Research agency TNO estimates that synthetic clothing in the Netherlands ranks fourth in terms of microplastics emissions to the environment. The top three consists of car tire wear, litter and agricultural films. To be able to specify how many microplastics are released during a wash, research into laundry is important.
At the Science Park of the University of Amsterdam, the citizen scientists put their garments in a special laundry bag. They record the details of the wash: weight, materials, detergent and washing program. During washing, the fibers are collected in the laundry bag, and are removed afterwards with lint roller sheets. These are photographed and sent to the lab.