A startup spent the last three years develop marker that change over air pollution into marker ink .
Graviky Labs’AIR - INKmarkers filter particulate issue , the foul poppycock that comes out of fomite exhaust fumes — particles so tiny ( and dangerous ) that they can sneak into a soul ’s lungs through breathing and stimulate cancer and other forms of lung damage . The caller sell out of the intersection during itsKickstartercampaign , which raised more than $ 40,000 for the marker . It ’s also partner with incarnate entity like Tiger Beer .
The engineering is middling cool : A equipment ( also developed by the science lab ) attach to a diesel motor exhaust to capture the particulate matter . After using gravity - establish interval to remove punishing metals and carcinogen from the soot and , then , grinding up what ’s left , the pollution turn into a carbon - based pigment . After one last chemical substance procedure , ink is bear — gratis of any loathly toxin ( though it ’s not yet been declared secure for kids younger than 6 ) .
Forty - five moment of exhaust system can produce a single unstable troy ounce of ink , enough to fill one of the AIR - INK marking .
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institute by MIT alum Anirudh Sharma , Graviky Labs specifically built the exhaust attachment to enamour particulate matter without suffering terms from estrus or water . The filter and can catch up to 95 per centum of the polluting particles .
So far , the engineering science is responsible for cleaning about 1.6 trillion liters of outdoor breeze contamination in India , Sharma ’s home . There , company and organizations responsible for power infirmary , schools , and other building through diesel motor generators buy the filter from Graviky Labs to prop onto their generator . They ’re incentivized to do so because the lab grease one’s palms the defilement back from them .
This is a win - win for a country like India : It has some of theworst air pollutionin the world . Its capital region of Delhi recently madenational headlinesafter smog enveloped the city , turn it into a so - called “ gas bedroom , ” as Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal account it in a tweet . The air pollution is a result of multiple factor , but it becomes terrible this fourth dimension of year due to nearby craw burning by farmers that ca n’t afford good engineering to aid prepare for the come harvest time .
“ It ’s middling dire here , ” Sharmatold MIT News . “ chief shoal have been shut out down because of strain pollution . It ’s a calamity . I desire to make technologies that are newfangled and can have a declamatory social impact . ”
“ Less pollution , more art , ” Sharma told MIT . “ That ’s what we ’re going for . ”
One piece of art was on video display during theClean Air Forumin Paris earlier this month . The lab shared it on its Facebook page :
More than 1,000 artists have meet markers . Art was n’t the original purpose . Sharma simply want to find a hard-nosed role for the amass carbon .
The ending upshot ? Carbon - loaded graphics that ’s ended up onHong Kong street muralsand aLondon museum .
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