Background

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) is a broad term describing organic compounds that are released into the air after manufacturing. Many classes of materials fall into this category: polymers, building materials, cleaning agents, coatings/paints, etc…

VOCs vary widely in their chemistry, but many are known (or suspected) to have negative health effects for those in that environment, especially for persons who are sensitive to allergens or chemicals.

Consumers have become more aware of VOCs, and the general market trend is to eliminate these compounds from products directly whenever economical. In cases where VOCs are unavoidable, consumers are seeking products that mitigate the effects of VOCs, especially in the home where children, pets, and general health concerns are rising the public consiousness.

The US EPA and EU have websites devoted to providing information regarding the health effects. Regulations in the EU are especially stringent for the allowed amount of off‑gassing allowed for building and consumer products.

VOC‑absorbing technologies which remove VOCs introduced into the home or prevent VOCs from ever leaving the products that would otherwise produce them are therefore a high‑value market, especially in the EU and over time will be more valuable in the USA.

Technology Overview

This technology utilizes titanium dioxide to catalytically break apart VOCs into small constituent molecules, over a period of time the VOCs are fully broken down into CO_2, Nitrogen, and similar small, gasses regarded as safe. While titanium dioxide catalytic technology is not new, the Portland State University method of attaching these particles to diatomaceous earth (diatoms) is new, patented, and extremely effective at removing VOCs from ambient or circulated air.

Benefits

Previous methods incorporating titanium dioxide required specific UV lighting, making solutions for home use impractical for open environments. This PSU innovation allows the titanium dioxide‑coated diatoms to operate in ambient light, requiring only natural light into the room to effectively reduce VOCs in indoor environments.

This means that the PSU diatoms can be incorporated into surface treatments, coatings, and textured products (like fabrics) throughout the home and consistently reduce VOCs from the environment without specialty lighting or electronic catalytic effects. This is an entirely passive system once the particles are incorporated into the home good/surface.

Applications

This product has been tested in cleaning solutions where a film or droplets are left behind (i.e. floor polish or carpet cleaner) with 90‑95% VOC reduction. it is anticipated that the diatoms can be incorporated into paint and coating materials, into polymers, and into fabrics that will passively clean an indoor environment using energy from the ambient lighting.

In addition, preliminary testing has been done to incorporate the diatoms into air filters, including filter systems that incorporate UV LED lighting to increase the effectiveness cleaning forced air. The diatoms can be incorporated into a pre‑filter (fabric or glass wave), HEPA‑style filter, or a carbon filter depending on the desired application.

Early testing has also been done to incorporate the VOC‑reducing diatoms into paint products; the university is seeking expertise to optimize specific formulations with commercial paint/coatings manufacturers who would desire a premium air cleaning product as a competitive edge against their competitors.

Opportunity

This technology has been licensed to a startup company, but PSU is facilitating corporate partnerships within the market verticals identified above. The manufacturing process has been optimized and scaled‑up for mass production. We will forward inquiries to the management team for strategic partnership or OEM supplier requests.

Passive Indoor VOC Reduction

Patents

IP Status

Seeking