Questions and Answers of Sustainable Engineering

Consider a water heater meant to increase the temperature from 25 οC to 100 οC. A manufacturer advertises the heater as 80 percent efficient. This is the first law efficiency, which means that 20
Explain why the exergetic efficiency of a process is less than 100 percent even when its energy efficiency is 100 percent.
A domestic boiler heating system is heating the outside air at 5 οC up to 20 οC with 80 percent first law efficiency. Determine the second law efficiency of this system. Draw the corresponding
What is the lost work in a perfectly reversible process?
A compressed air system stores the energy generated by solar panels on the company buildings' rooftops during the weekend for use during the week. The generated electricity over the weekend is used
Explain the large difference in the energy and exergy efficiencies of an electric heater.
Calculate the second law efficiency of the reaction CH4 + 2H2O → CO2+ 4H. Here, hydrogen is the useful product.
Calculate the CO2 equivalents for the atmosphere before 1750 and in 2013 using the data in Table 11.7. Use a 100-year time horizon. Identify the largest contributors to the increase in GWP, and
This problem considers the possibility of generating power from the concentration gradient between CO2 in industrial emissions and the ambient atmosphere. 1. Flue gas from a coal-fired power plant
What are Scope 1, 2, and 3 footprint calculations?
Many universities across the world have committed to becoming carbon neutral within the next few decades. This is encouraging many efforts to reduce waste such as the "My Cup" program, where the
An economic input-output model is represented by the following equations: For throughputs of x1 = $200 and x2 = $400, sector 1 uses 50 L rainwater and 20 L of river water, and emits 100 kg of CO2
What is the net overshoot of CO emission and sequestration in the USA?
What is the meaning of the term "embodied carbon in trade"?
Why does the GWP of CO2 remain constant over time, that of CH4 decreases, and that of SF6, increases?
What is virtual water? How is it related to the water footprint?
A typical data center, housing servers for cloud computing, consumes 7 MWh of electricity per year. The company plans to develop five new data centers, with one each in New England, the Northwest,
Electric cars are considered by many to be environmentally friendlier than cars with a conventional internal combustion engine. An electric sedan can travel 100 miles using 34 kWh of electricity. A
The quantity of natural gas (CH4) produced in the USA in 2015 was 28 trillion cubic feet. Net emissions of methane to the environment during this production were 6.4 million metric tons. The emission
A small town withdraws water from the local river and disinfects it before delivering it to its residents. Most residents own reverse osmosis water purification units, which are used for producing
A farmer uses 10,000 L of water to produce 100 kg of biomass and 25 kg of food product. The farming process also uses 2 kg of CH4 as fuel and emits 15 kg of CO2 and 0.5 kg of N20. The harvested
Many utilities have programs to encourage energy-efficient use of electricity. These include incentives to consumers to use more efficient light bulbs and home appliances. In the state of California,
Does a Sankey diagram take into account the first and second laws of thermodynamics?
On the plains of Africa, the Thomson's gazelle is a favorite prey of cheetahs. Consider a gazelle that, if caught, will yield a calorific value of 1000 kcal to the hunting cheetah. Determine how far
Why does the EROI have to be larger than 1 for a system to be energetically feasible?
Are the following innovations examples of win-win or win-lose situations? Answer from the point of view of the specified entities. 1. Catalytic converters in cars, from the perspectives of
Reductionist research has contributed tremendously to improving the efficiency of lighting technologies. However, the total energy consumed for lighting has not decreased. Details about this are
An unintended outcome of the use of plastics is ocean pollution and its impact on marine life. Would it be fair to argue that this problem is the result of reductionist thinking? Suggest a holistic
Have the warnings about unsustainability of human activities like those in Box 7.1. Affected the cultural narrative? Why or why not? Box 7.1: BOX 7.1 Examples of Warnings from Scientists about
Explain the cognitive dissonance in today's society.
Give two examples of cases in which the cultural narrative has undergone dramatic change.
