In conjunction with the Technical University of Berlin, the Audi Environmental Foundation is developing filters for urban runoff. They keep tyre wear particles and other environmentally hazardous pollutants from washing into sewers and bodies of water with rainwater.
Every car ride generates particles from the tyres and road wear. In Germany alone, an estimated 110,000 tonnes of it ends up on the streets as microplastics each year. It then disperses into the environment via the wind or is washed into the soil, rivers, and oceans by rain via urban runoff and sewers - usually untreated.
Not only car tyres, but also bicycle tyres, the wheels of skateboards, and even shoe soles produce these fine particles that are harmful to the environment. There’s no way to completely avoid them. “But we can do something preventively to ensure that less microplastic enters and pollutes the environment,” says Rüdiger Recknagel, Managing Director of the Audi Environmental Foundation.
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Collaboration with the TU Berlin
The Audi Environmental Foundation is creating improved sediment filters for urban runoff in collaboration with the Technical University of Berlin's Department of Urban Water Management and other partners, including filter manufacturers, software developers, and water utilities. They catch the corresponding pollutant particles as close to their source as feasible – even before precipitation washes them into the sewer system. The three-and-a-half-year project began in September 2020 and will conclude in September 2021.
Different filters for different situations
Since the sediment filters are modular, they can be properly matched to a variety of road conditions, traffic volumes, and other types of pollutants. The continuous braking and restarting in stop-and-go traffic, on an extremely curving route, or at a traffic light intersection, for example, causes tyres to lose more wear particles than on an unobstructed straight stretch of road. “We also want to capture as many other pollutants that accumulate on and around streets as possible, such as beverage cans and cigarette butts, which unfortunately often end up on the sidewalk, as well as particles that are actually natural, such as sand, leaves, and pollen from trees,” says the study.
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Three zones, nine filter modules
The sediment filters are divided into three zones: street, sewer, and drain. “In total, we are developing nine different modules for different road and traffic conditions,”explains Daniel Venghaus, a research associate at the Department of Urban Water Management at TU Berlin. “Up to three different modules can then be combined from this modular system to achieve the best result depending on the location.” In the uppermost area (street), this may be a special runoff channel or appropriate asphalt. Below this, in the sewer itself, larger solids are filtered out, for example, with the aid of an optimized leaf basket or what is known as a filter skirt. The lowest area (drain) is all about fine filtration. “We’re currently testing a magnet module here,” says Venghaus. “In our preliminary tests, magnets trapped particularly fine particles without clogging.” The modules are still, for the most part, in the planning stage. Nevertheless, the partners are planning to test them in real-world scenarios before the end of the year.
Predictive maintenance
The filters, of course, must be maintained and emptied on a regular basis. This is where intelligent connectivity enters the picture. For this reason, a plethora of data is combined, including the street cleaning schedule, the traffic volume on the specific street, when rush hour occurs, peak times such as the beginning and conclusion of school breaks, and the weather forecast. This includes things like how many trees there are and how often people walk their dogs along the road. “Based on all this information, we can predict each filter’s degree of contamination and determine when the best time to empty it is. It’s basically the same idea as predictive maintenance, which is commonplace in the automotive industry,” says Wloka. “As a result, we’re connecting different sectors and applying optimized processes to a new application.”
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