Pittsburgh International Airport Just Installed A Giant Algae Air Purifier

Consumer Tech Pittsburgh International Airport Just Installed A Giant Algae Air Purifier Jennifer Kite-Powell Senior Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Following New! Follow this author to stay notified about their latest stories. Got it! Oct 9, 2022, 10:20pm EDT | New! Click on the conversation bubble to join the conversation Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The eight foot aerium by AlgenAir holds 125 gallons of algae.

It has the same photosynthetic . . .

[+] capacity as more than 5,000 houseplants. Pittsburgh International Airport installed the natural air purifer as part of its XBridge Innovation Center in Sept. AlgenAir Pittsburgh International Airport’s xBridge opened in 2020 and has become a 10,000-square-foot innovation center.

Drawing from the region’s strong innovation economy, the airport is a proof-of-concept site for technologies in a real-world operating environment and a pilot site for companies’ first deployments. The airport has partnered with Honeywell to test indoor air quality improvement technology and Carnegie Robotics to test the first-ever autonomous floor scrubbers with germ-killing UV technology. Cole Wolfson, Director of the xBridge at Pittsburgh International Airport, said that xBridge innovation at its best includes startups, midsize tech, big tech and universities in Pittsburgh, and Xbridge is set up to tap into the talent of the region.

In September 2022, the airport added another innovative technology to the xBridge innovation center. It installed a giant algae air purifier from startup AlgenAir that will reduce carbon dioxide in baggage claim. MORE FOR YOU Juan Soto Contract Rejection Could Make Orioles A Better Buy Than Nationals Today’s Wordle #478 Answer, Hint And Clues For Monday, October 10th Today’s ‘Heardle’ Answer And Clues For Monday, October 10 The aerium , AlgenAir’s first commercial product, is a living technology that uses algae to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) indoors.

The eight-foot-tall installation holds around 125 gallons of spirulina algae and has the same photosynthetic capacity as more than 5,000 houseplants. It can be recycled in downstream applications such as fertilizer, composting, nutrition, pigments, bioplastics, or biofuels. Kelsey Abernathy , co-founder and CEO of AlgenAir, said living technology combines algal bioremediation with energy-efficient engineering to combat indoor air pollution and enable the future of green buildings.

“Modern buildings have elevated indoor CO2 levels, which are harmful to the respiratory health of people inside,” said Abernathy. “The aerium uses microalgae’s incredible photosynthetic power, which consumes CO2 and produces oxygen more effectively than [. .

] plants. Abernathy said that the technology allows next-generation green buildings to retain energy efficiency without sacrificing the health of the people inside. “Working with AlgenAir allows us to test a new technology that can positively impact the passenger travel experience by supporting better indoor air quality,” said Wolfson.

“Their aerium has the potential to be an important component of PIT’s new, greener airport terminal, naturally improving indoor air quality through algae, something that has never been done before. ” The aerium installation is located in baggage claim between doors three and five until December 2022. The algae used in the installation was grown by AlgenAir at their algal growth facility in Pittsburgh, PA.

Follow me on Twitter . Jennifer Kite-Powell Editorial Standards Print Reprints & Permissions.