Overview
ARBOK-ALBUS is an industrial closed-loop laundry system for hotels, hospitals and large centralized laundries that washes cotton bed linen, towels and robes almost without water and without detergents. Instead of water and powder, the machine is filled with a special ARBOK alcohol-based working solution; 95–97% of the solution is recovered per cycle through two-stage recuperation, and water is used only to generate steam for the final rinse.
The same platform extends to natural workwear (ALBUS-Uniform / TAUS) without a change of architecture — only regime adaptation. Workwear contamination is predominantly hydrophobic (industrial oils, greases, diesel fuel, soot, heavy industrial dust, organics, biological dirt), which water handles fundamentally poorly; the alcohol-based medium extracts contaminants from the fiber structure by direct transfer into the working medium rather than masking them with optical brighteners.
The stated scale of the underlying problem: about 30–40 million towels and bed linen sets used in hotels and hospitals are washed worldwide every day; 10–15 liters of water per 1 kg of dry cotton laundry; 15,000–40,000 liters per day for a single 200–300 room or bed facility; over 100 billion liters of water per year globally for bed linen, towels and robes, plus tens of thousands of tons of phosphate powders, surfactants, bleaches and conditioners entering wastewater.
Applications
Hotel and hospital textiles: towels, sheets, duvet covers, pillowcases, robes — 100% cotton or blends with no more than 5% synthetics, which matches global hotel and hospital standards.
Natural workwear (ALBUS-Uniform / TAUS): cotton, linen, hemp and blends where synthetics do not exceed 5% (the workwear document states 100% cotton, or blended fabrics with ≤5–10% synthetics depending on fiber type and purpose). Basis of industrial workwear, municipal uniforms and military uniforms worldwide.
Segments opened by the workwear extension: industrial laundries; energy and petrochemicals; agro and food complexes; pharmaceuticals and biomedicine; utility and municipal services.
Sectors where ALBUS is stated to work particularly well: where contamination is hydrophobic, where water and powders cope poorly, and where a repeatable sanitary result is required.
Critical sanitary sectors (medicine, food, pharma): bactericidal effect of 99.999% (log 6), removal of odors and volatile organic compounds, no residual chemistry in the fabric — important where workwear contacts products or patients and detergent residues are prohibited.
Operating Principle
- Loading: 50–200 kg of dry laundry.
- Working medium: the drum is filled to its working level with the proprietary ARBOK-ALBUS alcohol-based solution, produced by ARBOK; washing proceeds at a mild, energy-light process temperature suited to the solution, well below its boiling point.
- Washing: duration is set by fabric type and contamination level — shorter for hotel/hospital linen, longer for heavily soiled workwear — and is consistently shorter than an equivalent water wash.
- Spinning: to residual moisture below 15%.
- Two-stage recovery of the working medium: a primary vacuum-evaporation stage returns the large majority of the solution directly to the tank, followed by a secondary vacuum-distillation stage with heat-pump-assisted recovery that reclaims most of the remainder. Total recovery: 95–97% per cycle.
- Final steam rinse: water is used only to produce steam, 1–2 liters of water per 100 kg of laundry. Steam treatment is mandatory — it ensures complete removal of residual solution odor and meets the sanitary requirements of hotels and medical institutions.
- Drying: hot air, with heat from recuperation reused.
Contaminants are extracted from the fiber structure by direct transfer into the working medium. Dirt is not masked by optical brighteners and not smeared across the fabric. The solution is not consumed: after each cycle it is cleaned and returned to the process. Neither the solution nor chemistry goes into the sewer — only separated dirt and the minimal amount of water from the final steam treatment.
Limitations and constraints stated in the sources:
- Fabric restriction is absolute. Only 100% cotton or blends with minimal synthetics. In combination with chemical (synthetic) fabrics, the alcohol-TAUS medium will dissolve them and the workwear will become unusable. The source states the fabric-type limitation is deliberate, not forced: "we are not trying to wash everything, we solve a specific task."
- Energy consumption is 15–25% higher than classic water washing (the sources state this is offset by savings on water, chemistry and heat).
- Existing laundry equipment cannot be used as is. Washing is performed on ARBOK-ALBUS machines. ARBOK is working on the possibility of using existing laundry equipment, but in that case additional technical modules and a more complex alcohol solution formula are required.
- Solution loss: 3–5 liters of working solution per 100 kg of laundry are not returned to the cycle.
