47 research outputs found

    Techno-Ecological Synergy: A Framework for Sustainable Engineering

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    Even though the importance of ecosystems in sustaining all human activities is well-known, methods for sustainable engineering fail to fully account for this role of nature. Most methods account for the demand for ecosystem services, but almost none account for the supply. Incomplete accounting of the very foundation of human well-being can result in perverse outcomes from decisions meant to enhance sustainability and lost opportunities for benefiting from the ability of nature to satisfy human needs in an economically and environmentally superior manner. This paper develops a framework for understanding and designing synergies between technological and ecological systems to encourage greater harmony between human activities and nature. This framework considers technological systems ranging from individual processes to supply chains and life cycles, along with corresponding ecological systems at multiple spatial scales ranging from local to global. The demand for specific ecosystem services is determined from information about emissions and resource use, while the supply is obtained from information about the capacity of relevant ecosystems. Metrics calculate the sustainability of individual ecosystem services at multiple spatial scales and help define necessary but not sufficient conditions for local and global sustainability. Efforts to reduce ecological overshoot encourage enhancement of life cycle efficiency, development of industrial symbiosis, innovative designs and policies, and ecological restoration, thus combining the best features of many existing methods. Opportunities for theoretical and applied research to make this framework practical are also discussed

    Constructal Approach to Company Sustainability

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    Input-output modeling approach to sustainable systems engineering

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    Input-output (I-O) analysis is a quantitative methodology for modeling systems consisting of interdependent components. It provides an elegant mathematical framework for describing the interactions of the system components using a system of linear equations. Although originally developed for economic modeling purposes, the I-O framework has been extended to various systems that are characterized by high levels of internal connectivity. Its ability to capture the ripple effects that cascade through the system makes it a well-suited tool for analyzing interactions among man-made systems with the environment, via withdrawal of natural resources and generation of wastes and pollutants. It has thus been used to address contemporary sustainability issues such as that of climate change mitigation and adaptation through industrial systems optimization. This article provides a brief overview of I-O analysis as it applies to the sustainability analysis of such systems. An illustrative example is presented to demonstrate the computational principle of I-O models. © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved
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