Green engineering is the development and commercialization of industrial processes that are economically feasible and reduce the risk to human health and the environment. These principles, which were first outlined in 2003 in the American Chemical Society’s journal Environmental Science & Technology (2003, 37, 94A) by Paul T. Anastas and Julie B. Zimmerman, add an engineering perspective to the concepts of green chemistry.
Inherent Rather Than Circumstantial
Designers need to strive to ensure that all materials and energy inputs and outputs are as inherently nonhazardous as possible.
Prevention Instead of Treatment
It is better to prevent waste than to treat or clean up waste after it is formed.
Design for Separation
Separation and purification operations should be designed to minimize energy consumption and materials use.
Maximize Efficiency
Products, processes, and systems should be designed to maximize mass, energy, space, and time efficiency.
Output-Pulled Versus Input-Pushed
Products, processes, and systems should be “output-pulled” rather than “input-pushed” through the use of energy and materials. (For example, reactions can be driven by pulling out products rather than increasing inputs such as additional starting material or heat and pressure.)
Conserve Complexity
Embedded entropy and complexity must be viewed as an investment when making design choices on recycle, reuse, or beneficial disposition. (For example, it might be more economically and environmentally beneficial to dispose of highly complex products such as silicon computer chips rather than to attempt to recycle or reuse the material components.)
Durability Rather Than Immortality
Targeted durability, not immortality, should be a design goal.
Meet Need, Minimize Excess
Design for unnecessary capacity or capability (that is, “one size fits all”) should be considered a design flaw.
Minimize Material Diversity
Material diversity in multicomponent products should be minimized to promote disassembly and value retention.
Integrate Material and Energy Flows
Design of products, processes, and systems must include integration and interconnectivity with available energy and materials flows.
Design for Commercial “Afterlife”
Products, processes, and systems should be designed for performance in a commercial “afterlife.”
Renewable Rather Than Depleting
Material and energy inputs should be renewable rather than depleting.
SOURCE: American Chemical Society’s Green Chemistry Institute
Related Articles:
- The 12 Principles of Green Chemistry
- Is Bisphenol-A Safe or Not?
- Lifecycle Assessment by MTS
- Forget Carbon, Think Lifecycle
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Mario,
I admire and respect your commitment to this topic. Good work!
Thanks Lewis!
I think of it all in terms of business excellence through:
- Product Development
- Green and Lean Supply Chain Mgmt
- Holistic waste reduction
- Increased Customer Satisfaction
This leads to better sales, more competitiveness, and fewer negative environmental & social externalities.