How does E. O. Wilson explain human unwillingness to respond to unsustainable activities?
Describe a communication strategy that will enable the acceptance of energy-efficient technologies across the political spectrum.
The cultural narrative has changed quite drastically in most parts of the world with regards to some human activities. How did this change occur for smoking? Was there a tipping point or threshold
Explain the attitude of viewing wilderness as cursed land and its impact on ecological degradation.
The finding that British children were more familiar with Pokémon species than natural species alarmed many. Learn about the game Phlo (http:// phylogame.org), to answer the following questions. 1.
Is it fair to consider modern ethics and philosophy as anthropocentric? Justify your response.
Restoration of wetlands can help reduce nutrient runoff and harmful algal blooms like those that occur on Lake Erie (Figure 4.5). A year-long restoration project is estimated to cost $10 million. It
Give one example each of a positive and negative economic externality.
Which discount rate will result in a higher present value of a future benefit, 3 percent or 10 percent?
Contaminated soil in a region that used to be an industrial site is leaching pollution into the local environment, including the ground water. Treating this soil is estimated to cost $750 million.
Provide one example of a resource that lacks perfect substitutes.
In a free market, the marginal cost (M) of a commodity in $/kg may be modeled as M = 7Q, where Q is the quantity produced in kilograms. The demand for this commodity is related to its price (P) as P
Read the article at https://nyti.ms/2jKdgKK and answer the following questions. 1. Which businesses are approaching the challenge of addressing climate change as a benefit to their economic bottom
One of the assumptions of free market economics is perfect substitutability. 1. Is it possible to find substitutes for all types of goods and services? Illustrate your answer with examples and a
With bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotics, there is an urgent need to develop new antibiotics. However, most drug companies are not working in this area because to maintain the effectiveness of
In February 2015, the city of So Paulo, Brazil, home to 20 million people, was running out of water. According to an article at https://nyti .ms/2jKb99w, one of the reasons for this dire situation in
A strategy followed by some corporations for reducing their corporate carbon dioxide emissions has been to sell the divisions that emitted most CO2 per unit of product and buy the raw materials
How did industry react to the environmental impact of DDT?
What was Friedman's view about environmental protection?
What view did Porter put forth about environmental protection?
Give two examples of "win-win" industrial innovation.
If you visit the sustainability pages of any automotive manufacturer's website or browse through their sustainability reports, you will see many indications of the company's seriousness toward
What fraction of companies consider sustainability strategies essential for being competitive?
Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) is a chemical that does not occur naturally but has many industrial uses. Its derivative, perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS), was used in the product ScotchGuard
From the history of chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants, the ozone hole, and industry's reaction to it, do you see parallels between this and the reaction of some industries to the science of climate
Many corporations are striving toward "net positive impact" of their activities. One such example is that of beverage manufacturers who have been encouraging practices that reduce water use and
Describe the role of corporations in the problem of plastic pollution. Suggest actions that corporations or industry groups could take to address this scourge. Describe examples of such efforts and
Characteristics identified as essential in future corporate efforts toward sustainability include "collaborating at scale" and "extreme transparency." Describe these approaches and the barriers
What has been the traditional attitude of engineering toward ecosystems?
The development of high-yielding crop varieties has been an active area of research for many years. It has resulted in various hybrid varieties that have played an important role in the green
Give two examples each of reductionist and holistic thinking.
The Haber-Bosch process produces ammonia (NH3) by means of the following reaction: N + 3H 2NH3. For a process to be economically feasible, 98 percent of the hydrogen moles fed to the entire system
Provide some advantages and disadvantages of reductionist research.
The "Game of Life" developed by John Conway consists of live or dead squares on a grid. It is implemented by some simple rules, such as the following. For a square that is alive or populated, - a
Give an example of emergent behavior.
The Twelve Principles of Green Chemistry shown in Box 17.2 were developed to incorporate sustainability considerations in chemistry. Discuss at least three of these principles in terms of whether
What did the six blind men consider the elephant's trunk to be? Why?
