Greenlist(tm) Bulletin 02/08/2008
This is the weekly bulletin of the TURI Library, reporting a selection of recently published titles we have acquired. Our pledge is to keep the bulletin relevant to your work and brief -- no more than 10 titles. You are welcome to send a message to jan@turi.org if you would like more information on any of the articles listed here.
Titles here, abstracts below:
- Green autopia
- XRF equipment as a RoHS screening tool
- Research finds that 'green' products can still create problems
- Policy report says chemical exposures cost California estimated $2.6 billion
- The "greening" of barrier coatings
- Are conventional protective devices such as fibrous filter media, respirator cartridges, protective clothing and gloves also efficient for nanoaerosols?
- To pull a thorn from the side of the planet
- Keep the sprays away? Home pesticides linked to childhood cancers
- Over 90 campuses to pilot campus sustainability rating system
- Hot liquids release potentially harmful chemicals in polycarbonate plastic bottles
1. Green autopia
Author: De Guzman, Doris
Source: ICIS Chemical Business Americas, December 17, 2007 - January 6, 2008, pp24-27
Abstract: The race is on to develop the ultimate green car, driven by consumer concerns for the environment, and rising fuel costs.
Most of the current focus is on the development of cheaper alternative sources of energy, as well as reducing toxic emissions from auto exhausts. Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), however, are also looking beyond fuels and into using renewable-based or recyclable materials for various car parts and auto products.
Ford Motor is already incorporating 5% soybean-based polyols in foams used in seat backs and seat cushions in its 2008 Mustang sports car. Ford is looking to replace 40% of petroleum-based polyols with soy polyols, which the company says will not only help reduce its environmental footprint, but also result in as much as $26m/year in cost savings.
Mazda's Premacy RE Hydrogen Hybrid, which is scheduled to come out next year in Japan, is touting a 100% plant-based stereo complex polylactic acid (scPLA) fiber for car seat covers and interior trim. The heat-resistant biofiber was developed by Teijin under the trademark BIOFRONT.
Aside from the bio-based fabric, Teijin says it has also developed technologies to reduce fuel consumption such as weight-saving polycarbonate (PC) resins as substitutes for steel and glass in hoods and roofs and modified rubber ingredients to lower rolling resistance for tires.
2. XRF equipment as a RoHS screening tool
Author: Wickham, Martin; Hunt, Christopher
Source: Circuits Assembly, February 2008, pp26-32
Abstract: The requirement to comply with Europe’s RoHS regulations has driven adoption of a range of new materials in electronics components. A company failing to comply with RoHS can be fined. Hence, to ensure only RoHS-compliant materials are used, the industry has turned to energy-dispersive x-ray fluorescence (XRF) for incoming goods inspection. However, the technical capabilities of the related instruments are not well understood by the electronics manufacturing community.
A jointly funded industry/DTI collaborative project, led by the National Physical Laboratory, has been undertaken to determine the suitability of these techniques for determining the presence and levels of any restricted substances in typical electronics components. The project focused on an inter-comparison of different XRF equipment and test sites in a matrix experiment.
The project found that XRF systems offer a viable method of screening for RoHS compliance. Compared to chemical analysis, these systems offer lower unit cost, lower running costs and faster results. Smaller sample sizes are also possible. Use of these systems, however, requires a semi-skilled operator with a sound understanding of the technique/equipment capabilities and the likely composition of materials involved in component assembly.
Nondestructive testing is the norm, but some samples may need separation into constituent parts, or removal from placement packaging, for meaningful testing.
WWW: http://circuitsassembly.com/cms/content/view/6104/95/
3. Research finds that 'green' products can still create problems
Source: Greenguard Environmental Institute (GEI), January 23, 2008
Abstract: In a recently completed study funded by Greenguard Environmental Institute (GEI), there was preliminary evidence that “green” low-emitting products may still cause increased chemicals in indoor environments. The study, conducted by Chi Phuong Hoang, a doctoral candidate at the University of Texas at Austin’s Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering program, revealed that even “green” wall, flooring, ceiling and cabinetry materials can cause “secondary” emission of chemicals when exposed to naturally occurring ozone in the indoor air.
Many green materials are bio-based and, as a consequence, may react even with low levels of ozone that naturally occur in the air. Chi looked at ten such bio-based materials. Her conclusions were startling: while the materials did not themselves emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into the indoor air, they reacted with ozone to create “secondary” emissions of VOCs. The three products that were found to emit the most secondary emissions were green ceiling tiles, natural cork wallpaper and wheat board.
