The KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden has developed an alternative to silver based anti-odor clothing. By utilizing a combination of bio-compatible plastic and a bacteria compound found in red algae (lanosol), KTH has crafted an antibacterial thread. Currently silver is used in clothing to accomplish the same thing. The new material is designed to solve two of the largest issues with silver based antibacterial fabrics. Silver is applied to clothing via nanoparticles and studies have shown that these particle often shed and are ingested. The long term ramifications of this is debated, but there are fears that because of its antibacterial properties the silver could have health consequences. Since the algae is spun into the threads, it is less likely to shed. Secondly, because of how silver is applied to threads, it has a tendency to clump and be uneven. With the algae based material, it is spun into ultra thin threads using a process called electro-spinning (which uses an electrical charge to draw the thread). This results in the antibacterial lanosol being spread evenly. KTH sees the application of this anti-oder thread reaching beyond just clothing. They see it as something easy to integrate into bandages, air filters, and any place else where microbe resistance would be important.
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