A durable, two-layer coating has been developed for nylon fabrics. The coating’s low coefficient of friction reduces the amount of microplastic fibres released from nylon fabrics during laundering by up to 93%. The coating’s efficacy, and other fabric properties, are maintained after at least nine laundering cycles.
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This is a summary of: Lahiri, S. K. et al. Polydimethylsiloxane-coated textiles with minimized microplastic pollution. Nat. Sustain. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-022-01059-4 (2023).
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Low-friction coatings reduce microplastic release from textiles. Nat Sustain (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-022-01060-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-022-01060-x