Photo taken in Moscow, Russia
Sometimes it’s the little things – details that you would never think about can have an impact on your health.
Everybody views this a different way. Some people would rather not know about these little issues –but to other people, knowledge is power, and they want to understand the science of what happens around them.
If you’re in that second set of people, though, you can look at interesting new research about no-flame scented candles and other aromatherapy products.
Aroma and Health
On the one hand, aromatherapy can be great for stress and mental health.
It can help you sleep better, reduce your tension and lighten your mood.
But if the materials have caustic chemicals and pollutants, there’s a negative effect, too.
Flame-Free Candles and Scented Items: Studies
In some studies, scientists are finding that some of the items that seem safe might actually be a little more harmful than how they are presented.
For example, check out this article where scientists at Purdue University are subjecting no-flame scented candles and similar objects to trial tests. They’re finding that they’re releasing higher levels of things like benzene and terpenes than anyone would have suspected. That’s troubling.
This opens up the issue to a debate about how harmful some of these products are.
Thinking About Scenarios
Think about this basic question. Can you cancel out the pollution from a scented candle (flameless or otherwise) with an air purifier in the same room?
Imagine you’re the spouse of someone who goes to Bed, Bath and Beyond routinely and burns scented candles in the bedroom (more on this later). You might also have an air purifier machine going. You want to cleanse the air. How much will that air purifier cancel out the effect of the candle?
Science for the Win
Now, if you are interested in this conundrum, you can check out this Reddit thread. Here, a very scientifically minded poster goes through a lot of the physics involved, breaking down what happens.
That’s going to show the reader what’s going on in the room down to a very granular level, depending on where those items are placed, and when they are burned.
“You light a candle on one side of the room, and you put the air purifier on the other,” writes one poster in a theoretical proposition. “The candle gives off its vapors, so you can smell it. The air purifier filters out the vapors. The vapors could not be removed from the air until crossing the entire room and going into the air purifier. So as long as the candle is lit, there will be vapors between the candle and air purifier. It would reduce the total accumulation of vapors but not totally remove all of them.”
More on the Science
Another poster weighs in.
“There will be more vapors near the candle and less near the air purifier, so you can smell the candle stronger the closer you are to it,” they write. “If you stand next to the air purifier, you might barely be able to smell it. If you start walking towards the candle you’ll be able to smell it more and more. This is called a gradient. According to Fick’s law, the vapors will move from the candle to the air purifier by Diffusion, which is just a fancy word for spreading out. If you stand still, the smell stays the same because the candle and air purifier are producing and removing the vapors at the same rate.”
Here’s more on something called “forced convection.”
“This works even if the air purifier is right next to the candle. It (won’t totally eliminate) the vapors (which) get sucked into the air purifier. This is called forced convection. That just means pushing the air. The vapors also rise along with the air near the candle. That’s because it’s hotter than the rest of the air in the room. This is called natural convection. Some of the vapors will escape the air purifier’s ‘sphere of influence’ by natural convection, and fill the room by diffusion.”
You can read the rest on the site as posters continue to game this out. It’s important to note something, though,. Given a theoretical where the air purifier is working fast enough, and adsorbing particles at a particular rate, it will be removing much of the vapor product from the candle.
Checking Your Air
Now, if you can’t get lab analysis of these aroma products, one thing you can do is actually check the indoor air in your home.
You won’t just find whether scented candles are releasing toxins. You’ll find natural items like:
- Dust mites
- Mold
- Pet dander
As well as chemical elements like:
- Formaldehyde
- Benzene
- TCE
When you’ve done this analysis, you can figure out how to use an air purifier to get cleaner, more breathable air in your home. The AurPura C700DLX is a good model for this kind of use – you can also look for other similar models with a HEPA filter and carbon that will effectively work against the desired range of contaminants.
Get the best technology, and let US Air Purifiers LLC help you with all of your design questions.
We have a great track record of assisting customers getting the best air purifiers for their needs.
Be sure to check out space ratings, and everything else, to make sure you have the right amount of power for your indoor space, and be confident about the air you breathe on a regular basis.