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SUSTAINABLE ENGINEERING
What it is, How to do it
and How to measure it
Benoit Cushman-Roisin
ENGS-21
7 November 2008
Problems are all around us,
on land, in water and in the air.
And those are only the visible ones
When we see these things,
dont we need to rethink engineering?
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Engineering has spurred and led the industrial revolution. But, in
the process it has created important classes of problems, including:
Human exposure to toxics in food, air, water and soil
Rising demand for energy for transport, manufacturing,
heating & cooling
Depletion of non-renewable resources (petroleum, metals)
Excessive demand for water for consumption, agriculture, industry
Rising demand for land for housing, food production,
economic activities (production, retail, transportation)
Ever increasing number and size of landfills
Ecosystem damage and habitat loss due to pollutant discharges
Impact on global climate
and the litany goes on.
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Definition of Environmental Technology
(according to Bridge to a Sustainable Future, Clinton White House, April 1995)
An environmental technology is a technology that
- reduces human and ecological risks (better for us and nature, during production),
- enhances cost effectiveness (more for less money) ,
- improves process efficiency (more with less material and less energy) , and
- creates products and processes that are environmentally beneficial or benign
(better for us and nature, during use).
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There is currently no accepted definition of Sustainable Engineering,
but the concept may be encapsulated as follows:
Engineering in context
Engineering with a conscience
Engineering for a finite planet and the indefinite future
(and no the other way round!)
In our every deliberation we must consider the impact of our decisions on the
next seven generations from the Great Law of the Iroquois Confederacy and
used as lead inspiration by the Seventh Generation Company.
Three main challenges:
1. What are the main principles of Sustainable Engineering
and how can they be applied to solve the problems?
2. Where should the boundaries lie? Boundaries are critical because
the wrong scale can hide critical links.
Ex: switching from steel to lightweight composite in an automobile
can boost fuel efficiency but break the recycling system.
So, it would seem that the wider the better, but how wide?
3. How can Sustainable Engineering be taught to the next generation
of engineers? Modules in existing courses? New courses?
New curriculum?
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Traditional Engineering:
Considers the object
Focuses on technical issues
Solves the immediate problem (now)
Considers the local context (user)
Assumes others will deal with
politics, ethics & societal issues
Sustainable Engineering:
Considers the system in which
the object will be used
Integrates technical and non-
technical issues
Strives to solve the problem for
the indefinite future
Considers the global context
(planet)
Acknowledges the need for
engineers to interact with experts
in other disciplines related to the
problem
A few examples of Sustainable Engineering (SE):
The Navajo Bridge in Arizona:
Simple bridge across Marble Canyon but fierce opposition from local
native tribe and Bureau of Land Management
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Solution:
- Talk with all entities involved
before designing anything
- Design with these constraints
in mind: respect for land,
functionality, long term,
aesthetics, etc.
The new Navajo Bridge in Grand Canyon National Park is the only crossing of the Colorado River
for a stretch of 600 miles. The $15 million steel arch bridge carries traffic across Marble Canyon,
470 feet above the Colorado River. The 1929 Navajo Bridge remains a pedestrian bridge. High
strength steel was used in the new bridge in order to be visually compatible with the historic bridge
and its setting.
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Designing a new computer infrastructure:
(http://www.cs.cmu.edu/pics/campus/images/servers.jpg)
- Traditional engineering:
Focus on performance
- Sustainable Engineering:
How will widespread use
impact electricity demand
and electronics recycling?
Designing a new arsenic-based wood preservative:
(Photo: Beauchemin Lumber)
- Traditional engineering:
How effective is it in my wood product?
- Sustainable Engineering:
How will wide use affect the
construction industry?
How will the chemical affect
demolition waste/recycling?
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Traditional engineering:
How can I make a tire that better
resists sand abrasion and heat?
Sustainable Engineering:
Where will all the rubber for this
come from?
Where will all these tires go
at the end of their useful life?
Some tools are already available:
- Eco-Industrial Parks (EIPs)
- Pollution Prevention (P2)
- Design for Environment (DfE)
- Life-cycle Assessment (LCA)
- Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED)
and more tools could be developed:
- Total Cost Accounting
- Sustainability Indicators
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Eco-Industrial Parks:
Basic idea: Mimic nature by gathering industrial activities in one location to
promote interactions and close-loop practices, like in natural ecosystems.
Systems
thinking
required !
Flow resources in the
integrated biosystem
of Montford Boys
Town in Suva, Fiji
Pollution Prevention:
Basic idea: Avoid waste pollution in the first place, as much as possible
3P at 3M
Pollution Prevention Pays,
since 1975
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Example from 3M: The manufacture of Scotch
tape
plastic film primer
adhesive
primer
backing
4 layers, each using a solvent for its application !
One of 3Ms primary strategies for continuing to reduce air emissions has been the
development of solventless technologies, for a variety of products including tapes.
Some new processes are hot-melt technology, ultraviolet curing and caustic wash
materials.
Design for Environment:
Basic idea: Include environmental considerations at the very beginning of
the design process, together with performance, manufacturability, cost and
safety.
Considerations:
- Less material
- Less material variety
- Recycled materials
- Recyclable materials
- Ease of disassembly
- Less energy consumption
- Longevity
- Modularity
etc.
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Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA):
Basic idea: Consider the entire product
cycle from cradle to grave (procurement
of raw materials, manufacture,
distribution, use and disposal)
Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED):
Basic idea: Guidelines to build green buildings
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental
Design (LEED) Green Building Rating Systemis
the nationally accepted benchmark for the design,
construction, and operation of high performance
green buildings.
Rendering of new Life Sciences Center
at Dartmouth College
LEED provides a roadmap for measuring and documenting success for every building
type and phase of a building lifecycle.
LEED promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing
performance in five key areas of human and environmental health: sustainable site
development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials selection, and indoor
environmental quality.
LEED gives building owners and operators the tools
they need to have an immediate and measurable
impact on their buildings performance.
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Well, that was all about HOWto design and build stuff.
But, WHAT should we actually build?
What should be our priorities?
To start answering this last question, let us consider where the
biggest impacts are. A good place to start is energy consumption.
Indeed, energy consumption is related to many environmental
problems, some upstream (depletion of non-renewable energy
sources & oil spills) and some downstream (air pollution and
greenhouse gases).
Energy consumption thus serves as a good proxy for overall
environmental impact.
A look at how we
consume energy in the
United States is quite
telling.
Two things stand out:
- Heating, ventilation
and air conditioning of
buildings
- Road transportation.
~1/3
~1/3
~1/3
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A regenerative building?
Want to know more about this?
Take ENGS-44 Sustainable Design
A green vehicle?
Want to know more about this? Take ENGS-171 Industrial Ecology
(http://www.fair-pr.com/meet-aae/grove2005/exhibition.php)
One answer: Fuel-cell engines
with a hydrogen economy
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Measuring the
environmental impacts
of your designs:
A basic life-cycle approach
Charts of Okala millipoints
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An application example
of the Okala method:
Button vs. Zipper?
So, which one is better for the environment?
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A closing thought:
Engineering is not just an activity, it is a profession.
A profession rises above an occupational specialty by including both
- The cultivation of specialized knowledge, and
- The use of that knowledge toward the Common Good.
(Daniel R. Lynch, 2006)
Reminder: Thayer School exists
to prepare the most capable and faithful for the
most responsible positions and the most difficult
service. Sylvanus Thayer
