空氣泡泡抵禦中國霧霾？

On most days, a thick blanket of poisonous smog hovers over Beijing. But one day, China's capital could be dotted with domes filled with clean air.

Orproject, a London-based architecture and design firm, has devised the Bubbles project, a design that envisions massive, balloon-like structures filled with clean air.

The vegetation inside the park would produce clean air for those living inside the buildings on the perimeter of the bubbles, while also providing a smog-free space for residents to spend time in the faux outdoors.

Rajat Sodhi, director of Orproject India, spent a year and a half developing the idea with the firm's Beijing team.

"The seed of this project was the realisation that in developing countries, especially major cities in India and China, the air quality has crossed unacceptable limits." Mr Sodhi explains.

"You really can't step out and be outdoors. You just move from one air-conditioned space to another."

The group decided to design the large domes using patterns found in nature.

"If you look at the structure of a butterfly wing or that of a leaf, it has a dense pattern that allows the structure to be fairly stable and fairly large but using very little material," Mr Sodhi says.

Mixed reactions

The skin of the rooftop bubbles would be created from ETFE, an extremely durable, lightweight material that will not decompose over time. Each bubble would be filled with gas, allowing it to float.

The entire structure would be shaped and anchored with steel supports.

The project has received mixed reactions since it was first released in January.

But critics argue that the concept smacks of defeatism. Why bother to rid the air of pollution in cities like Beijing if bubbles of clean air are available?

Others say the plan is simply unrealistic and, at best, would lead to two classes of citizens in polluted areas. Presumably only a wealthy few would gain access to the bubble, leaving the unlucky majority trapped in smog.

Rajat Sodhi believes the reaction comes from those who want to solve environmental problems, though he says that isn't his goal. He's an architect who creates living spaces, he contends. The Bubbles project could work in a variety of locations where people are barred from enjoying green, open spaces for much of the year.

"You had a whole part of the US affected by the Polar Vortex this year, which made stepping outside impossible," he says. "There were basically no green areas in cities, so the air quality drops because there is no natural regeneration of the air."

This project could exist in extremely hot or cold climates, the designers contend.

"I think this kind of project was meant for any space, because what it fundamentally does is create a controlled environment in the form of a biodiversity park which can sustain clean air throughout the year," Mr Sodhi says.

Chinese government officials have yet to respond to the firm's proposal.據英國廣播公司（BBC）網站報道，大多數時間，北京都籠罩在厚厚的有毒霧霾之下。不過，也許從某天起，北京將到處點綴着充滿清潔空氣的穹頂。

一家倫敦的建築和設計公司Orproject開發出了這個泡泡狀的設計。這個設計體量很大，有着氣球一樣的外形，裏面充滿清潔的空氣。

氣泡裏的植物爲居住的人提供了足夠的清潔空氣。在裏面居住的人都住在氣泡的邊緣，而氣泡設計還爲居民進行“戶外”活動提供了空間。

Orproject印度公司主管Rajat Sodhi與公司在北京的團隊花了一年半時間開發出了這個設計。

Sodhi先生說：“這個設計的靈感來源於發展中國家的現實情況，尤其是中國與印度的大城市的空氣質量都無法忍受了。”

“你根本無法出門或待在戶外，你只能從一個有空調的地方到另外一個有空調的地方。”

研究小組決定借鑑自然界存在的一些模型，從而設計出更大的穹頂。

Sodhi提到：“如果你觀察一下蝴蝶翅膀的結構或者葉子的結構，你就能發現它們緊緻的結構不僅使得結構非常穩定，而且使用的材料很少。”

不同的公衆反映

泡泡設計的屋頂由四氟乙烯做成，質量輕、強度大而且不易隨着時間流失而有所損壞。每個泡泡裏將會充滿氣體，使得泡泡可以漂浮起來。

整個泡泡的結構將通過鋼鐵來支撐。

在2014年1月這個設計剛剛發佈時，人們褒貶不一。

但是有些批評者說這個設計充滿了失敗主義的論調。如果泡泡裏的清潔空氣是可得的，那麼爲什麼還要麻煩地去解決像北京這樣的大城市的空氣污染問題呢？

其他人則提出，這個設計毫不實用，最好的結果也許就是在空氣污染的區域劃分出兩種不同階層的人。可能只有少數的有錢人才能進泡泡裏面，而大部分不幸的人只能困在霧霾裏。

Rajat Sodhi認爲這些反饋來自那些想解決空氣污染問題的人，但他說這不是他的目標。他爭辯說：“他只是一個建築師，創造出適合居住的環境。在許多地方，泡泡設計都有用。當人們在一年中都無法接觸到綠色植物或其他空間時，泡泡設計就可以派上用場。

他說：“今年整個美國都受到極地氣旋的影響，完全不可能到戶外。在城市中幾乎沒有綠色植物，因此沒有自然的空氣代謝的時候，城市的空氣質量就下降了。”

設計者說聲稱，這個泡泡設計，不論氣溫高低都能適應。

Sodhi 先生說：“我認爲這個設計在任何地方都有意義。因爲這個設計在根本上是設計了一個擁有生物多樣性公園的可控環境。在整年中，這個環境裏都能保持空氣的清潔。”

中國政府官員對此設計尚無迴應。