Knitting for the Environment
Filter Hoses Attract Solvents / Particularly Useful in Paint Shops
Althengstett / Leonberg / Heilbronn (k-w). Filtering out aerosol solvents has been, conventionally, an extremely costly process with negative environmental impact. Now, special filter hoses are creating a sensation, particularly in the spray-painting industry. The specific filtering effect of STRÄHLE + HESS textile piping that was originally developed for the automotive industry forms the basis for a new application of the AWS Group AG, which relocated from Leonberg to Heilbronn at the end of September. In their patented filter systems, the textile hosing fulfills entirely new functions.
For the enterprise in Althengstett, known worldwide as a developer of technical special textiles for automobiles, this venture into new territory harks back to the Environmental Award it received in 1999 from the Sparkassen Foundation Pforzheim Calw. It has been over ten years since STRÄHLE + HESS was distinguished for its development. In the so-called ‘hightech-tubes’ patented by the AWS Group AG, STRÄHLE + HESS filter hosing is built into the filter modules and – due to its specific attributes – ensures efficient purification of exhausts. CEO Kirsten Schönharting in Althengstett is already thinking ahead: the next generation of textile filter components will be produced in the form of mats, for better handling during construction of the modules. The mats will also be recyclable and thus even more favorable for the environment.
The filter hosing now in use is produced by STRÄHLE + HESS out of polyester, in a patented knitting process. This makes the hosing porous and at the same time lends it stability. The water-absorber mixture that flows through the hosing seeps out onto the surface and binds pollutants there, allowing them to flow slowly – by force of gravity – down into a collecting tank. The precipitated solvents can even be recaptured and re-used.
This new filtering technique marks the end of an era in which paint solvents had to be incinerated at high temperatures, an expensive procedure. With the spike in energy costs, incentives are high to adopt the patented new process quickly. Furthermore, furnaces burning solvents produced the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2). So the filter hosing contributes doubly to protecting the environment.
Experts have calculated that paint shops using this new technology can save up to 90 percent of their previous expenditures for disposal of solvents. It’s hardly surprising that the result is a new line of business unfolding at STRÄHLE + HESS. “This year we have already produced one million meters of hosing,” reports Senior Key Account Manager Udo Sawall, who played a decisive role in the ongoing development of the technology, with satisfaction over its unexpected success. This business area may expand rapidly, since the firm in Althengstett is the only producer worldwide.
For cost reasons and in keeping with environmental considerations, the new generation of filters is attracting great interest in automobile construction and also in airplane construction, says Matthias Enzenhofer, Chairman of the AWS Group AG in Leonberg. In addition, there are a number of other industrial fields that may benefit from the filters used in hightech-tubes.
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