Eco Factor: Buildings incorporated with photobioreactors to generate fuel using algae.
Researchers at the Institute of Mechanical Engineers have suggested that the demand for biofuel and the need to sequester carbon for efficient disposal or conversion can be answered if sealed containers of algae photobioreactors are integrated into the sides of high-rise buildings.
The benefits of the approach will be numerous as algae will grow using waste-water and provide biofuel for the inhabitants while sequestering carbon from the surrounding air for safe disposal. Algae also has a higher production rate per acre than soy and corn and some studies have also shown that up to 99% of the carbon introduced in the system can easily be sequestered.
The Institute of Mechanical Engineers is seeking more research funding as the system could be integrated into the existing city infrastructure and provide carbon filtering and biofuel generation in places where we need most.
Via: Inhabitat
