14 DAY TRIAL // Bad odors destroyer Febreze has plenty of fans, especially among people who don't really have time to keep everything around the house all spick and span and smelling pretty.
Be that as it may, the fact of the matter is we would have no Febreze to turn to when in need to banish nasty smells if it weren't for, well, good old chemistry.
In a new video, available below, scientists with the American Chemical Society explain that, contrary to popular opinion, Febreze does not really obliterate unpleasant odors.
More precisely, it does not destroy the volatile molecules that are to blame for various stenches. Instead, it traps them in chemical cages of sorts, keeping them from entering our nose. Pretty cool, right?
To capture nasty volatile molecules and put them behind bars - metaphorically speaking, of course - Febreze and odor neutralizing sprays rely on chemicals dubbed cyclodextrins.
These chemicals are made of molecules arranged in the shape of a ring, which attract the volatile compounds and bind to them. Once at the center of such rings, nasty odors get stuck there.
In a way, Febreze and other such odor neutralizing concoctions that work by trapping bad-smelling molecules are kind of like invisibility cloaks for stinkyness.
The bad odors are still in the same room with us, it's just that we can't smell them anymore.
