This colossal machine enables earth scientists working in the building to rid the air of the powerful acids they use in their research. Some of their studies involve dissolving stones in acid, with the aim of identifying the elements that they contain. The resulting fumes make the air in the lab too acidic to be released into the environment and so it has to be purified using a scrubber.
The laboratory where the gas scrubber is being installed is completely metal-free; everything it contains is made of plastic. This is a requirement for the type of research that takes place there. Unlike metal, plastic does not rust or erode when it comes into contact with acid in the air.
Installing the gas scrubber was quite an undertaking. It weighs about 4,000 kg and is too unwieldly to pass through a corridor or fit in a lift. It therefore had to be hoisted into position before the building is completed.