Materials and the Environment,
Edition 2 Eco-informed Material Choice
By Michael F. Ashby

Publication Date: 28 Mar 2012
Description
Materials and the Environment: Eco-Informed Material Choice, Second Edition, is the first book devoted solely to the environmental aspects of materials and their selection, production, use and disposal, by one of the world's foremost materials authorities. It explores human dependence on materials and its environmental consequences and provides perspective, background, methods, and data for thinking about and designing with materials to minimize their environmental impact.Organized into 15 chapters, this new edition looks at the history of our increasing dependence on materials and energy. It explains where materials come from and how they are used in a variety of industries, along with their life cycle and their relationship to energy and carbon. It also examines controls and economic instruments that hinder the use of engineering materials, considers sustainability from a materials perspective, and highlights the importance of low-carbon power and material efficiency. Furthermore, it discusses the mechanical, thermal, and electrical properties of engineering metals, polymers, ceramics, composites, and natural materials in relation to environmental issues. The volume includes new chapters on Materials for Low Carbon Power & and Material Efficiency, all illustrated by in-text examples and expanded exercises. There are also new case studies showing how the methods discussed in the book can be applied to real-world situations.This book is intended for instructors and students of Engineering, Materials Science and Industrial/Product Design, as well as for materials engineers and product designers who need to consider the environmental implications of materials in their designs.

Key Features

  • Introduces methods and tools for thinking about and designing with materials within the context of their role in products and the environmental consequences
  • Contains numerous case studies showing how the methods discussed in the book can be applied to real-world situations
  • Includes full-color data sheets for 40 of the most widely used materials, featuring such environmentally relevant information as their annual production and reserves, embodied energy and process energies, carbon footprints, and recycling data

New to this edition:

