ORNL’s new super fast ultrasonic dryer uses 70 percent less energy
Tumble dryers account for more than 4 percent of the world's energy consumption, so cutting that figure by 70 percent could be a big deal.
Key takeaways
- Forget heat, drying laundry in the future is all about cranking up the volume.
- At least, that’s how the folks at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) where researchers have built an ultrasonic clothes dryer that uses far less energy than conventional dryers see it.
- Sounds Like saving Money The result, of years of research, is ORNL’s new clothes dryer whose drum is lined with piezoelectric ultrasound transducers that blast laundry with high frequency sound rather than heat.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2018) 'ORNL’s new super fast ultrasonic dryer uses 70 percent less energy', 311 Institute, 7 February. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/ornls-new-super-fast-ultrasonic-dryer-uses-70-percent-less-energy/ (Accessed: 1 October 2026).
Forget heat, drying laundry in the future is all about cranking up the volume. At least, that’s how the folks at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) where researchers have built an ultrasonic clothes dryer that uses far less energy than conventional dryers see it.
All of us know, especially the bill payers among you, that most clothes dryers are astonishingly energy hungry and that’s backed up by a 2014 report by the Natural Resources Defense Council that found a typical household dryer uses as much energy over the course of a year as your refrigerator, dishwasher, and clothes washer combined, ouch, and that dryers account for as much as 4 percent of all US domestic energy consumption, double ouch. And that didn’t escape the attention of ORNL’s Ayyoub Momen.
Sounds Like saving Money
The result, of years of research, is ORNL’s new clothes dryer whose drum is lined with piezoelectric ultrasound transducers that blast laundry with high frequency sound rather than heat.
The teams full sized prototype works by using ultrasound to vibrate small water droplets out of the clothes, forming a fine mist which is then driven to the edge of the drum where it can be siphoned off, in much the same way it would happen in a regular dryer, and during tests the teams new dryer dried clothes in 20 minutes rather than the usual 50 and using over 70 percent less energy that a regular dryer.
The news, for bill payers anyway, gets even better though, this isn’t just idle research. The project was carried out in collaboration with GE who are now planning to incorporate the technology into their range of flat dryers and, at some point in the future, their regular drum dryers. So dim the lights, turn on the dryer and bask in the glory of saving money.
FAQ
Why does this matter?
Tumble dryers account for more than 4 percent of the world's energy consumption, so cutting that figure by 70 percent could be a big deal.
About the author
Matthew Griffin Founder, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
Read full bio
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 15-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity program, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
Regularly featured in the global media including the AP, BBC, Bloomberg, CNBC, Discovery, Forbes, Khaleej Times, Telegraph, TIME, ViacomCBS, WIRED, and the WSJ, Matthews mission is to help organisations create a fair and sustainable future whose benefits are shared by everyone irrespective of their ability, background, or circumstances.
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Sources and further reading
- Efficient clothes dryers IB.pdf nrdc.org
Source: first published by the 311 Institute on 7 February 2018. Cite as: Griffin, M. (2018). ORNL’s new super fast ultrasonic dryer uses 70 percent less energy. 311 Institute. https://www.311institute.com/ornls-new-super-fast-ultrasonic-dryer-uses-70-percent-less-energy/
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