Poly(Phenylene Oxide). The Polymer Science Learning Center, www.pslc.ws/macrog/ppo.htm. The blade is made from a tungsten steel, and carbon alloy. The use of disposable razors is unsustainable with our growing population and increased demand. Life cycle analysis takes into account the following categories: Energy consumption Water consumption Air emissions (including carbon dioxide and other global warming gases) Water emissions Generation of solid waste It can also help them to compare the newly redesigned product to the original, acting as a benchmark to ensure the design changes are actually positive for the environment. Life-cycle assessment stages Information on PPO plastics are difficult to find, as most of the data is about how it is made, and the chemical makeup and stability of the plastic, rather than information on the decomposition rate or waste used in the making of it. 11 / Piece. Table 2 shows the results of alternate assumption on the overall results. 1.Establish the purpose of the Eco-Indicator calculations After the end of their recommended lifetime, reusable LMAs were also placed in municipal solid waste containers. The LMAs were first rinsed in tap water, scrubbed externally with a Hibiclens sponge and internally with a small scrub brush, and rinsed again. Get new journal Tables of Contents sent right to your email inbox, http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/cjd/qa_cjd_infection_control.htm, Comparative Life Cycle Assessment of Disposable and Reusable Laryngeal Mask Airways, Articles in PubMed by Matthew Eckelman, PhD, Articles in Google Scholar by Matthew Eckelman, PhD, Other articles in this journal by Matthew Eckelman, PhD, May 2012 - Environment and Anesthesia Practice, A Comparison of Reusable and Disposable Perioperative Textiles: Sustainability State-of-the-Art 2012, Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Anesthetic Drugs, Environmental and Occupational Considerations of Anesthesia: A Narrative Review and Update, Global Warming Potential of Inhaled Anesthetics: Application to Clinical Use, A Survey of Anesthesiologists' Views of Operating Room Recycling, Privacy Policy (Updated December 15, 2022), International Anesthesia Research Society. BIC has repeatedly come under fire because of the environmental impact their disposable razors have, due to the sheer amount of their disposable products are used every year. It is at this stage that very small amounts of other metals such as iron, silicon, and chromium may be added to the carbide to increase its strength and durability. 39 ($0.37/Count) FREE delivery Thu, Mar 2 on $25 of items shipped by Amazon. Overall, while the materials for disposable razors are few, and the products basic design makes it appear simplistic, the products lifecycle is far from simple. What makes for an easy, simple, and affordable mass produced and used product costs more in its long afterlife in the landfill, out of sight of the buyers awareness. How One Facility Completely Eliminated the Use of TCE Schick Razor Blade Manufacturing in Knoxville, Tennessee. 2017. By raising awareness and creating locations where one can drop off used razors for recycling, perhaps a change can come. On the other hand, extending the number of uses to 80 (doubling the lifetime) reduces GHG emissions by 9%. Manufacturer specifications indicate 20 kWh of electricity use for a 5-minute cycle at 135C. Whereas transportation has a relatively significant GHG impact for the disposable LMAs, by comparison the transportation of reusable LMAs has little impact on GHG emissions, because 40 disposable LMAs must be shipped to provide an equivalent function to 1 reusable LMA. Tungsten Carbide. Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Nov. 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tungsten_carbide. WC2N 6EZ, Redesigning the razor Life Cycle Assessment. This is the fourth installment in a series of blogs in which weexplore how to design a product for circularity. Energy Consumption by Mode of Transportation. Energy Consumption by Mode of Transportation | Bureau of Transportation Statistics, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, www.bts.gov/content/energy-consumption-mode-transportation. Teoh W, Lim Y. The environmental impacts of the 2 LMAs were estimated using SimaPro life cycle assessment software and the Building for Environmental and Economic Sustainability impact assessment method. The Potential of Polypropylene.Recycling Today, Recycling Today, 17 July 2019, www.recyclingtoday.com/article/the-recycling-potential-of-polypropylene/. The Great Recovery was a project by the RSA working with Innovate UK which ran between 2012 and 2016. PurposeIn this study, a life cycle assessment of a bioplastic based diaper was performed. To compile a detailed life cycle inventory of the environmental burdens PPO elements of the disposable razor are hard to determine in years, however, data shows that most plastic items take up to 1,000 years to begin to decompose (LeBlanc). A Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a methodology to assess the environmental impacts of a product