Yeang K., Woo L. Dictionary of Ecodesign: An Illustrated Reference

Подождите немного. Документ загружается.

lead to the addition of other persistent organic

pollutant chemicals of global concern.

1997 The Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations

Framework Convention on Climate Change

(United Nations, 1997) Signed by 160 nations;

became effective in 2005. The binding green-

house gas emission targets include: carbon diox-

ide, methane, nitrous oxides, hydroﬂuorocarbons,

perﬂuorocarbons, and sulfur hexaﬂuoride. The

agreement expires in 2012.

1994 International Tropical Timber Agreement

Signed by 43 countries; nine countries have

signed but not yet ratiﬁed. It succeeds the 1983

Agreement.

1994 United Nations Convention to Combat

Desertiﬁcation in those Countries Experiencing

Serious Drought and/or Desertiﬁcation,

particularly in Africa Fifty-six countries signed

the convention; 62 others have signed but not

yet ratiﬁed. Became effective in 1996. Its pur-

pose is to prevent desertiﬁcation and ease the

effects of drought.

1992 United Nations Framework Convention

on Climate Change—Rio Declaration (United

Nations Conference on Environment and

Development, 1992 in Rio de Janeiro) Signed

by over 150 nations; 19 countries signed but

not yet ratiﬁed. Became effective 1994. It now

has 164 signatories and 17 countries that have

signed by not yet ratiﬁed.

It reafﬁrmed the Declaration of the United

Nations Conference on the Human Environ-

ment, adopted in Stockholm on 16 June,

1972, and sought to expand it. Set forth in 18

principles, the goal was to establish a new and

equitable global partnership through the crea-

tion of new levels of cooperation among states,

key sectors of societies and people, and to

work towards international agreements that

respect the interests of all and protect the

integrity of the global environmental and devel-

opmental system. A main objective is to stabi-

lize or decrease greenhouse gases in the

atmosphere to prevent dangerous impacts on

the climate.

1992 Convention on Biological Diversity

(United Nations Environment Programme, 1992)

Part of the Rio Earth Summit in 1992; became

effective in 1993. The Convention has been

signed by 165 countries; 19 countries have

signed but not yet ratiﬁed. The Convention’s

objective is to develop national strategies for the

conservation and sustainability of biological

diversity; ensure the sustainable use of its com-

ponents; and promote fair and equitable sharing

of the beneﬁts arising out of the utilization of

genetic resources.

1991 Alpine Convention (Commission Inter-

nationale pour la Protection des Alpes, CIPRA,

1991) Seven member countries signed the

agreement in 1991. It became effective in

1995. It is an agreement between various

countries for the protection and sustainable

development of the Alpine Region. It was signed

on November 7, 1991 in Salzburg (Austria) by

Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein,

Switzerland, and the EU. Slovenia signed the

Convention on March 29, 1993. Monaco

became a party on the basis of a separate

additional protocol.

1989 Basel Convention on Transboundary

Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their

Disposal (United

Nations

Environment Pro-

gramme, 1989) Signed by 170 nations; became

effective in 1992. It strictly regulates the trans-

boundary movements and disposal of hazar-

dous wastes, and obliges its Parties to ensure

such wastes are managed and disposed of in an

environmentally sound manner. It is the most

comprehensive global environmental agreement

on hazardous and other wastes.

268 1997 The Kyoto Protocol

1987 Montreal Protocol on Substances that

Deplete the Ozone Layer Signed by 161 nations,

it became effective in 1989. The Montreal Pro-

tocol is the primary international agreement

providing for controls on the production and

consumption of ozone-depleting substances,

including chloroﬂuorocarbons (CFCs), halons,

and methyl bromide. The Montreal Protocol is

supplemented by the Vienna Convention of

1985. It has been amended substantially ﬁve

times: London 1990, Copenhagen 1992, Vienna

1995, Montreal 1997, and Beijing 1999.

1983 International Tropical Timber Agreement

Became effective in 1985 but expired in 1994;

succeeded by the 1994 Agreement. It was

signed by 54 countries. The goal was to develop

cooperation between timber producers and

consumers, and to establish sustainable use and

conservation of tropical forests.

