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ENVIRONMENTAL TOOLS FOR MATERIAL AND PROCESS SELECTION
Citation:
SMITH, R. L. ENVIRONMENTAL TOOLS FOR MATERIAL AND PROCESS SELECTION. Presented at Materials Science & Technology 2005 Conf. & Expo, Pittsburgh, PA, September 25 - 29, 2005.
Impact/Purpose:
To inform the public.
Description:
A number of tools are being used within the Sustainable Technology Division of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to provide decision-makers with information on environmentally favorable materials and processes. These tools include LCA (Life Cycle Assessment), GREENSCOPE (a green chemistry and engineering tool under development), MFPPT (Metal Finishing Pollution Prevention Tool), and PARIS II (Program for Assisting the Replacement of Industrial Solvents). Of these tools LCA considers the broadest range of environmental stressors, including upstream and downstream effects of decisions. GREENSCOPE looks at individual processes and evaluates a chemistry or technology at the bench scale to give the earliest possible signal of potential improvements in sustainability. When studying specific metal finishing processes, the MFPPT tool can be used to simulate the effects of various design and operating choices. Finally, PARIS considers the chemical and physical properties of various solvents to identify possible replacements.