Clothing spray could make fabric self-cleaning

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2026-03-20 03:00

International

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International researchers have developed a spray-on fabric coating which they say can make clothing washable without detergent for more than 100 laundry cycles. Modern laundry comes with a host of environmental issues, the researchers say, using huge amounts of water and polluting detergents and even increasing the release of microplastics from fabric. The team tested a method of spraying alternating layers of two chemicals onto clothing to create a layer of water molecules in an attempt to prevent stains from sticking as strongly to the fabric. Comparing a conventional washing cycle with a rinse cycle for the sprayed clothing, the researchers say the coating matched or outperformed the conventional method when it came to removing stains, bacteria and fungi. They say this method would mean applying the relatively expensive spray during the clothing manufacturing process, but as the spray appears durable after sunlight exposure and over 100 laundry cycles this cost would eventually be offset as it could reduce water, electricity usage and washing time by over 80%.

News release

From: Springer Nature

Chemistry: Spray-on fabric coating lightens the environmental load from laundry

A newly developed spray-on fabric coating could allow clothes to be cleaned using only water. The coating, described in research published in Communications Chemistry, can be applied to natural and synthetic fabrics and could potentially decrease the water and energy consumption of a typical laundry load by more than 80%.

Modern laundry practices use large amounts of water and energy and require detergents to remove stains. These detergents often increase the release of microplastics from clothing and can pollute water bodies. Most efforts to make laundry more sustainable have so far focused on reducing water and energy consumption.

Chongling Cheng, Dayang Wang, and colleagues sprayed two chemicals — poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (PDADMAC) and poly(vinylsulfonic acid) (PVS) — onto clothing in alternating cycles to produce five thin bilayers (double layers of closely packed molecules). The bilayers formed a coating with a very high surface density of sulphonate groups, which attract and hold a layer of water molecules. This prevents common stains from sticking to the fabric, allowing them to be removed with a single water-only rinse in a standard washing machine.

The authors tested the stain removal capability of their coating and rinse method against a conventional washing cycle with detergent. The coating matched or outperformed conventional methods on all three materials tested — cotton, polyester, and silk — and on all stain types (including engine oil and soy sauce). It also outperformed conventional methods in antibacterial and antifungal performance. Tests on mouse cells suggest that the coating is likely safe for skin contact, while experiments involving red beans (Vigna umbellata) suggest it does not affect plant growth.

The authors say the coating remains intact after exposure to sunlight, repeated wear, and over 100 laundry cycles, and also say it reduces the release of microplastics from synthetic fibres compared to conventional methods. They estimate that the coating could reduce the water, electricity, and time consumption of a laundry load by over 80%, based on typical washing machine cycles of one washing and four rinse stages. They do note that the coating would most likely need to be applied during clothing manufacturing, and also caution that its cost is substantially higher than that of detergent. However, they estimate the initial cost would be offset after 15 to 50 laundry cycles, depending on the detergent used.