1982 United Nations Convention on Law of the

Sea (UNCLOS) (United Nations, 1982) Also

called the Convention on the Law of the Sea

(LOS); Law of the Sea Convention; or Law of the

Sea Treaty. Signatories include 155 countries

and the European Union. It became effective in

1994. UNCLOS is the result of the third UN

Convention (Conference) on the Law of the Sea,

which took place from 1973 to 1982. It deﬁnes

the rights and responsibilities of nations in their

use of the world’s oceans, establishing guide-

lines for businesses, the environment, and the

management of marine natural resources. The

Convention concluded in 1982 replaced four

1958 treaties. UNCLOS codiﬁes the rules by

which nations use the oceans of the world. It

includes rules and enforcement of established

environmental standards and pollution of the

marine environment.

1979 Convention on Long-range Transboundary

Air Pollution (United Nations Economic Com-

mission for Europe, 1979) Signed by 40

countries and the European Community; became

effective in 1983. The Convention was the ﬁrst

international, legally binding instrument to deal

with problems of air pollution on a broad

regional basis. Its goals were to reduce and

prevent air pollution. There was also an institu-

tional framework established to decrease air

pollutant emissions through monitoring and

research.

The Convention on Long-range Transbound-

ary Air Pollution now has 51 members, and has

been extended by eight speciﬁc protocols,

including: EMEP (Monitoring and Evaluation of

the Long-range Transmission of Air Pollutants

in Europe) Protocol, 1988; Nitrogen Oxide

Protocol, 1988; Volatile Organic Compounds

Protocol, 1991; Sulphur Emissions Reduction Pro-

tocols, 1985 and 1994; Heavy Metals Protocol,

1998; Multi-effect (Gothenburg) Protocol, 1999;

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POP) Air Pollution

Protocol, 2003.

1979 Convention on the Conservation of

European Wildlife and Natural Habitats

(Council of Europe, 1979) Also known as the

Bern Convention. Signed by 39 members of the

Council of Europe together with the European

Union, Monaco, Burkina Faso, Morocco, Tuni-

sia, and Senegal. It became effective in 1982.

Algeria, Belarus, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cape

Verde, the Holy See, San Marino, and Russia

are among nonsignatories that have observer

status at meetings of the committee. The goals

are to conserve wild ﬂora and fauna and their

natural habitats; promote cooperation between

states; monitor and control endangered and

vulnerable species; and provide assistance

concerning legal and scientiﬁc issues.

1979 Convention on the Conservation of

Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS)

(United Nations Environment Programme, 1979)

Also known as the Bonn Convention. It became

effective in 1983. In 2005, 92 countries were

1979 Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals 269

signatories from Africa, Central and South

America, Asia, Europe, and Oceania. The focus

of the Convention is the conservation of wildlife

and habitats on a global scale, and the protec-

tion of terrestrial, marine, and avian migratory

species throughout their range. The aim is to

protect migratory species on the threatened

extinction list, conserving or restoring their nat-

ural habitats, mitigating obstacles to migration,

and controlling other factors that might endan-

ger them. In addition to establishing obligations

for each State joining the Convention, CMS

promotes concerted action among the range

states of many of these species.

1977 Convention to Combat Desertiﬁcation

(CCD) (United Nations, 1977) The Conven-

tion to Combat Desertiﬁcation in Those Coun-

tries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or

Desertiﬁcati on, Particularly in Africa was designed

to manage both dryland ecosystems and the

ﬂow of aid for development. In 1977, the

United Nations Conference on Desertiﬁcation

(UNCOD) adopted a Plan of Action to Combat

Desertiﬁcation (PACD). Despite its efforts, the

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

concluded in 1991 that the problem of land

degradation in arid, semi-arid, and dry sub-

humid areas had intensiﬁed, although there

were ‘local examples of success’. At the 1992

Rio Earth Summit, a new, integrated approach

to the problem was adopted. It emphasized

action to promote sustainable development at

the community level.

1976 Convention to Prohibit Military or Any Other

Hostile Use of Environmental Modiﬁcations

Sixty-four member countries signed the agree-

ment; 17 countries have signed but not ratiﬁed

it. Became effective in 1978. The Convention’s

objective is to prohibit the military or other

hostile use of environmental modiﬁcation tech-

niques in order to further world peace and trust

among nations.

1973 International Convention for the Prevention

of Pollution from Ships (United Nations, 1973)

Also known as Marpol 73/78 (‘Marpol’ is short

for marine pollution). Did not become effective.

