Abstract
Abstract The viscose fiber industry forms a large part of the textile industry and is a typical water consumption and wastewater discharge industry. As a tool to quantify environmental impacts in terms of water resources, the water footprint assessment (WFA) is a control method for the textile and apparel industry to measure water consumption and wastewater discharge. In this study, the water footprints of viscose staple fiber blouses and blended men's suits were comprehensively evaluated based on the ISO 14046 standard and the life cycle assessment (LCA) polygon method. The WFA results from our study indicate that the production stage of viscose staple fiber garments has the most significant water resource environmental load. Specifically, the water footprint related to the production of viscose staple fiber for three types of clothing accounted for more than 50% of the total water footprint, with men's 100% viscose staple fiber suits having the largest impact on water resources and the environment. Furthermore, our results indicate that the water alkaline footprint is primarily influenced by the viscose staple fiber production as well as the dyeing and finishing processes. NaOH and Na2CO3 are the main pollutants that caused the water alkaline footprint. In addition, the water ecotoxicity footprint was the major driving factor of water resource environmental load. Zn2+ is the main pollutant that caused the water ecotoxicity footprint.
Highlights
IntroductionAccording to data from the China Statistical Yearbook, in 2017, China’s per capita water supply was only
The WFSC and the WFDE related to three types of typical viscose staple fiber garments were calculated using Equations (1)–(5), and life cycle assessment (LCA) polygons were drawn based on the results obtained from water footprint analyses
In the fiber production process, the presoaking process had the highest WFSC of 31.76 m3 H2O eq/ton, representing 34% of the total viscose staple fiber production stage WFSC, followed by the scouring process with a value of 22.23 m3 H2O eq/ton, which are the main steps that consumed considerable amounts of fresh water for dissolving into pulp in an alkaline environment and reducing the amount of impurity on the viscose fiber, and the whiteness index and oil rate can be improved for the scouring process (Shen & Patel )
Summary
According to data from the China Statistical Yearbook, in 2017, China’s per capita water supply was only. Viscose staple fiber is mainly used for the manufacturing of textiles and garments due to advantages in comfort and moisture absorption, and its proportion in the mid-to-high-end fabric market continues to increase. It is often used in two major garment categories, namely shirts and suits. The viscose staple fiber industry and its associated textile and garment industries consume a large amount of water and are responsible for serious wastewater pollution, which has multiple environmental impacts on water resources
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
