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From moss to microamps: Big Bang award winner
4/2/2026
2 min read
Feature
Surbiton-based student Oliver Linehan has won the Energy Institute Climate Change Award at the 2025 Big Bang Competition with his design of a domestic air cleaner filled with sphagnum moss.
The green-thumbed Hinchley Wood School student said that his design is relevant for urban dwellers suffering from poor air quality.
The design takes the form of a column with a 1.75 metre area of moss bedding spiralling around. Air passes through an aquarium water stone pump and passes through two layers of rock covered by biofilm (to trap pollutants), then passes through an air chamber, where it is absorbed by the moss. Water is pumped through a humidifier and then through a water filter equipped with UV light to eliminate harmful organisms.
Linehan explains that the design not only uses the moss to filter air, but also to generate electricity (due to interaction between the moss and surrounding microorganisms, captured by a carbon felt mat). A working prototype consisting of a 5 cm square of carbon felt, 3 grammes of moss and 15 grammes of water produced 0.01 mA at 0.1 Volts for 30 seconds in normal daylight.
Oliver says: ‘We base our solar designs on technology with 23% efficiency, but plants are much more efficient. I researched different methods to capture electrons from plants and the optimum conditions to maximise the production of electrons.’