A Concrete Step Toward Cleaner Air

[YankeyMCC]

(snip)
Even so, visitors to the Italian Pavilion of the architecture exhibition in the Venice Biennale, which will remain open until Nov. 19, will get a breath of fresh air. That's because parts of the concrete walls and grounds have been built with cement containing an active agent that, in presence of light, breaks air pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, benzene, and others through a natural chemical process called photocatalysis.
(snip)

(snip)
The results so far are astonishing: A street in the town of Segrate, near Milan, with an average traffic of 1,000 cars per hour, has been repaved with the compound, "and we have measured a reduction in nitric oxides of around 60%," says Italcementi's spokesperson Alberto Ghisalberti. In a test over an 8,000 square meter (or approximately 2 acres) industrial area paved with active blocks near Bergamo, Italcementi's hometown, the reduction was measured at 45%.

In large cities such as Milan, with persistent pollution problems caused by car emissions, smoke from heating systems, and industrial activities, both the company and outside experts estimate that covering 15% of all visible urban surfaces (painting the walls, repaving the roads) with products containing TX Active could abate pollution by up to 50%, depending on the specific atmospheric conditions. \
(snip)

(snip)
"These aren't necessarily 'clean', but from an environmental standpoint they're much more tolerable," says Rossano Amadelli of the Italian National Research Council (CNR), the scientists who led the laboratory testing of the TX Active materials.
(snip)

http://www.businessweek.com/innovate/content/nov2006/id20061108_116412.htm?campaign_id=bier_innv.g3a.rss1109c

Just found this interesting, anyone with stronger chemistry background have comments? These kinds of things are to my mind minor players at best below conservation and shifts in energy and resource usage patterns, but they can certainly play helpful supporting roles. I'd rather see roads be made more permeable but 'pollution eating' materials in some spots sounds ok too.