Sustainable Design in Engineering

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Sustainable Design in Engineering

• ECE 0909.403 - Lecture 7a
• DfX Design for X, where X Environment
  Introducing Life Cycle Assessment
• 5 March 2002
• Peter Mark Jansson PP PE MScEng

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Aims

• Administration Upcoming Assignments
• TP 1 Grade Average - 84
• More on Life Cycle Assessment

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Admin - Schedule

• Next Thursday (14 Mar) Mid-Term 3.30
• 25 of Grade
• TR 2 due 4 April
• Final Project Presentations 25 Apr 2 May

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Admin TR 2 (9)

• Tech Brief of a Sustainable Design
• Due Thursday, 4 April, 2002, 330 PM
• Length (1,450 - 1,850 words)
• Topic   Detail a product or process that
  represents significant progress toward a
  sustainable design
• Approach Research a product or process
• Discuss the benefits/costs you have identified
• Assess Market potential or present market
  activity
• Formulate your own views of its significance or
  value and defend
• Format as an Issue Briefing

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Sources for TP 2

• http//www.greenpages.org/
• http//www.ecomall.com/
• http//www.sustainableproducts.com/susproddef.html
  
• http//www.ecosustainable.com.au/exchange.htm
• http//www.greenpeople.com/

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Final Project (30)

• Select Teams soon (2-3 per team)
• Select a SD Topic and get approval for scope by
  26 March 2002
• Sample Projects
• LCA of a creative/original design
• Case Study of a Corporation attempting SD
• Policy Paper on Important SD Issue
• Cost/Benefit Analysis of an Eco-efficient
  investmetn

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Final Project Format

• Team Technical Paper (10)
• 4 pages maximum (lt4,500 words)
• 2 column technical paper IEEE format
• 30 - minute Team Presentation (20)
• 25 minutes of Slides/Demo etc.
• 5 minutes QA

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What is LCA?

• A life cycle assessment is an environmental
  analysis of a product that includes
• Goal
• Scope
• Inventory
• Impact assessment
• Standards ISO 14040

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Some Definitions

• Product the device or process that is the
  functional unit defined for purposes of a LCA
• Product System the lifecycle of the product
  from material extraction, through manufacture,
  use and disposal (including associated
  sidestreams)

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Goal of an LCA

• Design of LCA depends upon
• Application
• Type of decision it is to support
• Who wants it done and why?
• Different applications / different timeframe
• Environmental labeling
• Product development

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Tasks of the Designer

• Create / develop solution options
• Prioritize and select from among options
• Assumes
• A business opportunity has been recognized and
  goals for the product or service have already
  been established

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Starting the Design Process

• Goals for the product create
• demands on the functions of the product
• Functions of product (see page 33)
• general service functions (concept)
• sub-functions (further analysis of options)
• structure, components and details

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Design Solution Space

• At top level many concepts and options
• Choices at each level very strongly narrow
  solution space within which decisions can be made
  (see Figure 5.2, page 34)
• Choices at general level have environmental
  significance AND choices at the underlying levels
  can be important as well

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Design Process Elements

• Idea (broad business concept, some goals, etc.)
• Analysis (general comparison of concepts and
  options)
• Specification (selection of general service
  functions and goals)
• Concept (specifying concepts that satisfy
  functions and goals)
• Details (selection of structures, components from
  many options)
• Establishment (selection of final details and
  manufacture)

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Design Process Example

• Idea (sustainable transport, profitability,
  vertical integration, etc.)
• Analysis (air, water, land, auto, rail, people,
  bulk, etc.)
• Specification (transporting people, vehicles and
  goods across the Sound in a profitable 10
  r.o.r. and sustainable way )
• Concept (ship, tunnel - rail, car bridge,
  aircraft, etc.)
• Details (selection of structures masts, sails,
  materials, etc.)
• Establishment (selection of final details and
  manufacture)

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Design Process Impacts on LCA

