The lampshades target volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which account for most indoor airborne pollutants, including acetaldehyde and formaldehyde. These compounds are released by paints, cleaners, air fresheners, plastics, furniture and cooking.

The invention works with halogen and incandescent light bulbs, and the team is extending the technology so it will also be compatible with LEDs, the researchers said. 

“Although the concentration of VOCs in a home or office is low, people spend more than 90 per cent of their time indoors, so the exposure adds up over time,” said Hyoung-il Kim, the project’s principal investigator.

In the past, conventional methods to remove VOCs from indoor air have relied on activated carbon or other filters, which have to be replaced periodically.

Other devices have also broken down VOCs with the help of thermocatalysts activated by high temperatures or with photocatalysts, which respond to light. However, most of these units...