MEC241

ENGINEERING SUSTAINABLE
DEVELEOPMENT

Unit - 3

Green and Sustainable

Materials
Introduction
• Sustainable Material or Green Material refers to
the material which are both :
• Environmentally Responsible
• Resource-Efficient throughout a material life
cycle.
• A sustainable material is any material that can
be put to effective use in the present without
compromising its availability for use by latter
generations. These are mainly renewable
materials or the materials which can be recycled
and reused.
 Types of Natural Resources
On the basis of origin, natural resources may be divided
into two types:
Biotic — Biotic resources are obtained from the
biosphere (living and organic material), such as forests
and animals, and the materials that can be obtained
from them. Fossil fuels such as coal and petroleum are
also included in this category because they are formed
from decayed organic matter.
Abiotic – Abiotic resources are those that come from
non-living, non-organic material. Examples of abiotic
resources include land, fresh water, air, rare earth
metals and heavy metals including ores such as gold,
iron, copper, silver, etc.
Considering their stage of development, natural
resources may be referred to in the following ways:
Potential resources — Potential resources are those that
may be used in the future—for example, petroleum until
drilled out and put to use remains a potential resource
Actual resources — Those resources that have been
surveyed, quantified and qualified and, are currently
used—development, such as wood processing, depends
on technology and cost
Reserve resources — The part of an actual resource that
can be developed profitably in the future
Stock resources — Those that have been surveyed, but
cannot be used due to lack of technology—for example,
hydrogen
Many natural resources can be categorized as either
renewable or non-renewable:
Renewable resources — Renewable resources can be
replenished naturally. Some of these resources, like
sunlight, air, wind, water, etc, are continuously available
and their quantity is not noticeably affected by human
consumption. They replenish easily compared to Non-
renewable resources.
Non-renewable resources – Non-renewable resources
either form slowly or do not naturally form in the
environment. Minerals are the most common resource
included in this category. By the human perspective,
resources are non-renewable when their rate of
consumption exceeds the rate of
replenishment/recovery; a good example of this are
fossil fuels,
SOURCES OF SUSTAINABLE
MATERIALS
Two main sources of sustainable materials are the
materials from:
• RENEWABLE SOURCES: Materials significantly of
plant origin. Can be obtained from renewable
sources like solar energy, wind energy, bio-gas etc.
E.g.: wood, natural fibers, polymers etc.
• REUSE FROM WASTE: They are typically the products
of recycled matter. Materials that can be dismantled
and reused again. E.g.: old plumbings, doors, crushed
glass, wood chips etc.
Indicators for Sustainability
An indicator is something that helps you understand
where you are, which way you are going and how far you
are from where you want to be. A good indicator alerts
you to a problem before it gets too bad and helps you
recognize what needs to be done to fix the problem.
Indicators of sustainability are different from traditional
indicators of economic, social, and environmental
progress. Traditional indicators -- such as stockholder
profits, asthma rates, and water quality -- measure
changes in one part of a community as if they were
entirely independent of the other parts. Sustainability
indicators reflect the reality that the three different
segments are very tightly interconnected, as shown in the
figure below:
 Traditional vs. Sustainability
Indicators
Environmental Indicators
Emphasis of Sustainability
Traditional Indicators Sustainability Indicators Indicators
Ambient levels of pollution in Use and generation of toxic Measuring activities causing
air and water materials (both in production pollution
and by end user) Vehicle miles
traveled
Tons of solid waste generated Percent of products produced Conservative and cyclical use
which are durable, repairable, of materials
or readily recyclable or
compostable
Cost of fuel Total energy used from all Use of resources at sustainable
sources Ratio of renewable rate
energy used at renewable rate
compared to nonrenewable
energy

Traditional Indicators
Median income Per capita
income relative to the U.S.
average
Unemployment rate Number
of companies Number of jobs
size of the economy as
measured by GNP and GDP
Economic Indicators
Sustainability Indicators Emphasis of Sustainability
Indicators
Number of hours of paid What wage can buy Defines
employment at the average basic needs in terms of
wage required to support basic sustainable consumption
needs
Diversity and vitality of local Resilience of the job
job base Number and market Ability of the job
variability in size of market to be flexible in times
companies Number and of economic change
variability of industry
types Variability of skill levels
required for jobs
Wages paid in the local Local financial resilience
economy that are spent in the
local economy Dollars spent in
the local economy which pay
for local labor and local natural
resources Percent of local
economy based on renewable
local resources

