Alchemie has developed the first digital dyeing process for clothes, targeting fabric dyeing—one of the industry’s most polluting stages.
In a rural area of Taiwan, the UK-based start-up Alchemie Technology is finalizing a project that aims to transform the global apparel industry by drastically cutting its environmental impact.
Traditionally, dyeing clothes requires submerging it in water at 135°C for hours, resulting in substantial wastewater. “To dye one ton of polyester, about 30 tons of toxic wastewater are produced,” explains Alchemie’s founder, Dr. Alan Hudd. This process dates back 175 years to the cotton mills in England and has since spread globally. The apparel industry consumes roughly five trillion liters of water annually, with fabric dyeing alone accounting for 20% of industrial water pollution, according to the World Resources Institute. The United Nations Environment Programme adds that the industry generates around 10% of global annual carbon emissions.
Alchemie’s solution, called Endeavour, combines dyeing, drying, and fixing into a single, efficient process that uses a technology similar to inkjet printing. Its 2,800 nozzles apply dye with precision, shooting 1.2 billion droplets per meter of fabric. This approach can cut water usage by 95%, energy by 85%, and works three to five times faster than traditional methods.
Originally developed in Cambridge, the project is now being tested in Taiwan to evaluate its real-world feasibility. Ryan Chen, Alchemie’s operations chief, highlights that Taiwan’s factories provide essential commercial-scale testing. Other companies are also developing nearly water-free dyeing technologies, including NTX in China and Sweden’s Imogo, though they have not provided further details.
Dr. Kirsi Niinimäki from Finland’s Aalto University finds these technologies promising but notes that further research is needed on fabric durability and the dye-fixing process. In Taiwan, Alchemie is refining the Endeavour machine to adapt it to the region’s hot, humid climate, which requires air conditioning—a lesson in adapting to conditions typical of many Asian textile hubs.
Looking ahead to 2025, Alchemie aims to trial its technology on cotton in South Asia and Portugal. However, scaling up remains a challenge, as major brands like Zara’s parent company, Inditex, would need hundreds of Endeavour machines to meet their dyeing demands. As other brands show interest, Alchemie’s journey toward commercialization continues.
