Catalytic Poetry

The World’s First Air Cleansing Poem
This article contains tops tips from our experts, backed by in-depth research.
Last Updated: 22 Feb 2024

Catalytic Poetry

The World’s First Air Cleansing Poem
This article contains tops tips from our experts, backed by in-depth research.
Last Updated: 22 Feb 2024

As experts in our field, we discuss the following in this article:

    ByPurify Acquires the Domain Name CatalyicPoetry

    We recently acquired a fantastic domain name (not the website, or any part of the business) where we will house all things related to poetry and the environment.

    What It's Gong to Be About?

    We're going to be hosting content relating to the relationship between the arts and the environment.

    In Praise of Air

    I write in praise of air. I was six or five when a conjurer opened my knotted fist and I held in my palm the whole of the sky. I’ve carried it with me ever since.

    Let air be a major god, its being and touch, its breast-milk always tilted to the lips. Both dragonfly and Boeing dangle in its see-through nothingness…

    Among the jumbled bric-a-brac I keep a padlocked treasure-chest of empty space, on days when thoughts are fuddled with smog or civilization crosses the street

    with a white handkerchief over its mouth and cars blow kisses to our lips from theirs I turn the key, throw back the lid, breathe deep. My first word, everyone’s first word, was air.

    The Science

    The technology behind ‘In Praise of Air’ turns clothing and textiles into a catalytic surface to purify air. It was originally developed through another arts/science collaboration between artist and designer Professor Helen Storey and our Pro-Vice Chancellor for Science Tony Ryan.

    The key point underpinning Catalytic Clothing is that, when it comes to tackling pollution, it’s not enough to do it for yourself: one person will have a tiny effect, but if we all do it for each other then we could remove a lot of the air pollution in our towns and cities that’s put there by our cars, buses and industry.

    Exposure to air-borne pollutants presents a risk to human health and also has a detrimental effect on ecosystems and vegetation. Air pollution is currently estimated to reduce the life expectancy of every person in the UK by an average of 7-8 months. The widespread introduction of Catalytic Clothing could dramatically reduce the level of air-borne pollutants, thereby improving the quality of life for all members of society.

    What About Major Cities & Towns?

    All major cities and towns have some form of air quality monitoring stations already in place. Those monitors record the levels of a range of major pollutants, such as NOx (nitrogen oxides) and VOCs (volatile organic compounds).

    Once Catalytic Clothing technology is in widespread use, considerable reductions in the levels of the pollutants could be observed using those monitors. Sheffield has poor air quality due, in part, to the topology of the city. We exceed the safe limits for nitric oxide, NOx, in particular.

    Catalytic Clothing harnesses the power of a photocatalyst to use sunshine and oxygen to break down air borne pollutants. A catalyst is a term used to describe something that makes a reaction proceed at a greater rate but isn’t actually consumed during that reaction. A photocatalyst gains the energy it needs to be active from light.

    When the light shines on the photocatalyst, the electrons in the material are rearranged and they become more reactive. These electrons are then able to react with the oxygen in the air and break it apart into 2 oxygen free radicals. A free radical is an extremely reactive molecule. These then react with water to make peroxide which oxidises the pollutants making harmless molecules that can be washed away. Photocatalysts have been incorporated into several commercially available products that possess de-polluting properties. These products include paints, cements and paving stones. But this is the world’s first pollution eating poem!

    Photocatalyst particles of nano-TiO2 were sprayed on to the surface of the poem during manufacture. The size of the particles is important, the smaller they are the more surface is available for the reactions. Nanotechnology is an area of science that is concerned with the control and manipulation of matter on the molecular scale. This scale is often measured in nanometres, hence the nano in nanotechnology. 

    If you take an average 4 year old child with a height of 1m and then shrink them by a factor of 1000, they would then be the size of an ant (or a millimetre). If you shrink them again by a factor of 1000, they would be the size of a red blood cell (or a micrometre). We need to shrink them once more by a factor of 1000 to reach a scale measured in nanometres.

    The coating only works in the presence of light and oxygen. It doesn’t need to be sunlight – the street lights which surround the catalytic poem will work too. Once ‘In Praise of Air’ is mounted on the side of the Alfred Denny Building, the photocatalyst will cause oxidation of any substances adsorbed on the surface. 

    NOx will be converted to soluble nitrate and VOCs will be converted into fatty acids and soaps. 1 square meter of this coated fabric can take out about 2 g of NOx per day. So, our catalytic poem will remove the pollution from a bus or about 20 cars every day it is in place.

    Who Are ByPurify?

    ByPurify is a Chicago-based consultancy and info portal that brings homes into balance to create a healthy living environment.

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