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Unpleasant odors don’t just smell bad, they affect how we feel about our immediate environment, perceive cleanliness, and assess the quality of a place or product. Whether it’s musty carpets, damp bathrooms, or smoke odors, unwanted smells develop for various reasons – and effective odor control depends on understanding those root causes.
Here, we explore the ins-and-outs of odor control, explaining why unpleasant odors occur, how to manage them, and the next generation of Freshness technologies changing the way we protect our textiles.
Odor control is the process of managing unwanted odors to ensure fabrics and surfaces smell and feel fresher for longer. Most odors are caused by volatile airborne molecules that reach our olfactory system and trigger the receptors in our nose, which our brain then interprets as smells.
Odor management technologies can intervene at several points in this process. They might:
The most effective approach depends on the source, the environment, and the smell itself. For instance, removing molecules from the air by ventilating the kitchen is a good way to tackle cooking odors. On the other hand, capturing odorous molecules in fabrics and preventing their release is an effective way to deal with smells in clothes.
Unpleasant odors can significantly impact how people experience an environment or a product. A room will feel unclean if it smells of mildew, stale food, or smoke, and odors will influence perceptions of quality. Odor can also affect comfort. Persistent smells may be distracting or unpleasant, particularly in environments where people spend considerable amounts of time. This means effective odor management is particularly important for bedrooms, hotels, healthcare facilities, care homes, workplaces, and public spaces.
There is no single cause of bad odors, and different sources release different combinations of volatile compounds. However, common causes include:
Damp environments encourage fungal growth and the spread of microbial volatile organic compounds. These compounds contribute to that earthy, musty smell we associate with damp spaces. To manage these odors, the affected area needs to be thoroughly dried out, and steps taken to ensure moisture cannot reenter.
The microorganisms and chemical reactions responsible for breaking down food as it decomposes produce volatile compounds. Sulfur-based compounds can contribute to particularly strong eggy smells, while other compounds can produce sour, rancid, or fermented odors. Removing waste and cleaning contaminated surfaces tends to resolve the issue. Ventilation and odor management products are also useful when tackling cooking smells.
Animals shed biological material containing odor-causing compounds around the home. This can become particularly problematic if the material penetrates textiles like carpets, upholstery, or bedding. While masking the odor will temporarily disguise the problem, thorough cleaning is needed to resolve it properly.
Tobacco and cooking smoke contain numerous volatile and semi-volatile compounds that can settle onto surfaces and fabrics. Textile odor-control technologies can be particularly useful where smells have become embedded in fabric.
Sweat itself is not typically smelly. But it does provide the perfect conditions for bacterial growth, and bacteria produce volatile compounds as part of their metabolic process. For this reason, antibacterial odor management technologies are especially popular in clothing.
There are three main approaches to odor management – masking, neutralisation, and elimination.
Odor masking involves using another smell to cover up the unpleasant odor or make it less noticeable. Air fresheners are probably the most familiar type of odor masking technology. Masking is most useful when you want a quick fix, as it does not necessarily remove the original odor molecules. Once the fragrance fades, the original smell will most likely return.
Neutralisation changes, captures, or binds volatile compounds so that they cannot release the odors as easily. For example, activated carbon can adsorb certain volatile compounds, while Polygiene OdorCrunch2.0 is designed to capture them in the fabric.
Odor prevention aims to stop volatile compounds being made in the first place. This might be achieved via a regular cleaning routine or an antibacterial odor-control technology such as Polygiene StayFresh, which inhibits the growth of odor-causing bacteria.
There is no universally best approach to bad odors. Generally, removing the source of the smell is desirable at some point, but neutralisation or prevention technologies can keep bad smells at bay for longer, extending the time between cleaning. Odor masking technologies are effective short-term solutions.
Odor control technologies come in all shapes, sizes, and types. Here’s a guide to some of the most common and effective.
Activated carbon (also referred to as activated charcoal) is a highly porous material that adsorbs a wide range of molecules. This is particularly useful when it comes to bad odors, as it traps the volatile compounds responsible for unpleasant smells and prevents their release into the air. As a result, it is frequently used in air and water filtration to remove certain odors and odor-causing compounds from the surrounding environment.
Baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, is a familiar household odor-elimination ingredient. It can help manage certain acidic odorous compounds and is commonly used in products for carpets, refrigerators, and other household applications. As baking soda is an alkali, it reacts chemically with acidic substances, neutralizing them and preventing the release of odors.
Sunlight may not be a technology in the traditional sense, but it is an effective odor control mechanism. The sun’s UV rays kill odor-causing bacteria, while the heat also helps evaporate volatile compounds. This is particularly useful for home textiles and apparel.
Controlling moisture is an important part of preventing many unwanted odors. Damp conditions can encourage microbial growth and increase the likelihood of textiles and surfaces developing musty smells. Moisture management technologies include ventilation tools like fans, dehumidifiers, advanced quick-drying materials, and textile technologies that enhance moisture-wicking capabilities and move moisture away from the skin more effectively.
Antibacterial technologies target the microorganisms responsible for odor formation. This is particularly effective in textiles worn or used close to the skin, as the sweat, skin cells, and moisture that accumulate in these fabrics provide bacteria with the perfect conditions for growth. Polygiene StayFresh is an excellent example of this type of technology. Based on a highly effective silver-ion formula, it keeps bacterial growth in check and your fabrics smelling fresher for longer.
Odor capture technologies trap volatile molecules, preventing them from being released and reaching the nose. They can achieve this in several ways. For instance, Polygiene’s original OdorCrunch technology used modified silica to capture and crunch odor molecules in textiles. Its re-engineered OdorCrunch2.0 technology captures the odorous molecules within the textile structure itself.
Polygiene provides a useful example of how odor-control technologies can tackle smells in different ways. Our Freshness collection features odor-prevention and odor-capture technologies, enabling our customers to choose their preferred approach and even combine technologies to ensure total coverage. Both of the technologies below are applied during the manufacturing process, ensuring they are IN the fabric rather than ON it. This guarantees durable performance.
Polygiene OdorCrunch2.0 is an advanced odor-capture technology designed to capture and hold odor molecules within textiles, preventing their release during use. The molecules are released during the washing process and the capture mechanism resets, enabling the technology to provide long-lasting, ongoing protection. Crucially, the technology contains no heavy metals and is PFA-free. It has also been engineered for use with traditionally tricky materials, such as lightweight 100% polyester.
On the other hand, Polygiene StayFresh is an antibacterial odor prevention technology. Its tried-and-tested silver-ion formula attacks odor bacteria on several fronts, hampering energy production, cellular replication, and cell defences. This means bacteria cannot spread and limits the odors they can produce.
Polygiene Freshness technologies are used by businesses in every kind of industry and in a phenomenally diverse range of textile products. By helping to prevent odors and keeping fabrics fresher for longer, our solutions enable users to wash their products less frequently. That means you use less water, energy, and detergent, while also avoiding the premature wear and tear associated with machine washing. The result? Better-smelling products that last longer and have a lower environmental footprint.
If you want to learn more about our industry-leading Freshness technologies, head to our Odor Control solutions page.
