Low temperature microwave clothes dryers that don’t damage wool and delicate
fabrics have been developed by the Electric Power Research Institute in
California. The dryers resemble conventional microwave ovens but have a rotating
drum inside. The microwaves directly heat and vaporise water trapped within
fabrics, so the drying temperature is about 20 °C degrees lower than a
tumble dryer. When the load has dried, an internal sensor detects the low
humidity, and turns the machine off. The dryers could be on the market within a
year.
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