Secondary emissions of VOCs may still harm human health. Other examples of secondary emissions is when porous materials, such as upholstery, carpeting and ceiling tiles, absorb primary emissions from high emitting building products and materials, and re-emit them into the indoor air. This is often referred to as the “VOC sink effect.” To help avoid this problem, its good practice to apply wet products (paints, adhesives, coatings) before installing porous materials.
WWW: http://www.greenguard.org/Default.aspx?tabid=43&ItemId=446
4. Policy report says chemical exposures cost California estimated $2.6 billion
Author: Yang, Sarah
Source: UC Berkeley News, January 17, 2008
Abstract: Serious gaps in existing laws regulating the production and use of hazardous chemicals fail to protect public health and the environment, according to a new report by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and UCLA. As a result of this inadequate oversight, chemical and pollution-related diseases among children and workers in California cost the state's insurers, businesses and families an estimated $2.6 billion in direct and indirect costs, says the report, which includes a set of recommended policy reforms for the state.
In 2004, more than 200,000 California workers were diagnosed with deadly, chronic diseases - such as cancer or emphysema - attributable to chemical exposures in the workplace, according to the report. Another 4,400 died as a result of those diseases. The new findings, based upon well-established methodology for analyzing economic impact, indicate that those diseases resulted in $1.4 billion in both direct medical costs and indirect costs that include lost wages and benefits.
An additional $1.2 billion in direct and indirect costs is attributed to 240,000 cases of preventable childhood diseases in California related to environmental exposure to chemical substances, the report says.
WWW: http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2008/01/17_greenchem.shtml
5. The "greening" of barrier coatings
Author: Klass, Charles P.
Source: Paper 360, December 2007, pp28-31
Abstract: A number of factors have combined to create renewed interest in recyclable barrier coatings as an alternative to waxed boxes.
A tight supply and run-up in prices of OCC has resulted from major recycled containerboard capacity additions in China. Wal-Mart's "Packaging Score Card" has provided incentives to develop recyclable packaging materials. In addition, tipping fees for non-recyclable waste going to landfills or incinerators range from US$60 to US$120 per short ton; as much as 10% of a company's profits can be spent separating and disposing of waxed boxes and other non-recyclable materials.
At present, regulatory requirements are not driving the U.S. market. In Europe, however, taxes are levied on quantity and size of packaging and composite packaging, due to problems with recycling. This has created demands for smaller, lightweight packaging that is "monomaterial" as opposed to extrusion coated and waxed products.
Any new generation of recyclable barrier coated products must also address environmental concerns about recovery and recycling. They must be repulpable, biodegradable, not affect reprocessing, result in lower energy consumption, recover treatment chemicals and possibly be chlorine-free. And as food contact approval is essential for broad-scale market acceptance, they must be minimal in migration, low in toxicity and organoleptically inert.
WWW: http://www.paper360.org/paper360/feature/The-Greening-of-Barrier-Coatings/
ArticleStandard/Article/detail/480937?ref=25
6. Are conventional protective devices such as fibrous filter media, respirator cartridges, protective clothing and gloves also efficient for nanoaerosols?
Source: Nanosafe, January 2008
Abstract: Long before the final conclusions of toxicology research studies on the potential hazard of nanomaterials, it is today necessary to apply the principle of precaution by implementing among other, efficient personal protections against engineered nanoparticles. In this study, carried out in the framework of the Nanosafe project, different conventional individual protection devices well-qualified for micron size particles such as fibrous filters, respirator cartridges, protective clothing and gloves were tested with graphite nanoparticles ranging from 10 to 150 nm.
WWW: http://www.nanosafe.org/node/907
7. To pull a thorn from the side of the planet
Author: Navarro, Mireya
Source: The New York Times, February 3, 2008
Abstract: As in other industries with increasing demand for green products, the floral industry is debating what is environmentally correct. Should flowers be organic — that is, grown without synthetic or toxic pesticides? Or should the emphasis be on fair trade, meaning that the workers who grow and cut them are safe and well paid? Or should consumers favor flowers grown locally, not flown or trucked over long distances? In other words, what, exactly, is a green flower?
A vast majority of cut flowers sold in the United States, 79 percent, are imported, mostly from countries with mild climates, like Colombia and Ecuador. But only a small minority of flower farms have adopted environmentally friendly methods, like banning toxic chemicals for pest control, said Nora Ferm of the International Labor Rights Forum, an advocacy organization where she is the program director of a “fairness in flowers” public education campaign that began a few years ago.
