NHM 2408: Sustainability Audit and Eco-Design Project Report

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AI Summary
This mechanical engineering project presents a sustainability audit conducted on a product assembly, analyzing three components across their lifecycle phases, including material sourcing, design, manufacturing, usage, maintenance, and end-of-life disposal. The project employs software tools like CES EduPack and SolidWorks to assess environmental impacts, focusing on carbon footprint, embodied energy, and recyclability. It identifies good and bad practices in product design and manufacturing, proposing changes to enhance sustainability and reduce environmental degradation. The analysis includes numerical data and graphical representations to quantify the benefits and consequences of the proposed changes, aiming to provide recommendations for reducing embedded energy and improving overall product sustainability. Desklib provides access to this project and similar resources for students.
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MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
By Name
Course
Instructor
Institution
Location
Date
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ABSTRACT
The designs that are very responsible normally aims at ensuring that there is provision of affordable
services that are safe as well as ensuring that there is minimized drain on the resources. In the event that
this provision is strictly observed, the release of the unwanted materials and emissions can be greatly
reduced. This can be actually achieved through the performance of the ongoing eco-audit of the design.
Also the redesign of the product in the process can be helpful. In the learning more about engineering
materials and other processes of manufacturing, it is important to use tools that assist in making decision
leading to the minimization of adverse eco-impacts. Carbon footprint and Embodied energy, toxicity and
fraction of the recycling have connections with the ecosystem. These require careful consideration of
Product Lifecycle assessment that is commonly known as PLA. This should be combining with the thermal,
mechanical and electrical properties. These properties are known to have greater effect on the design when
it comes to the minimization of the eco-impact. This particular project aims at evaluating the impacts and
importance of including activities of design using software on the projects of engineering that is related to
environment.
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List of Tables
Table 1………… Product properties summary.
Table 2…………Consumption of energy and generation of carbon dioxide for every 1kg model.
Table 3…………Amount comparison in reference to Squeeze “A”
Table 4……… Energy consumption and CO2 generation among the six models that were studied in
connection to life that is estimated from the highest end.
Table 5………… Energy Analysis of a squeeze component.
Table 6………… Components summary
List of Figures
Figure 1: Rational approaches used in Eco-design.
Figure 2: Chart of comparison of the 3 products analyzed in the connection with the consumption of the
energy.
Figure 3: Graphical analysis of the energy consumption.
Figure 4: Manufacturing and generic design flow chart illustrating material cost reduction.
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Contents
ABSTRACT......................................................................................................................................................................2
List of Tables..............................................................................................................................................................3
List of Figures.............................................................................................................................................................3
BACKGROUND...............................................................................................................................................................4
Product exploration & problem definition including identification on commercial and other constraints............4
INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................................................................6
Good and Bad practices.........................................................................................................................................6
Justification and Identification of the components of the product........................................................................7
METHODS...................................................................................................................................................................... 9
Specification of numerical analysis criteria................................................................................................................9
Phase 1: Assembly and Data collections..............................................................................................................10
Phase 2: Placing of data in the software..............................................................................................................10
Phase 3: Data Analysis.........................................................................................................................................11
RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS.........................................................................................................................................12
Analysis of the effect of applied eco-techniques (before and after change)............................................................12
Quantification of benefits and consequences of proposed changes for manufacturer...........................................18
CONCLUSION...............................................................................................................................................................19
RECOMMENDATIONS..................................................................................................................................................22
Reduction in the embedded energy.....................................................................................................................22
Statement for each Component..............................................................................................................................24
Overall assessment of changes as a whole and recommendations stemming from this work................................25
REFERENCES.................................................................................................................................................................27
APPENDIX.................................................................................................................................................................... 30
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BACKGROUND
Product exploration & problem definition including identification on commercial and other
constraints
In the past years, there has been use of two software packages in the assessment of the impact. These have
been Cambridge Engineering Selector (CES EduPack of 2013 and the already existing software of
Solidworks of 2013.The SolidWorks 2013 package has sustainability of “addin” functions that have been
evoked to assist in the provision of relevant tools. These tools enable meeting of complex product
requirements of the design process. This has been useful in exploration and learning of science behind
eco-design in an environment that is sustainable. Unlike SolidWorks software whose evaluation
environmental sustainability affect the actual design in the entire life cycle of the product, CES EduPack
sustainability database package helps in the provision of a computer-based resource in the assessment of
articulations connected to the sustainability technology(Nguyen & Martin 2015).
