Environmental Implications of the Recycling of End-of-Life Tires in Seismic Isolation Foundation Systems

Author(s):  
Laura Banasiak ◽  
Gabriele Chiaro ◽  
Alessandro Palermo ◽  
Gabriele Granello
2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (4) ◽  
pp. 243 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip Nuss

Environmental contextStudies involving modelling are increasingly being performed to better understand how technology-critical elements such as tellurium are transported and accumulated in man-made technological systems. The resulting ‘anthropogenic cycles’ provide estimates of current and anticipated future material releases to the environment, and their associated environmental implications. This information complements data on natural cycles in which the subsequent transport and fate of tellurium in the environment can be examined. AbstractGlobal demand for tellurium has greatly increased owing to its use in solar photovoltaics. Elevated levels of tellurium in the environment are now observed. Quantifying the losses from human usage into the environment requires a life-cycle wide examination of the anthropogenic tellurium cycle (in analogy to natural element cycles). Reviewing the current literature shows that tellurium losses to the environment might occur predominantly as mine tailings, in gas and dust and slag during processing, manufacturing losses, and in-use dissipation (situation in around 2010). Large amounts of cadmium telluride will become available by 2040 as photovoltaic modules currently in-use reach their end-of-life. This requires proper end-of-life management approaches to avoid dissipation to the environment. Because tellurium occurs together with other toxic metals, e.g. in the anode slime collected during copper production, examining the life-cycle wide environmental implication of tellurium production requires consideration of the various substances present in the feedstock as well as the energy and material requirements during production. Understanding the flows and stock dynamics of tellurium in the anthroposphere can inform environmental chemistry about current and future tellurium releases to the environment, and help to manage the element more wisely.


Author(s):  
Firehiwot Kedir ◽  
Daniel Hall

Industrialized Housing (IH), also referred to as prefabrication, preassembly, modularization, and/or off-site fabrication, is a growing strategy for constructing housing. IH offers potential for significant reduction of environmental impact in comparison to traditional housing construction. Past research used methods such as environmental impact assessment on given case study buildings or expert’s opinions to identify the benefits and drawbacks present on the lifecycle of houses constructed partially or fully using IH methods. Nevertheless, this literature is scattered across several sources and units of analysis. The specific factors of IH that contribute to environmental impact reduction have not been comprehensively reviewed and summarized from design considerations up to the end of life possibilities. In this paper, a systematic literature review is performed on the environmental implications of the industrialized way of constructing residential buildings. From a review of 49 journal publications, this paper identifies 18 key factors that influence the environmental performance of such residential buildings. These factors are categorized into the following lifecycle phases of the IH process: a) system design, b) material design, c) manufacturing and logistics, d) transportation and assembly, e) Operational phase, and f) end of life. Findings reveal the importance of decisions made in design phases such as choice of materials, which in turn show a snowball effect throughout the phases. A final category – g) support and hindrance of IH - includes a discussion of external factors such as building codes and regulatory policies and their impact on IH performance.


2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 1356-1362
Author(s):  
Laurence Tan Lean Chin ◽  
Yu Jun Lim ◽  
Wan Ling Choo

Purpose Palliative care is a philosophy of care that encompasses holistic, patient-centric care involving patients and their family members and loved ones. Palliative care patients often have complex needs. A common challenge in managing patients near their end of life is the complexity of navigating clinical decisions and finding achievable and realistic goals of care that are in line with the values and wishes of patients. This often results in differing opinions and conflicts within the multidisciplinary team. Conclusion This article describes a tool derived from the biopsychosocial model and the 4-quadrant ethical model. The authors describe the use of this tool in managing a patient who wishes to have fried chicken despite aspiration risk and how this tool was used to encourage discussions and reduce conflict and distress within the multidisciplinary team.


2005 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 15-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie Fried-Oken ◽  
Lisa Bardach

2014 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 173-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah Hinson ◽  
Aaron J. Goldsmith ◽  
Joseph Murray

This article addresses the unique roles of social work and speech-language pathologists (SLPs) in end-of-life and hospice care settings. The four levels of hospice care are explained. Suggested social work and SLP interventions for end-of-life nutrition and approaches to patient communication are offered. Case studies are used to illustrate the specialized roles that social work and SLP have in end-of-life care settings.


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