The textile sector in Bangladesh, heavily reliant on resource-intensive exhaust dyeing, faces urgent sustainability challenges, including excessive water consumption, salt pollution, and high energy demand. This study evaluates the eco-efficient Cold Pad Batch (CPB) method as a scalable alternative to conventional exhaust dyeing for 100% cotton single jersey fabrics, benchmarking its performance. Results demonstrate the transformative potential of CPB: it achieved an average dye fixation of 82.5% without salt additives at ambient temperature. Calorimetrically, CPB matched exhaust dyeing in shade fidelity where ΔE < 1.0 across all colors, while enhancing color strength for red and blue dyes. 1–2 levels improve the light fastness of CPB compared to traditional methods, and 0.5-1 levels enhance its wet friction fastness. Material characterization revealed the gentler processing of CPB. SEM showed smoother fiber surfaces, EDS confirmed negligible sodium residues validating salt-free operation, and XRD indicated reduced crystallinity disruption. By eliminating salt and thermal energy use, CPB mitigates effluent pollution and aligns with the sustainability imperatives of the country.
Jalil et al. (Mon,) studied this question.