A lot of people keep a candle or just some matches in the bathroom to light after a number two. How does that work in order to remove the smell?
In: Chemistry
Matches just mask the smell: the sulfur/phosphorus smell of the match stuns your olfactory sensors, and makes it harder to detect the poop smell.
Lighting a candle does purge the air in the room in a surprisingly short time. A typical visible candle flame is about 8mm across and has a flow rate of about 1-2m/s, which would take a couple of million seconds (a couple of weeks) to fully process the air in a small bathroom. But it disperses carbon radicals and nanoparticles of carbon and wax into the air as it burns, in addition to any aroma/scent added by the manufacturer. Those nanoparticles can bind other scent molecules, rendering them more inert as far as your nose goes. It might only take a kilosecond (20 minutes) for those to effectively absorb the odors in a small poop-smelling bathroom.
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