or service throughout its life - from raw material extraction, manufacture and use, to end-of-life disposal, recycling or reuse. These results will then be used to inform the design process and improve the redesigned razor. Anyone can send in razors of any kind, and the plastic and cardboard packaging as well. A life cycle assessment (LCA) is a tool for analyzing the environmental impacts and resources used throughout a product's life, from raw materials extraction to production, and extending through product use and disposal. There are various ways that the product can get there. Figueredo E. Changes in the intracuff pressure of the laryngeal masks airway caused by repeated use. Bic USAs 2016 registration document provides information about the waste produced during the manufacturing of the razors. The plastic and steel elements of the razor can be recycled, yet, because they are so lightweight and small it makes it hard to separate in the trash and unable to be recycled normally. Then we collected and structured the data in phase 2. In this life cycle breakdown, I will be discussing what materials go into the making of disposable razors and what processes the materials go through in the operation of making a disposable razor. h[K#1}\$u@ There is also an additional resin called fluorine resin that is applied to the blades, which allows them to freely glide on the skin. Life cycle assessment is a "cradle-to-grave" approach for determining the financial and environmental costs of a product over its entire life. I could however not find any details about the energy consumption of the machines used in the assembly process. mmw*vA|5v*3n9IUt){e%!HN6@` xcr@pz*Fbiq%1!TJ-CF*1OS|UZU\vQL7M?m'b-,r~S}Y&/{#U6U)S|%q[RB !3j~tj$h>5qtsJ./j?;eosyy*"Z`'wG"M6]O}UKqw[LzY9e B,s&C4++_tI~& Me*lNU"Uigq\u7{:&VNC'rT]FB5jOa.%N%1*stBC]%y&RDs"#&iUX&?8sh:wJo ZjbO|KFmfC{:oX~'b> 15 - 21 Our group recently performed a life cycle assessment of anesthetic drug trays, finding that reusable trays were both environmentally and . The Eco-Indicator for EPDM rubber includes the manufacturing of the rubber as well as the molding process. RSA The following document provides an introductory overview of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and describes the general uses and major components of LCA. The largest sources of both cancer and noncancer impacts for the reusable LMA are from emissions from waste management (35%), the mining and production of metals to build wastewater treatment infrastructure (25%), and the bleaching of packaging paper and the card insert (20%). For You for Everyone Registration Document. All of these equipment-related cases occurred before the routine implementation of sterilization procedures currently used in health care facilities. After the plastic body is manufactured it goes through inspections similar to ones the blades go through. Gillette Mach3 Disposable Razors for Men, 6 Count, Designed for Sensitive Skin. 4. a Centers for Disease Control. An updated lifecycle assessment for disposable and reusable nappies Report that looks at the effect of disposable and reusable nappies on global warming and other environmental impacts. Additionally, the PVC-dominated material composition of the disposable LMA and associated packaging added significantly to its impacts. The product fails to include proper instructions for its waste management, causing it to be disposed of, as the name suggests. Quantifying the Environmental Impacts of Labor. In this paper, many details about the life cycle stages were not included. Siddle, Dave. To create the metal compound, carbon is added to the purified tungsten in a complex chemical process where the materials are heated to over 2,200 degrees celsius. All of which provides an easy user experience, but, takes a toll on the planet. Soulias M, Martin L, Garnier N, Juniot A, Aho L, Freysz M. Disposable vs reusable laryngeal mask airway: a cost-minimization analysis. What's the Difference Between Disposable and Reusable Razors for Women?Venus, www.gillettevenus.com/en-us/womens-shaving-guide/learning-to-shave/disposable-razors-vs-refillable-razors/. The life of a typical razor blade is not an easy one. By far, the biggest impact during the manufacturing of the razors was the 17 spot welds done in each cartridge. your express consent. Redesigning the Razor Life Cycle Assessment. The Great Recovery, http://www.greatrecovery.org.uk/resources/3682/. Tungsten has a high melting point and is used mainly for strong tools unless used for smaller applications when combined with a carbon alloy: Its alloys are employed in rocket-engine nozzles and other aerospace applications (Safety Razors). Next, the razors will be tested for flaws, strength, and razor hardness and sharpness (Safety Razor, madehow.com). The long and harmful life-cycle of disposable razors is not reflected to the buyer browsing aisles of fully stocked razor shelves. Polystyrene is a naturally transparent thermoplastic that is available as both a typical solid plastic as well in the form of a rigid foam material (Rodgers, Everything You Need To Know About Polystyrene (PS).). Municipal Solid Waste Generation, Recycling, and Disposal in the United States: Facts and Figures for 2010. Finally, the need for manual labor in the cleaning process of reusable LMAs contributed to the costs of these LMAs. The scope of our analysis, as is shown in Figure 1, includes extraction of material and energy resources, manufacturing, packaging and transport from the manufacturing site to the distribution center and the hospital, reprocessing, and eventual disposal. It is a thermoplastic that exhibits high heat resistance, dimensional stability, and accuracy and is often combined with other plastics, such as polystyrene, due to various problems in its processing (Poly(p-Phenylene Oxide, Wikipedia.org). There are only two components for the BIC disposable razors which are the plastic body and razor blade. Bic Disposable Razor (1975). Plastics News Europe, 19 Nov. 2009, www.plasticsnewseurope.com/article/20091119/PNE/311199986/bic-disposable-razor-1975. They have estimated that they expend around 11.77 gigajoules of energy per ton of their products that they produce (For You For Everyone Registration Document) The BIC report also categorized the energy where they obtained the energy. On the basis of observation at Yale New Haven Hospital, it takes approximately 10 minutes to conduct all cleaning processes for 1 LMA, which is equivalent to roughly $3 in wages. The majority of life cycle human health impacts of disposable LMAs are caused by PVC use in packaging and the device itself. The laryngeal mask airway (LMA) was introduced into clinical use in the late 1980s and approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in the US in 1991. Gathering all the data for the LCA is the most difficult part of the task, and normally assumptions have to be made where its impossible to gather all the knowledge required, thus not all the relevant impacts are considered. This is where most of the complexity of an LCA is involved. Chu L, Mathur P, Trudell J, Brock-Utne J. endstream endobj 752 0 obj <>stream This is known as a Life Cycle Inventory (LCI) This can be extremely complex because it can involve dozens of separate processes, as well as hundreds of tracked substances. 2. Disposable razors are a commonly used item for most Americans, and over two billion razors are thrown away every year in the United States (Shabecoff). BIC says its product beats out other models by 59 percent. Once Terracycle has collected the waste, it is: broken down and separated by material. Sustainable Development Report. Wang, Chun Tsin, and Alexander Sutulor. @article{Cordella2015EvolutionOD, title={Evolution of disposable baby diapers in Europe: life cycle assessment of environmental impacts and identification of key areas of improvement}, author={Mauro Cordella and Iris Bauer and Anja Lehmann and Matthias Schulz and Oliver Wolf}, journal={Journal of Cleaner Production}, year={2015}, volume={95 . They also reported how they dealt with their non-hazardous waste 76 percent was recycled, 11 percent incineration with energy recovery, 10 percent was sent to land disposal, and the remaining 3 percent was sent off for a different treatment (For You for Everyone Registration Document). Product Ecology (PR) Consultants. Goal, scope and background The industrial packages sector has great importance for the transport sector in Europe. Pollution of the oceans from plastics has become an increasingly large issue that researchers are still assessing. Not all form of impacts are valued the same, so the ones with the largest impact should be tackled first in order to produce the maximum overall improvement. Eckelman, Matthew PhD*; Mosher, Margo; Gonzalez, Andres; Sherman, Jodi MD. This assessment is exceptionally useful as it shows the designer what areas are the most impactful during the products life cycle. What does a business area's assessment of agreements, income, and value implicate? Environmental Life-Cycle Assessment of Disposable Bioreactors - BioProcess InternationalBioProcess International Upstream Processing Bioprocessing begins upstream, most often with culturing of animal or microbial cells in a range of vessel types (such as bags or stirred tanks) using different controlled feeding, aerating, and process strategies. Shavers. BICWorld, www.bicworld.com/en/our-products/shavers. 3.Quantify the materials and processes The Bic corporation considers their environmental impact and takes steps to reduce as much waste as possible. Certain practices would further reduce the environmental impacts of reusable LMAs, such as increasing the number of devices autoclaved in a single cycle to 10 (25% GHG emissions) and improving the energy efficiency of the autoclaving machines by 10% (8% GHG emissions). Recommendations for Infection Control for the Practice of Anesthesiology. This obviously makes the results less accurate, but it can still be used as a general indicator of impact. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a modeling tool for quantifying the environmental impacts of products and processes. 