- Explosion hazard of the medium: the system must be built in fully explosion-proof ATEX Zone 1 design with vapor sensors and an automatic inert gas system; the source states risk to personnel is structurally excluded when instructions are observed.
- Steam treatment is obligatory because the alcohol solution leaves residual odor.
- Two different synthetic-content limits are given for the two applications (≤5% for hotel/hospital textiles; ≤5–10% for workwear).
> Расхождение в источнике: water consumption per 100 kg of laundry. The comparison table states ARBOK-ALBUS uses 0–50 liters per 100 kg, while the process description states water is used only in the amount of 1–2 liters per 100 kg, exclusively for steam. The TAUS document states "almost waterless (only 3–5% of the usual volume)". All three figures are recorded as given.
Key Parameters
Process parameters
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| Load | 50–200 kg of dry laundry |
| Suitable textiles | 100% cotton or blends with ≤5% synthetics (hotel/hospital); ≤5–10% synthetics for workwear depending on fiber type |
| Working medium fill | ARBOK alcohol-based solution, filled to the required working level |
| Operating temperature | Mild, energy-light process temperature, well below the solution's boiling point |
| Washing time | Set by fabric type and soiling level; consistently shorter than an equivalent water wash cycle |
| Residual moisture after spin | Below 15% |
| Primary recovery (vacuum evaporation) | Large majority of solution returned directly to the tank |
| Final recovery (vacuum distillation with heat pump) | Most of the remainder reclaimed |
| Total solution recovery | 95–97% per cycle |
| Water for steam | 1–2 liters per 100 kg of laundry |
| Bactericidal effect | 99.999% (log 6) |
| Explosion protection | ATEX Zone 1, vapor sensors, automatic inert gas |
Comparison per 100 kg of laundry
| Indicator | Conventional water washing | ARBOK-ALBUS |
|---|---|---|
| Water consumption | 1,000–1,500 liters | 0–50 liters |
| Alcohol-solution consumption | — | 3–5 liters |
| Electricity consumption | 100% | +15–25% |
| Detergent consumption | 2–4 kg | 0 kg |
| Cycle time | 60–90 minutes | 35–45 minutes |
| Fabric wear | High | Practically absent |
| Bactericidal effect | Medium | 99.999% (log 6) |
Environmental effect (facility with 300 hotel rooms, approximately 600 beds, or a hospital complex with 300 beds, at about 85% load)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Water savings | About 8–10 million liters per year |
| Surfactant and phosphate discharges | Practically zero |
| CO₂ reduction | 60–80 tons per year |
| Textile lifespan | 2–3 times longer |
Workwear-specific effect (ALBUS-Uniform / TAUS)
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Water consumption reduction | Up to 95% |
| Detergents | Fully eliminated |
| Workwear service life increase | 1.5–2.5 times (ALBUS-Uniform); fabric wear reduced by 30–60% (TAUS text) |
| Cycle recovery | 95–97% |
| Bactericidal effect | 99.999% (log 6) |
Architecture and Components
- Washing machines: a special equipment complex executed in the form of standard industrial washing machines; TAUS equipment looks and is operated like standard industrial washing machines — loading, unloading, automation and maintenance are familiar to staff, so the transition does not break operational logic and does not require staff retraining.
- Working medium circuit: ARBOK alcohol-based solution, produced by ARBOK.
- Recovery / regeneration module: a two-stage vacuum evaporation and vacuum distillation system with heat-pump-assisted recovery.
- Steam generation unit for the final rinse.
- Hot-air drying with reuse of recuperated heat.
- Safety systems: ATEX Zone 1 explosion-proof execution, alcohol vapor sensors, automatic inert gas supply.
Component specifications such as drum sizing, pump and condenser ratings, footprint and utility connections are engineered to standard industrial-laundry infrastructure and confirmed during site design.
Advantages
- Washing practically without water and without detergents; detergents, bleaches and conditioners are not used at all.
- 95–97% of the working solution is recovered per cycle; the solution is not consumed and is not discharged to the sewer.
- Cycle time reduced from 60–90 minutes to 35–45 minutes.
- Bactericidal effect of 99.999% (log 6), critical for hospital textiles and high-class hotels.
- Fabric wear practically absent; textile lifespan 2–3 times longer for linen, 1.5–2.5 times longer for workwear, reducing purchases, logistics and write-offs.
