Some air fresheners just mask bad smells – but others claim to eliminate odours completely. What’s the chemistry behind these claims? The latest edition of Periodic Graphics in C&EN takes a look! Click here to view the full graphic on the C&EN site.
As the bin in your kitchen slowly fills up, it also cranks up the stench, to the point where you have to hold your breath every time you open it. Nothing you put in it smelled that bad so where does this horrendous odour come from? In this graphic we take a look at some of the chemical compounds offending your nostrils, and how they got there.
With Valentine’s Day upcoming, part of your Valentine’s plan may well involve sending flowers. These come in an array of different colours, and also have a range of different scents. What are the chemical compounds behind these scents? That’s the question that this graphic tries to answer, with a more detailed discussion of each below.