embassy.