Traditional Indicators
SAT and other standardized
test scores
Number of registered voters
Social Indicators
Emphasis of Sustainability
Sustainability Indicators
Indicators
Number of students trained for Matching job skills and training
jobs that are available in the to needs of the local economy
local economy Number of
students who go to college and
come back to the community
Number of voters who vote in Participation in democratic
elections Number of voters process Ability to participate in
who attend town meetings the democratic process
Characteristics of Effective
Indicators
• Effective indicators are relevant; they show you
something about the system that you need to know.
• Effective indicators are easy to understand, even by
people who are not experts.
• Effective indicators are reliable; you can trust the
information that the indicator is providing.
• Lastly, effective indicators are based on accessible
data; the information is available or can be gathered
while there is still time to act.
Ecological footprint
• The ecological footprint measures human demand on
nature, i.e., the quantity of nature it takes to support people
or an economy. It tracks this demand through an ecological
accounting system.
• The ecological footprint is defined as the biologically
productive area needed to provide for everything people
use: fruits and vegetables, fish, wood, fibers, absorption of
carbon dioxide from fossil fuel use, and space for buildings
and roads.
• Ecological footprint analysis is widely used around the Earth
in support of sustainability assessments. It enables people to
measure and manage the use of resources throughout the
economy and explore the sustainability of individual
lifestyles, goods and services, organizations, industry
sectors, neighborhoods, cities, regions and nations
Environmental Mass Balance
It assesses the amounts of energy and resources
used (inputs) and the amounts of greenhouse
gas and other emissions (outputs) in all stages of
a product’s lifecycle, from procurement of raw
materials to its use. The obtained mass balance
data is used for reducing the environmental
impact of its business activities.
Materials Life Cycle
Figure below is a sketch of the materials life cycle. Ore,
feedstock, and energy are drawn from the planet's natural
resources and processed to produce materials. These are
further processed to create the materials that are
subsequently manufactured into products, which are
distributed, sold, and used. Products have a useful life at the
end of which they are discarded; a fraction of the materials
they contain might enter a recycling loop, the rest is
committed to incineration or landfill.
Energy and materials are consumed at each point in the life
cycle of Figure, depleting natural resources. There is an
associated penalty of carbon dioxide, C02, oxides of sulfur, SOx
and of nitrogen, NOx and other emissions in the form of
gaseous, liquid, and solid waste and low-grade heat.
Material Selection for Sustainable
Design
Sustainability Considerations:
• Useful life cycle
• Overall Energy footprint
• Module Design
• Design for Reusability
• Design for Disassembly
• Separation Techniques
• Ease of reuse and or recycling at the component or
sub-assembly level.
Tracking Material Flows
Material tracking should be done:
• Material tracking on a warehouse level
• Precise to the centimetre in the coordinate
system
• Vehicle location and vehicle tracking
• Integration of vehicle sensors
Individual part tracking
Continual material tracking across the whole transport
and storage area, with the integration of production
units
• Conveying equipment (manipulators, conveyors,
rollers, lifting beams)
• Transport routes of forklift trucks and cranes
• Area storage, block storage, high rack storage,
cantilever storage, flow driven storage etc.
• Transfer stations between the storage areas
• Loading areas
• Production units
On a material location level
All material units (pallet, coil, sheet, container, slab,
box, etc.) are allocated to the current storage location.
The layout of the warehouse (storage space structure)
can be freely configured.
The following diagram clarifies the configurable storage
structure and the relationships between the individual
storage objects.
Position Recording with Precise Coordinates

Example forklift truck position

recording

Example crane position

recording
Position recording via
• The position sensor of the crane itself
• Differential GPS
• LPR® by Symeo
• Optical vehicle positioning by Zeno Track
Validated receipt of goods
Combined with continual vehicle position detection,
and the connection of sensors on lifting equipment,
material movements can be recorded automatically.
Alternatively, or in addition to this, the collection of
goods can be validated via barcode scan or RFID.
Traceability
All transports, all warehousing, removals from
warehouse and relocations, all transfer locations and all
units, which a material and / or product has to go
through in the production and logistics processes, are
traceable via the appropriate evaluation functions, with
all recorded parameters (storage location, vehicle,
driver, time, wait time, status etc.).
Waste Management
What is a Waste?
Waste (also known as rubbish, trash, refuse, garbage,
junk, litter, and ort) is unwanted or useless materials. In
biology, waste is any of the many unwanted substances
or toxins that are expelled from living organisms,
metabolic waste; such as urea and sweat
What is disposal?
Any operation which may lead to resource recovery,
recycling, reclamation, direct re-use or alternative uses
is called disposal.
Kinds of Waste
Solid wastes: wastes in solid forms, domestic,
commercial and industrial wastes
Examples: plastics, Styrofoam containers, bottles,
cans, papers, scrap iron, and other trash