The Everglades in Florida used to be a large, slow-moving body of water between Lake Okechobee and the Atlantic Ocean. These wetlands were drained, starting from about 1850, to develop farmland and
Coastal regions of the world where rivers meet the ocean are constantly undergoing gain and loss of land due to the deposition of sediment carried by rivers and to erosion, respectively. The loss of
Mosquitoes are responsible for spreading many deadly diseases in the world, such as malaria, dengue fever, and the Zika virus. One technology proposed to address the spread of such mosquito-borne
Describe some similarities and differences between gross domestic product and the human development index. Why is the latter index considered to be a better indicator of human well-being?
Define economic, societal, and ecosystem goods and services, with examples of each.
Identify some economic, societal, and ecosystem services that the following systems depend on, and describe the dependence: (a) A coal-burning power plant; (b) Driving a car; (c) Intensive
How has the poverty rate changed since 1990?
Consider a typical single-family dwelling that consists of a house surrounded by a yard. Identify some of the ecosystem services that the yard could provide to the residents of the house and to the
What are Biospheres 1 and 2?
The triple value concept conveys that it is important for corporations to consider economic, social, and environmental goals in their decisions. Do companies consider goals in these three categories
What roles do ecosystems play in our feeling of well-being?
Give examples of how the following activities rely on cultural ecosystem services: (a) The use of logos by corporations; (b) Religious and spiritual practices; (c) Recreational activities.
What are the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations? Do they account for the critical role of ecosystems in human well-being?
Which ecosystem goods and services did the residents of Easter Island depend on for building their statues? How did the loss of these goods and services contribute to their demise?
Identify some ecosystem services for which technological substitutes are not yet available. Will we be able to develop technological substitutes for these services?
Search the health literature to determine how ecosystems help us in maintaining and improving our health. Focus on aspects such as mental and emotional well-being, resistance to allergens, and the
Ethanol is a required additive in gasoline in many countries. The main steps in producing ethanol from corn include the agricultural step, where corn is grown, and the manufacturing step, where corn
Explain the concept of peak oil. Why is this concept relevant to all nonrenewable resources?
Read the article available at https://nyti.ms/1xjUWbc and answer the following questions. 1. Is cod a renewable or nonrenewable resource? Justify your answer. 2. Sketch the approximate catch of cod
What is the ratio of anthropogenic to natural mobilization of the following elements: (a) Gold, (b) Titanium, (c) Chlorine?
Determine the status of wetlands in the world, with emphasis on the state or region where you live. What are the services that wetlands provide?
Discuss the current atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide with respect to their concentration in the last 600,000 years.
One of the statements from the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (see Box 2.4) is as follows: "Even today's technology and knowledge can reduce considerably the human impact on ecosystems. They are
Historical information about the Great Black Swamp of Ohio is available on various websites. Using this information, answer the following questions. 1. Why was it drained? 2. What were the costs
Define net primary productivity. What fraction of NPP is being appropriated by human beings?
What is the Anthropocene?
As shown in Figure 2.18: the atmospheric concentrations of methane and nitrous oxide have increased in the last several decades. Determine and discuss some of the reasons for this increase. CO₂
Describe the reasoning behind the theory of peak oil. From consideration of Figure 2.2.Figure 2.2: Has US oil production peaked? Explain the reasons behind the recent increase in US oil production.
From the measured values of atmospheric CO concentration in Figure 2.19Figure 2.19:Determine whether the rate of CO accumulation in the atmosphere is increasing or decreasing. Why does this trend
Using Figure 2.12 and [13]Figure 2.12:Figure 2.13:find a large river system close to your location. Determine the extent to which it has been impacted by the construction of dams. What have been some
Think about fruits, vegetables, and grains that you consume during a typical day. Determine which of these items are most vulnerable to (a) Water stress, (b) The decline of pollinators. If the
Search the "Red List of Threatened Species" compiled by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and find species on this list that are in the region where you live. This list may be

Showing 400 - 500 of 521