Urban Purifier – a Microalgae Pavilion for Cleaner City Air
City life comes with many conveniences, but often at the cost of more stress and poorer air. The Urban Purifier, developed by Mess is More together with the biotech start-up VODORASLO, is our answer to one part of that problem: a small pavilion that cleans the air around it while giving people a place to pause.
Why microalgae
Microalgae have been shaping Earth’s atmosphere for a very long time, and they photosynthesise far more efficiently than ordinary land plants – roughly ten times, according to research on their biotechnological use. Grown in photobioreactors and woven into the urban fabric, they can lower levels of carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and fine particulate matter while releasing oxygen. Strains of the Spirulina, Chlorella and Scenedesmus genera are especially well suited to air purifiers of this kind, at both small and larger scales. At the end of their life cycle, the algae can even be used as biofuel.
The pavilion
The structure is a set of symmetrical timber frames arranged around a central glass tank of microalgae. The liquid circulates through a system of transparent tubes, which keeps the algae photosynthesising and the purifier working. The green tubes give the pavilion its character and make it a landmark: a place to rest, and a way to show passers-by what biotechnology can do in everyday life. Because it is modular and compact, it can easily be moved and repeated across the city.
From concept to reality
We see the Urban Purifier not just as a concept but as something we want to build, and we are looking for partners and sponsors to make that happen. The same thinking – architecture that works with natural systems rather than against them – runs through my research on aquatecture.
Recognition and press
- Archinova 2025 – Special Prize, Urban Environment Elements
- The Building – The biotechnological pavilion that purifies the city’s air
- Cherti – The Urban Purifier: a synthesis of biology and architecture
See all coverage on the Media & Press page.