85 percent of the energy came from electricity, 14 percent came from gas, and the rest came from fuel oil (For You For Everyone Registration Document). In conclusion, disposable razors are being used and thrown away at a rate that is unsustainable for the finite space on the planet. The Bic USAs company website provides information about the making of the razors in the factories, regarding their inspection and factory standards, yet there is no mention for the environmental impact of the disposal. Choosing a less-green disposable will magnify your razor's manufacturing impact, but it won't change the overall picture very much. Polycarbonate production (14%), transportation via truck (15%), thermoforming (13%), and waste disposal (11%) cause the majority of the remaining emissions. BIC reported that every year around 2.6 billion of their razors are chosen by consumers every year (Shaver's). Growing awareness of the negative impacts from the practice of health care on the environment and public health calls for the routine inclusion of life cycle criteria into the decision-making process of device selection. The tables didnt contain values for welding steel, so it has been assumed that the value is close to welding aluminium which is in the table. Here we present a life cycle assessment of 2 laryngeal mask airways (LMAs), a one-time-use disposable Unique LMA and a 40-time-use reusable Classic LMA. Thomas, G.P. Though technicians are paid regardless of whether they are cleaning LMAs or are performing some other task, these wages are nonetheless assigned to the reusable LMA on the basis of time spent. These steps are not necessarily conducted in succession, but iteratively. When designing a product for circularity it is often difficult to know where to begin. For both environmental and cost considerations, management and operating procedures should be put in place to ensure that reusable LMAs are not discarded prematurely. The life cycle of plastics Life cycle assessment (LCA) considers the environmental aspects associated with a product over its lifespan. Brimacombe J, Keller C, Morris R, Mecklem D. A comparison of the disposable versus the reusable laryngeal mask airway in paralyzed adult patients. A 2005 analysis published by U.K. Once extracted, the tungsten is then shipped to a desired location for it to be manufactured into the metal compound. This liquid material is then injected into moulds, or extruded through moulds, where it will cool and take the form of the desired cartridge and handle shape. The authors declare no conflict of interest. The results also suggest effective procurement strategies for reducing the impacts of disposable LMAs where they are selected. It is resistant to fats and almost all organic solvents which helps it hold up in the damp and warm conditions of a bathroom and shower (Polypropylene. Wikipedia.org). a 4.1% (Bic). E.P.A. Their disposable nature causes them to be put into landfills faster than it takes them to be made, packaged, and shipped. Another material used is polystyrene. The newest effort to recycle disposable razors is being done in France by BIC, but the company has said that they do not plan on unveiling a recycling program anywhere else yet (Powers). But this is expected from a large brand like Gillette. 3 in Table 1). Despite its ability to be recycled, it often ends up in the landfill as many people dont know how to properly recycle it, people are too lazy to recycle, or the plastics arent labeled properly (Polypropylene. Wikipedia). Being that it is such a common and quickly replaced product, this is is a major issue in terms of waste. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a widely-used technique to comprehensively assess the impacts of a product or a process on the environment and acts as an effective tool in gauging the. Contrary to common expectation, hair is actually pretty hard. Data is temporarily unavailable. The metal liquid then goes through a strengthening process called annealing. The metal and plastic components of the cartridges will be assembled, where they will then go to the next station where the blades will be inserted. Health care facilities can decrease their environmental impacts by using reusable LMAs, to a lesser extent by selecting disposable LMA models that are not made of certain plastics, and by ordering in bulk from local distributors. The full life cycle environmental impacts can be challenging to model, because modern production "pathways" can involve numerous interacting technologies, each of which can consume materials and energy that are themselves products of complex production processes. Because of its high stability, PPO is a very widely used plastic for many different household items. Cad M, Webb T, Bjorksten A. Each year in Italy, millions of tons of fruits and vegetables are harvested, packed and transported to national and foreign retail outlets. Int Anesthesiol Clin 2010;48:139, 24. (iii)What are the strategic lifecycle challenges for paramount's current products as well as for clean edge? It has been assumed that the only part recycled at the end of life is the packaging. 