Topic 2- Resource Management and Sustainable Production Flashcards
Circular economy
An economy model in which resources remain in use for as long as possible in a closed loop.
Clean technology
Products, services or processes that reduce waste and require minimum amount of non-renewable resources.
Combined Heat and Power (CHP)`
A system that simultaneously generates heat and electricity from either the combustion of fuel, or a solar heat collector.
Converging technologies
The synergistic merging of nanotechnology, biotechnology, information and communication technologies and cognitive science.
Cradle to cradle
A design philosophy that aims to eliminate waste from the production, use and disposal of a product.
Cradle to grave
A design philosophy that considers the environmental effects of a product all of the way from manufacture to disposal.
Dematerialization
The reduction of total material and energy throughout production of any product and service.
DfE Software
Software that allows designers to perform Life cycle analysis (LCA) on a product and assess its environmental impact.
Eco design
A design strategy that focuses on three broad environmental categories - materials, energy, and pollution/waste.
Embodied energy
The total energy required to produce a product.
End-of-pipe tech
Technology used to reduce pollutants and waste at the end of a process
Green design
Designing in a way that takes account of the environmental impact of the product throughout its life.
Individual energy generation
The ability of an individual to use devices to create small amounts of energy to run low-energy products.
LCA (analysis)
The assessment of the effect a product has on the environment through five stages of its life.
Product life stages
pre-production, production, distribution, utilization, disposal
Linear economy
Economy based on the make, use and dispose model
Local CHP
CHP plants that generate heat and power for a local community
Non-renewable resource
A natural resource that cannot be re-made or re-grown as it does not naturally re-form at a rate that makes its use sustainable, for example, coal,
petroleum and natural gas
Non-renewable resource
A natural resource that cannot be re-made or re-grown as it does not naturally re-form at a rate that makes its use sustainable, for example, coal,
petroleum and natural gas
Product recovery strategies
The processes of separating the component parts of a product to recover the parts and materials.
Recondition
Rebuilding a product so that it is in an “as new” condition
Recovery of raw materials
Strategies for the separation of components of a product in order to recover raw materials.
Recycling
using the materials from obsolete products to create other products.
Re-engineer
To redesign components or products to improve their characteristics or performance.
Renewable resource
Resource that can be replenished over time
Repair
Renewal of any part of an existing structure or device
Reserves
Natural resources that have been identified in terms of quality and quantity.
Re-use
Reuse of a product in the same context or in a different context.
System level solutions
Solutions that are implemented to deal with the whole system, rather than just components
Precautionary principle
The anticipation of potential problems in relation to the environmental impact of the production, use and disposal of a product.
Prevention principle
The avoidance or minimization of producing waste in relation to the production, use and disposal of a product.
Waste mitigation strategies
Strategies used to reduce the waste produced by a product or in the production and disposal of a product.
