Claro | Nbdf

Claro

Claro is a CO2 capture system that ensures indoor air quality for cognition.

CONTEXT

The buildings we live in have been optimized for energy efficiency, not for human health. Indoor air is often up to 5 times worse than outdoor air and is ever-evolving with toxins added every few years due to human interventions.

During the Covid19 Lockdown, many governments forced employees to work from home, however, at home, the indoor air is not necessarily as ventilated as at the office. As it seems, the air quality in a small home office is CO2 polluted (Carbon Dioxide, as a product of human metabolism). As a consequence, it's affecting one's ability to think clearly, focus, and concentrate. Hence, work performance is decreasing.

TEAM MEMBERS

Natalie Bar David Frenkel,

Leon Grillet,

Disharee Mathur,

Tobias Kappeler

INSPIRATION AND MOTIVATION

Working and studying from home, during the COVID19 pandemic felt unnatural and was very challenging. As a group that worked remotely with each-others, we were sitting for long hours in front of the screens, in our small home offices, which were making us feel dizzy, most of the time, or caused us headaches. Therefore we started questioning our indoor air quality and found high levels of CO2 in our own environments.

OPPORTUNITY

CO2 concentrations above 1500ppm, often found in our indoor environments, can reduce cognitive abilities to focus, to think strategically, and to make use of information at work, by 50%. The past year has seen a 400% increase in the number of professionals working from home. This phenomenon has a colossal impact on business and society, with reduced productivity and efficiency at large. As design engineers we approached the problem with a humanistic view, visualizing the invisible toxicity while bringing health and efficiency on the same plain.

All these findings brought us to the question What if we could capture CO2 to ensure clear thinking?