Environmental Life-Cycle Analysis of Single-Use and Reusable Mops

Analysis: Microfiber Laundered and a Single-Use Mops

Eight laundered microfiber flat mops and one single-use microfiber flat mop were photographed at 20X’s, 40X’s using a 3D stereo microscope and 1,000X’s using a Scanning Electronic Microscope, SEM.

View Laboratory Report 105-S

EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW:

The laundered mops demonstrated significant contamination and microfiber degradation. In some instances, the microfiber in no longer effective since it is shown to be completely melted and containing foreign material. The melted microfiber indicates that the drying process utilized by the laundries is too harsh and irreversibly damaging the microfiber. The process also isn’t able to remove the obvious foreign material in addition to the chemical particulate accumulation.

These photographs support recent findings that the special laundry processes adopted for microfiber are not adequately removing gross soils and chemical build-up that have the potential to harbor microbiological pathogens.

New single-use microfiber provides the only assurance for a microfiber mop and wipe that can assure the elimination of any gross particulate and chemical accumulation the could come off the substrate and/or result in potential cross-contamination.

Environmental Life-Cycle Analysis of Single-Use and Reusable Mops

Richard Venditti, Elis and Signe Olsson Professor, Department of Forest Biomaterials, North Carolina State University, Room 1204 Pulp and Paper Labs, Raleigh, NC 27695-8005

Summary & Results

The Advantex® Single-use Mop has a significantly lower environmental impact than a reusable laundered mop in every category assessed in the EPA TRACI model. A contribution analysis on the global warming potential of the two indicates that the electrical power and chemistry needed to wash and dry the reusable mop dominates environmental adverse implications.

The Floor Could be the Weakest Link in Fighting HAIs

Pathogens are consistently introduced to the floor throughout the day by shoes, transport equipment such as wheelchairs and beds, treatment devices or computer carts, and non-slip patient socks that traverse the floors and frequently, directly into a bed. More importantly, there is a consistent potential for cross-contamination on and across the floor by an item expected to be clean and often handled without gloves, a freshly laundered mop.

Moving to Single-use Mops

Converting to disposable microfiber mops can significantly reduce the HAI risk for hospitals, eliminating the potential for inadequately launder mops to be reintroduced with remnant HAI pathogens. The case study evaluated our Advantex^® (Brand A) along with several other brands of single-use microfiber mops and determined that differences clearly exist on several critical criteria such as disinfectant neutralization, absorbency and dispersion/release efficacy, floor coverage, and wasted chemical solution.

Laundered Mops vs. Single-Use Mops

Environmental Comparisons

A recent study evaluated laundered microfiber mops from eleven hospitals and found that 27.3% of the newly laundered mops contained microbial contamination, including HAI pathogens.

Key Findings

• Laundry considerations: The typical hot water temperature in the laundering process specifies 160°F-200°F for microfiber mops or cloths and excludes the use of bleach unless necessary. Bleach is required for a cold-water laundering method at
• 5-150 ppm.
• A myopic view simply focuses on waste (disposable products) going in a landfill. In reality, laundered products require transportation and a carbon footprint that includes using energy, water, and chemicals to be effective.
• Single-use mops use half the chemicals resulting in less waste and efficient cleaning. Overall, the life cycle is better for the environment than laundered mops.

Geerpres® understands the importance of environmental impact related to cleaning products; however, patient care and safety ultimately must come first.

Many hospitals are moving to single-use microfiber mops and wipes to help reduce the risk of HAIs from floor surfaces. Single-use mops remove the potential of cross-contamination with virgin microfiber in every use while eliminating the risk of efficacy degradation through microfiber structural breakdown or pathogen retainage in the mop, as a result of an inadequate laundering process.

Key Findings

• Synthetic, disposable (single-use) mops and wipes represent a minimal footprint and should be considered against the laundering process and its waste and energy implications.
• Factors to consider include single-use microfiber mops use less water and energy by eliminating the laundering cycle.