Advantages And Disadvantages Of Vegetable Dyes And Industrial Dyes For Environmental Protection And Health

Industrial vegetable dyes refer to plant varieties that can be used as dyes, and these plants are usually used to extract pigments. These pigments can be used in textiles, paper, wood, skin and medicinal materials.

Although the raw materials (plant fruit stems and leaves) from which vegetable dyes are extracted may be different, the components of plant dyes are basically direct dyes. The so-called direct dyes are roughly classified according to the way in which such dyes are combined with cellulose fibers (by Van der Waals force) and the dyeing process. It is uncertain whether they are harmful to human health and the environment, Because most of the groups in its molecular structure do not affect its coloration and coloring function.

It may take hundreds or even thousands of kilograms of plant stems and leaves to extract one kilogram of dye. The energy consumption, waste water and waste generated in this process are unknown how many times more than chemical synthesis.

The production of industrial vegetable dyes usually includes the following steps:

Select plant varieties suitable for the production of vegetable dyes. This usually involves gene editing and classification of plants.

Screen and select crops suitable for dyeing.

Plant crops and harvest them.

Extract pigment from plants. This usually involves the use of specific enzymes, chemical extraction methods, and physical extraction methods.

The extracted pigment was analyzed and filtered to determine its composition and use.

Further production and processing are carried out according to the composition and use of the pigment.

Some commonly used industrial vegetable dyes include:

Acid vegetable dyes, such as acid orange flower pigment, acid purple flower pigment, etc.

Basic vegetable dyes, such as basic yellow pigment, basic nerolin, etc.

RGB trichromatic vegetable dye.

Fluorescent vegetable dyes, such as fluorescent yellow pigment, fluorescent purple pigment, etc.

The production of these vegetable dyes requires the use of specific equipment and technology, as well as the support of appropriate sites and funds.

The theoretical reasons for the use of vegetable dyes in the textile industry include:

Environmental protection: vegetable dyes are a kind of renewable energy. They are made of renewable plant materials and will not release harmful gases and greenhouse gases. Compared with traditional chemical dyes, vegetable dyes have less impact on the environment and can protect the health of the atmosphere and soil.

Health: Although plant dyes do not contain chemicals harmful to human health, the production process of plant dyes may contain some harmful substances, such as benzene, phenol, etc. In addition, excessive use of vegetable dyes can also lead to harmful effects of vegetable dyes on the body, such as skin irritation and allergy.

In the process of using vegetable dyes, there may also be some problems that affect health, such as:

Residues: During the production of vegetable dyes, some residues may be produced, which will have a certain impact on human health.

Pollution: In the process of textile industry, some harmful substances, such as ammonia and alkaline agent, will be produced. These harmful substances may pollute clothing and human body, causing harm to human body.

Allergy: Some people may be allergic to vegetable dyes, causing skin itching and respiratory problems.

Therefore, the textile industry needs to pay attention to environmental protection and health when using vegetable dyes, and control and monitor the production process to avoid negative effects.

When the textile industry uses vegetable dyes for dyeing, the problem of easy fading is closely related to the use of fixing agents. The fixing agent can provide a layer of color for the dye surface, increase the fastness of the dye, and prevent fading or fading during dyeing.

To be specific, the dyeing process of vegetable dyes is usually to mix the dyes and fixing agents, and then add them to textile materials for dyeing. However, the type and amount of color fixing agent need to be adjusted according to the specific dyes and textile materials to ensure the bright color and good fastness of the dyed product.

To solve the color fading problem,

The following measures can be taken:

Select a good quality fixing agent, and select a high quality fixing agent to improve the fixing effect.

Add appropriate proportion to the fixing agent to obtain the required fastness.

Adjust different vegetable dyes to obtain the desired fixing effect.

Pretreatment of textile raw materials can enhance the color fixing effect, such as soaking with color fixing agent or using other pretreatment technologies.

The need for a large amount of color fixing agent is usually caused by insufficient use of color fixing agent or poor quality of color fixing agent. In this case, the use of color fixing agent can be increased or better quality color fixing agent can be selected. At the same time, adequate color fixing treatment is required to ensure that the dyed finished product has bright color and good fastness.

