Self-Cleaning Clothing

Are you tired of constantly cleaning your clothes by hand, or having to put them through the washer and dryer day after day? Are you tired of paying the bills for the energy and water and heat that your dryer and washer use? What about those dryer sheets and laundry detergent you must constantly buy, and constantly having your colors fade?

Mingce Long of Shanghai Jiao University and Deyong Wu of Hubei University for Nationalities claim they are inventing a cotton fabric that will clean itself! All you have to do? Hang it up outside because all it needs to work is sunlight. And not only does the fabric clean itself, but it eliminates foul odors, too? They hope that this invention will reduce energy usage and increase the availability of quick, easy cleaning to the average consumer. thus far, they have managed to make jean material, socks, and other cotton fabrics capable of doing this!

Such a feat has been attempted before. However, the cleaning process only worked thoroughly in the presence of ultra-violet rays. Long and Wu are currently working on a fabric that works in the presence of ordinary sunlight wavelengths.

How can a self-cleaning material even be made? Let's look at some other self-cleaning products that are used today. There are items such as windows, eyewear (such as glasses, sunglasses, and goggles), and bathroom or kitchen tiles. The technology behind these self cleaning products is a chemical coating that kills bacteria and breaks down dirt particles.
The secret of this chemical coating is titanium dioxide, which is a chemical compound found in everything from paint to food. Its most common job is to simply make make products white in color, since it is one of the best refractors of light known on earth. In the case of Long and Wu's cloth, however, titanium dioxide is an anti-bacterial and anti-stain substance in the presence of light. Other chemicals such as iodine, nitrogen, and silver are in the coating to speed up the process as well.

But does it work? This newly introduced coating to be placed on cotton fabric has already shown itself to be anti-bacterial. Now, Long and Wu have stepped up their game. The coating is now capable of completely eliminating orange colored stains. Your washer can only reduce orange dye stains if they remain in your clothing too long. Titanium dioxide rids your clothing of the stain once and for all. Also, the coating is wash and wear proof. So if you accidentally put your clothing in the washer, the coating remains intact and works just fine. Neither does the coating disappear with heavy wear. That is a cause for celebration.
The best part? This new invention is completely eco-friendly. This product will lower your energy usage for your washer and dryer, lower your consumption of dryer sheets and laundry detergent, and increase the overall condition of your clothes. Lessen fading, stains, odor, and bills! Its goodbye to the washer and dryer that in came in the twenties to seemingly help the consumer, and hello again to good old-fashioned clotheslines. Only, your clothing doesn't have to get wet.
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-titanium-dioxide.htm

http://www.world-science.net/othernews/111228_cleaning.htm