Catalytic Clothing: Style with Substance
It’s well known that, at Daily, we care about the environment, and that our cleaning products are designed to have minimum impact on the earth’s water supplies. But not everyone knows just how much work we put into supporting the pioneering world of environmental science, and the technology and ideas that can make a difference.
You see, it’s not just ‘improving water quality’ that’s at the top of the Daily to-do list. What happens above sea level is just as important to us as what happens below it, so we’re delighted to be involved in a fantastic new project that focuses on clean air.
Winners of the 2018 Conde Nast Innovation & Design Awards for “Sustainability”
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Of all environmental factors, air pollution has the biggest impact on our health, and it’s responsible for the majority of environment-related diseases. Each year in the EU, 348,000 premature deaths are attributed to air pollution. With traffic cited as the major cause, the quality of our air is steadily getting worse. When you consider that, throughout an average person’s life, they’ll take over 672,768,000 breaths, it becomes clear just how important this issue is.
We’ve been assisting some of the brightest minds to develop a solution; Catalytic Clothing. It’s an idea so brilliant we think everyone should know.
Catalytic Clothing, the brainchild of artist/designer Professor Helen Storey and scientist Professor Tony Ryan, is a pioneering new project that seeks to discover how we could harness the surface of our clothing to purify the air we breathe. By combining the worlds of fashion and chemistry, Helen and Tony have found a way to create style with real substance.
Here’s how it works…
A ‘photocatalyst’ is a rather clever chemical which, when exposed to sunlight, breaks down the pollutants in the air. By adding a photocatalyst to fabrics like denim, then turning these fabrics into wearable garments such as jeans, Catalytic Clothing gives you the capacity to neutralise pollution as you go about your daily life. It’s like carrying your very own catalytic converter in your pocket – except that catalytic converter is your pocket.
While photocatalysts are sometimes added to paint and plastics in buildings, their effect is only felt within 1m of the treated surface. However, when photocatalysts are added to clothing they become mobile, which means they can do their job across a much wider area. For example, if 40 people crossed a 1m stretch of pavement, in just 1 minute they’d purify 2m2 of air.
Wherever you go, your clothing goes. And wherever your Catalytic Clothing goes, it cleans the air. Amazing!
It’s still early days, and there’s a lot of work to be done before Catalytic Clothing is ready for the market place. Right now, our aim is to raise awareness. Together with Helen and Tony, we’re telling everyone who’ll listen about this groundbreaking development in environmental science. Thanks to a short video preview, some of the top fashion and science blogs have already started to spread the word about Catalytic Clothing.
So if you agree that air-purifying jeans are a work of genius, tell your friends. Put it on your blog, ‘like’ the Catalytic Clothing Facebook page and keep an eye on the fashion press… but just remember, you heard it here first.
Professor Tony Ryan (OBE)
Pro-Vice Chancellor – Pure Sciences (University of Sheffield)
Professor Helen Storey (MBE)
Professor of Fashion and Science (London College of Fashion)
