National First Prize for Polyester Fiber Chain Tech: A Turning Point for Textile Innovation

A data point worth the attention of the entire chemical fiber industry: China's chemical fiber output accounts for 70% of the global total, with polyester fiber ranking first among all types. Any technological leap in the polyester fiber industry chain is not just a boost for individual companies but a reshaping of the global textile raw material landscape.

The 2025 National Science and Technology Progress First Prize was awarded to the joint team of Tongkun Group and Donghua University for the project 'Key Technologies for Green and Intelligent Manufacturing of the Polyester Fiber Industry Chain.' This marks the first time the textile chemical fiber sector has achieved the highest national science honor in the full-chain technology of general-purpose fibers. The industrial signal behind this award deserves deeper analysis than the prize itself.

Three Main Lines of Technological Breakthrough

The project was led by Donghua University researcher Wang Huaping as the first completer, with deep involvement from Academician Zhu Meifang's team, and jointly developed by ten units including Tongkun Group and Zhejiang Sci-Tech University. The technical system revolves around three main lines:

• **Green Manufacturing**: Pioneered a PTA-PET direct coupling low-carbon manufacturing model, developed environmentally friendly titanium-based catalysts to replace traditional antimony catalysts, fundamentally reducing heavy metal pollution risks; also invented crude oil-based chemical fiber oil agents and green oiling technology, establishing a full lifecycle green standard.
• **Smart Manufacturing**: Completed full-process automation equipment upgrades, achieved large-scale domestic substitution of DCS control systems, and established an intelligent manufacturing system integrating process and quality control. This solution is replicable and is called the 'China solution' for industrial upgrading.
• **Service-oriented Manufacturing**: Pioneered a 'multi-head multi-tail' series-parallel composite polymerization technology platform, creating a 'one-head three-tail' multi-point addition polymerization, spinning, and texturing process modular digital linkage system, enabling customized differentiated polyester fiber products and multi-regional collaborative agile manufacturing.

As of the award, the project has formed a complete independent intellectual property system including 76 authorized invention patents, 10 software copyrights, and 14 national and industry standards. An expert panel of academicians identified the overall technology as reaching the international leading level.

The Real Account of Industrial Implementation

Beyond technical indicators, the real feedback from the industry is more convincing. The results have been promoted in industrial bases in Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Xinjiang, and more than 10 other industry units, cumulatively generating over 200 billion RMB in new sales, over 10 billion RMB in profits and taxes, and $1.8 billion in export earnings. Meanwhile, industry energy consumption and defect rates have significantly decreased.

For buyers, this means that domestic polyester fiber has systematically improved in quality consistency, green certification, and delivery flexibility. Customers previously reliant on imported high-end differentiated fibers now have more cost-effective domestic alternatives. For factories, the replicability of this technical system means that even small and medium-sized chemical fiber enterprises can achieve intelligent upgrades through technology transfer, rather than only leading companies being able to play.

The Deep Signal of Dual Awards

The International Science and Technology Cooperation Award was awarded on the same day to Professor Elsa Reichmanis of Lehigh University. She has long collaborated with Donghua University's State Key Laboratory for Advanced Fiber Materials, jointly training talents, publishing high-level papers, and advancing the International Conference on Advanced Fiber and Polymer Materials into the world's largest academic event on fibers.

The simultaneous awarding of two major prizes to Donghua University sends a clear signal: China's textile industry's independent innovation is no longer limited to 'catching up' but has formed a systematic breakthrough capability in basic research, international cooperation, and full-industry-chain collaboration. As the 'industrial staple,' the technological autonomy of polyester fiber directly relates to alleviating the 'grain-cotton land conflict,' industry chain security, and the implementation of the 'dual carbon' goals.

Practical Recommendations

For Buyers - Prioritize suppliers that have adopted this technology (such as Tongkun Group and its partners) and purchase their green-certified polyester fiber products to reduce downstream brand export environmental compliance risks. - For differentiated fiber needs (e.g., flame retardant, antibacterial, high elasticity), proactively contact factories with 'multi-head multi-tail' flexible production capabilities to shorten customization lead times. - Use the industry standards established by the project as acceptance criteria for procurement to reduce losses from quality fluctuations.

For Foreign Trade Companies - For orders exported to European and American markets, give priority to polyester fiber produced with environmentally friendly titanium-based catalysts to meet increasingly strict chemical restriction regulations (e.g., REACH). - Leverage the improved delivery stability brought by the smart manufacturing system as an added value point when quoting overseas customers. - Utilize the independent intellectual property system formed by the project to establish technical barriers in overseas markets and avoid low-price competition.