Sheffield University Partners London College Of Fashion To Create Clean Jeans

Universities Team Up To Create The World's First Clean Jeans
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Two universities have teamed up to create the world's first air-purifying pair of jeans.

Members of the public donated 30 pairs of jeans to help create the environmentally-conscious clothing, which formed part of an exhibition demonstrating how clothing can be used to purify air.

Professors from London College of Fashion (LCF) and Sheffield University collaborated to form the Catalytic Clothing venture and hope to inspire other scientists and designers to think outside the box.

The jeans have photocatalysts to the cloth, which use light to speed up the reaction of a normal catalyst. Using nanotechnology, the clothes break down pollutants from industry and road traffic.

Sheffield University scientist Professor Tony Ryan said: "There are more pairs of jeans than people on the earth. We are developing something using both of them to improve the urban environment."

The exhibition is held at Sheffield's Peace Gardens on Monday 12 and Tuesday 13 this month. The work also links in with Sheffield's Project Sunshine, which aims to unite scientists to harness the sun's power and meet the world's food and energy needs in the face of climate change.

Professor Helen Storey, a designer and artist at LCF added: "Catalytic Clothing is the most challenging, globally relevant project I have ever attempted. Behind almost all human advancement lies a science. Through my work, I try to share and involve the public with these possibilities."