Microplastics have undoubtedly become a widely discussed topic in recent years—not because environmental awareness is currently “trendy,” but because it has become fundamentally clear how pervasive microplastics are and how difficult they are to remove once they enter ecosystems. Part of this pollution originates from an entirely ordinary daily routine: doing the laundry. When we wash fabrics, especially synthetic ones, microscopic fibers are released and carried away with wastewater—tiny, dispersed, and practically invisible.
Synthetic fabrics are man-made textiles produced in factories from polymers, which are then processed into fabric. Clothing labels commonly list materials such as polyester, polyamide, acrylic, Lycra, and similar substances. During washing, these materials can shed into microscopic fragments that then travel further through wastewater systems.
To address the problem at its source, microfibers must be captured directly during washing, before the water enters the sewage system. This is the principle behind Regen, a filtration technology developed by the Bristol-based British company Matter. In laboratory conditions, filtration proved relatively straightforward, but real challenges emerged once more demanding washing loads were tested. Versions that appeared stable under controlled conditions began to fail when exposed to substances commonly present in real wash water, such as oils, skin residues, detergents, and grease. These create mixtures that are exceptionally effective at clogging filters. Sediment forms easily as fibers entangle, while particles fill micropores, causing fine-pore filters to rapidly lose flow.
Although filters capture fibers from all types of fabrics, the greatest environmental risk associated with microplastics arises from synthetic materials. Cotton fibers are more biodegradable, although they also burden wastewater systems and can carry chemicals used in textile processing.
For this reason, Matter believes that the solution cannot be “just another filter,” as sustainability would then cease to be the core principle—replacing one form of waste with another through new disposable valves and membranes. The central idea is to avoid additional resource consumption, which is why the technology was also designed not to require additional water. Moreover, frequent maintenance tends to frustrate users, and in a world saturated with information and obligations, people easily stop using devices that inconvenience them or simply bypass them altogether.
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How does Regen work? During washing, the filter captures material within a specific zone, thereby keeping most of the membrane clean until the system approaches saturation. A sensor then detects that the filter is nearing blockage and activates the Regen function. A dedicated valve has also been introduced so that, even if the filter becomes fully saturated mid-cycle, the washing machine can still complete the wash. This prevents the filter from becoming a point of failure within the household. The captured material is easily removable, and the filter is not filled with water during emptying, thereby maintaining hygiene.
Regen is primarily designed for integration into washing machines, but it can also be used as an add-on filter. As a technology, however, its application is not limited to household washing machines—it can serve as a solution across the entire chain, from households and professional laundries to the textile industry itself. The system is not limited to washing machines; it can also be applied at the fabric production stage in textile factories, where large volumes of wastewater are generated during material production and processing.
By 2030, Matter aims to develop and deploy sufficient solutions—both in the textile industry and in laundry applications—to collectively capture 15,000 tons of microfibers. Broader adoption of these systems in households, laundries, and factories would prevent an equivalent amount of microfibers from entering wastewater systems and ultimately the natural environment.
New standards emerge only when an environmental solution becomes invisible in everyday life—when it operates reliably and requires no additional effort or resources. Only then do such solutions become the new normal.
Prepared by Milica Vučković
The story was published in Energy portal Magazine DIGITALIZATION
