PERK Corp.

Life Cycle Assessment

Pranav Pannala, Evan Colenbrander, Ryan Miller, Kaleb Ryan

 Table Of Contents

1. Goal Definition and Scope: Identify a product / process / technology; PERK

Corp. RoboBuddy

2. Inventory Analysis: Raw Materials

■ Sourcing

■ Manufacturing

■ Maintenance

3. Impact Assessment: Assess the potential human and ecological effects

■ Recycling

■ Environmental Impacts

4. LCA Infographic Diagram

5. Citations
 Goal Definition:

Problem: Young children are currently growing up without developing essential social skills and
manners.

Problem Definition: Increase children’s education in social skills and manners through the use
of an interactive product.

What is our product?

We will be developing the PERK Corp. RoboBuddy. This product will be an interactive child
friendly robot that will allow children to develop essential social skills.

Raw Materials

The RoboBuddy will be composed of two main raw materials: plastic and
rubber. The outer shell and interior parts for the RoboBuddy will be designed with
plastic and it will then be covered with a protective rubber shell.

Prototyping Materials: PLA Plastic Filament (Polylactic Acid)

PLA plastic will be used with a 3D printer to develop a product prototype. This plastic
type is easily available but it is not as strong as other types of plastic. We will use PLA
for prototyping and then use other plastic types for the final model.
PLA Plastic Specifics:

● PLA is a common plastic filament used for 3D printing

● Easier to print with at lower temperatures and a heated bed is not
required
● Environmentally friendly plastic
● Biodegradable plastic
● Warps in the heat
● Pretty strong but it can also be brittle
● Best use is for toys and figurines
● Don’t not use for components that will be put under high stress
●

Final Design Material: ABS Plastic Filament (Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene)

Our final design plastic will be ABS plastic. This type of plastic will last much longer
and is better suited for use on professional products.

ABS Plastic Specifics:

● Used for many products like LEGO bricks

● Stronger than PLA
● Worst for environment

Outer Shell Material: Silicone Rubber

The outer shell will be designed with silicone rubber. This material is used on many
other products like standard rubber wristbands. This covering will allow the harder
ABS plastic to be protected from damage and it will protect the consumers from
possible injuries.

Silicone Rubber Specifics:

● Durable
● Child friendly
● Easy to manufacture and shape
● Resistant to extreme environments between 70 to 570oF
● Used in many cooking and food storage products
● High resistance to oxygen, ozone, and sunlight attacks
 ● Low toxicity
● Low chemical reactivity
● Composed of silicon combined with carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen to form a
polymer

Sourcing / Distribution

Product materials can all be sourced online with online retailers like Amazon. With
an Amazon Prime account we can expect to get fast two day shipping for necessary
product materials.

Manufacturing

The 3D plastic components will be designed in OnShape. These components will

then be manufactured and printed on a 3D printer. Once the components are
completed, the electronic parts will be added to the 3D printed pieces. All the
components will be manually assembled to finish the RoboBuddy product.
 Usage and Maintenance

The maintenance work for the RoboBuddy will be very low. The only work the
consumer will need to do in order to maintain the device will be to add new
AA batteries whenever the old ones run out of charge. The only pollution from
the operation of the item will be the disposal of AA batteries. We can
encourage the consumers to use rechargeable AA batteries which will help to
offset some of the pollution. The materials that we will be using for the design
all have very long life spans. The silicone shell is excellent for protection
against sunlight and it is also water resistant to help preserve the product for
water damage. Compared to PLA plastic, ABS plastic is also much stronger
and can last a long time. This has been seen in products like LEGO bricks
which are manufactured with ABS plastic.

Recycling

ABS plastic can be recycled. It has been designated the recycling code 7 which means
it can be recycled to offset the carbon footprint of ABS plastic products. Silicone
cannot be recycled as easily and require specialized recycling companies to deal
with silicone waste. This means that silicone products will most likely end up in
landfills instead of being recycled. In addition most of the electronic components
inside the product cannot be recycled and the batteries cannot be recycled either. In
conclusion, while the plastic is recyclable, the combination of other components in
the product will most likely make it so that the RoboBuddy cannot be easily recycled.
 Environmental Impacts

ABS plastic is not as environmentally friendly as PLA plastic. PLA can be plant based
which makes it much more environmentally friendly. In contrast, ABS is oil based
which makes it less environmentally sustainable. Despite this, ABS is much more
durable and longer lasting than PLA plastic. This means that an ABS product will last
longer so the consumer will not need to repurchase the product as often. This limits
the amount of waste that goes into repeatedly manufacturing products that have
deteriorated. When analyzing the trade offs between a more green plastic and a
more durable plastic ABS is clearly the superior choice. The internal electronics of
our prototype, including the batteries, will end up in landfills therefore they will not
be recycled. Unfortunately, this will increase the carbon footprint of our product but
it would not be possible to avoid this. We do not estimate many, if any at all,
environmental impacts from the assembly of our prototype. Of course there will be
some carbon emissions in the manufacturing process for each of our parts, but it is
not possible to quantify these numbers as this information is not currently available
to us. In the future, however, if we were to make the parts ourselves, we would be
able to quantify our exact carbon output. At this time we have not yet determined the
volume of plastic required to make one product. In the future we will be able to find
exact numbers for the carbon emissions to produce one product when the amount
of plastic needed for each unit has been determined.
LCA Infographic Diagram
 Citations

Plastic Filament Research:

https://www.creativemechanisms.com/blog/everything-you-need-to-know-about-abs-plastic

https://airwolf3d.com/2017/07/24/strongest-3d-printer-filament/

https://3drific.com/abs-plastic-recycling-everything-you-need-know/

https://www.greenbiz.com/article/are-bioplastics-really-better-environment-read-fine-print#:~:text
=PLA%3A%20Conditionally%20compostable&text=Because%20it%20can%20be%20derived,is%20re
cyclable%2C%20biodegradable%20and%20compostable.

https://www.plasticresource.com/articles/why-choose-eco-friendly-cards.html#:~:text=Eco%2Dfrien
dly%20plastic%20options%20don,to%20recycle%20plastic%20than%20PVC.

Silicone Rubber Research:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silicone_rubber

https://omnexus.specialchem.com/selection-guide/silicone-rubber-elastomer

https://earthhero.com/silicone-the-plastic-alternative/#:~:text=However%2C%20silicone%20is%20r
arely%20recycled,lesser%20product%20like%20playground%20mulch).

Additional Resources:

https://www.amazon.com/ref=nav_logo

Image Sources:

https://waste4change.com/blog/7-types-plastic-need-know/

https://www.wired.com/story/lego-sustainable-bricks/#:~:text=It%20uses%2020%20different%20kin
ds,can't%20hope%20to%20replace.

https://airwolf3d.com/shop/evo-r-school-3d-printer/