Smog-clearing tower just eyewash

A 7-METER-HIGH SMOG-CLEARING TOWER has been put up in a square in the Wangjing district of Beijing, which designed by an artist from the Netherlands, is said to clean the air by collecting the small particles in it. But the tower is more a piece of art than a functioning anti-pollution device, says Science and Technology Daily:

It seems the tower looks rather nice and is ecologically sustainable. It has a beautiful shape, attracts eyeballs, and the carbon pollutants it collects will be used to make industrial diamonds, according to reports.

But will such a tower truly help improve Beijing's air quality? It is reported that it is able to process 30,000 cubic meters of air every hour. That figure looks sizeable, but it is only equivalent to the emissions of a middle-sized restaurant. To expect the tower to clean the air of Beijing is like throwing a sponge into a lake in the hope of drying it out.