Dutch town looks to cut pollution with air-purifying concrete
By Donald Melanson 
posted Aug 6th 2008 5:37PM
posted Aug 6th 2008 5:37PM
The Dutch town of Hengelo looks to be taking a rather unique approach to cleaning the air, with it now testing out a new type of "air-purifying concrete" developed by the University of Twente that promises to soak up the nitrogen oxide particles emitted by car exhausts. That's done with the aid of a titanium dioxide-based additive which, with the help of some sunlight, binds with the nitrogen oxide particles and turns them into harmless nitrates, which can apparently just wash away with the next rain shower. The town isn't fully sold on the idea just yet, however, with it only paving half of a road now under construction with the so-called "green bricks" (pictured above), while the other half is getting paved with plain old concrete. They'll then take some air measurements from each section early next year and decide whether to continue paving the town green or not.
[Via Physorg]
[Via Physorg]
Wow. Now THAT I have to see. Anyone except me think China needs to install these for the Olympics?
too late now...
Sure, why not? This idea much better than, you know, actually doing something about about the vehicles causing the pollution.
I bet the life-expectancy of the purifying element isn't that long.
I don't mean that this isn't a good idea because it is. I am just skeptical about how well/long it will purify.
Now we'll see yet another $50 disposable filter on store shelves.
Actually it's fine, no problem. The TiO2 acts as a catalyst, it is not consumed (and actually also not that expensive).
In Rome they built a church which got a TiO2 holding walls... though that is not in concrete but a special white cement.
(I do happen to have followed a course on sustainable building by the professor who is heading this research, he's a nice guy.)
If this works, excellent!
In Soviet Russia, air purifies concrete!
HeeHeeHaHaHoHo. Dat man make funneh yoke.
"...turns them into harmless nitrates, which can apparently just wash away with the next rain shower"
High-nitrate levels + drinking water = Blue Baby Syndrome.
Hope they don't lay this stuff down near drinking water sources without seriously upping their water purification plants.
I'm blue da ba dee da...!
Good point 404!
Also, to me there would a be a saturation level too. After so much of the product get used, it wouldn't be as effective. To keep effectiveness, you'll have to keep repaving which would be nuts.
All to solve an environmental problem that doesn't exist!
Why don't they just strap these to the back of your car or insert them into your muffler?
...Because excess nitrates are a major player in the etiology of cyanotic congenital heart defects. Hell, if Drs. Blalock and Taussig knew that, they could have fixed Tetralogy of Fallot without all that surgical shunting.
I'd like to propose that you [general populace] lay off the medical comments unless you are a credentialed medical professional and/or know what you're talking about.
kjb434 - Are you saying air pollution doesn't exist?
@Tyler
so only civil engineers can discuss bridges? and electrical engineers can discuss computer processors?
therefore no one is allowed to mention that nitrates are correlated with blue baby syndrome? surrrrrre
High levels of nitrates can destroy fish populations as well. High levels of almost anything can have negative effects. I hope they do some research before they lay this stuff, or pass out an electric car to all things Dutch in between doing so.
The issue is that the EU guidelines have set a maximum of air pollution in cities, and now all dutch cities are facing a big problem since they are all way over those allowed levels.
Couple that with the general incompetence of your average city council and you got amusing chaos.
Oh and yes, these people WILL be willing to have the problem show up elsewhere as long as the guidelines are met, seeing that they receive less EU money if they don't meet standards and for them it's the money not the health of the people that's important, and not because they want money for the citizens but because they are generally very corrupt and funnel a lot of the money into their own holdings, or the holdings of relatives and friends, who then in turn are doing their part in the corruption cycle.
I sure could use that brick to bash out my damn yellow teeth.
Without knowing more details, it's impossible to say how long it will last. If the stuff is just a catalyst then in theory it will last indefinitely as it is not actually used up in the reaction, or clogged with reagents.
hey, nice pun!
What don't you have?
I "LOVE" my yellow teeth
i suddenly had visions of the joker smiling as i read that.
If they were correlated, then it'd be no problem; as it stands, nitrates are not a cause of cyanotic congenital heard defects. If you believe they are, you probably also believe that vaccines cause autism.
