Bel-Air is a filtration system designed by Mathieu Lehanneur, which uses living plants to purify the air indoors.
The purifier is currently on show at the Laboratoire in Paris and will be included in MoMA’s exhibition Design and the Elastic Mind, opening in February.
The following information is from Mathieu Lehanneur:
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The air quality indoors is worse than outdoors. Plastic used for furniture production emits pollutants such as benzene, formaldehyde, and trichloroethylene. Their levels are highest during warm and humid periods.
Crucially for the health of NASA’s astronauts, who stay in orbital station in a polymer-saturated environment, the American agency set up an air purifying system which resulted from a program of research into plants in the early 1980’s.
With Bel-Air, this program is now completed and optimized by French designer Mathieu Lehanneur, together with the American scientist David Edwards (
Bel-Air is a mini mobile greenhouse that continuously inhales the space-polluted air, forces it through three natural filters (the plant leaves, its roots, and a humid bath) before ejecting it, purified.
This patented principal has two advantages: Bel-Air is to the American and Asiatic common filter appliances what Dyson is to regular vacuum cleaners. Here, the noxious particles are captured, and transformed inside the system. No more filters to change, and no more clogs.
As for the aesthetic, Bel-Air breaks the codes. The plant is removed from its ornamental status and becomes a true object of service. As a vegetal brain enclosed in an aluminium and Pyrex cranial box, Bel-Air is the cutting-edge of new objects and guardian angels that will soon protect us.
Bel-Air - News about a Second Atmosphere, is currently presented in
First two images © Mathieu Lehanneur
Third image © Marc Domage
Fourth image © Véronique Huyghe
Last image © Bruno Cogez
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Posted by Rose Etherington
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Posted by Rose Etherington
November 30th, 2007 at 2:05 am
poor, poor plants.. what have they done to you?
November 30th, 2007 at 5:29 am
a good design!
November 30th, 2007 at 4:06 pm
Superbe projet, bravo Mathieu !
Superb project, congrats Mathieu!
December 2nd, 2007 at 9:17 am
inspiration for my up coming graduation project. great job!
December 3rd, 2007 at 6:04 am
A nice aquarium with live aquatic plants and a air filter pump and water circulating pump accomplishes the same thing.
December 3rd, 2007 at 1:54 pm
Surely the rate of absorption by the plants leaves and roots cannot be changed by simply forcing more air at the plant? so why not just have an indoor house plant? however I like your concept Mathieu - more design should look at harnessing technology that already exists in Nature.
see the Ted talk by Janine Benyus - http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/18
December 3rd, 2007 at 6:01 pm
free the plants!!!
this is cruelty to the fauna!
December 4th, 2007 at 4:36 pm
bravo pour ta mise en pot
signé matali
December 4th, 2007 at 5:36 pm
thank you matalie!
December 18th, 2007 at 8:02 am
Brilliant! I think you should sell them! Looks nice - green and white.
Who cares about all them negative people! MAKE YOUR MARK-BEFORE SOMEONE ELSE STEALS YOUR IDEAS!
December 29th, 2007 at 12:18 pm
bravo c’est génial! je voudrais bien en acheter un!
January 9th, 2008 at 3:24 am
So how can I buy a prototype to test?
January 17th, 2008 at 4:11 am
nice…Well Done! i like to buy one of those.
January 31st, 2008 at 4:55 am
How can I purchase a prototype? I am really interested. Please reply, even if they are not available now.
THANK YOU!
February 18th, 2008 at 3:41 am
Sorry to point it out, but really it is not only pointless but also seemingly idiotic this so called “new concept”. why on earth would someone think putting a perfectly natural filter a plant is, in a capsule that not only doesn’t let the plant develop to its maximum extent but obviously requires such a huge amount of resources to fabricate this artifact that obviously contradicts the whole “green theme” around it.
I mean, as a piece of art… or even interior design if you may… i can say it has its interesting points…
but as a really applicable gadget for every home i think it is not viable nor intelligent.
Sebastian. Buenos Aires, Argentina
February 29th, 2008 at 6:15 am
Dear Mr or Mrs
We hope all is well with you..
We are interested in your product.
You are kindly requested to send us more information & sample .
Our business is airfreshners & related items.
BEST REGARDS
March 8th, 2008 at 8:06 am
I’m quite surprise there was no other project since Nasa found the plants against house pollution…
April 1st, 2008 at 9:29 pm
Thank you Yeahright and Sebastian.
My mother grew a window full of Philodendrons and other plants for the same purpose, when we lived in a low-income housing project during the 60’s, when I was a girl. As I currently live in an apartment near a busy thoroughfare, I now grow them, and the do a FABULOUS job. I had a chain-smoker staying with me, and he stressed them out, but he’s gone and the plants are still with me.
There’s a wonderful book called “Easy Plants for Difficult Spaces” which came out in the 70’s. The section on pollution is worth the book. Do you remember when you could smoke in the waiting rooms of doctors offices and other places? (maybe not). Anyway specific plants were there for just that purpose.
My next question. How are these plants cared for? I thought it might be a good product for my friends who are too lazy to care for plants, but if you have to care for these? I don’t know.
May 1st, 2008 at 8:11 pm
I have three children. Boy 18, two twin girls ages 9 months. We all have indoor and outdoor allergies and asthma. I have bought several air purifiers, humidifiers, and none have worked well in helping the symptoms. I would like to try your product hoping it will work better in cleaning the air from my home.
I can be reached at: (347) 270-1577
my address is:
2515 Davidson Avenue #5F
Bronx, NY 10468
thank you.
July 7th, 2008 at 3:55 am
Dear Sir. Is there any easy way to find out if the filtered air will be fresh or not ? Different plants will have a different rate of air filtration and is there a second method of air filtering in your “dome”? If there is and then it can not prove the effect of the plant. If there will not be a second filtration,the poor plant will live an air conditioned ” dome” to survive. Anyway I am interested in your filter. Can you tell me where I can buy one? I live in Vancouver Canada. Thank you.
October 6th, 2008 at 8:26 am
Hi there,
Interesting way of purifying air. I am very interested to be one of your guinea pigs to test the prototype.
Please get in touch with me. Thank You very much.
November 7th, 2008 at 10:09 pm
Hello,
does someone know how I can have contact with mister Lehanneur?
Or someone else who can help with designing my ideas?
November 26th, 2008 at 8:04 am
I live in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, where the conditions of the air (temperature about 20 grades centigrades every year and high humidity), are good for”acaros” (in spanish),we breath, and it results in high allergies in popullation. I am very interested to be one of your guinea pigs to test the prototype.
Please get in touch with me. Thank You very much.
December 29th, 2008 at 8:24 am
Is this system any different from having plants at home? Apart from its good look, does the dome help anything? I couldn’t figure it out.
January 27th, 2009 at 4:02 am
i think they are so awesome. where can i get these??? if there not available yet, i’d b willing to test em out for yahs or be apart of ur tests if ur doing trial runs on it… well let me know…. thanks you again…justin hadfield
June 14th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
Brilliant and ingenious product!