It is therefore recommended that the results be compared so as to ensure that solutions for sustainability of
the product and environment are achieved. The approach of CES has been studied and properly put in use
in majority of the engineering projects. In summary of the results, learners have become specifically
incorporated in the advanced in the activities of the research. The characteristics of engineering education
have become very complex and dynamic as well. This implies that the colleges and the universities should
be in continuous review of the outcome that is expected. This will always ensure that the skills gained are
relevant to the current global environment. The properties of the present program of engineering should
include the following: Innovative, local and global focus, flexible, collaborative, and accountable and being
market driven. In the case of the global focus, efforts are aimed at acquired knowledge which is accepted
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globally and at the same time regional concerns helps in understanding of the local economy of the targeted
area (Pereira & Fredriksson 2015).
Adaptability in educational program will take into consideration speedy change to adjust to current
circumstances and make the procedure straightforward. In Drexel University's College of Engineering-
Engineering Technology (ET) division, numerous courses identified with configuration, fabricating forms,
green assembling and building materials are offered to the understudies in the Bachelor of Science in
Engineering Technology. Courses, for example, Robotics and Mechatronics, Quality Control,
Manufacturing Materials, Microcontrollers, and Applied Mechanics can profit by the lab involvement in
uses of supportability and eco-design just as material and procedures demand.
Also in helping of training of the professional engineering to get the necessary skills in the design, it is
important to consider the whole field of science. Understudies in the Mechanical, Electrical, Industrial and
Biomedical fields alongside numerous others can take in numerous new abilities from contextual analysis
ventures for example, structuring and manufacturing different purchaser items, machines and gear. Such
ventures tell understudies the best way to utilize diverse kinds of innovation, and exhibit how cutting-edge
innovation can be utilized in a real application. This task discusses ingraining future specialists and
technologists with different propelled aptitudes and instruments that can be utilized in their
professions(Zhou et al 2016).
In general, various fields of designing can profit by the cutting edge instruments and applications,
empowering the improvement of ability and information in a wide range of designing viewpoints and
procedures. Current educational program procedure shows building ideas particularly from supportability
ideas. These practical storehouses are a relic of days gone by in industry and understudies must most likely
prevail in an entire scientific or technical condition which requires frameworks for handling.
Even though projects such as, "green assembling" as well as "green/sustainable power source producing"
exist in ET educational program, understudies are not instructed to take a gander at the natural effects of
choices in a conventional building course(Tamaldin, Yamin, Abdollah, Amiruddin & Abdullah 2013).
Also, numerous open schools and colleges are most certainly not furnishing the majority of their alumni
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with the basic reasoning, critical thinking, and versatile abilities, counting science, innovation, designing,
and math skills, required to meet the requirements of employers. With the end goal for organizations to
contend in the worldwide commercial center, bosses of the current century will actually require specialists
alongside the customary building structure aptitudes with new and present day aptitudes in maintainability,
eco structure and review just as the capacity to work in multi-disciplinary groups. Carbon footprint and
Embodied energy, toxicity and fraction of the recycling have connections with the ecosystem.
These require careful consideration of Product Lifecycle assessment that is commonly known as PLA. This
should be combining with the thermal, mechanical and electrical properties. These properties are known to
have greater effect on the design when it comes to the minimization of the eco-impact. This particular
project aims at evaluating the impacts and importance of including engineering design based activities in
majority of the projects.
