Reusable detergent bags for laundry
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The liquid-free pouch has just one ingredient and works by changing the pH of water
Spotted: Around 840 million loads of laundry are washed in machines each week – representing huge volumes of water, energy, and potentially harmful chemicals. Now, Ops Clean is hoping to reduce the environmental cost of washing clothes with a reusable dry laundry detergent that contains just one ingredient – magnesium.
When magnesium comes into contact with water, it forms magnesium hydroxide and dihydrogen gas (H2). This reaction causes the water to become alkaline, raising its pH to around 10, which is an ideal level for cleaning – falling between the pH of soap (8) and bleach (11). Washing clothes with water that has a pH of around 10 can neutralise most of the bacteria, viruses, germs, and odours present.
Traditional detergents use chemical agents to raise the water’s pH, which can harm the environment unless they are removed with special treatment at water treatment plants. Magnesium, however, is non-toxic and harmless to both the environment and human health, meaning the washing wastewater requires no special treatment.
Each Ops sachet can be reused up to 350 times and is effective in cold water. This not only saves users money, but also the water, CO2, and energy costs of producing, transporting, and disposing of packages of conventional laundry detergent. The sachet also reduces water usage by around 30 per cent per wash, translating to an average annual saving of 3,000 litres per household.
The company was the 2023 European Startup of the Year in Amazon Launchpad’s annual Innovation Awards and was awarded a €100,000 grant. Ops used the grant to conduct additional research on the sachets, and the company was then also selected to participate in this year’s Amazon Sustainability Accelerator.
Written By: Lisa Magloff