conceived by US-based architectural designer honglin li, ‘FILTRATION’ is a floating skyscraper imagined to clean up our seawater by recycling the plastic and debris found in the infamous ‘great pacific garbage patch’. receiving honorable mention in the evolo 2019 skyscraper competition, the modular, prefabricated waste-management and waste-to-energy megastructure proposes a solution to the global environmental and energy crisis.

all images courtesy of honglin li

to achieve the goal of cleaning up our oceans while also providing a green source of energy, honglin li has designed the FILTRATION skyscraper to contain several ‘material recovery facilities (MRF)’ and ‘water treatment plants (WTP)’. these mechanisms would make the entire power plant self-sufficient while working to recycle the ‘floating garbage continent’, which is located in the north pacific gyre.

unlike a conventional material recovery facility that mainly relies on gravity and the use of multiple conveyors to take garbage from the ocean for sorting and distribution, FILTRATION uses seawater to pump garbage and polluted water to the apex of the building, then filters the water and recyclable material down to the bottom. eventually, non-recycled material and recycled material would be transported away by tidal power. overall, the proposal by honglin li provides a sustainable and even regenerative solution to floating waste, as well as a second chance to reconstruct the relationship between nature and human beings.

project info:

name: ‘FILTRATION skyscraper’

type: individual competition work

project: floating garbage recycle skyscraper

location: north pacific gyre

design: honglin li

date: feb 2019

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lynne myers | designboom