Farewell to laundry day? Introducing the fabric that cleans itself when exposed to light

Future clothes could clean themselves, thanks to a group of Australian scientists. All you'll have to do is hang them outside under the sun and presto, clean laundry.

Researchers from RMIT University in Melbourne have developed what they call "self-cleaning textiles," which contain metallic nanostructures capable of degrading organic matter when exposed to light. Experiments showed that deliberately placed stains vanished within minutes.

There's still more work to do before we can say goodbye to laundry day, though. The researchers still have to test the textiles with organic compounds to determine how quickly they can handle common stains like ketchup or baby poo, and they also have to find a way to make the new fabrics affordable enough to end up in your closet.

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