#garbage patch

Watch out, ocean trash! On September 8, 2018, a project to scoop plastic debris from the ocean launched its first phase from Alameda, Calif. Called  Ocean Cleanup, its creators claim it that by 2040 can remove 90 percent of the plastic in the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. If true, that would be a lot of plastic.

When researchers visited the that so-called garbage patch back in 2015, they estimated that it covered some 1.6 million square kilometers (620,000 square miles). That’s an area twice the size of Texas.

Swirling seas of plastic trash

Boyan Slat first proposed Ocean Cleanup’s system in a 2012 TED talk. At the time, he was just 18 years old. The Dutch-born inventor’s system consists of many floating tubes. Known as booms, they form a long, snaking line. This barrier will collect floating plastic trash so people can come by and retrieve it. People have donated more than $30 million to fund the project, based in Delft, the Netherlands.

Not everyone, however, thinks it’s a great idea. Some researchers worry the project could harm ocean life. There’s also the issue of the targets’ size. Ocean Cleanup is designed to capture pieces of plastic ranging from a few millimeters in diameter to tens of meters across, such as fishing nets. In fact, bits smaller than half a centimeter across — so-called microplastics — make up the majority of ocean plastic. The project has not been designed to catch such small bits.

A new kind of washing machine promises to use half as much water, keep clothes from fading, and protect the water supply from a unique kind of pollution—and it’s all thanks to tens of thousands of tiny beads.

Called Xorbs, the beads are each about the size of a pea. Along with a little bit of water, they help to move clothes around while attracting and removing stains, dye, and dirt.

Xeros, the company that developed the technology, estimates that the beads can save up to 10 gallons per wash—not to mention detergent—and it may only add $50 to the initial cost of a washer.

We first covered Xeros’ plans back in 2014, when it was already in use in commercial laundry rooms.

Since then, Xeros has adapted the technology for home use, creating a consumer-size washer drum that can dispense 15 lbs. worth of beads during a wash, then collect them all when the wash is through.

We were left wondering how the beads didn’t end up tangled in clothes or stuck in pockets. But according to Xeros, only a handful of beads have escaped over hundreds of tests.

Additionally, Xeros developed a filter that keeps toxic microfibers from washing off clothes and into water supplies.

Similar to a dryer’s lint trap, it requires the user to empty it after each wash—but Xeros said that the extra effort isn’t just good for the environment, it might save your septic system.

Since Xeros isn’t in the business of building washing machines, both innovations will require a major manufacturer to license them. However, according to Xeros, multiple appliance companies have already expressed interest.