• Early Support of Designers Decisions
• Since key environmental decisions are made in the
  early phases of product development, key options
  must be identified early in the process reference
  products in EDIP enable this to be supported
• Level of Detail Suited to Purpose
• Actual product system is not known during product
  development (i.e., the products system processes
  and usage can not be determined until its
  operation phase which is after establishment)
• Therefore a probabilistic treatment in product
  development equate to potentials in environmental
  assessment

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Design for Environment

• Environmental considerations should be handled
  identically to other design considerations
• D f Cost
• D f Quality
• D f Feasibility of Manufacture
• D f Style
• Environmental considerations should not enjoy any
  special status or to displace / overshadow other
  considerations
• If D f Cost is lost, product will not be
  competitive
• D f Quality is lost, people will not buy the
  product again
• D f Feasibility of Manufacture, it must be easily
  constructed
• D f Style is lost, attractiveness and purchases
  will suffer

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Tasks of Designer

• Focusing identify what is most significant,
  which categories will most directly affect the
  overall environmental impacts of product
• Specification determining targets for the new
  product, assessing the focus areas identified
  above ranking them and setting environmental
  objectives
• Synthesis creating the product, including the
  product system. Creating an attractive product
  lifecycle, adapting the product to the systems
  with which it will interact (and, where possible,
  vice-versa)
• Verification ensuring the product and system
  complies with all environmental objectives

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Focusing

• Environmental assessment of references to
  establish a basic environmental knowledge of the
  product system which can be expected for the new
  product
• Environmental Diagnosis designate points of
  focus for the new product which the references
  point out as problematic, to localize where in
  the product these problems reside

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Environmental Assessment of References

• LCA Key queries-
• What is the service provided by product (what is
  functional unit)?
• Which processes are caused by this service (what
  is in product system)?
• How is product system delimited (which processes
  are essential)?
• Which environmental exchanges are attributable
  this product?
• What are impacts of these exchanges?
• How large are the contributions?
• Which impact potentials are most significant
  (MECO)?
• What are sources of most significant impact
  potentials?
• What are the knowledge gaps and what are most
  significant uncertainties?

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MECO

• Materials
• Materials consumption
• Processes
• Energy thermal and electric
• Chemicals ancillary and substances
• Others overhead and misc.

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Environmental Diagnosis

• LCA Key Queries-
• Which Changes to the reference product or its
  product system will have significant
  environmental consequences?
• Simulate theoretical changes and assess
• Simulate known alternatives and assess
• Where in the reference product do the
  environmental improvement potentials reside?
• Which alternative design solutions could be
  found?
• Where in the product (or surroundings) are the
  environmental improvement potentials most
  profound?

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Environmental Specification

• LCA Key Queries-
• What is the environmental competitive framework?
• What is the customers perception of the
  products environmental characteristics, and how
  do they rank them compared to other qualities?
• What is the environmental focus of the
  competitors?
• How do we assure validity of answers above during
  life?
• Which parameters have to be specified and what is
  ES?
• How are companys environmental policy and l-t
  goals for the product included in the
  specification?
• How are environmental considerations weighted
  against other considerations in the total
  commercial business optimization?

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Environmental Assessment / Synthesis

• Creation and analysis of Key Concepts
• Assess product concepts early in product
  development process
• Creation and analysis of Details
• Assess detailed solutions early in process

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Creating / Analyzing Key Concepts

• LCA Key Queries-
• What differences from Reference Product can be
  expected in the solutions for the chosen product
  concept, how great are they, and how broad is the
  solution expected to be?
• Within which of two alternative concepts can the
  most environmentally attractive solutions be
  found?
• Is it possible within the concept to find
  solutions which can be expected to comply with
  the environmental specifications?

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Creating / Analyzing Details

• LCA Key Queries-
• What environmental differences does the solution
  present compared to the reference product and how
  great are they?
• Which of two alternative design solutions is more
  environmentally attractive?
• Does the solutions comply with the environmental
  specification for the product?

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