Cleanr Is Creating Microplastic Filters for Washing Machines Using 3D Printing

Currently, the world is facing a number of different climate crises. For example, scientists are looking for solutions not only for global warming but also extinction of species, water shortages and food security. Throughout all of these, one of the hardest to address as well as the most widespread is undoubtedly microplastic pollution. Luckily, one company is looking for a solution to diminish one of the major sources of microplastic production. CLEANR is designing microplastic-filtering solutions for use in washing machines and they are using 3D printing to do so.

Defined by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) as plastic debris that is less than five millimeters in length, microplastics are becoming a huge issue in lakes, rivers and oceans. In fact, they are so abundant that research shows that they cover up to 88% of the ocean’s surface and can be found anywhere from the beaches of the Arctic and Antarctic to even the summit of Mount Everest and the bottom of the Mariana Trench. And this is expected to only get worse, even doubling, by 2050. As such, finding solutions to this issue is becoming of increasing importance.

Microplastics often come from clothing, such as these found in German rivers by Greenpeace (photo credits: Fred Dott / Greenpeace)

Enter CLEANR. This young start-up from Cleveland, Ohio is developing filtration systems for washing machines, a leading cause of microplastic pollution. As clothing is one of the largest sources for microplastics, washing machines alone are responsible for 35% of the microplastic that enters the environment. Indeed, the problem is so widespread that countries are already starting to pass laws to include microplastic-filtration solutions. For example, from January 2025 all French washing machines will need to include one and state legislators in California and Oregon States are currently working on similar proposals. Thankfully, with CLEANR’s filter, it would be possible to filter up to 99% of microplastics before they enter the environment, down to an incredible level of 10 microns.