Clean Air Technologies

Bioreactors
While most antipollution technologies involve massive, complex equipment, some scientists are experimenting with tiny, simple living organisms called cyanobacteria that eat polluting carbon dioxide (CO₂). These algae can flourish in the blistering temperatures of chimneys. Researchers have designed "bioreactors," window-screen-like membranes teeming with cyanobacteria, for future installation into power plant smokestacks. Fiber- optic cables would focus life-sustaining light across the membranes, allowing the algae to grow inside chimneys while feasting on a diet of CO₂ exhaust. This technology has already proved itself in small-scale demonstrations. A test on a fully operational power plant is about five years away, and scientists are also studying the same algae as a potential source of hydrogen energy.