Liquid Wastes: wastes in liquid form

Examples: domestic washings, chemicals, oils, waste
water from ponds, manufacturing industries and other
sources
Classification of Wastes according
to their Properties
Bio-degradable
(can be degraded (paper, wood, fruits and others)

Non-biodegradable
(cannot be degraded (plastics, bottles, old machines,
cans, Styrofoam containers and others)
Classification of Wastes according
to their Effects
Hazardous wastes
Substances unsafe to use commercially, industrially,
agriculturally, or economically and have any of the
following properties- ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity &
toxicity.

Non-hazardous
Substances safe to use commercially, industrially,
agriculturally, or economically and do not have any of
those properties mentioned above. These substances
usually create disposal problems.
Classification of Wastes according
to their origin and type
Municipal Solid wastes:
Solid wastes that include household garbage, rubbish,
construction & demolition debris, sanitation residues,
packaging materials, trade refuges etc. are managed by
any municipality.
Bio-medical wastes:
Solid or liquid wastes including containers, intermediate
or end products generated during diagnosis, treatment
& research activities of medical sciences.
Industrial wastes:
Liquid and solid wastes that are generated by
manufacturing & processing units of various industries
like chemical, petroleum, coal, metal gas, sanitary &
paper etc.
Agricultural wastes:
Wastes generated from farming activities. These
substances are mostly biodegradable.
Fishery wastes:
Wastes generated due to fishery activities. These are
extensively found in coastal & estuarine areas.
Radioactive wastes:
Waste containing radioactive materials. Usually these
are byproducts of nuclear processes. Sometimes
industries that are not directly involved in nuclear
activities, may also produce some radioactive wastes,
e.g. radio-isotopes, chemical sludge etc.
E-wastes:
Electronic wastes generated from any modern
establishments. They may be described as discarded
electrical or electronic devices. Some electronic scrap
components, such as CRTs, may contain contaminants
such as Pb, Cd, Be or brominated flame retardants.
Sources of Waste

Households

Commerce and Industry

Waste Hierarchy
Waste hierarchy refers to 3 Rs:
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
Reduce Waste

- Reduce office paper waste by implementing a formal

policy to duplex all draft reports and by making
training manuals and personnel information available
electronically.
- Improve product design to use less materials.
- Redesign packaging to eliminate excess material
while maintaining strength.
- Work with customers to design and implement a
packaging return program.
- Switch to reusable transport containers.
- Purchase products in bulk.
Reuse

- Reuse corrugated moving boxes internally.

- Reuse office furniture and supplies, such as
interoffice envelopes, file folders, and paper.
- Use durable towels, tablecloths, napkins, dishes,
cups, and glasses.
- Use incoming packaging materials for outgoing
shipments.
- Encourage employees to reuse office materials
rather than purchase new ones.
Donate/Exchange
- old books
- old clothes
- old computers
- excess building materials
- old equipment to local organizations
Employee Education
- Develop an “office recycling procedures” packet.
- Send out recycling reminders to all employees
including environmental articles.
- Train employees on recycling practices prior to
implementing recycling programs.
- Conduct an ongoing training process as new
technologies are introduced and new employees join
the institution.
- education campaign on waste management that
includes an extensive internal web site, quarterly
newsletters, daily bulletins, promotional signs and
helpful reference labels within the campus of an
institution.
Conduct outreach program adopting an
ecologically sound waste management system
which includes:
• waste reduction
• segregation at source
• composting
• recycling and re-use
• more efficient collection
• more environmentally sound disposal
Residents may be organized into small groups
to carry out the following:

1. construction of backyard compost pit

2. construction of storage bins where recyclable and
reusable materials are stored by each household
3. construction of storage centers where recyclable
and reusable materials collected by the street
sweepers are stored prior to selling to junk dealers
4. maintenance of cleanliness in yards and streets
5. greening of their respective areas
6. encouraging others to join