And few of those farms, Ms. Ferm said, bother with occupational health and safety measures for workers, who can suffer pesticide-related illnesses like headaches, rashes and birth abnormalities among their children.
Whether consumers can be roused to passion about these issues is a challenge that distinguishes the fledgling green-flower movement from other campaigns for environmental awareness. But big environmental groups like the Natural Resources Defense Council have added flowers to their agenda and are encouraging the public to look for floral eco-labels that can now be found in flower shops, grocery stores and other flower retailers.
WWW: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/03/fashion/03flowers.html?_r=1&ref=garden&oref=slogin
8. Keep the sprays away? Home pesticides linked to childhood cancers
Source: Environmental Health Perspectives, December 2007
Abstract: Previous studies have suggested a link between pesticide use in the home and childhood hematopoietic tumors, the most common type of childhood cancer. A new epidemiologic study of French children diagnosed with leukemia or lymphoma in 2003 or 2004 suggests that a child has about twice the risk of developing acute leukemia (AL) or non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) if his or her mother used insecticides in the home while pregnant.
The researchers interviewed 1,060 children diagnosed within the prior 6 months and 1,681 control children. When analyzing the data on the children, the team controlled for other factors that may alter a child's risk of getting cancer, including family cancer history and whether the child was breastfed. The children with cancer were part of the French National Registry of Childhood Blood Malignancies, begun in 1990, which documents all children in the country under age 15 year who have had hematopoietic tumors.
The researchers asked the children's mothers about their use while pregnant of pesticides in their homes, on pets, and in the garden. They also asked about the father's use of pesticides while the mother was pregnant and after the child's birth. Just over 50% of the parents who had a child with AL or NHL had used pesticides at least once during the pregnancy, as did just under 40% of the parents of the control group. Children had 2.1 and 1.8 times the risk of developing AL or NHL, respectively, with maternal use of pesticides during pregnancy.
This is the first study to tease out the different types of hematopoietic cancers as they relate to pesticide use in the home. Other studies have found a link between parents' occupational exposure to pesticides and childhood cancers, but few of the parents in the French study were exposed to pesticides at work or through farming. Whether a family was rural or urban didn't alter a child's risk of developing cancer.
WWW: http://www.ehponline.org/members/2007/10596/10596.pdf
9. Over 90 campuses to pilot campus sustainability rating system
Source: Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), February 4, 2008
Abstract: The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) has announced the launch of its pilot rating system for sustainability in higher education. Over ninety college and university campuses will test the self-assessment tool, called STARS (Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System). Over the course of 2008 they will provide feedback to AASHE and inform STARS version 1.0, planned for release in spring 2009.
Given the rapid growth of sustainability initiatives at institutions of higher education in North America, measuring and assessing progress toward sustainability goals has become increasingly important. While many institutions have undertaken sustainability assessments and while a variety of assessment tools are available, there is currently no system that translates disparate sustainability indicators into a single metric that enables both institutional benchmarking and easy comparison across a large number of campuses in terms of overall level of achievement.
The system is similar to the LEED (Leadership in Energy Environmental Design) green building rating system. STARS, however, is applied to an entire campus rather than a single building or set of buildings and evaluates social responsibility as well as environmental stewardship.
WWW: http://www.aashe.org/highlights/pilot_announcement.php
10. Hot liquids release potentially harmful chemicals in polycarbonate plastic bottles
Source: University of Cincinnati Health News, January 30, 2008
Abstract: When it comes to Bisphenol A (BPA) exposure from polycarbonate plastic bottles, it’s not whether the container is new or old but the liquid’s temperature that has the most impact on how much BPA is released, according to University of Cincinnati (UC) scientists.
Scott Belcher, PhD, and his team found when the same new and used polycarbonate drinking bottles were exposed to boiling hot water, BPA, an environmental estrogen, was released 55 times more rapidly than before exposure to hot water.
“Previous studies have shown that if you repeatedly scrub, dish-wash and boil polycarbonate baby bottles, they release BPA. That tells us that BPA can migrate from various polycarbonate plastics,” explains Belcher, UC associate professor of pharmacology and cell biophysics and corresponding study author. “But we wanted to know if ‘normal’ use caused increased release from something that we all use, and to identify what was the most important factor that impacts release.”
“Inspired by questions from the climbing community, we went directly to tests based on how consumers use these plastic water bottles and showed that the only big difference in exposure levels revolved around liquid temperature: Bottles used for up to nine years released the same amount of BPA as new bottles.”
WWW: http://healthnews.uc.edu/news/?/6387/
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This page updated Friday February 08 2008