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Idealistic visions of the future or realistic solutions?
Published in Peter Joore, Guido Stompff, Jeroen van den Eijnde, Applied Design Research, 2022
We try to apply this approach at the Frisian Design Factory located in the former Blokhuispoort Prison in Leeuwarden. Here, students, lecturers and professionals cooperate on solving complex challenges related to energy, water, food or healthcare, as presented in Figure 3. One of such examples in which we work at the level of the societal ecosystem is a collaboration with various stakeholders on the Frisian or Wadden Islands. Together with local authorities and entrepreneurs in the hospitality industry, students are working on the ambition to make the islands completely plastic-free. Innovations include the use of durable materials such as biodegradable plastics, but the project focuses even more on avoiding the use of plastics altogether. One of the ways we try to achieve this is by using ‘nudging’: designing the environment so that visitors are more or less seduced to display the desired behavior. We do this, for example, by making reusable products much more accessible compared to the less desirable disposable products.14
The changing role of minerals in society
Published in Sumit K. Lodhia, Mining and Sustainable Development, 2018
Mining extracts minerals from higher states of entropy in geological environments. However, manufactured uses of these elements raise their entropy again. Energy in the form of extraction technologies as well as labor are then required to extract the metals back from their product use at the end of the product cycle. The viability of reuse and recycling of minerals in the stockpile of products is dependent on the durability of the product itself and the recoverability of the material. From a purely resource use minimization perspective it would be more sustainable to have a durable product than having to remanufacture disposable products. However, if one considers the broader systems ecology of material usage, calibrating stocks and flows of minerals with rising demand, based on population or development, one has to consider whether durability of the product would necessitate more mining at the expense of recycling. For example, if we make more durable aircraft but there is still a greater demand for them, the metal locked in their existing stock would not be available for recycling, and hence mining of the metal would become necessary.
Industrial Engineering for Sustainability
Published in Adedeji B. Badiru, Tina Agustiady, Sustainability, 2021
Adedeji B. Badiru, Tina Agustiady
Anything that can be thrown away should be thought about before purchasing. Think about disposable products such as plastic cups, plastic bags, napkins, and paper plates. Whenever a reusable source can be used, it should be used. Cloth napkins can cut down on the excessive usage of paper napkins. Also, the plastic bags given at grocery stores normally end up in the trash. Consider taking your own bags with you to recycle the use. Newspapers should always be recycled; 36 million trees a year could be saved if everyone recycled their newspaper every day.
Feasibility of thermal disposal masks in domestic waste incinerators: a study on the combustion characteristics, gaseous pollutant emissions characteristics and control of masks
Published in Energy Sources, Part A: Recovery, Utilization, and Environmental Effects, 2023
In December 2019, the first case of viral pneumonia of unknown origin was identified in China. Subsequently, the World Health Organization (WHO) later named viral pneumonia of unknown origin as novel coronavirus pneumonia (COVID−19) (Chen et al. 2020). Due to the transmission of novel coronaviruses through droplets generated from the respiratory tract of individuals (Zhou et al. 2020), there has been an unexpected increase in the demand for disposable medical masks for personal safety purposes to protect the general population, infected individuals, and healthcare practitioners (Klemeš et al. 2020). Tadele Assefa Aragaw predicted that approximately 129 billion masks and 65 billion plastic gloves were used and discarded globally in 2020 (Aragaw and Mekonnen 2021). Disposable medical masks typically consist of biodegradable plastic materials, whereas masks are made of polymeric materials that are difficult to decompose in the environment and may take 450 years to disintegrate (Fadare and Okoffo 2020; Zhang et al. 2021.). Consumption and mishandling of medical waste will increase plastic pollution, and disposable plastics have been identified as the principal source of microplastic waste in the environment (Schnurr et al. 2018). While the current capacity of centralized medical waste disposal facilities in China is far from meeting the current demand, there is an urgent need to find new environmentally sound disposal routes for noninfectious medical waste such as masks.
High molecular weight chitosan based particles for insulin encapsulation obtained via nanospray technology
Published in Drying Technology, 2022
Cecilia Prudkin-Silva, Jimena H Martínez, Florencia Mazzobre, Cinthya Quiroz-Reyes, Erwin San-Juan, Eduardo San-Martín, Oscar E. Pérez
Particle size distribution and ζ-potential measurements were carried out using a Zetasizer Nano-Zs particle analyzer (Malvern Instruments, Worcestershire, UK), as proposed by Murueva et al.[29] and Pérez et al.[30] The particle size determination was performed on the mixed INS-CS feeding solution, i.e. before injecting INS-CS mixed solutions (pH 3) into the nanospray dryer. Measurements were also performed in INS-CS NP re-hydrated at different pH values (in the range 3–11). This study allowed characterizing the INS-CS NP in terms of size and electrokinetic potential as detailed in Section 3.4. Each measure consisted of 10 runs. All samples were analyzed with an angle of 173°, at 25 °C. Samples were contained in a disposable polystyrene cuvette. Size distribution, expressed in volume and number, was considered to determine the relative importance of each peak.[31]
Municipal solid waste recycling: Impacts on energy savings and air pollution
Published in Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association, 2021
Mahdi Farzadkia, Amir Hossein Mahvi, Abbas Norouzian Baghani, Armin Sorooshian, Mahdieh Delikhoon, Razieh Sheikhi, Qadir Ashournejad
After that, with literature review, the recycling facts about waste components (paper, aluminum, and glass) were used to assess environmental benefits and energy savings of waste recycling as shown in Table 1. For example, according to Williams (2005), the environmental benefits of recycling 1 ton equates to reducing emissions of 266.26 kg of air pollution (particulates, CO2, and H2S). Furthermore, more emphasis has been placed on recycling the three components of aluminum, paper, and glass because recycling those components in three different scenarios can significantly decrease air pollutant emissions and increase income from selling recycled paper and paperboard (El-Fadel, Findikakis, and Leckie 1997; Farzadkia, Dalvand, and Taghdisi 2008; Huang and Lin 2008; Norouzian Baghani et al. 2016; Tınmaz and Demir 2006; Suplido and Ong 2000; Alavi et al. 2017; Chang, Huang, and Masanet 2014., Perrot and Subiantoro 2018; Mohsenizadeh, Tural, and Kentel 2020). However, recycling facts about waste components such as plastic carrier bags, metal, disposable plastic containers, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and others are not available to assess environmental benefits and energy savings of waste recycling.