  • New chapter of Case Studies of Eco-audits illustrating the rapid audit method
  • New chapter on Materials for Low Carbon Power examines the consequences for materials supply of a major shift from fossil-fuel based power to power from renewables
  • New chapter exploring Material Efficiency, or design and management for manufacture to provide the services we need with the least production of materials
  • Recent news-clips from the world press that help place materials issues into a broader context.are incorporated into all chapters
  • End-of-chapter exercises have been greatly expanded
  • The datasheets of Chapter 15 have been updated and expanded to include natural and man-made fibers
About the author
By Michael F. Ashby, Royal Society Research Professor Emeritus, University of Cambridge, and Former Visiting Professor of Design at the Royal College of Art, London, UK
Table of Contents
Preface and acknowledgments1. Introduction1.1 Introduction and synopsis1.2 Materials: a brief history1.3 Learned dependency: the reliance on nonrenewable materials1.4 Materials and the environment1.5 Summary and conclusions1.6 Further reading1.7 Exercises2. Resource consumption and its drivers2.1 Introduction and synopsis2.2 Where do materials come from?2.3 Resource consumption2.4 Exponential growth and doubling times2.5 Reserves, the resource base, and resource life2.6 The materials-energy-carbon triangle2.7 Summary and conclusions2.8 Further reading2.9 Exercises3. The material life cycle3.1 Introduction and synopsis3.2 The design process3.3 The materials life cycle3.4 Life-cycle assessment: details and difficulties3.5 Streamlined LCA and eco-auditing3.6 The strategy3.7 Summary and conclusions3.8 Further reading3.9 Appendix: software for LCA3.10 Exercises4. End of first life4.1 Introduction and synopsis4.2 What determines product life?4.3 End-of-first-life options4.4 The problem of packaging4.5 Recycling—resurrecting materials4.6 Summary and conclusions4.7 Further reading4.8 Appendix: designations used in recycle marks4.9 Exercises5. The long reach of legislation5.1 Introduction and synopsis5.2 Growing awareness and legislative response5.3 International treaties, protocols, and conventions5.4 National legislation: standards and directives5.5 Economic instruments: taxes, subsidies, and trading schemes5.6 The consequences5.7 Summary and conclusions5.8 Further reading5.9 Exercises6. Eco-data6.1 Introduction and synopsis6.2 Data precision: recalibrating expectations6.3 The eco-attributes of materials6.4 Energy and CO2 footprints of energy, transport, and use6.5 Exploring the data: property charts6.6 Summary and conclusions6.7 Further reading6.8 Exercises7. Eco-audits and eco-audit tools7.1 Introduction and synopsis7.2 Eco-audits7.3 Computer-aided eco-auditing7.4 Summary and conclusions7.5 Further reading7.6 Appendix: eco-audit tools7.7 Exercises8. Case studies8.1 Introduction and synopsis8.2 Reusable and disposable cups Further reading8.3 Grocery bags Further reading8.4 An electric kettle8.5 A coffee maker8.6 An A-rated washing machine Further reading8.7 Ricoh imagio MF6550 copier Further reading8.8 A portable space heater8.9 Ceramic pottery kilns8.10 Auto bumpers—exploring substitution8.11 Family car—comparing material energy with use energy Further reading8.12 Computer-assisted audits: a hair dryer8.13 Summary and conclusions8.14 Exercises Exercises using the CES eco-audit tool9. Material selection strategies9.1 Introduction and synopsis9.2 The selection strategy: choosing a car9.3 Principles of materials selection9.4 Selection criteria and property charts9.5 Using indices for scaling9.6 Resolving conflicting objectives: trade-off methods9.7 Seven useful charts9.8 Computer-aided selection9.9 Summary and conclusions9.10 Further reading9.11 Appendix: deriving material indices9.12 Exercises Exercises using CES Edu Level 2 Eco10. Eco-informed materials selection10.1 Introduction and synopsis10.2 Which bottle is best? Selection per unit of function10.3 Systematic eco-selection: carbonated-water bottles10.4 Structural materials for buildings10.5 Initial and recurring embodied energy of buildings10.6 Heating and cooling (1): refrigeration10.7 Heating and cooling (2): materials for passive solar heating10.8 Heating and cooling (3): kilns and cyclic heating10.9 Transportation (1): introduction10.10 Transportation (2): crash barriers—matching material to purpose10.11 Transportation (3): materials for light weight structures10.12 Transportation (4): material substitution for eco-efficient design10.13 Summary and conclusions10.14 Further reading10.15 Exercises Exercises using the CES Edu software11. Sustainability11.1 Introduction and synopsis11.2 The concept of sustainable development11.3 The ecological metaphor11.4 Material sustainability11.5 Renewable materials11.6 Bio-derived materials11.7 Summary and conclusions11.8 Further reading11.9 Exercises12. Materials for low-carbon power12.1 Introduction and synopsis12.2 The resource intensity of power sources—the big picture12.3 Conventional fossil-fuel power: gas and coal12.4 Nuclear power12.5 Solar energy: thermal, thermoelectric, and photovoltaics12.6 Fuel cells12.7 Wind power12.8 Hydropower12.9 Wave power12.10 Tidal power12.11 Geothermal power12.12 Biomass12.13 Summary and conclusions12.14 Further reading12.15 Appendix 1: Definitions of properties12.16 Appendix 2: Approximate material intensities for power systems12.17 Exercises13. Material efficiency13.1 Introduction and synopsis13.2 What is the point of materials efficiency?13.3 Increasing material efficiency (1): engineering solutions13.4 Increasing material efficiency (2): legislation and social change13.5 What makes material efficiency difficult?13.6 Mechanisms to promote material efficiency13.7 Summary and conclusions13.8 Further reading13.9 Exercises14. The bigger picture14.1 Introduction and synopsis14.2 Material value14.3 Carbon, energy, and GDP14.4 Does GDP measure national wealth?14.5 Forces for change: threats14.6 Opportunities14.7 Summary and conclusions14.8 Further reading14.9 Exercises15. Material profiles15.1 Introduction and synopsis15.2 Metals and alloys15.3 Polymers15.4 Ceramics and glasses15.5 Hybrids: composites, foams, wood, and paper15.6 Man-made and natural fibersAPPENDIX. Useful numbers and conversionsA.1 IntroductionA.2 Physical constants in SI unitsA.3 Conversion of units, generalA.4 Stress and pressureA.5 Energy and powerA.6 FuelsA.7 Energy prices (2011 data)A.8 Further reading Index
Book details
ISBN: 9780123859716
Page Count: 628
Retail Price : £50.00
9781856174978; 9781856176637; 9781856177436
Audience
Students of Engineering, Materials Science and Industrial/Product Design; Materials & Industrial Engineers; Product Designers