Is this the end of washing up?

Swedish designers have found a solution to the household argument of whose turn it is to wash up with a range of plates that clean themselves. The plates are coated in a breakthrough technology that is resistant to dirt and water meaning food can’t stick to it, and leftovers can just be rinsed away.Each of the plates are also made from a new cellulose-based material that is lightweight, but feels as 'hard as ceramic' and is superstrong.Cellulose is an organic compound found in cotton fibre, wood and dried hemp. It gives these materials structure and strength. The range was developed by Swedish design studio Tomorrow Machine and research company Innventia.‘The product not only saves resources during the manufacturing process, but also over its full life-cycle, not requiring water and chemicals to be kept clean,’ the designers told Dezeen.Innventia created the cellulose-based material, while the coating was created by the by KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm.Cellulose pulp was pressed into a heated mould before being shaped to form the shapes of trays, plates and bowls.Once cooled, the material is said to become ‘as hard as regular ceramic’ but is lighter and stronger.The coating is then created using a process called Rapid Expansion of Supercritical Solutions, which involves dissolving wax in carbon dioxide at high temperatures and pressures.This was then sprayed onto the plates to make them superhydrophobic, which means it is resistant to all liquids and dirt.The coating mimics the surface of a lotus leaf which sits in water without every getting wet.The paint effect was then applied using glaze used on traditional tableware.(dailymail.co.uk)ANN.Az