Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

About the Authors

1. An Introduction to Sustainability

1.1. Introduction

1.2. The Magnitude of the Sustainability Challenge

1.3. Energy

1.4. Materials Use

1.4.1. Minerals, Metals, and Organics

1.4.2. Water

1.5. Environmental Emissions

1.5.1. Ozone Depletion in the Stratosphere

1.5.2. Global Warming

1.5.3. Regional and Local Air Quality

1.5.4. Summary of Air Quality

1.5.5. Water Quality

1.5.6. Wastes in the United States

1.6. Summary

Problems

References

2. Risk and Life-Cycle Frameworks for Sustainability

2.1. Introduction

2.2. Risk

2.2.1. Definitions

2.2.2. Risk Assessment

2.2.3. Risk-Based Environmental Law

2.3. Life-Cycle Frameworks

2.3.1. Defining Life Cycles

2.3.2. Life-Cycle Assessment

2.3.3. Life-Cycle-Based Environmental Law

2.4. Life-Cycle Assessment Tools

2.4.1. Process-Based Life-Cycle Assessments

2.4.2. Input-Output LCA

2.4.3. Hybrid Approaches

2.5. Summary

Problems

Appendix: Readily Available Hazard References

References

3. Environmental Law and Regulation

3.1. Introduction

3.2. Nine Prominent Federal Environmental Statutes

3.3. Evolution of Regulatory and Voluntary Programs from End-of-Pipe to Pollution Prevention and Sustainability

3.4. Pollution Prevention Concepts and Terminology

3.5. Environmental Law and Sustainability

Problems

Appendix

References

4. Green, Sustainable Materials

4.1. Introduction

4.2. Environmental and Natural Resource Use Footprints of Material Extraction and Refining

4.3. Tracking Material Flows in Engineered Systems

4.4. Environmental Releases

4.4.1. Using Property Estimates to Evaluate Environmental Partitioning, Persistence, and Measures of Exposure

4.4.2. Direct Use of Properties to Categorize the Environmental Risks of Chemicals

4.5. Summary

Problems

References

5. Design for Sustainability: Economic, Environmental, and Social Indicators

5.1. Introduction

5.2. Sustainable Engineering Design Principles

5.3. Economic Performance Indicators

5.3.1. Definitions

5.3.2. Estimates of Environmental Costs

5.3.3. A Framework for Evaluating Environmental Costs

5.4. Environmental Performance Indicators

5.4.1. Life-Cycle Impact Assessment

5.5. Social Performance Indicators

5.6. Summary

Problems

Appendix

References

6. Case Studies

6.1. Introduction

6.2. Biofuels for Transportation

6.2.1. The Carbon Cycle and Biofuels

6.2.2. Feedstocks for Biofuels

6.2.3. Processing Routes for Biomass to Biofuels

6.2.4. Biofuel Life Cycles

6.2.5. Cautionary Tales and Biofuels

6.2.6. Summary of Sustainability of Biofuels

6.3. Transportation, Logistics, and Supply Chains

6.3.1. A Limited Life-Cycle Assessment of Garment Design, Manufacture, and Distribution

6.3.2. Alternatives for Garment Transport Logistics

6.3.3. Life Cycles, Materials Use, and Transportation Logistics of Running Shoes

6.3.4. Sustainability and Logistics

6.4. Sustainable Built Environments

6.4.1. Energy Consumed for Building Operation

6.4.2. Materials Use for Building Construction and Maintenance

6.4.3. Design of Buildings for Sustainability

6.4.4. Conclusions on Sustainability of Buildings

6.5. Additional Case Studies

References

Index