INTRODUCTION
Good and Bad practices
All the activities of the human have got some consequential impacts on the environment people live. Also
the environment normally has some capacity of the absorption that basically make the impacts not to be
felt as such or to prevent a damage that is lasting. From the records available on the weather stations and
meteorological departments it is actually clear that the threshold for this particular requirement has been
exceeded by some substantial degree of accumulation. This kind of the accumulation is actually threatening
the wellbeing of the environment in general. The main source of this kind of the pollution is generated from
the manufacturing industries, the use and disposal of the products that are not organic in nature.
The consumption of the materials in the countries like the United States of America has exceeded almost 10
tonnes per individual every year. The average level of the consumption in the whole world is actually b8
times lower than these components. As the innovation increases, the products of production are
characterized by the end leads to accumulation of wastes thus the volume of the garbage and landfills
increases. Also the fact that the goods have reduced service life leads to the wastes accumulation. Attention
of the researchers has been focused on the study of the best alternatives of product disposal that do not
contribute to the environmental degradation(Pereira & Fredriksson 2015).
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The industrial design activities have helped in the provision of tools majorly focused on the sustainability
hence contributing to the design methods of the ancient times. One of the commonly used tools is the
analysis of Life Cycle Assessment, LCA. The LCA has several software alternatives and different design
methods. Through the LCA program, there are proper understanding of the best alternatives of the process
and the materials for product selection. In the last one to two decades, there has been significant
consideration of supportable items and programs from customers, ventures and governments all around.
While value, usefulness, accommodation are the customary integral factors in a designing choice, it has
been accounted for that 65% of employers and around 25% of employees are happy to pay a premium for
an increasingly reasonable arrangement. Emphasis is on structuring items that are reasonable in a setting
that won't interfere with the coming generations. Society currently hopes to engineers to address the short
and long haul issues managing maintainable advancement, prototyping, and fabricating. Inside the most
recent decade, organizations have been called upon to perform such errands as moderation of gas
discharges, and decrease of carbon emission(Yu et al 2014). In the course of the most recent couple of
years in specific, there have been phenomenal calls for society to both alleviate ozone depleting substance
emanations, and to adjust to a modified atmosphere routine, the nature of which will be reliant on the
degree of mitigation.
Amid the 2007 Global Sustainability Forum on the future for designing training it was recognized that "the
same old thing model”, where benefits precede maintainability, is completely wrapped up. We currently
have a window of ten to 15 years to receive a practical methodology before we achieve a worldwide tipping
point, the time when humanity loses the capacity to direction development and improvement. One of the
major nations activities advancing energy proficient items and practices, Energy Star, was presented in
1992 by the Environmental Protection Agency to secure the condition by empowering the utilization of
energy effective items, empowering both vitality use and cost decrease.
In 2007, the program was assessed to have spared $16 billion. The European Association (EU) for
example, in 2001, created expansive key orders with the point of tending to atmospheric change and
energy, transportation, creation, and security of normal assets. A portion of the mandates coming from this
activity incorporate the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment activity in which every country needed
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to set target focuses for gathering, reusing and recuperation of electronic items. In 2005, the Eco-structure
of Energy-utilizing Products order set up rules for eco-structure to encourage exchange inside EU nations
without directions turning into a hindrance.
Justification and Identification of the components of the product
In any case, this present pattern regularly makes circumstances that create clashing qualities. For precedent,
the impacts of saving mileage and making recyclability frequently struggle with conventional wanted item
traits, for example, material consistency, accommodation and execution. One specific concern is cost;
numerous clients pick items with low ecological quality because of cost contemplations. Moreover,
structuring these new eco-accommodating, green items includes a vast interest in research and plan, and
still, after all that, the result is still unsure. As designing engineer, it is expected that the capacity to work in
an interdisciplinary condition is a critical idea to confer among our understudies. The designs that bare very
responsible normally aims at ensuring that there is provision of affordable services that are safe as well as
ensuring that there is minimized drain on the resources.
In the event that this provision is strictly observed, the release of the unwanted materials and emissions can
be greatly reduced. This can be actually achieved through the performance of the ongoing eco-audit of the
design. Also the redesign of the product in the process can be helpful. In the learning more about
engineering materials and other processes of manufacturing, it is important to use tools that assist in making
decision leading to the minimization of adverse eco-impacts (Silva, Fry & Arimoto 2012).
