These 16 projects are looking to kick air pollutions' butt

May 18, 2023

However, we're gradually developing ways to help solve this problem.

Air pollution is one of the banes of living in modern society. But, it turns out that we could someday end air pollution with cutting-edge technologies, government initiatives, and innovative projects. Here are some of the projects that might make a difference.

In short, the leading causes of air pollution are the expulsion of tiny solid and liquid particles into the atmosphere, solids such as soot, dust, and gases such as nitrogen dioxide, ozone, sulfur dioxide, and carbon monoxide. These can cause harm to people if they are inhaled and can also damage the environment.

Air pollution can stem from several sources, such as domestic consumption of wood and coal, vehicle exhausts, industrial outgassing, and natural sources, such as dust and wildfires. When particles from these sources become suspended in the air, they are technically called aerosols.

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These air contaminants are particularly bad for the environment and human health. The health effects of air pollution include symptoms like:

ElizabethViera/Wikimedia

Air pollution also has some potentially severe effects on the environment too. Some common environmental impacts include:

For this reason, it is in everyone's and every nation's interest to keep track of pollutants and work to minimize their release as much as possible. The more potent aerosols are released into the atmosphere whenever fossil fuels are burned. But they also come from natural sources like volcanoes and forest fires.

Aerosols can enter the atmosphere directly or form in the air through chemical reactions. Another seriously damaging air pollutant is ozone — the compound that constitutes the protective barrier around the Earth to stave off the worst effects of solar radiation. But when ozone reaches lower altitudes, it can be incredibly damaging to the environment and people's health.

Peter Griffin

According to NASA, "Ground-level ozone is created when sunlight reacts with certain chemicals that come from sources of burning fossil fuels, such as factories or car exhaust. When particles in the air combine with ozone, they create smog. Smog is a type of air pollution that looks like smoky fog and makes it difficult to see."

Air pollution can also have a severe impact on the Earth's climate too. Like those formerly mentioned, aerosols can directly impact how the Sun's light hits the Earth's surface. Some aerosols, such as certain sulfates and nitrates, can reflect sunlight into space, while others, like black carbon, can absorb it. How these particles interact with sunlight depends entirely on physical properties like color and composition.

Generally speaking, according to NASA, "Bright-colored or translucent particles tend to reflect radiation in all directions and back towards space. Darker aerosols can absorb significant amounts of light".

This particular feature of air pollution can severely affect the Earth's climate. For example, after the 1991 Mount Pinatubo eruption in the Philippines, more than 20 million tons of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and fine ash particulate were ejected into the Earth's atmosphere.

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SO2 reacts with other atmospheric substances to form fine particulate sulfate aerosols. These tiny particles form high above the cloud level, around 37 miles (60 km) above, and can remain there for a very long time as they don't get washed from the sky through precipitation. As a result, average global temperatures dropped by 1 degree Fahrenheit (0.6 degrees Celsius) for roughly two years. Interesting indeed, but is there anything that we can do to eliminate or at least mitigate the problems associated with air pollution? Let's take a look at some exciting proposals.

And so, without further ado, here are some exciting solutions to air pollution. This list is far from exhaustive and is in no particular order.

Friends of the Earth

One of the best tools in the fight against air pollution is education. By educating people on the importance of clean air, what they can do to lower their emissions, and how to be aware of the air quality in their area, the pollution problem can be better addressed.

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Friends of the Earth is an environmental charity in the UK that has started supplying citizens with testing kits to learn more about the air quality in their local areas. The kits include a monitoring tube and an easy-to-follow guide, so concerned citizens can get accurate answers about the air they breathe.

Stefano Boeri Architetti

Due to the heavily industrialized areas all across China, they've been suffering from some of the highest levels of air pollution worldwide. Thankfully, China proposed and implemented numerous pollution-busting initiatives these past few years to make their air healthy again.

One such project is the Nanjing Vertical Forest in Jiangsu province. It's been estimated that the forest will be able to absorb 25 tons of carbon dioxide and release enough oxygen to make the air 3,000 times healthier than its current state. The design featured 3,000 different species of plants and was completed in 2018.

Graviky Labs/Kickstarter

Some of the most exciting projects seeking to combat air pollution are also looking to utilize the pollutants drawn from the air creatively. One such project is AIR-INK - an ink made from carbon emissions.

The product is made by Graviky Labs and was funded via Kickstarter. People have to connect the KAALINK device to their car exhaust pipe, and within 45 minutes of driving, they'll have one fluid ounce (30 ml) of ink. The captured pollutants are then purified in a lab and manufactured into usable ink.

Studio Roosegaarde

Ink is one thing, but what if you could turn pollution into glittering gems? Sounds too good to be true? Then look at the Smog-Free Tower, a vacuum that sucks in smog and condenses the particles into gemstones.

It's the brainchild of Dutch artist Dan Roosegaarde. The Smog-Free Tower uses relatively little energy, sending positive ions into the air and connecting themselves to dust particles.

A negative ion in the vacuum draws the positive ions back inside, bringing the particles. The fine carbon particles the tower collects can be condensed to create tiny "gemstones" in jewelry like rings and cufflinks. Each tiny stone equals 265,000 gallons (1,000 cubic meters) of purified air.

The tower debuted in Rotterdam in 2015; it is now being used in other cities worldwide.

Standardizer/Wikimedia

By now, it's common knowledge that our cars are some of the biggest culprits of polluting the air. That's why Germany is considering making public transport free to encourage citizens to reduce their carbon footprint by leaving their cars at home.

While a great initiative, it must be noted that such a project is not actually "free," per se. They will be paid for indirectly through taxation.

