What is Green Technology?

Environmental technology , green

technology or clean technology is
the application of one or more of
environmental science, green
chemistry, environmental
monitoring and electronic devices
to monitor, model and conserve
the natural environment and
resources, and to curb the
negative impacts of human
involvement.
It includes:
Renewable energy
Recycling
Water purification
Air purification
Energy conservation
Alternative and clean power
Solid waste management

Green Building
Green building (also known as green
construction or sustainable building)
refers to a structure and using process
that is environmentally responsible and
resource-efficient throughout a
building's life-cycle: from siting to design,
construction, operation, maintenance,
renovation, and demolition.

This requires close cooperation of the
design team, the architects, the
engineers, and the client at all project
stages. The Green Building practice
expands and complements the classical
building design concerns of economy,
utility, durability, and comfort.
m
Goals of
green
building
Life cycle
assessment
(LCA)
Siting and
structure
design
efficiency
Energy
efficiency
Water efficiency Materials
efficiency
maintenance
Waste
reduction
Life Cycle Assessment (LCA)
A life cycle assessment (LCA) can help avoid
a narrow outlook on environmental, social
and economic concerns by assessing a full
range of impacts associated with all cradle-
to-grave stages of a process: from
extraction of raw materials through
materials processing, manufacture,
distribution, use, repair and maintenance,
and disposal or recycling. Impacts taken
into account include (among others)
embodied energy, global warming
potential, resource use, air pollution, water
pollution, and waste
Four main phases
Goal and scope
Life cycle inventory
Life cycle impact assessment
Interpretation

Goal and scope
A starts with an explicit statement of the goal and scope of the study,
which sets out the context of the study and explains how and to
whom the results are to be communicated. This is a key step and the
ISO standards require that the goal and scope of an LCA be clearly
defined and consistent with the intended application. The goal and
scope document therefore includes technical details that guide
subsequent work.



Life cycle inventory

Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) analysis involves creating an inventory
of flows from and to nature for a product system. Inventory
flows include inputs of water, energy, and raw materials, and
releases to air, land, and water. To develop the inventory, a flow
model of the technical system is constructed using data on
inputs and outputs. The flow model is typically illustrated with a
flow chart that includes the activities that are going to be
assessed in the relevant supply chain and gives a clear picture
of the technical system boundaries. The input and output data
needed for the construction of the model are collected for all
activities within the system boundary, including from the supply
chain (referred to as inputs from the techno-sphere).
Life cycle impact assessment

Inventory analysis is followed by impact assessment. This
phase of LCA is aimed at evaluating the significance of
potential environmental impacts based on the LCI flow
results. Classical life cycle impact assessment (LCIA) consists
of the following mandatory elements:
1.selection of impact categories, category indicators, and
characterization models;
2.the classification stage, where the inventory parameters
are sorted and assigned to specific impact categories; and
3.impact measurement, where the categorized LCI flows are
characterized, using one of many possible LCIA
methodologies, into common equivalence units that are then
summed to provide an overall impact category total.
Interpretation
Life Cycle Interpretation is a systematic technique to identify,
quantify, check, and evaluate information from the results of the
life cycle inventory and/or the life cycle impact assessment. The
results from the inventory analysis and impact assessment are
summarized during the interpretation phase. The outcome of the
interpretation phase is a set of conclusions and recommendations
for the study. According to ISO 14040:2006, the interpretation
should include:
1.identification of significant issues based on the results of the LCI and
LCIA phases of an LCA;
2.evaluation of the study considering completeness, sensitivity and
consistency checks; and
3.conclusions, limitations and recommendations.
Siting and structure design efficiency
The foundation of any construction project is rooted in the
concept and design stages. The concept stage, in fact, is
one of the major steps in a project life cycle, as it has the
largest impact on cost and performance.
In designing environmentally optimal buildings, the
objective is to minimize the total environmental impact
associated with all life-cycle stages of the building project.
However, building as a process is not as streamlined as an
industrial process, and varies from one building to the
other, never repeating itself identically.
In addition, buildings are much more complex products,
composed of a multitude of materials and components
each constituting various design variables to be decided at
the design stage. A variation of every design variable may
affect the environment during all the building's relevant
life-cycle stages.
Sustainable design principles
While the practical application varies among disciplines, some common principles are as follows:
Low-impact materials: choose non-toxic, sustainably produced or recycled materials which require little energy to
process
Energy efficiency: use manufacturing processes and produce products which require less energy
Emotionally Durable Design: reducing consumption and waste of resources by increasing the durability of
relationships between people and products, through design
Design for reuse and recycling: "Products, processes, and systems should be designed for performance in a
commercial 'afterlife'."
Design impact measures for total carbon footprint and life-cycle assessment for any resource used are increasingly
required and available. Many are complex, but some give quick and accurate whole-earth estimates of impacts.
One measure estimates any spending as consuming an average economic share of global energy use of 8,000 BTU
(8,400 kJ) per dollar and producing CO2 at the average rate of 0.57 kg of CO2 per dollar (1995 dollars US) from
DOE figures.
Sustainable design standards and project design guides are also increasingly available and are vigorously being
developed by a wide array of private organizations and individuals. There is also a large body of new methods
emerging from the rapid development of what has become known as 'sustainability science' promoted by a wide
variety of educational and governmental institutions.
Biomimicry: "redesigning industrial systems on biological lines ... enabling the constant reuse of materials in
continuous closed cycles..."
Service substitution: shifting the mode of consumption from personal ownership of products to provision of
services which provide similar functions, e.g., from a private automobile to a carsharing service. Such a system
promotes minimal resource use per unit of consumption (e.g., per trip driven).
Renewability: materials should come from nearby (local or bioregional), sustainably managed renewable sources
that can be composted when their usefulness has been exhausted.
Robust eco-design: robust design principles are applied to the design of a pollution sources).
Energy efficiency
Green Energy is energy that can be
extracted, generated, and/or consumed
without any significant negative impact to
the environment. The planet has a
natural capability to recover which means
pollution that does not go beyond that
capability can still be termed green.
Green power is a subset of renewable
energy and represents those renewable
energy resources and technologies that
provide the highest environmental
benefit.
In several countries with common carrier arrangements,
electricity retailing arrangements make it possible for
consumers to purchase green electricity (renewable
electricity) from either their utility or a green power
provider.
When energy is purchased from the electricity network,
the power reaching the consumer will not necessarily
be generated from green energy sources. The local
utility company, electric company, or state power pool
buys their electricity from electricity producers who
may be generating from fossil fuel, nuclear or
renewable energy sources. In many countries green
energy currently provides a very small amount of
electricity, generally contributing less than 2 to 5% to
the overall pool.
By participating in a green energy program a consumer
may be having an effect on the energy sources used and
ultimately might be helping to promote and expand the
use of green energy. They are also making a statement
to policy makers that they are willing to pay a price
premium to support renewable energy. Green energy
consumers either obligate the utility companies to
increase the amount of green energy that they purchase
from the pool
GREEN PRICING
Some power companies provide an optional
service, called green pricing, that allows
customers to pay a small premium in
exchange for electricity generated from clean,
renewable ("green") energy sources. The
premium covers the increased costs incurred
by the power provider (i.e., electric utility)
when adding renewable energy to its power
generation mix.
GREEN CERTIFICATES
Buying green certificates allows you to contribute to the
generation of clean, renewable power even if you can't
buy clean power from your power provider (i.e., electric
utility) or from a clean power generator on the
competitive market.
An increasing number of clean power generators are now
separating the power that they sell to power providers
from the environmental attributes associated with that
power. These environmental attributes, called green
certificates (also known as "green tags," "renewable
energy certificates," or "tradable renewable certificates"),
are then sold to companies and individuals who want to
help increase the amount of clean power entering our
nation's electricity supply.
By separating the environmental attributes from the
power, clean power generators are able to sell the
electricity they produce to power providers at a
competitive market value. The additional revenue
generated by the sale of the green certificates covers the
above-market costs associated with producing power
made from renewable energy sources. This extra revenue
also encourages the development of additional
renewable energy projects.

Materials Efficency
Building materials typically considered to be
'green' include lumber from forests that have
been certified to a third-party forest
standard, rapidly renewable plant materials
like bamboo and straw, dimension stone,
recycled stone, recycled metal (see: copper
sustainability and recyclability), and other
products that are non-toxic, reusable,
renewable, and/or recyclable (e.g., Trass,
Linoleum, sheep wool, panels made from
paper flakes, compressed earth block, adobe,
baked earth, rammed earth, clay, vermiculite,
flax linen, sisal, seagrass, cork, expanded clay
grains, coconut, wood fibre plates, calcium
sand stone, concrete (high and ultra high
performance, roman self-healing concrete),
etc.
THE FRAMING AND BUILDING
STRUCTURE
Wood Two types of wood are gaining traction among
green builders engineered lumber and wood certified by the
Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). Engineered wood is very common
on both green and conventional homes. It uses wood scraps and
smaller trees to produce framing thats stronger than traditional
sawn logs. Engineered wood allows the builder to use less wood
per structure and make use of wood scraps that would otherwise
go to waste. Where conventional sawn timbers are used, some
green builders use wood that bears FSC approval, meaning wood
harvested from a managed forest.


