IB Design Technology ~ Topic 2 [Resource Management and Sustainable Production]

Renewability

The level at which a resource is renewable. The rate that a resource can be replenished.

Renewable Resource

A natural resource that can replenished with the passage of time, or does not abate at all.

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.

Reserves

Natural resources that have been identified in terms of quantity and quality.

Reuse (Re-use)

Reuse of a product in the same context or in a different context.

Recycle

Using the materials from obsolete products to create other products.

Repair

The reconstruction or renewal of any part of an existing structure or device.

Recondition (Refurbish)

Rebuilding a product so that it is in an “as new” condition, by repairing it, cleaning it, or replacing parts.

Re-engineer (Reengineer)

Significantly redesigning a product from its original form, with improved engineering.

Waste Mitigation Strategies

Strategies used to reduce the waste produced by a product or in the production and disposal of a product.

Dematerialization

The reduction of total material and energy throughput of any product and service.

Product Recovery Strategies

The processes of separating the component parts of a product to recover the parts and materials.

Linear Economy

An economy based on the make, use, dispose model.

Circular Economy

An economy model in which resources remain in use for as long as possible, from which maximum value is extracted while in use, and the products and materials are recovered and regenerated at the end of the product life cycle.

Recovery of Raw Materials

Strategies for the separation of components of a product in order to recover raw materials.

Waste to Energy (WtE)

A form of energy production that generates electricity through the treatment (usually combustion) of non-recyclable waste.

WEEE Recovery (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive)

Addresses the complex issue of recycling waste electronics by improving the collection, treatment, and recycling of these materials at their end of life.

Embodied Energy

The total energy required to produce a product.

Energy Utilization

The method with which energy is used.

Energy Storage

The method with which energy is stored for later use.

Energy Distribution

The method with which energy is transported from a source to where it is used.

National and International Grid Systems

An electrical supply distribution network that can be national or international. International grids allow electricity generated in one country to be used in another.

Local Combined Heat and Power (CHP)

Simultaneously generates heat and power for a local community, either through the combustion of fuel, or a solar heat collector. The plant is close enough to the community so that the heat generated can be dispersed through the community efficiently.

Individual Energy Generation

The ability of an individual to use devices to create small amounts of energy to run low-energy products.

Quantification of Carbon Emissions

Defining numerically the carbon emissions generated by a particular product.

Battery

A device consisting of two or more electrochemical cells that convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy.

Capacitator

An electronic component that temporally stores electrical energy.

Capacity

The amount of electric charge it can deliver (measured in amp-hours).

Mitigation of Carbon Emissions

Humans intervention in the reduction of carbon emissions.

Lithium Polymer (LiPo)

A type of battery made of manganese dioxide, lithium, and copper. High relative cost, high efficiency, low environmental impact.

Lead Acid

A type of battery made of lead sulphate and lead. Low relative cost, low efficiency, high environmental impact.

Lithium Ion (Li-Ion)

A type of battery made of manganese dioxide, lithium, and copper. Medium relative cost, high efficiency, low environmental impact.

Nickel Cadmium

A type of battery made up of nickel oxide-hydroxide, cadmium, potassium hydroxide. Medium relative cost, medium efficiency, high environmental impact.

Clean Technology

Products, services or processes that reduce waste and require the minimum amount of non-renewable resources.

Legislation

Laws considered collectively to address a certain topic.

Incremental Solutions

Products which are improved and developed over time leading to new versions and generations.

Radical Solutions

Where a completely new product is devised by going back to the roots of a problem and thinking about a solution in a different way.

End-of-pipe Technologies (End of pipe Technologies)

Technology that is used to reduce pollutants and waste at the end of a process.

System Level Solutions

Solutions that are implemented to deal with the whole system, rather than just components.

Green Design

Designing in a way that takes account of the environmental impact of the product throughout its life.

Green Legislation

Laws and regulations that are based on conservation and sustainability principles, followed by designers and manufacturers when creating green products.

The Prevention Principle

The avoidance or minimization of producing waste in relation to the production, use and disposal of a product.

The Precautionary Principle

The anticipation of potential problems in relation to the environmental impact of the production, use and disposal of a product.

Eco-Design (Eco Design)

A design strategy that focusses on three broad environmental categories - materials, energy, and pollution/waste.

Cradle to Grave

A design philosophy that considers the environmental effects of a product all of the way from manufacture to disposal.

Cradle to Cradle

A design philosophy that aims to eliminate waste from the production, use and disposal of a product. It centres on products which are made to be made again.

Life Cycle Analysis (LCA)

The assessment of the effect a product has on the environment through five stages of its life: pre-production; production; distribution (including packaging; utilization; and disposal.)

Design for the Environment Software

Software that allows designers to perform Life cycle analysis (LCA) on a product and assess its environmental impact.

Converging Technologies

The synergistic merging of nanotechnology, biotechnology, information and communication technologies and cognitive science.

Product Cycle (Product Life Cycle)

A cycle that every product goes through from introduction to withdrawal or discontinuation.