Catherine was actually repeating a project in which UC Berkeley scientists tried to train people’s noses.  Researchers are learning that the human ability to smell is actually far more sensitive than they’d previously realized. One study found that humans can detect some chemicals diluted in water to less that one part per billion — that’s a few drops in an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

What’s more, smell affects human mood and behavior even if people don’t consciously register what they’re smelling.

Check out the Sept. 2011 issue of NewScientist to read the full story.

[Can Ambient Scent Enhance the Nightlife Experience? in Chemosensory Perception, June 2011]

Air care is a nearly $7 billion a year industry in the United States. Milwaukee-based Prolitec Inc. has focused on that market and has optimized a state-of-the-art technology in its products that can not only make the air in a space smell better, with its newest released product, aria, it can also make the air cleaner and healthier for people to breathe.

“The company formed after acquiring a technology that is capable of converting liquids into small particles that are 100th the diameter of a human hair,” said Richard Weening, chairman and chief executive officer of Prolitec. “The technology is extremely advanced and useful for a lot of different applications, but right now we are targeting the air quality and sanitation market.”

Prolitec’s aria air sanitizer is designed to infuse an air sanitizer that kills bacteria and viruses in the ambient air of Prolitec spaces, Weening said.

“We’re focused on implementing the aria technology in spaces where the likelihood of disease transmission is high,” he said. “Aria can substantially reduce bacteria levels in the air and is primarily used in hospital settings, senior care and living facilities or clinics.”

According to Weening, Prolitec uses its patented technology to turn a liquid chemical known as glycol into air sanitizing particles, which are then infused into the air in a specific space.

“The sanitizer is infused into the air in a very small quantity of one part per million,” Weening said. “Research indicates that glycol maintained at a certain concentration can substantially reduce airborne bacteria in a space and aria has the technology to measure and maintain that level over time.”

The air sanitizing chemical is also safe for continuous use in human-occupied spaces, Weening said.

Aria was developed by Prolitec’s Aerobiology & Infection Control Division and is approved by the EPA. The device functions around the clock and can automatically respond to airborne germs and bacteria generated by coughs and sneezes, Weening said.

“The spread of germs and disease in a hospital or clinical setting is a huge problem all over the world,” Weening said. “Not because those places aren’t clean, but because people that are sick are coming to them all the time to get well. Hospitals and hospital-like settings already have infection control programs in place. This is meant to be an automated supplement to that program. Aria is always on and can act as a foundation for those existing policies to improve results.”

Prolitec specializes in transforming the air ambience of a space. Prior to the aria air sanitation device, the company’s primary focus was scent, Weening said.

“Our biggest market right now is introducing scents into spaces,” he said. “If a certain space always smells a certain way, Abercrombie and Fitch stores across the country, for example, that’s us. We’re an air care company with a heavy emphasis on technology and using that technology to provide a service to our customers.”

Prolitec does business worldwide for its scent introductory system and hopes to expand the same way with the aria air sanitation device.

Aria air sanitizer can be used in spaces as large as entire hospital wings to smaller spaces like homes, offices and classrooms, Weening said.

In larger systems, aria is installed in air control or HVAC systems throughout the building. The device is installed with a recyclable replacement cartridge full of liquid that Prolitec certified partners can replace on an as-needed basis, Weening said.

“We provide aria as a monthly service with a one time single service fee where our people handle and maintain all the equipment,” he said. “Cartridges are replaced on an as- needed basis, which is determined based on what adjustable sanitation setting the space requires or desires.”

Prolitec has worked extensively in long term care and senior living facilities to implement aroma therapy devices, Weening said. According to Weening, individuals can purchase a Prolitec whole house air freshener system and an aria cartridge for use in the home, office or classroom.

“Our main focus is to implement the technology where infection control and the risk of spreading infectious diseases are high,” Weening said. “However, the technology can and should be used anywhere there is a need for reducing airborne bacteria. We are targeting hospital systems and long-term care facilities because the likelihood of spreading germs and bacteria are high and the most risky for patients and residents in those settings.”

• Research in France indicates scent may have a powerful role to play in helping people who are suffering from severe trauma.
• Scent is an integral part of a new transdisciplinary master’s program at the Parsons New School for Design in New York.
• Bloom grocery stores recently implemented the first scented billboard in North Carolina, using giant fans to blow a charbroiled scent over a highway.

Check it out over at Bloomberg Businessweek: http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_26/b4184085987358.htm

MILWAUKEE, Wisc. (6/10/10)–Prolitec Inc. today announced the appointment of Dr. Craig A. Kelly as Vice President and Director of Technology Development.

The veteran Johns Hopkins University scientist will also serve as chief of the company’s Aerobiology and Infection Control unit.  In this role, Dr. Kelly will lead Prolitec’s research and development of airborne and surface antimicrobial systems designed to kill bacteria and viruses in healthcare facilities, schools, assisted living facilities, commercial aircraft, and other public spaces where the control of infection transmission is an important issue.

“We have long experience working with Dr. Kelly in some of his earlier assignments,” said Richard Weening, CEO of Prolitec.  “He is exactly the right person to expand the R&D effort and transform the work into the practical infection control applications so urgently needed by the healthcare system.”

Prior to joining Prolitec, Dr. Kelly spent 10 years as a member of the Senior Professional Staff at Johns Hopkins’ Applied Physics Lab in Baltimore, where he worked on a wide range of projects, including chemical and biological warfare agent decontamination.  Most recently, from 2009 to 2010, he served as Acting Program Manager for the laboratory’s Missile Defense Agency Sensors Directorate.  He began at the laboratory in 1999, initially working on chemical sensor development.

