Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 15, 2026
Deposition of Porous Sorbents on Fabric Supports
Published on: June 12, 2018
Negative formaldehyde release from textiles washed with a formaldehyde-containing laundry soap according to
Nicholas Battis1, Samuel F Ekstein1, Javed A Shaik2
1Contact Dermatitis Clinic, Park Nicollet Health System, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
Background:
Formaldehyde is a common preservative used to prevent microbial growth in water. It can be found in personal care products and household cleaning products, including laundry detergents. Formaldehyde has frequently been recognised as a cause of allergic contact dermatitis, but whether it remains present in textiles washed with formaldehyde-containing laundry detergents is unknown.
Objectives:
This study aimed to utilise the chromotropic acid method (CAM) to assess formaldehyde release from textiles washed with a laundry detergent known to contain formaldehyde.
Materials And Methods:
Textiles were laundered with a detergent containing calcium formate at four concentrations (0×, 0.5×, 1× and 5× the recommended amount per manufacturer label) and kept wet or allowed to dry. Select textiles were subjected to an additional rinse cycle. Textiles were then tested utilising the CAM. A sample of the pure laundry detergent was also tested using the CAM.
Results:
The CAM was positive only for wet textiles washed at 5× the recommended concentration of detergent and pure detergent. All dry textiles were negative.
Conclusions:
Formaldehyde release was not detected from any textiles washed following the manufacturer's recommendations. Once dry, it is likely safe for formaldehyde-allergic patients to wear textiles washed with formaldehyde-containing detergents.