- Direct action on hydrophobic contamination (oils, greases, diesel fuel, soot, dust, organics) which water handles fundamentally poorly; deep cleaning of the fiber, not only of the surface, with no re-deposition of contaminants on the fabric.
- No residual chemistry in the fabric; removal of odors and volatile organic compounds.
- Entire cost classes are removed: detergents and surfactants become zero, chemical wastewater treatment becomes unnecessary, fines and regulatory risks disappear together with effluents, repeat cycles almost disappear because dirt is extracted rather than masked.
- Discharges of surfactants, microplastics, chemical waste, chlorine and fats are substantially reduced.
- Reduction of CO₂ emissions by 60–80 tons per year per reference facility due to lower water heating and deep heat recuperation.
- No new technology is required to extend from linen to workwear — only regime adaptation, which widens the market without a principally new development.
- Early adopters gain environmental certificates, savings and sustainability positioning.
Integrations
- The working solution is produced by ARBOK, making the operator dependent on ARBOK supply of the medium.
- Equipment is dimensionally and operationally compatible with standard industrial laundry practice (loading, unloading, automation, maintenance).
- Adaptation of existing third-party laundry machines is under development and would require additional technical modules and a more complex alcohol solution formula.
- ARBOK states readiness to organize production of TAUS washing machines.
Integration with other ARBOK platform technologies follows the same modular logic as the water, biosecurity and energy systems described elsewhere in the ARBOK ecosystem.
Deployment & Operation
- Target facility scale in the economics: 200–500 rooms or beds.
- Reference environmental case: 300 hotel rooms (approximately 600 beds) or a hospital with 300 beds at about 85% load.
- Operated by standard laundry personnel under instructions; no retraining or change of operational logic required.
- Mandatory final steam treatment on every cycle.
- Replacement of existing laundry equipment is stated not to be a problem; ARBOK is prepared to organize production of new machines, and private laundry services are expected to invest.
Maintenance schedule, consumable replacement intervals, utility requirements and installation time follow standard industrial-laundry commissioning practice, tailored to each facility during deployment.
TRL
TRL 4 — проставлен Михаилом 2026-08-06.
— no TRL value is stated in either source. The article's closing note says of ARBOK developments in general that they "exist in hardware, with full documentation, patents, independent laboratory reports, and real-world validation," and presents ALBUS as another example of that work, but no ALBUS-specific validation data, pilot site, or certification is given.
Market Potential
Hotel and hospital laundry:
- About 30–40 million towels and bed linen sets washed worldwide every day.
- Over 100 billion liters of water per year consumed globally by hotel and hospital infrastructure for bed linen, towels and robes.
- Tens of thousands of tons of phosphate powders, surfactants, bleaches and conditioners entering wastewater annually.
- In resort zones (Cyprus, Maldives, Mexico, Bali, Canary Islands, Turkey, Egypt) hotels consume more freshwater than local populations and laundry effluents directly kill coral reefs and coastal marine ecosystems. In cities, hospital laundries create a constant load on treatment plants and sanitation infrastructure.
US civilian workwear sector:
- Service market for special clothing and industrial textiles: about $50 billion per year.
- More than 20 million workers constantly wear uniforms.
- About 15 billion pounds of textiles serviced annually.
- Average contract cost of one wash cycle for a uniform set: $5–9 in the US; higher in Europe due to energy, water and regulatory pressure.
- Operational laundry costs within that market: $20 billion.
NATO military sector:
- NATO personnel estimated at up to 5.0 million people (active plus heightened-readiness reserve) by 2029 under current programs.
- At a conservative 1–2 washes per week: 235–520 million cycles per year for NATO alone.
- At a minimum contract price of $5 per cycle: $1.2–2.6 billion per year (stated as an understated estimate, excluding remote bases, field water logistics, delivery fuel, accelerated uniform wear, and sanitary/environmental constraints).
Ambition stated: ALBUS is intended to become the international standard for hotel and hospital laundry. The largest market for TAUS is identified as China, with the explicit caveat that there is no IP protection there.
Typical Project Economics
Hotel / hospital installation
| Parameter | Value |
|---|---|
| System cost, facility of 200–500 rooms or beds | определяется по объекту |
| Payback period | 14–28 months (from savings on water, chemicals, energy and reduced textile wear) |
| Net savings after payback | $150,000–350,000 per year |
> Цена системы изъята (решение Михаила, июль 2026). В источниках стояли две несводимые оценки — 180,000–420,000 € и $200,000–450,000. Цена определяется по конкретному объекту и во внешние документы не выносится.
