Clothes coating to prevent stains

Clothes coating to prevent stains - 12/05/2008

A new clothes coating could see the end of wearing fabrics away with cleaners for minor stains.

Using a technique called spin-coating, US researchers have managed to create plastic films that contain active enzymes similar to those in biological clothes detergents used by any cleaning agency.

Although the coating has so far only been applied successfully to plastic discs, lead researcher Ping Wang of the University of Minnesota is confident that they will eventually be used on other materials.

Crucially, the flexibility of the thin film means that it could eventually be used on clothes to prevent minor stains from appearing.

Mr Wang told the New Scientist: "Our preliminary results showed that enzymes can be spin-coated onto any pre-prepared plastic structures and, beyond that, probably inorganic structures such as metals and ceramics."

Depending on the material, a developed version of the film could also end the headache for upholstery cleaners by applying it to sofas and carpets.

Scientists have already incorporated nana-silver into clothes in recent years to prevent odor and the new plastic coating technology could easily follow in its footsteps.