The announcement was made in February of 2018, and trials look set to occur throughout the country before the year ends. It's a controversial suggestion and one that hasn't convinced everyone. If they can pull it off, however, it could have a massive impact on the air quality in Germany. A 2019 survey revealed that 2/3rds of the public seems to favor this.

CCTV/YouTube

In January 2018, work began on the world's largest air purifier in Xian, China.

The massive structure measures 328 feet (100 meters) and can improve air quality within an almost 4-mile radius (10 square kilometers).

The tower is just one of the many Chinese efforts to combat air pollution. The future will determine how effective the tower is, and it won't be surprising to see similar towers erected across the country if the results are positive.

Evinity Group

What if we could place giant vacuum cleaners on buildings to clean the surrounding air? This question spurred the Envinity Group, a Dutch collective of inventors, into action. In 2016, they debuted an enormous industrial vacuum to remove airborne contaminants.

The vacuum removes fine and ultra-fine particles, which have been identified to be carcinogens by the World Health Organization. The inventors claim that the vacuum can eliminate 100% of fine particles and 95% of ultra-fine particles within a 984-foot radius (300 meters).

SounderBruce/Flickr

Removing contaminants from the air is great as a short-term solution, but it doesn't address the long-term effects of carbon emissions. One, while arguably a draconian, way that many countries are looking to create a greener, cleaner future is through the banning of cars that use petrol and diesel.

The United Kingdom is among the countries legislating to make the change. The government plans to effectively ban all new petrol and diesel vehicles from the road by 2035. With the rapidly growing interest in electric vehicles worldwide, initiatives like these have a high chance of succeeding.

Green City Solutions

Urban areas are the worst hit when it comes to air pollution. The lack of green areas and trees in cities means there's little opportunity for carbon dioxide to be absorbed, leaving the air quality poor. That's why the German start-up, Green City Solutions, created the CityTree.

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The CityTree is a vertical unit, like a billboard, incorporating moss and lichen. Thanks to these hard-working plants, each unit can absorb as much as 240 tons of carbon dioxide annually. This means they can perform the task of 275 trees while demanding a fraction of the space and cost.

Jason Rogers/Flickr

When many countries finally successfully ban combustion engine vehicles from their roads, they'll need a lot of electric cars to take their place. India, to name just one country, has announced that as of 2030, they will only be selling electric vehicles.

This would be a massive game-changer for India, whose population currently suffers 1.2 million air pollution-related deaths yearly. The change could also save the country $60 billion in energy costs. The brave move is one that many other countries are sure to follow.

KU Leuven

Today's pollution could very well become tomorrow's fuel. That's thanks to research from the University of Antwerp and KU Leuven. In May 2017, scientists discovered a startling new method that allowed them to purify the air and simultaneously create hydrogen fuel from the extracted pollutants.

The researchers created a device containing a thin membrane. On one side of the membrane, the air was purified. On the other side, hydrogen gas resulting from the degradation of the contaminants was collected. The gas could then be used as fuel. The device was powered by solar energy, making it entirely clean.

Intel Free Press/Wikimedia

One issue that has stalled the fight against air pollution is a lack of comprehensive data. While urban areas are well-tested for air quality, suburban and rural areas have fewer resources when measuring air quality.

In India, government initiatives are installing pollution sensors across all areas of the country to detect and manage air pollution better. A new, cutting-edge series of sensors were certified in 2019 and has already provided valuable data in India's fight against air pollution.

fklv (Obsolete hipster)/Flickr

India isn't the only place looking to install state-of-the-art sensors. The Czechia announced that they would install carbon dioxide monitors inside the streets' smart lights in its capital, Prague.

The sensors can provide real-time information on the worst affected areas regarding air pollution, allowing for more effective strategies in combating pollution and letting residents know which areas of the city are at the most significant risk to their health.

New Delhi Municipal Council/Twitter

The idea of an anti-smog gun might sound ridiculous, but it could effectively clear smog-afflicted areas during high pollution. The government of Delhi, India, tested the guns in 2017 and has since brought them online to help reduce the dangerous smog levels in Anand Vihar.

The guns work by spraying water vapor into the air, which absorbs the pollutants before falling to the ground like rain. While it doesn't remove the contaminants entirely, it's an effective short-term solution for smog-heavy days where breathing the air could present a severe health risk to residents.

David McSpadden/Wikimedia Commons

Apparently, Google Earth is beneficial for creating accurate maps of the world and giving us insight into the quality of air. In a project launched by Google in 2015, Google Street View cars traveled around West Oakland, taking air samples.

Through this, they could gather comprehensive data about air quality in the city and how it fluctuated over time. Thanks to this research, they could use the system to allow users to examine the average air quality in their and other areas worldwide.

Access to such information would allow for more effective targeting of anti-pollution initiatives. It would warn people about the more dangerous areas regarding poor air quality.

Rescubika

Designed by the architecture firm Rescubika, this fantastic concept project envisions a "green" residential tower on New York's Roosevelt Island. Called Mandragore, the building pushes the envelope on the current limits of sustainability practices.

Its design is based on the mandrake plant and will be packed with many innovative energy-saving and carbon-capture technologies and strategies. It would use the best passive heating and cooling techniques to condition the interior space. It would incorporate as many natural materials as possible and a literal forest of plants and trees.

The scheme would have 1,600 trees and almost 300,000 square feet of living plant walls across its 160 levels in its current design.

And that's all for now, folks. Will these solutions ring the death knell on human-created air pollution or not? Many of them are very promising. The future will show if they will significantly dent the air pollution problem. More innovation like this is always welcome to tackle the problem.

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