Electrostatic precipitator
Precipitador electrostático
- Date
- 1907 · confidence high
- Place
- Berkeley, California, United States
- Credited to
- Frederick Gardner Cottrell
- Field
- Matter & energy
What it is
A filterless device that removes fine particles, such as dust or smoke, from a gas stream using an induced electrostatic charge, with minimal impact on gas flow. By applying energy only to the particles rather than the whole fluid, it is highly energy-efficient compared with wet scrubbers.
Developed by chemist Frederick Gardner Cottrell around 1907 at the University of California, Berkeley.
What it led to
- industrial control of smoke and dust emissions in factories and power plants
- reduced particulate pollution from the early 20th century onward
- modern air-quality regulations that rely on this technology