Scented Cleaners Create Billions of Invisible Nanoparticles Indoors: Your Cleaning Products May Be Polluting the Air You Breathe, New Research Warns
A new study from Purdue University has found that common scented cleaning products can generate billions and in some cases trillions, of ultrafine nanoparticles indoors within minutes of use, creating invisible air pollution that may pose serious respiratory risks. ScienceDaily
Presented at the American Chemical Society fall meeting, the research led by Assistant Professor Brandon Boor found that fragrance compounds in cleaning products react with indoor ozone to produce particles between 1 and 30 nanometers in size; small enough to penetrate deep into the lungs. Particle concentrations reached between 10⁵ and 10⁸ per cubic centimetre, with growth rates of up to 300 nanometers per hour.
Terpene levels; the fragrant compounds responsible, surged to 10–1,000 parts per billion during cleaning, up to 100 times higher than forest levels. Exposure was found to be comparable to, or exceeding, standing near heavy road traffic.
“Cleaning removes viruses and bacteria from surfaces, but it can also generate invisible air pollution,” said Boor. “There’s no visible dust or smoke in the air, but these particles are forming.”
Researchers recommend using fragrance-free products, improving ventilation, and avoiding the simultaneous use of multiple scented products or ozone-generating UV-C lamps. Read our previous science-related articles here.
