China deploying parasailing drones to rid airports of smog ift.tt/1jU4z8t China will be using a new type of anti-pollution drone to clear smog from the skies of selected airports and ports later this month. The plan — the latest in a line of technological approaches to reducing dangerous particles from Chinas polluted cities — will see unmanned aerial vehicles taking to the air on flexible parasails, before spraying chemicals that freeze atmospheric pollutants and cause them to fall to the ground. The drones will be able to carry more than 700 kg (1,543 lbs) of chemicals, and are expected to be able to freeze pollution within a five-kilometer (3.1 mile) radius. The South China Morning Post says China has used fixed-wing drones to perform a similar process in the past, but the new drones will be cheaper to maintain, easier to control, and carry a wider payload of chemicals. Ma Yongsheng, CEO of the company that developed the drone, said it could also be used for applications such as disaster relief and seed-sowing. The drones will be trialed after Chinas government declared war on pollution this week The introduction of the drones comes after Li Keqiang, Chinas premier, said yesterday the Chinese government was declaring war on pollution. Anti-pollution measures will focus on the pollutant particles thought most harmful to human health — those smaller than 2.5 micrometers — but, as Quartz points out, the drones wont remove the pollutants from Chinese cities entirely, instead leaving them frozen on the ground. Via Quartz Source South China Morning Post Image Credit Fredrik Rubensson / Flickr Related Items china drones smog pollution li keqiang
Posted on: Thu, 06 Mar 2014 09:59:56 +0000