3.7.Product Life Cycle Analysis . On the basis of manufacturer information and density testing, the materials used in the 2 LMAs were identified and their compositions measured using a microgram scale (Table 1). The steps in LCA are (1) goal and scope definition, (2) life cycle inventory analysis (LCI), (3) life cycle impact assessment (LCIA), and (4) interpretation of the results. 3. The life cycle impacts of the disposable and reusable LMA options are shown in Figure 2 for all impact categories, on the basis of data from Yale New Haven Hospital. Address e-mail to [emailprotected]. After getting the sharpened blade they are coated with a thin film to allows them to not lose sharpness after only a few shaves (Manufacturing Processes). This practice meets American Society of Anesthesiologists' recommendations for infection control for equipment requiring high-level disinfection.14. After the parts are manufactured it is time for the final product assembly. However, we can discuss the energy usage of different modes of transportation. For waste management, switching from 100% incineration to 100% landfilling typically reduced impacts across all categories by 5%10%, with the national average scenario results decreasing in between. Depending upon on how the razor is packaged, the finished cartridge may or may not be assembled onto the handle of the razor, as some companies choose to package the handle detached the cartridge(s). Polyphenylene Oxides.Polyphenylene Oxides - an Overview | ScienceDirect Topics, 2013, www.sciencedirect.com/topics/chemical-engineering/polyphenylene-oxides. What IS Life Cycle Assessment? Anesthesiology 2003;99:1066, 6. Research and Innovative Technology Administration. J Environ Assess Policy Manage 2000;2:45376, 2. Tungsten carbide is a carbide compound, made up of equal parts of tungsten and carbon. Kelly, John. Scope of the life cycle assessment for disposable and reusable laryngeal mask airways (LMAs). An LCA is a life cycle assessment which is completed through research, testing and understanding of the environmental impacts a particular item creates through it's resources use/ production/distribution/disposal. Contribution: This author helped conduct the study and analyze the data. Washington, DC: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2011, 16. Siddle, Dave. The majority (77%) of life cycle CO2e emissions for the reusable LMA is from natural gas production and combustion to produce steam for the autoclave machine. may email you for journal alerts and information, but is committed The Bic Razor, Still the Sharpest of the Bunch. Plastics Le Mag, 31 Jan. 2017, plastics-themag.com/The-Bic-razor-still-the-sharpest-of-the-bunch. Kaplan, Desire. They have teamed up with Gillette to raise awareness about the massive waste of disposable razors by allowing users to mail their old razors in to be recycled. A Comparison Life Cycle Assessment between Razor Blade and Electric Shaver. Dec. 2012. Disposable BIC razors are hollow and made using injection molding, but making the razors hollow is only possible because of the fluid nature of polystyrene (The Bic Razor, Still the Sharpest of the Bunch.). "Tungsten Processing." Washington, DC: U.S. Bureau of Transportation, 2002, 14. The environmental effects of labor are often omitted from life cycle assessment studies, but are included here as part of the sensitivity analysis. The largest difference in environmental impacts is seen in the impact category of carcinogenesis, in which reusable LMAs cause 5% of the impacts of disposable LMAs. The remaining percentage is split up between energy consumption in their three facilities in: Clichy (France), Shelton (U.S.), and Cajamar (Brazil) (For You For Everyone: Registration Document, Bic). The number of BIC razors that are used by consumers is astounding. The reusable LMA was found to have a more favorable environmental profile than the disposable LMA as used at Yale New Haven Hospital. For example, the designer might think that the manufacturing stage would be the most impactful, when in reality for some products its the raw material extraction or its use phase. 6,474. These results suggest that the reusable LMA Classic has fewer life cycle impacts in comparison with the disposable LMA Unique at Yale New Haven Hospital, across several categories of concern. Approximately 24 L/min of water are used by the autoclave for cooling, for a total of 960 L of water needed to sterilize an LMA 40 times. Materials were matched with appropriate life cycle inventory records from the ecoinvent database.11 Injection molding was assumed for the hard plastic pieces (polycarbonate and ABS plastic) and thermoforming for the softer plastics (silicone, polypropylene, and PVC). Safety Razor.How Products Are Made, www.madehow.com/Volume-5/Safety-Razor.html. BIC Group, 2016, Sustainable Development Report. This makes it an easy and quick method to start the analysis of a product and aid the designer when creating alternative concepts which are more environmentally friendly, because they can clearly identify what areas need improvement and which ones work well already.
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