A new washing machine has been developed by British inventors that will carry out a full wash using only one cup of water, leaving clothes virtually dry.

The machine was developed by academics at Leeds University and uses thousands of half-centimeter sized plastic chips to absorb and remove dirt.

The water is heated during the washing cycle to help dissolve dirt which is then picked up by the chips. The chips can be used up to 100 times which equals around six months of washing for many people.

Researchers say the machine could save billions of litres of water each year. The machine uses less than 2 per cent of the energy and water of a conventional washing machine.

An average UK household apparently uses 21 litres of water a day just for the washing of clothes. On a national scale, this equals 455 million litres a day which could fill 145 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

The machine’s tiny water use also makes a clothes dryer unnecessary which saves you time as well as money.

The machine’s inventor, Professor Stephen Burkinshaw, said tests have produced ‘quite astonishing’ results. ‘We’ve shown that it can remove all sorts of everyday stains including coffee and lipstick whilst using a tiny fraction of the water used by conventional washing machines,’ he added.

The new machine is called Xeros and the inventors are looking for commercial partners. The machine could be available as soon as next year and is expected to be competitively priced.

Sources:
Daily Mail and MSN UK