New Report: Use of Industry 4.0 Technologies in Water and Sanitation

Author: Ali Hasanbeigi, Ph.D.

Access to clean water and proper sanitation has been highlighted as one of the most pressing issues by the United Nation’s Agenda 2023, and is one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG6). Issues related to water and sanitation affect all aspects of human life across various geographies, with a particular emphasis on least developed countries and marginalized communities. It is estimated that about 36% of the global population live in water-scarce regions, and more than 2 billion people have no choice but to consume contaminated water. Millions die yearly from otherwise preventable diseases, particularly children.

The technological advances in recent years in Industry 4.0 technologies such as: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data, Internet of Things (IoT), Blockchain, Drones, and Virtual and Augmented Reality, have provided new tools to address water issues.

Global Efficiency Intelligence, LLC participated in a study led by Tambourine Innovation Ventures and funded by Inter-American Development Bank to provide an overview of some of the current applications of key Industry 4.0 technologies in the water and sanitation sectors globally as well as recommendations of how to further harness their potential.

To read the full report and see complete results and analysis of this new study, Download the full report from this link.

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Infographic: Textile and Apparel Industry’s Energy and Water Consumption and Pollutions Profile

Author: Ali Hasanbeigi, Ph.D.

Although the textile and apparel industry is not considered an energy-intensive industry, it comprises a large number of plants that, together, consume a significant amount of energy which result in substantial greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions too. 

The textile and apparel industry and especially textile wet-processing is one of the largest consumers of water in manufacturing and also one of the main producers of industrial wastewater. Since various chemicals are used in different textile processes like pre-treatment, dyeing, printing, and finishing, the textile wastewater contains many toxic chemicals which if not treated properly before discharging to the environment, can cause serious environmental damage.

With global population growth and the emergence of fast fashion, the worldwide textile and apparel production are increasing rapidly. In 2014, an average consumer bought 60% more clothing compared to that in 2000, but kept each garment only half as long.

The Infographic below shows the Textile and Clothing Industry’s Energy and Water Consumption and Pollutions Profile.

Don't forget to Follow us on LinkedIn and Facebook to get the latest about our new blog posts, projects, and publications. Also see below our related publications and tools.

Some of our related publications and tools are:

1.     Hasanbeigi, Ali; Price, Lynn; (2015). A Technical Review of Emerging Technologies for Energy and Water Efficiency and Pollution Reduction in the Textile Industry. Journal of Cleaner Production. 

2.   Hasanbeigi, Ali (2013). Emerging Technologies for an Energy-Efficient, Water-Efficient, and Low-Pollution Textile Industry. Berkeley, CA: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. LBNL-6510E

3.     Hasanbeigi, Ali; Hasanabadi, Abdollah; Abdolrazaghi, Mohamad, (2012). Energy Intensity Analysis for Five Major Sub-Sectors of the Textile Industry. Journal of Cleaner Production 23 (2012) 186-194

4.     Hasanbeigi, Ali; Price, Lynn (2012). A Review of Energy Use and Energy Efficiency Technologies for the Textile Industry. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 16 (2012) 3648– 3665.

5.    Also, you can check out the Energy Efficiency Assessment and Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction Tool for the Textile Industry (EAGER Textile), which I developed a few years ago while still working at LBNL. EAGER Textile tool allows users to conduct a simple techno-economic analysis to evaluate the impact of selected energy efficiency measures in a textile plant by choosing the measures that they would likely introduce in a facility, or would like to evaluate for potential use.

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