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Samarth is a modular outdoor air purifier that uses a filter-less technology to capture PM particles, adapts to its environment and seamlessly blend with the chaos of India.
What is the project about?
Delhi is the most polluted capital city in the world. The rise in air pollution is causing a severe health hazard to the citizens who lose more than 18 months of their lives to air pollution. As my graduation project, I tried to understand the problem and identify a solution. Unfortunately, India has substantial economic and space constraints to design a solution for crowded cities in India.
Delhi, the selected site and the capital of India, is home to 20 million people. During the research phase, I realized the solution should not regulate the chaos found in India but be a part of it and remain invisible yet effective. So, we surveyed already known air pollution hot spots and superimposed existing solutions (for example, smog tower, water spray) and gained insights into their limitations and constraints. We also interviewed one of the critical policymakers and mapped the policymaking ecosystem to do a system intervention. During this phase, we were also looking for novel technology for air pollution control so, we collaborated with a research lab, “Airth Research Pvt Ltd,” and humanized their patented technology, capturing the pollutant particles without using any filter.
The solution came as a modular air purification system that is versatile and flexible enough to be deployed in multiple scenarios. Each of the panels takes polluted air from the back and gives out clean air from the front. All these panels work in tandem to create a clean air environment around the structure. The modules are connected via joinery and strut bolts. This same joinery can be used to install the modules to a wall.
This combination of five modules can be scaled to cover the required real estate and clean the air in the vicinity. In addition, the modules can monitor the AQI and their efficiency. This communication can identify any maintenance issue that arises in the modules and can be used to plan the maintenance.
Project Funded by
IDC School of Design, IIT Bombay and Airth Research PVT LTD.
Stakeholders Involved
Avinash Shinde (IDC professor and project guide)
Ayush Kasliwal (external project guide)
Ravi Kaushik (Founder, Airth Research Pvt Ltd)
What is the impact?
We realized that policy intervention is required to implement Samarth. In the current policymaking, Central Pollution Control Board can install Samarth modules in the form of hoardings. This can enable us to write the usage of Samarth in 5% of total hoarding operated by big advertisers. As an incentive to install Samarth, advertising tax rebates and subsidies in installation can be offered.
Samarth has won awards and recognition in the design sector. Hopefully, this will pave a path for a collaboration with the central government department.
Gallery:
Images by Abhinav Saxena | © all rights reserved
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About Abhinav Saxena:
Abhinav Saxena is an Industrial Designer with a background in Mechanical Engineering with a keen eye for solving issues through design.