Workwear / uniform cycle economics (TAUS), per cycle
| Cost item | Classic washing | TAUS |
|---|---|---|
| Water and sewerage | $0.20 | $0.01 |
| Heating / energy | $0.50 | $0.40 |
| Chemistry (surfactants, alkali) | $0.80 | $0.00 |
| Wastewater treatment | $0.22 | $0.00 |
| Fabric wear (hidden) | $0.80 | $0.05 (solution losses) |
| Total per cycle | $2.52 | $0.46 |
| Saving | — | $2.06 (82%) |
> Расхождение в источнике: the narrative section of the same document states that the real physical cost of one classic uniform wash cycle is about $3 in the US and 4.5 € in Europe, and the TAUS cycle cost is $0.8–1.4 in the same currencies, giving up to 75% savings. The economics table of the same document gives $2.52 versus $0.46 and 82% savings. Both sets are recorded as given.
Cost structure of classic uniform washing (source baseline)
| Item | US | Europe |
|---|---|---|
| Industrial water with wastewater treatment | $2–4 per m³ | 3–6 € per m³ |
| Water per cycle (one 3–4 kg workwear set) | 45–100 liters = 0.045–0.1 m³ | 45–100 liters = 0.045–0.1 m³ |
| Water cost per cycle (without heating) | $0.14–0.40 | 0.20–0.60 € |
| Detergents and auxiliary chemistry per cycle | $0.50–1.20 | 0.60–1.50 € |
| Wastewater treatment surcharge | — | Hidden 10–25% of cycle cost in the EU |
Scale of effect
| Segment | Value |
|---|---|
| US civilian sector | $16 billion per year saving (80% of $20 billion operational laundry costs) |
| NATO military sector | $484 million – $1.07 billion per year (235–520 million cycles at $2.06 saving per cycle), plus reduced logistics and new-uniform procurement costs |
> Расхождение в источнике: the narrative section states that scaling the technology in the US civilian sector means about $17 billion per year, while the economics section states $16 billion per year. For the military sector the narrative states that even a minimal 3% saving per cycle yields $700 million to $1.5 billion per year, while the economics section states $484 million – $1.07 billion per year on a $2.06 per-cycle basis. Both sets are recorded as given.
Risk Factors
Technical / process risks stated in the sources:
- Fabric incompatibility: synthetic fabrics are dissolved by the alcohol working medium and the garment is destroyed. Applicability is confined to 100% cotton, linen, hemp and blends with ≤5% synthetics (≤5–10% for some workwear).
- Higher energy consumption: 15–25% above classic washing.
- Ongoing loss of 3–5 liters of working solution per 100 kg of laundry.
- Retrofit of existing laundry equipment is not yet available; it would require additional technical modules and a more complex solution formula.
- Flammable/explosive working medium requires ATEX Zone 1 execution, vapor sensors and an automatic inert gas system; safe operation depends on personnel following instructions.
- Residual alcohol odor requires an obligatory steam treatment stage on every cycle.
Commercial and strategic risks stated in the sources:
- ALBUS is not part of ARBOK's core line of activity; the technology is offered to a strategic partner or IP buyer, meaning ARBOK does not intend to carry commercialization alone.
- The largest identified market, China, offers no IP protection.
- The source assesses that a technology of this significance and capitalization is reachable only by a very aggressive, ambitious company or by a large acquirer.
- Operator dependency on ARBOK as the sole producer of the working solution and of the equipment.
- Conservatism of the industry: for decades the same machines have been used, with water, chemistry and wear costs written into contract prices as an inevitable norm — a structural barrier to adoption.
Regulatory / market context risks:
- The economics rely on tightening water, energy and effluent regulation; changes to that pressure alter the savings case.
- Military-sector savings figures are distributed across separate budget lines (transport, utilities, logistics) and are rarely perceived as one sum, complicating procurement justification.
Other risks — certification of the working solution, transport and storage of alcohol, and insurance arrangements — follow standard chemical-handling regulatory practice and are addressed on a per-jurisdiction basis.
Related Technologies
ARBOK TEXTILE-WASTE · ARBOK MedZWD · ARBOK-SONAR · ARBOK Low-Carbon Water · ARBOK PURI
