CLEVELAND, April 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- CLEANR today launched a new offering that will enable U.S. universities to significantly reduce their microplastic emissions. Under the program, CLEANR will deploy its breakthrough microplastics filter to on-campus washing machines to prevent microplastics from going down the drain and entering the environment.

bodies. Filtration is a proven, cost-effective, and near-term technology that can have a significant impact.

"By focusing on washing machines, U.S. universities can join in stopping up to a third of microplastics from entering our waterways," said Max Pennington, Co-Founder & CEO of CLEANR. "Our filtering technology makes the job almost as simple and easy as removing lint from a dryer for university communities and makes a measurable impact on microplastic emissions."

Washing machine wastewater is the world's largest source of microplastic pollution, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. CLEANR's filter—based on its core VORTX technology—was recently certified by the prestigious Shaw Institute to remove over 90% of microplastics as small as 50-microns.

CLEANR's new university-offering debuts in dormitories at Case Western Reserve University, where the filter will be deployed to up to 120 on-campus washing machines. The devices will enable the university to remotely measure, analyze, and monitor the filters' performance via sensors and the CLEANR Smart App.

"CLEANR is aligned with our institutional mission to solve the world's leading problems," said Case Western Reserve University President Eric W. Kaler. "Installing CLEANR filters on our residence hall washing machines provides us with an easy and practical way to significantly reduce our microplastic emissions while serving as a model for our peers to do the same."

CLEANR estimates that for every 100 filters installed in university housing facilities, the equivalent of 5,600 credit cards worth of plastic a year can be prevented from entering the environment.

Microplastics—plastic particles smaller than 5 millimeters in diameter—are increasingly associated with major human health risks, including heart disease, digestive cancer, and reproductive disorders. Microplastics often degrade into nano-plastics, particles small enough to pass through the blood-brain barrier, that can slip through downstream water treatment filters.