Dutch town looks to cut pollution with air-purifying concrete
By Donald Melanson 
posted August 6th 2008 5:37PM
posted August 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]
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.