News Headlines

Advances being made in nanotechnology mean that fabrics which self-clean will soon be a practical reality.

Chinese scientists Mingce Long and Deyong Wu have recently developed a self-cleaning fabric which consists of a coating of nanoparticles constructed from a compound of titanium dioxide and nitrogen.

Previous attempts at materials which clean themselves have been largely unsuccessful due to the fact that ultraviolet light was needed to activate the cleaning process.

The great breakthrough with Long and Wu’s material is that the self-clean process is activated by sunlight.

The applications for such fabrics are far ranging including sports, industry and military. Beyond this the potential environmental benefits are massive and it’s easy to see the real, positive impact clothes which clean themselves would have in the third world where hygiene considerations are of paramount importance.