Dr. Kelly has published 21 peer-reviewed scientific articles and has been awarded three patents.   He holds a Ph.D. in Physical Inorganic Chemistry from Bowling Green State University and a B.S. in Chemistry from the State University of New York at Geneseo.  Additionally, he completed post-doctoral fellowships at the Brookhaven National Laboratory Chemistry Department, Johns Hopkins’ Department of Chemistry and Johns Hopkins’ Applied Physics Laboratory.

“Infection control is a serious challenge for healthcare, education and several other sectors where harmful bacteria, viruses and fungi pose a threat to humans,” Dr. Kelly noted. “Prolitec has developed new and promising technologies to address these issues.   Our objective is to advance them into fully operational systems approved by the relevant regulatory agencies.”

About Prolitec

Prolitec (www.prolitec.com) develops and deploys air-treatment and air care technologies, including odor control, ambient scenting, aromatherapy and the use of scent as a medium of communication. Clients include assisted living facilities, hotels, casinos, retailers and other commercial facilities in the U.S. and 46 countries around the world. Prolitec’s Aerobiology and Infection Control unit is developing interior air and surface systems to inhibit disease transmission.

####

Prolitec’s ARIA(TM) formulation works with HVAC-based delivery system to kill airborne odor causing bacteria and mold, fungus and organisms

MILWAUKEE, WI, Jan. 19 — Aerosol sprays that kill odor-causing bacteria in the air — including mold and fungal spores — clearly are a hit with consumers. But these products treat enclosed rooms one at a time, and their effects are temporary. A new chemical formulation and delivery system created by Prolitec, Inc., can be programmed to sanitize the air continuously or during specific times of day throughout HVAC ducts and occupied enclosed spaces — with applications ranging from homes to medical facilities; doctor, dentist and veterinary offices; schools and classrooms; long-term care facilities, health clubs, bars, hotels, cruise ships, schools, theaters and gaming facilities.

The new air-sanitizing agent, called ARIA™, won EPA registration in November. It works in tandem with Prolitec’s existing family of Air/Q ambient-scenting and odor-control systems, which already are widely used in the hospitality, gaming and retail sectors. Moreover, ARIA will also be available for the home via a soon-to-be-announced, next-generation version of Air/Q that Prolitec custom-designed for residential use. Because of its ability to continually sanitize the air within enclosed spaces, ARIA is of keen interest to HVAC professionals for continuously cleaning the air in ducts and any type of indoor facility where airborne odor causing bacteria and mold may thrive.

“ARIA and an Air/Q appliance provide a simple-to-use, cost-effective system to continuously sanitize the air we breathe,” said Richard Weening, Chairman and CEO of the Milwaukee-based Prolitec. “This is a real first, and we believe it is reasonable to call it a breakthrough. What is more, the EPA registration verifies our claims about what ARIA can do.

“ARIA is effective in a wide range of spaces from very small to very large,” he continued. The product uses Prolitec’s HVAC-mounted system for homes and larger commercial spaces, while the company’s table-top, wall or ceiling mounted units can serve individual rooms up to 20,000 cubic feet. Available in odorless or scented versions, ARIA is invisible, leaving no surface deposits.

Prolitec’s computer-controlled system Air/Q system works by converting the ARIA formulation into non-toxic, micro-droplets less than 1/100th the diameter of a human hair to instantly create a sanitizing vapor throughout the enclosed space. ARIA is packaged in tamper-proof, recyclable cartridges that are easily inserted into the installed Air/Q appliance, and changed periodically by the user in the home or office, or by Prolitec service technicians in large commercial facilities.

Today’s consumers show a clear preference toward pleasant ambient-scent experiences, and they also are more concerned than ever about potentially harmful airborne odor-causing bacteria and mold in their home. Indeed, this concern has helped fuel growth of an entire industry focused on cleaning HVAC ducts. Some of these companies even try to sweep away vegetative mold spores. “The challenge is that, mold spores are typically 1/50th the diameter of a hair, which is less than a micron in diameter,” Weening said. “Trying to physically sweep or vacuum them up is really not possible. The ARIA approach, by contrast, kills airborne mold and fungal spores circulating within HVAC systems, and helps prevent them from spreading within the home or building.”

Prolitec, which has filed preliminary patent applications for ARIA’s key processes, will unveil the new formulation and delivery system on January 26 at the AHR Expo show in Chicago.

About Prolitec

Prolitec (www.prolitec.com) is a world leader in the development and deployment of innovative air-freshening technologies and solutions for aerobiology, indoor air quality and the use of scent as a medium of communication. Clients include retailers, hotels, casinos and other commercial organizations in the US and around the world.

Via MarketWatch

Read more at BBC News

“The science of scent: a feast for the nose.”

Location: 21 Albemarle Street, London W1S 4BS
The allure of perfume has existed for generations. Whilst many people may wear perfume, few probably know about the fascinating science inside the bottle.

This event will begin with an introductory talk in the theatre on olfactory science and perfume. How do we smell? Where do perfume ingredients come from and how has this changed throughout the ages, as science and technology have advanced? How many scented materials are there in the world and how many of them do we remember?

And what about the highly skilled people who concoct these amazing scents and potions? Are perfumers born with better noses than the rest of us?

Later on in the evening there will be an opportunity to sample different perfumery ingredients, accords and perfumes, experiencing first-hand their composition under the watchful guidance of an experienced perfumer.

The event includes odour evaluation, so please refrain from wearing strong scent

TIckets available via The Royal Institution’s web site

Read more in BBC

Read more at Lab Spaces