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Tide Taking Stain Removal to the Stars

To test first laundry detergent for space

CINCINNATI — In 2022, Tide® will see its stain removal products tested amongst the stars.

The detergent brand from Procter & Gamble (P&G) has signed a Space Act Agreement with NASA to help in the development of laundry detergent solutions and technology in space. Under the agreement, NASA may test and study Tide cleaning solutions there.

Astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS) wear clothing several times before replacing with a new set. Clothing is delivered through resupply shipment opportunities. Limited cargo capacity makes replenishing the clothing supply challenging for deep space missions, such as Artemis Moon missions and a crewed round-trip Mars mission.

Without a laundry solution, 160 pounds of clothing per crew member per year are launched to ISS. Human round-trip missions to Mars could be two to three years in length.

Major challenges for off-Earth laundering include ingredient safety and compatibility with NASA life support systems, and the limited amount of water available per load and the requirement that the wash water be purified back to drinking-quality water.

Tide says it has developed a fully degradable detergent, specially designed for use in space to solve malodor, cleanliness and stain removal problems.

Onboard a 2022 cargo launch, Mission PGTide (P&G Telescience Investigation of Detergent Experiments), teams will test the stability of cleaning ingredients under microgravity conditions and exposure to the radiation levels experienced in space, in partnership with the ISS U.S. National Laboratory and SEOPS. Additionally, stain removal ingredients and performance will be tested onboard the ISS through experiments with Tide’s branded wipes and pens.

The study could have potential on-planet implications like innovative solutions for resource and environmental challenges on Earth.

“The ISS National Lab is excited to work with the P&G team once again as they push the limits of their research and development onboard the orbiting laboratory,” says Dr. Michael Roberts, acting chief scientist for the ISS National Lab. “Through private-sector utilization of the space station, companies like P&G can conduct investigations in ways not possible on Earth to develop new consumer products, enhance existing products, and better understand processes that further business models both on the ground and in low Earth orbit.”

In addition to testing onboard the ISS National Lab, NASA and Tide researchers may study how a combined washing and drying unit utilizing the specially formulated detergent could potentially be integrated into planetary habitats that may be used for the Artemis Moon and Mars missions under low-gravity surface conditions.

Tide Taking Stain Removal to the Stars

Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Bruce Beggs at [email protected].