The Tianhe City West Tower apartment building in Guangzhou was wrapped up with pipe fence in preparation for its demolition on January 3, 2007. (Photo: China News Service) Photo Gallery >>>

    BEIJING, Jan. 3 -- China's experts on explosives successfully controlled noise, dust and debris during the demolition of an apartment block in downtown Guangzhou in southern Guangdong Province at dawn on Wednesday morning.

    The air quality at the demolition site remained normal after the Tianhe City West Tower apartment building was leveled to the ground, the China News Service reports.

    The provincial environmental monitoring station recorded the volume of suspended particles in the air as less than 0.5 mg per cubic meter. The volume meets internationally recognized environmental protection standards.

    Zheng Bingxu, chief engineer with Guangdong Hongda Demolition Engineering Company, said the firm has applied innovative technology during the demolition process. First the building was doused in 13,000 cubic meters of foam enhanced with active carbon to reduce the volume of dust generated. Then 30,000 cubic meters of carbon-activated water was sprayed near the site to create vapor that would absorb the dust during the explosion.

    The building was also wrapped in a pipe fence so it would fold in towards its center during the demolition work. The pipe fence fell on the building after the implosion, preventing shock waves and flying debris.

    The experts also successfully reduced the noise pollution produced by the demolition work, with less than 75 decibels of noise recorded. The nearly residents' sleep was undisturbed and the glass exterior of a neighboring building was left intact.