Imagine you’re designing a product, a smartphone, for instance. You carefully select materials, consider the manufacturing process, and plan for its end-of-life disposal. But have you ever stopped to think about the energy consumed throughout the product’s lifecycle? How about the environmental impacts of powering it, or the systems that deliver energy to your home? These are critical considerations for designers today. In this section, we’ll explore key concepts such as embodied energy, energy systems, carbon emissions, and energy storage, equipping you with the tools to make informed, sustainable design decisions.
When you look at a product, whether it’s a car, a building, or a piece of clothing, it’s easy to overlook the energy required to create it. This hidden energy, known as embodied energy, includes everything from extracting raw materials to manufacturing, transportation, and disposal. It’s often measured in megajoules per kilogram (MJ/kg) or as embodied carbon ($kgCO₂/kg$).
Embodied energy accounts for the entire lifecycle of a product:
For example, producing 1 kg of virgin aluminum requires 155 MJ of energy and emits 8.24 kg of CO₂. By contrast, recycled steel requires only 8.8 MJ/kg and emits 0.42 kgCO₂/kg. This stark difference highlights the importance of material selection and recycling in reducing embodied energy.
Consider a building: Concrete, while low in embodied energy per kilogram, is used in such large quantities that it often dominates the building’s total embodied energy. Designers can mitigate this by incorporating recycled materials or alternative construction methods.
When estimating embodied energy, always consider trade-offs. A material with high embodied energy (like aluminum) may still be the best choice if its lightweight properties reduce energy consumption during use, such as in transportation.
Once energy is generated, it must be distributed to where it’s needed. This is achieved through national and international energy grids or localized systems like Combined Heat and Power (CHP).
Modern grids rely on alternating current (AC), a system popularized by Nikola Tesla. AC is preferred because it can be transmitted over long distances with minimal energy loss, thanks to transformers that step up and step down voltages.
While interconnected grids improve reliability and efficiency, they also introduce vulnerabilities. A failure in one region can cascade across the system, as seen in large-scale blackouts.
Nice try, unfortunately this paywall isn't as easy to bypass as you think. Want to help devleop the site? Join the team at https://revisiondojo.com/join-us. exercitation voluptate cillum ullamco excepteur sint officia do tempor Lorem irure minim Lorem elit id voluptate reprehenderit voluptate laboris in nostrud qui non Lorem nostrud laborum culpa sit occaecat reprehenderit
Paywall
(on a website) an arrangement whereby access is restricted to users who have paid to subscribe to the site.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.
Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam quis nostrud exercitation.
Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat.