This innovation is a product of observation and empathy towards hospital laundry officers who may risk encountering COVID-19 while handling laundry with secretion from the patients. Dissolvable laundry bags are an innovation that will prevent direct contact with contaminated laundry. Users can merely place the clothes inside the bags and seal them, then the whole bag can be placed inside the washing machine.
The process of washing the clothes at over 65°C will dissolve the bags in 3-15 minutes (the dissolving rate varies depending on the water temperature and rotation of the washing machine). This alternative product can protect laundry officers from direct contact with infected clothing. Also, it reduces the laundry steps or the need to burn the clothes that will create air pollution.
The water-soluble laundry bag is made from Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), thus, giving the properties to dissolve in water. They can fully dissolve after undergoing the standard infected clothing handling procedures without harming the cloth and the environment. They do not affect underwater living organisms and are biodegradable by the microorganism in the water.