China's domestic polyester fiber industry chain is undergoing a qualitative shift from follower to leader. The 2025 National Science and Technology Progress Award first prize in the chemical fiber field was awarded to the project 'Key Technologies for Green and Intelligent Manufacturing of Polyester Fiber Industrial Chain', led by Tongkun Group in collaboration with Donghua University and nine other institutions, marking a milestone breakthrough in the full-chain technology of general-purpose fibers.
Background
The project, with Donghua University researcher Wang Huaping as the principal investigator and Chinese Academy of Sciences academician Zhu Meifang deeply involved, addresses the strategic need for industrial chain security and international competition. Polyester fiber is the 'industrial staple' of textiles; China produces 70% of global chemical fiber, with polyester fiber ranking first in output. Technological autonomy directly impacts national economic stability and the achievement of 'dual carbon' goals.
After over a decade of collaborative research, the project established an autonomous technology system covering three core areas: green manufacturing, intelligent manufacturing, and service-oriented manufacturing. In green manufacturing, it pioneered a PTA-PET direct-coupled low-carbon production model and developed environmentally friendly titanium-based catalysts. Intelligent manufacturing achieved full-process automation equipment upgrades and large-scale domestic replacement of DCS control systems. Service-oriented manufacturing created a 'multi-head multi-tail' series-parallel composite polymerization technology platform for flexible customization and regional coordination.
Industry Impact
This technological breakthrough has a systemic impact on the textile chemical fiber industry. To date, the project has formed 76 authorized invention patents, 10 software copyrights, and 14 national and industry standards, with an expert panel confirming the overall technology has reached international leading level. Results have been deployed in industrial bases in Zhejiang, Jiangsu, and Xinjiang, as well as over 10 industry enterprises, generating cumulative new sales of over 200 billion yuan, profits and taxes of over 10 billion yuan, and export earnings of $1.8 billion, while significantly reducing energy consumption and defect rates.
Notably, Tongkun Group, leveraging the project's demonstration effect, was selected as one of the first national 'Zero-Waste Enterprise' cases and recognized as a 'National Service-Oriented Manufacturing Demonstration Enterprise' and 'National Excellent Intelligent Manufacturing Demonstration Factory.' This indicates that technological dividends are accelerating from labs to the production side, offering downstream buyers and foreign trade firms a more stable and greener supply chain.
Concurrently, Professor Elsa Reichmanis, Chair of the International Advisory Committee of Donghua University's State Key Laboratory for Advanced Fiber Materials, received the中华人民共和国 International Science and Technology Cooperation Award. She has long promoted Sino-US scientific exchange, co-cultivated multiple national-level talents with Donghua, co-published 18 high-level papers, and helped develop the International Conference on Advanced Fiber and Polymer Materials into the world's largest fiber-themed academic event. This reflects that China's textile industry is accelerating the two-way flow of talent and technology through international cooperation.