The toxicity of dye fixatives depends on the composition and dosage used. Color fixing agent is usually a chemical substance, such as cobalt chloride, nickel chloride, cobalt sulfate, etc. These chemicals may cause harm to human health.

Due to the different use amount and use mode of color fixing agent, the degree of harm to human body will be different. If the fixing agent is used incorrectly or excessively, it may cause poisoning or allergic reaction. Therefore, before using the fixing agent, it is necessary to fully understand and monitor the composition and use of the fixing agent to avoid harm to human body. In addition, parents and guardians should teach children how to use color fixatives correctly and avoid exposing children to toxic chemicals.

The fading of industrial vegetable dyes is mainly caused by the use of fixing agents. Color fixing agent can improve the color of dye in water and prevent the acid corrosion of dye solution, but excessive use of color fixing agent will also bring negative effects. For example, harmful chemicals in fixing agents may cause harm to the body and pollution to the environment.

To solve the color fading problem, the following methods can be used:

Reasonable use of color fixing agent: In the process of making dyes, properly add color fixing agent to ensure the concentration and quality of dye color.

Adding reducing agent: adding some reducing agent can help the reaction between the fixing agent and the dye to improve the fixing effect.

Separation of fixing and dyeing process: separate the fixing and dyeing process to avoid excessive use of fixing agent.

Use of special fixing agents: use of some special fixing agents can improve the fixing effect and reduce the release of harmful chemicals.

When using the fixing agent, it is necessary to follow the safety regulations and environmental protection requirements, and adopt different fixing methods according to the characteristics of different dyes to minimize the use of fixing agent and ensure the sustainability and safety of dyes.

There are some ways to avoid the use of color fixing agents without changing the color of pigments. The following are some possible ways:

Blending mixture: dye and fixing agent are mixed to form a mixture, so that they can complement each other and reduce the use of fixing agent.

Disperse dyes: These dyes can be dissolved in water and then fixed on the material by fixing agent. This method can not change the color, but needs to use more fixing agents.

Water based fixing agent: These fixing agents are water-soluble and can be dissolved in water and then used for fixing agents. This method does not need to add chemicals, but needs to adjust the amount of fixing agent to obtain the desired color and fixing effect.

Organic solvent fixing agent: This method requires adding the fixing agent to the material, and then fixing the color by alcohol or other organic solvents. This method can fix the color, but it needs to be used carefully to avoid damage to the material.

It should be noted that different methods may have different effects on different dyes and fixatives, so appropriate methods need to be selected according to the specific situation.

Industrial plant dyes belong to environmental protection and health products, because the dye plants it uses are obtained from the natural ecosystem, and the use of these plant dyes to produce textiles can protect the ecological environment and reduce damage to animals.

However, the use of some industrial vegetable dyes may cause some problems. For example, some industrial vegetable dyes may cause bodily harm to some people, or some chemicals used in the production process may have adverse effects on human health. Therefore, in the case of correct use, the use of industrial vegetable dyes may bring some benefits.

The fruit stems and leaves of many plants are toxic, and these toxic ingredients may be hidden in their hair color ingredients. However, China and even the whole world do not seem to have a formal factory specialized in extracting vegetable dyes. Most of the production and processing of vegetable dyes are limited to small workshops, so the production process is unlikely to have steps to separate harmful ingredients. On the contrary, the direct dyes synthesized from petrochemical raw materials are basically non-toxic to the body due to their high purity and hundreds of years of screening. Some dyes can even be eaten. For example, most of the dyes added in food processing today are industrial synthetic direct food dyes.

See if the fabrics dyed with vegetable dyes are safer for human body. Unfortunately, the answer is no. Because of the low purity of vegetable dyes, the color fastness of dyed fabrics will be lower than that of synthetic dyes, and the dyes will be more easily absorbed by the skin. Moreover, since there is no step to separate harmful substances in its production and processing, it is inevitable that harmful ingredients will be mixed in it, which makes it even more unreliable.