Technological Innovation in Biomass Energy for the Sustainable Growth of Textile Industry

Abstract

The growing increase in world energy consumption favors the search for renewable energy sources. One of the existing options for the growth and sustainable development of such types of sources is through the use of biomass as an input. The employment of biomass as solid fuel is widely studied and is no longer a novelty nor presents any difficulty from the technical point of view. It presents, however, logistic obstacles, thus not allowing their direct dissemination in every organization that is willing to replace it as an energy source. Use of biomass can be rewarding due to the fact that it can bring significant economic gains attained due to the steadiness of the biomass price in Portugal. However, the price may rise as predicted in the coming years, although it will be a gradual rising. The main goal of this study was to analyze whether biomass in the case of the Portuguese textile industry can be a viable alternative that separates the possibility of sustainable growth from the lack of competitiveness due to high energy costs. The study showed that biomass can be a reliable, sustainable and permanent energy alternative to more traditional energy sources such as propane gas, naphtha and natural gas for the textile industry. At the same time, it can bring savings of 35% in energy costs related to steam generation. Also, with new technology systems related to the Internet of Things, a better on-time aware of needs, energy production and logistic chain information will be possible.

Novel low-carbon energy solutions for powering emerging wearables, smart textiles, and medical devices

“…The utilization of bioenergy in textile mills has drawn the attention of scientists who have been continuously expanding their interest and focus. 398 Achala et al reported the use of pine wood chips as a biomass energy extraction source with a moisture content of 40%. They utilized the extracted energy for powering textile weaving and giant dying machines.…”

The Role of Sustainable Technological Innovations in the Relationship between Freight Pricing and Environmental Degradation: Evidence from a Panel of 39 R&D economies

“…The results emphasized the need to increase R&D spending in achieving the environmental sustainability agenda to mitigate GHG emissions from the production process. Nunes et al (2019) analyzed the role of biomass energy in the Portuguese textile industry's sustainable growth that is less competitive due to high energy costs. After a thorough empirical survey, the results show that biomass energy can be used efficiently in the textile industry to become more competitive through up to 35% cost-saving energy compared to steam generation.…”

Portuguese Wood Pellets Market: Organization, Production and Consumption Analysis

“…However, it is not easy to distinguish between domestic and industrial consumption, since tracking the type of consumption after sale becomes challenging. For example, Nunes et al [54,[56][57][58][59] presented and characterized some of the uses of biomass-derived fuels in the textile industry. Given the growth that has been seen in the installation of sizeable thermal conversion equipment, namely steam boilers, in many industrial sectors, it is likely that national consumption will shift towards the industrial sector.…”