Green Lung

By Hugo Chak, John Tam, Sapphire Lai

*A research on the public's opinion
about indoor air pollution..
90% of all respondents are unsatisfied with the air
quality of Hong Kong's indoor areas
30% expressing their opinion as "bad" or "very bad"

*Ipsos in Greater China, (2010).
In hong kong, a bayer survey on indoor air pollution was
completed.
Traditional
ventilation system
(HVAC)
Make the indoor air pollution problem WORSE!!!
Pollutants enter indoors area
Draw the polluted air from outside into the building
If the outside environment is polluted(eg. roadside)
Problem of Traditional Ventilation
System
Problem of Traditional Ventilation
System
A source of pollutants.
Saturated air filters lead to potential microbial growth and
odor concerns.
Microbial growth can also result from stagnant water in drain
pans or from uncontrolled moisture inside of air ducts and
cooling coils.
Why Building Ventilation is
Important?
By reducing airborne transmission of respiratory
infections, it helps to maintain occupants health.
By providing comfortable conditions, it improves the
performance of occupants.

Purification site
Carbon dioxide (CO
2
)
to oxygen(O
2
)
converter
Indoor air pollutant
remover
Purification site
Inhaler
Purification site

Purification site (PS)
Screener (first subunit of PS)
UV light source
Dust screen
Air from multiport valve
Air (without dust and
microorganisms)

Polymethyl methacrylate
Inclined layer
Chlorella sp. KR-1
Comb shaped Gore-tex tube
Air from screener (no
dust and
microorganisms but
high in CO2 and other
air pollutants)
Air out ( low in CO2 and
other air pollutants)
Algae Tank (second component of PS)
LED light source
(third component of
PS)
Exhaler

Multiport valve
Air pump
Activated charcoal
Fully purified air to the
building
Air from algae tank
Green lung component: Filter tank

A giant tank contains different
layers for filtration,
purification

Functions
Remove excess algae
Remove dissolved air
pollutants
Resupply the nutrient
Screener
Algae tank
LED light source
Multiport valve Multiport valve
Air from inhaler
Air towards exhaler
(Filter tank is not shown in this graph)
Challenges and
comparison
Challenges
Large indoor area needed
Cannot be used in some buildings
(e.g laboratory, industrial plant)
High installation cost
Why Green lung is better than
others?
Comparison with air purifier

Air Pollutants Green Lung Air Purifier
CO
2
Photosynthesis by algae Dilution by external air
SO
2
,NO
2
,tobacco smoke,
PVC from copy machine
Culture medium
(dissolution) and small
amount of activated carbon
(adsorption)
Large amount activated
Carbon (adsorption)
Ozone from the UV light Dissolution in algae tank Adsorption on activated
carbon
Comparison with air purifier
Green Lung Air purifier
Temperature and
humidity control


X

Extra energy spend on
temperature and humidity
control
Low High
Usefulness of byproduct Chlorella can be sold for
fuel or fertilizer
X

Pollutions to Earth
X

Air pollution

Abilities

Green lung

Air purifier

Removal of most
of the harmful
gases
Highly efficient Low efficient
Removal of CO
2

indoors


Very effective

Not effective
Flexibility

High Low
Comparison with air purifier
Comparison with potted plant
Abilities Green lung

Potted plants

Scale Large Small
Pest control X
Bacteria control X
Removal of
most of the
harmful gases


X
Benefited
population
Large Small
Comparison with potted plants
Green Lung Potted Plants
Potential harmful
effect
X
(eg.
*Alocasia macrorrhizos)
Stability of the system High Low
*Reference:
http://libproject.hkbu.edu.hk/was40/detail?channelid=1288&lang=en&sear
chword=herb_id=D00746
Summary
Main features of Green lung
Convert CO2 into O2
Purify the air
Eco- friendly
Flexibility
Enhance the indoor air quality in a
eco friendly way

The End