High-tech Oil Spill Solution
by Cate Trotter
Obviously not as good than living oil-free in the first place, the OSP robot is still an ingenious solution to something that has detrimental effects on wildlife and the environment, containing oil spills in record time through its high-tech, modular design.
With the knowledge that the faster a spill can be dealt with, the better, designer Ji-hoon Kim has come up with a set of units, each a couple of metres across, that can be quickly transported to the scene by helicopter or boat. Once deployed, the units connect and contain the spill with an inflatable barrier, after which point cleanup teams can come in and save the day.
Currently a concept design, Kim says they are powered using built-in solar panels, and controlled using algorithms. As long as they work, we don’t care: with oil spills having negative effects even in proportions as low as one part per billion, affecting the organ function of seabirds and marine animals, and harming estuaries and shoreline ecosystems, any effective solution is fantastic. (Via Yanko Design)
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