Last Thursday, Dr. Julie Haack from the U of O’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry visited our class. Dr. Haack is the assistant department head, and the coordinator for the Green Product Design Network (GPDN). She presented on the topics of Green Chemistry and Life Cycle Analysis in the context of product design. Last term, I took a FIG class called Chemistry of Sustainability, which explored Green Chemistry and LCA in depth – while this course gave me a very strong understanding of these topics, Dr. Haack’s presentation gave me a new perspective on these concepts, through the lens of material and product design.
Green Chemistry (according to the EPA1) is design of chemical products and processes that reduce or eliminate the use or generation of hazardous substances. There are twelve basic principles of Green Chemistry2, which encompass the impact of chemical substances throughout the stages (design, manufacture, use, and disposal) of their lifetimes. The principles of Green Chemistry are:
- Prevention
- Atom Economy
- Less Hazardous Chemical Syntheses
- Designing Safer Chemicals
- Safer Solvents and Auxiliaries
- Design for Energy Efficiency
- Use of Renewable Feedstocks
- Reduce Derivatives
- Catalysis
- Design for Degradation
- Real-Time Analysis for Pollution Prevention
- Inherently Safer Chemistry for Accident Prevention
Life Cycle Analysis (as defined by the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center at the University of Illinois) is the systematic approach of looking at a product’s complete life cycle, from raw materials to final disposal of the product3. This type of analysis examines the environmental impact of a certain product or process by considering the major life cycle stages of that product or process. This approach can be used to evaluate the environmental impact of a single product, or compare the environmental sustainability of two or more comparable products.
After briefly explaining why these two topics are so crucial to sustainable product design, Dr. Haack led us through a series of thought-provoking activities. First, she divided us into groups and asked each group to rank a set of materials (polyester, wool, cotton, etc.) based on their overall environmental impact. As it turns out, many of the synthetic materials actually have a lower impact than many natural materials (due to food/water input when the plant or animal was alive)! After Dr. Haack explained how green chemists aim to create new materials that have minimal environmental impacts, she addressed the importance of appealing to consumers – without consumer appeal, even the most environmentally responsible materials are unsuccessful at improving the health of the environment. Dr. Haack showed us the Nike Making app4, which is a publicly available tool that compares and ranks different product materials based on different factors (water usage, energy expenditure, amount of waste, etc.). Using this information, we attempted to create visually aesthetic representations of the data in a way that would appeal to consumers.
These activities were very insightful – while Life Cycle Analysis and the Principles of Green Chemistry do not directly connect to my final project, these topics address the issue of environmental health, and the importance of natural processes. Ned Kahn (the artist I have been studying) also focuses on the importance and beauty of nature, but in a much different way. The modes of expression differ between Ned Kahn and green chemists, however they share a unifying theme of environmental concern. Both the art of Ned Kahn, and the visual display I am in the process of creating (a 3D model exhibiting the Fibonacci sequence) focus on the beauty and importance of natural patterns and processes. In this way, my work and the work of Ned Kahn are both indirectly related to the Principles of Green Chemistry and, more generally, appreciation and protection of the environment.
Works Cited:
1 McCarthy, Gina. “Green Chemistry.” EPA: United States Environmental Protection Agency. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Feb. 2015. <http://www2.epa.gov/greenchemistry/basics-green-chemistry>.
2 Exton, Deborah B. The Twelve Principles of Green Chemistry. Experiments in General Chemistry – Laboratory Manual. First ed. Plymouth, MI: Hayden-McNeil, 2016. VI. Print.
3 Williams, Aida Sefic. Life cycle analysis: A step by step approach. Champaign, IL: Illinois Sustainable Technology Center, 2009.
4 Nike Making. Computer software. Nikemakers.com. Vers. 3.0. Nike Inc., 15 May 2015. Web. 15 Feb. 2016.