Structural insulated panels (SIPS) SIPS are large panels (4'
x 8' up to 24' x 8') typically constructed at a factory. They are
composed of foam insulation sandwiched between two sheets of
oriented strand board (OSB). You can consider SIPS green because
of their superior insulation and air-sealing qualities, but they often
must be set in place with a crane. SIPS construction is typically
slightly more expensive than conventionally built structures.
Interior finish
Green builders and designers typically try to replace the more
common synthetic materials used inside the structure with
lower-impact natural materials.

Natural clay plaster Natural clay plasters are a green
alternative to the more common gypsum-based plasters.
Low/no-VOC (volatile organic compound) paints, stains, and
coatings Paints and stains are a common source of indoor
air-quality issues due to the amount of harmful VOCs needed to
keep them in a usable liquid form. VOCs spur the quick
evaporation of liquids in paint to leave behind a solid film of
color. Many manufacturers are now offering low- or no-VOC
alternatives to address this environmental concern.
Natural fiber flooring Whatever type of flooring is desired,
there are green alternatives. Rugs and carpets are available in
natural materials such as wool and cotton, while wood and
other solid alternatives such as bamboo and cork offer high
durability and/or sustainable harvesting methods.
Paperless drywall Paperless drywall helps save on
deforestation by eliminating the paper surface manufactured
from trees.

Heating and conditioning
The proper orientation of a building with respect to the sun and
other design details can contribute significantly to minimizing the
heating and cooling needs of a building. There are also
nonconventional HVAC systems that can play a significant role in
using less energy in any structure.
Geothermal Heat pumps can provide heating and cooling to
a building using a fraction of the energy of a conventional system. They
work very much like a refrigerator by using a compressor, evaporator,
and condenser, heat can be moved. Heat pumps use the earth, ground
water, or even the air as a source of heat, or a place to remove it,
depending on the season.
Solar hot water Solar water heating has been commercially
available for decades for domestic hot water needs, but these systems
can be used as the primary source of space heating as well when
coupled with radiant flooring. By using radiant rather than convective
heat transfer, the system can heat water to a lower temperature, which
works very well with solar hot water systems.
Focus on high efficiency and proper sizing Using the most
efficient equipment available not only conserves energy but saves
money as well. By properly matching the system to the building, you can
avoid purchasing an unnecessarily large and expensive system.

Insulation
Insulation is critical for any building. Whether the builder is trying to keep the heat out or in,
the amount of insulation will indicate how resistant a building is to losing energy.

Fiberglass Builders generally dont consider fiberglass insulation a green material because
it typically contains a toxic binding agent and is very energy-intensive to make. However,
superinsulating a structure beyond building-code requirements is a fundamental principle of
green building. Many green builders take advantage of the low cost and ease of installation
to superinsulate and save money that they can use for other green features.

Cellulose Made from recycled paper, cellulose is the second most common insulation
material and is considered a very green choice when used properly. Also, it is relatively
inexpensive, with costs similar to fiberglass.

Natural fiber (cotton, wool) Cotton insulation is typically made from recycled cotton fibers
formed into a batt, a preformed section of insulation sized to fit snugly in a framed cavity.
Wool is an excellent insulator and a rapidly renewable resource. However, while it is
commercially available, you can typically find it only in areas where wool is abundant.

Polyurethane Expanding spray-on polyurethane foams are quickly becoming very popular.
They offer the highest insulation value for a given thickness and, because of their expansion
during installation, are excellent at eliminating air leakage.

Polystyrene and isocyanurate These foams are typically installed as preformed sheets.
Builders commonly use them to insulate below grade, such as beneath a slab, but also use
them as exterior-mounted insulation in some applications.

Roofing
Keeping the weather out of a structure is not only key to making
it a comfortable environment but is also critical to making it last.
Like the variety of choices for other building components, there
are now numerous ways to cover a building. The color of the
material can also have an impact. Light colors are preferable for
all types of roofing, as they reflect more energy away from the
structure and thus reduce the cooling load.
Steel Steel roofing (both panels and shingles) is an increasingly
popular green choice because of its high recycled content and
longevity.
Slate/stone These natural materials are excellent green choices
but are very expensive due to both material and labor
considerations. While mining companies typically mine and ship
natural materials long distances, they have a very long life.
Composites Manufacturers often make composites from
plastics and rubber, and they mimic the appearance of natural
materials such as slate and wood. They have the advantage of
being lighter than their natural counterparts. Composites are
frequently made from recycled materials and so have a lower
embodied energy than materials that must be mined.