You also missed the part at the end that said, "...and/or know what you're talking about." As I am not civil or electrical engineer, I don't make comments about subjects I know nothing about. However, as I am in a fellowship for general surgery, I will make a comment I am required to know something about.
Can I add and say that hearing/reading about from a news source doesn't mean that you know about it? I have a feeling someone will put a link in here to prove that nitrates cause baby blue syndrom or whatever.
Everyone needs to realize that medical tests only show that there is a correlation between certain things and diseases. In order to prove that they cause you would have to invent/create/find the cure to the disease based on the correlation. Until you can, there is no proof of anything, jsut a correlation
I think regardless of any specific syndromes it's obvious that a massive amount of nitrates getting into your drinking water would be something you'd want to avoid right? if not perhaps we can have you guys volunteer to purify polluted water by drinking it.
Ummm, maybe we should ask someone who works at a water treatment plant if their water treatment gets rid of nitrates. Don't come to conlusions too fast. Plus, I dont think rain water goes straight back into our drinking water. It has to be in the ground for a certain amount of time. At least thats what it is in SoCal
Hmmm, are you also in a fellowship for the conceit of the medical profession?
Your reply sounds like common MD mindset.
Lord you knowledge over everyone else, dismiss anyone else's attempts at addressing the subject. Allow no one else to comment unless they are well-versed in medical terminology.
Luckily you didn't ask for a fee!!!! .....or we all would have had to fork over $150!!!
Here's free advice....try a little humility and common helpfulness...stop with the smackdowns.
Man, those Netherlanders sure are being crafty this week. First a flying energy kite, and now this. Glad to see they've started to expand outside the dam and windmill business.
And XTC ;) and beer and cheese of course, oh and oil and gas.
Come to think of it, if they made some decent movies they'd got the whole 'american way of life' covered.
Well I hope the Dutch are prepared for an increase in algae in their waterways. Those nitrates might be harmless to humans but they make great plant food. Ultimately it will lead to different environmental problem.
i would imagine that the existing nitrate contamination in surface waters is orders of magnitude higher than in the air on a mass basis.
and one things's for sure, the ozone that's formed in the atmosphere with NOx's react with UV is highly toxic.
still, better to avoid polluting in the first place.
phanbouy knows about tech and the ecosystem and also he knows about clothes
so when he says we should avoid polluting you need to listen, he's right
YAY! my biggest idol 'phanbouy fan' is back to set the record STRAIGHT!
henceforth phanbouy shall:
1) not discuss on any obvious fucking things like that ozone is bad for you
2) refrain from making jokes that my bestest idol 'phanbouy fan' can't comprehend
3) in fact, refrain from commenting altogether because he made my cry the other day and hurt my feewings
oh, and i almost forgot. avoiding pollution is zomg like TOTALLYy gay too!
What is going on here?
welcome to the party, man
can't they just take technology like this and put it in your muffler?
that's what...
A catalytic converter?
can't they just take the technology and put it somewhere in your exhaust?
well they don't call it "exhaust diving"
fuck.......
well since i already dominated this part of the page, i guess i'll get some trolling done just to top it off
LOL ...but can it play doom LOL LOL LOL SO FUNNY AND IRONIC
...SOMEHOW
OMG BUT WILL IT BLEND?!?!?!?!?!
So, in summary, smoke 'em if you got 'em.
This actually sounds brilliant if it works. Go green!
Don't those harmless nitrates become one of the principal components of acid rain?
The arboretum near my house has had a similar (more advanced/practical) system already in place. The bricks I saw were oddly shaped and interlocked in a fashion which leaves a pattern of gaps. I believe the rest of the cracks were filled in with a type of gravel. When stuff leaks onto the parking lot, it eventually gets rained on and filtered through the bricks as it passes down. The one at the Morton Arboretum also prevents erosion, helps collect rain water after it is filtered and it doesn't get as hot as asphalt in the summer.
http://www.mortonarb.org/res/ABOUT_parkingLot.pdf
This place is state of the art-- not all too far from where scientists are splitting the atom over at Fermi Lab.
They need these at every light intersection and fast food joint.
wtf? this shit is at least 20 years old. that dutch town is right to be skeptical because it doesnt really work.