Thusly, a great deal of consideration is directed to services of the building as well as community oriented
classrooms for the study. Such points are very basic that the Accreditation Board of Engineering
Technologies, (ABET) emphatically energizes collaboration in the educational program. ABET-ETAC
necessitates that designing innovation programs show that graduates can structure a framework, part, or
procedure to meet wanted requirements and a capacity to work on multi-disciplinary groups. Moreover,
ABET perceives this can't be educated in one course; it is an affair that must develop with the understudies
improvement.
In this particular project work the key purpose was to carry out reflection on material selection in Life
Cycle Assessment, assisting in the presentation of the studies of LCA that has been generated within most
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universities that embrace science of sustainability and conservation of environment. The studies focused on
the examination of one kind of the product, squeeze bottle model. The main component of this particular
product is cap and the bottle section. There was performance of a comparative analysis of the product using
at least six models. The main aim was to link practice and theory, enhancing the integration of learners with
the concept and applied tools to the sustainability. This made it possible for the early understanding in the
course of the phase of the design required in the life cycle of the product. The project was considered useful
in equipping the learner with relevant skills and the roles of a designer in connection to the future
sustainable events. Such illustrated results show importance and complexity in the selected materials that
are known to support sustainability processes.
METHODS
Specification of numerical analysis criteria.
In most cases, good projects depends on the factors like manufacturing processes, accurate information
about the materials, measurements of the environmental impacts among other factors. The most
fundamental move in project development is selection of the suitable material.
Going forward engineering decisions that need to be made in connection to the design, development and
implementation are normally characterized with lots of uncertainty. This implies that it will never be
possible to make a decision that is actually linear. Therefore iterations, compromises and feedbacks will be
relied upon so as to arrive at a conclusion that is favorable. In the cases where there are lots of
uncertainties, the expectation of any engineer will be reliance on the past experience considering there will
be lack of effective training for decision making(Ren & Su 2014). Incorporating manageability issues into a
conventional Engineering Technology courses requires that learners fuse issues of sustainability into their
critical thinking aptitudes while considering the more extensive issues, for example, wellbeing, target
costing, designing norms and financial avocation.
ET program ought to give access to the mechanical information yet additionally have leaners managed the
chance to apply this in planning hard arrangements. The up and coming age of architects needs to
reconsider their basic mentalities towards a more extensive, different viewpoint approach in which issue
detailing and setting assume an imperative job in achieving consensual solutions. Conventional undergrad
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building programs are more than 130 credit hours and are not structured to deal with any extra credit hour
increment that would be required by incorporating new educational module segments in regards to
maintainability angles(Vakhitova & Fredriksson 2013). As leaners it was expected of us to be graduates
equipped with the specialized capability important to prevail in their field just as the business insight and
aptitudes important to work adequately with other colleagues.
Figure 1: Rational approaches used in Eco-design
The methods that were employed during the learning period was broken down into 3 stages.
Phase 1: Assembly and Data collections
Assembly of the product components
Identification of various components, the used material and the processes as well
Weighing of the digital scale of each and every components
Information research on different materials from the website of manufacturer in the cases where there are
no proper identification on the products.
Research on materials of recycled properties and putting of data in the software.
Phase 2: Placing of data in the software
-Entering the amount and material of each component considered a varying percentage from 0-100%.This
extended from the weight, the process of the primary and the final destination of the component itself. The
last point which acts as stage of the parts included processes of burning at high temperature, using again,
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down cycle recycling and finally remanufacturing. It was initially used in the cases of the perceived ideas
and finally the research on the potential final component in the required context. -Introduction of various
types of transport alongside their distances to every phase of the life cycle. This has been done in
connection to the concepts that utilizes the same system of transport.
-Placing of cost of energy that is actually involved within product application stage. For the activities
involving the cooling process, the spent predicted utility index was well planned.
-Analysis process involved Squeezes of various models as illustrated in the table below. These models were
chosen by the team members through placement of the used products.
Figure 1b : Placing data on software
Table 1: Product properties summary
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