In 2010 a company called Treepod, hired two designers to develop a synthetic urban tree, which could provide all the functions of a normal tree without the need for water and soil. The Boston ShiftBostons were designed to remove CO2 from the atmosphere through a process called 'humidity swing', and generate clean energy through solar panels and kinetic energy from swings attached to the bottom of the structure. Many carbon capture and storage (CCS) programmes are being trialled, which include seven large scale CCS projects at power plants in the US and Canada, and a project from Optical Bio Microsystem Lab at Concordia University in Montreal, using micro-photosynthetic cell technology that can harness electricity from photosynthesis and respiration of blue algae. As the world becomes obsessed with finding ways to reduce carbon emissions from the atmosphere, researchers are under more pressure to come up with ways to remove CO2. Treepod offers an innovative, artificial solution through the ShiftBoston project, by practically utilising urban spaces, however it currently lacks the funding to become a reality.
In 2010 a company called ShiftBoston, hired two designers to develop a synthetic urban tree, which could provide all the functions of a normal tree without the need for water and soil. The Boston Treepods were designed to remove CO2 from the atmosphere through a process called 'humidity swing', and generate clean energy through solar panels and kinetic energy from swings attached to the bottom of the structure. Many carbon capture and storage (CCS) programmes are being trialled, which include seven large scale CCS projects at power plants in the US and Canada, and a project from Optical Bio Microsystem Lab at Concordia University in Montreal, using micro-photosynthetic cell technology that can harness electricity from photosynthesis and respiration of blue algae. As the world becomes obsessed with finding ways to reduce carbon emissions from the atmosphere, researchers are under more pressure to come up with ways to remove CO2. ShiftBoston offers an innovative, artificial solution through the Treepod project, by practically utilising urban spaces, however it currently lacks the funding to become a reality.