Investigation topic 4: The sustainability of a commercial product or material
In Australia, new materials that are useful for society tend to be produced through a linear economy in which products are purchased, used and then thrown away. Increasingly, manufacturing companies are moving towards a circular economy, which seeks to reduce the environmental impacts of production and consumption while enabling economic growth through more productive use of natural resources and creation of less waste.
Research questions that may be explored in this investigation include:
· Examine the life cycle of a new product or material: for example, unbreakable glass inspired by seashells; new nanomaterials for the treatment of skin infections; and ultra-thin self-healing polymers to make water-resistant coatings. What is the relationship between the properties, structure and the nature and strength of the chemical bonding in the product or material? What are the raw materials used to make the product or material? How is the product or material manufactured? How are the by-products of production treated and managed? Is the product recyclable? Can any wastes during production or at the end of the product’s use be repurposed into a useful product or material?
Product life cycle
Cutting Edge:Life Cycle. (2023). Cornell.edu. https://courses.cit.cornell.edu/cuttingedge/lifeCycle/02.htm
Product Life Cycle Assessment and Sustainability
Schelly, C. (2019, October 29). Life Cycle Assessment and Sustainability | Sustainability Blog. Sustainability Blog. https://blogs.mtu.edu/sustainability/2019/10/29/life-cycle-assessment-and-sustainability/
Product Life Cycle Assessment Methodology
2.4. Life Cycle Assessment | EME 807: Technologies for Sustainability Systems. (2020). Psu.edu. https://www.e-education.psu.edu/eme807/node/690
CASE EXAMPLE : unbreakable glass inspired by seashells
Unbreakable: New Material Inspired By Seashells Is A Shatterproof Glass
Barak, N. (2023, June 13). Music World Gets Startup Nation Upgrade, Using AI Of Course. Zenger News. https://www.zenger.news/2021/09/29/unbreakable-new-material-inspired-by-seashells-is-a-shatterproof-glass/
Unbreakable glass inspired by seashells
Science X. (2021, September 28). Unbreakable glass inspired by seashells. Phys.org; Phys.org. https://phys.org/news/2021-09-unbreakable-glass-seashells.html
Centrifugation and index matching yield a strong and transparent bioinspired nacreous composite
Centrifugation and index matching yield a strong and transparent bioinspired nacreous composite. (2021). Science. https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abf0277
Technorites. (2021). Unbreakable GLASS Made from Nacre [YouTube Video]. In YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kopYBXrJ6Dg&t=1s
What is the relationship between the properties, structure and the nature and strength of the chemical bonding in the product or material?
The properties of a material depend upon the bonding between the atoms and structure of the substance. Different types of chemical bonds and their varying intensity are directly responsible for some of the physical properties of minerals such as hardness, melting and boiling points, solubility, and conductivity.
Read about it here.
Production waste
World, C. (2014). Introduction to Cradle to Cradle [YouTube Video]. In YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMsF1P-_vWc&t=192s
The concept of reduce, reuse, recycle as "less bad" and the goal of C2C as "100% good." They acknowledge that the 3 Rs (reduce reuse recycle) are better than the linear resource use model, but that they will not solve our long term resource and waste problems because there is still some waste, and because the global population is still growing. If C2C were fully implemented, the entire system of design and manufacturing of goods would be reconfigured. In other words, it requires systemic change.
Read more here.
Waste Management Strategies | EM SC 470: Applied Sustainability in Contemporary Culture. (2013). Psu.edu. https://www.e-education.psu.edu/emsc470/node/700
CASE EXAMPLE: new nanomaterials for the treatment of skin infections
Synthetic tissue can repair hearts, muscles, and vocal cords
McGill University. (2022, February 7). McGill Institute for Advanced Materials. https://www.mcgill.ca/miam/article/synthetic-tissue-can-repair-hearts-muscles-and-vocal-cords
Reza Alipoor, Ayan, M., Hamblin, M. R., Ranjbar, R., & Somaye Rashki. (2022). Hyaluronic Acid-Based Nanomaterials as a New Approach to the Treatment and Prevention of Bacterial Infections. 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2022.913912
New nanomaterial for treatment of skin infections
Science X. (2021, September 30). New nanomaterial for treatment of skin infections. Phys.org; Phys.org. https://phys.org/news/2021-09-nanomaterial-treatment-skin-infections.html
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT. (2016). Engineering a second skin [YouTube Video]. In YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AkpT5BihMio
Purdue Engineering. (2016). Electronic Bandages or “Bio-patches” are new biomedical technology [YouTube Video]. In YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYRebHNi6p4
Read more here.
