Award-winning English designer and architect Thomas Heatherwick has devised a solution to the global air pollution problem with a new electric vehicle that he claims can clean the air as it drives.
According to the BBC, Heatherwick was approached by Chinese car manufacturer IM Motors to help develop the concept car. So, how does it clean the air? The vehicle’s front grill contains an air filter that will be able to suck the pollutants from the air, capable of collecting “a tennis ball worth of particulate matter per year.”
Heatherwick added:
That might not sound a lot but think of a tennis ball in your lungs that is contributing to cleaning the air, and with a million vehicles in China alone, that adds up.
The car dubbed the “Airo” is like nothing you’ve seen before. Inside looks like a living room, with a table in the center and four adjustable chairs around it. These chairs can be transformed into beds when needed. In addition, the steering wheel is hidden in the dashboard to make the car a more spacious vehicle.
While Heatherwick is confident that Airo could reduce pollution, some critics claim that the air and the world would be barely positively affected by this mechanism. Regardless, Airo presents a unique solution to the air pollution problem. The vehicle is expected to go into production in China by 2023, with pricing expected at around $55,510 (£40,000).
Last year, we saw another solution that captures microplastic pollution from tires. The Tyre Collective was awarded the 2020 UK national James Dyson Award for its patent-pending technology designed to capture synthetic microscopic rubber particles expelled from car tires.
The car-mounted device attaches to each wheel’s steering knuckle, above where the tire meets the road, capturing the rubber particles released via friction every time the car accelerates, brakes, or turns a corner. These microscopic bits of artificial rubber, known as tire wear, are responsible for over 50% of all particulate emissions produced by vehicles and are released into the air we breathe and waterways.