A 1978 protocol superseded the original con-

vention and became effective in 1983. Ninety-

six countries signed the convention. Its goal is

to maintain the marine environment, to elim-

inate pollution by oil and other hazardous

substances, and to minimize pollution through

dumping and spills.

1973 Convention on International Trade in

Endangered Species (CITES) (World Con-

servation Union, 1973) Became effective in

1975; 136 countries are signatories. The Con-

vention’s objectives are to protect endangered

species from overexploitation by establishing

worldwide controls on international trade in

threatened species of animals and plants. In the

case of species threatened with extinction,

CITES prohibits all commercial trade in wild

specimens. Member countries act by banning

commercial international trade in an agreed list

of endangered species, and by regulating and

monitoring trade in others that might become

endangered.

1972 Convention to Prevent Marine Pollution

by Dumping Wastes and Other Matter

(International Maritime Organization, 1972)

Also

known

as the London Convention. Became

effective in 1975. In 2005, there were 82 coun-

try members of the Convention. One of the ﬁrst

global conventions to protect the marine envir-

onment from human activities, its objective is to

control effectively all sources of marine pollu-

tion and to take all practicable steps to prevent

pollution of the sea by dumping of wastes and

other matter. It prohibits the dumping of certain

hazardous materials; requires a prior special

permit for dumping of a number of other iden-

tiﬁed materials; and requires a prior general

permit for other wastes or matter.

270 1977 Convention to Combat Desertiﬁcation (CCD)

‘Dumping’ has been de ﬁned as the deliberate

disposal at sea of wastes or other matter from

vessels, aircraft, platforms, or other manmade

structures, as well as the deliberate disposal of

these vessels or platforms. Wastes derived from

the exploration and exploitation of sea-bed

mineral resources are, however, excluded from

the deﬁnition. The provision of the Convention

also does not apply when it is necessary to

secure the safety of human life or of vessels in

cases of force majeure.

Modiﬁcations of the Convention include the

following. 1978 amendments—incineration; 1978

amendments—disputes; 1980 amendments—list

of substances; 1989 amendments—permits; 1993

amendments—banning of dumping of low-level

radioactive wastes; phasing out of dumping of

industrial wastes; banning of incineration at sea

of industrial wastes; 1996 Protocol—revised

convention, precautionary approach; prevention

of practices that are harmful to sealife or pollute

the sea; 1996 Protocol—prohibited dumping of

dredged material; sewage sludge, ﬁsh waste,

vessels and platforms of seagoing vessels, inert,

inorganic geological material, organic material,

bulky items from construction; 2006 amend-

ments—CO

sequestration under the seabed

(became effective in 2007).

1971 Convention on Wetlands of International

Importance Especially As Waterfowl Habitat

Signed by 94 countries; became effective in 1975.

Its objective is to limit encroachment on, and

loss of, wetlands because of their importance to

ecological balance.

1963 Treaty Banning Nuclear Weapon Tests in

the Atmosphere, in Outer Space, and Under

Water Signed by 125 nations. Eleven countries

have also signed the treaty but have not ratiﬁed

it. It became effective in 1963. The objective of

the Treaty is to agree on complete disarmament

according to the goals outlined by the United

Nations. This includes ending the arms race and

production and testing of all weapons, including

nuclear ones.

1961 Antarctic Treaty Coalition of nations

active in Antarctic science. Originally drafted in

1959; signed by 12 countries in 1961; became

effective in 1961. There are now 43 signatories.

The Treaty covers the area south of 60° S latitude.

Its objectives are to demilitarize Antarctica, to

establish it as a zone free of nuclear tests and

the disposal of radioactive waste, and to ensure

it is used for peaceful purposes only; to promote

international scientiﬁc cooperation in Antarc-

tica; and to set aside disputes over territorial

sovereignty.

The Treaty remains in force indeﬁnitely. Forty-

six countries, comprising around 80% of the

world’s population, are now members. Con-

sultative (voting) status is open to all countries

that have demonstrated their commitment to the

Antarctic by conducting signiﬁcant research.

The 1991 Protocol to the Treaty reinforced its

basic goals.

Twenty-eight nations, including the UK, have

Consultative status. The Treaty parties meet

each year at the Antarctic Treaty Consultative

Meeting. They have adopted over 300 recom-

mendations and negotiated separate interna-

tional agreements, of which three are still in

use. These, together with the original Treaty,

provide the rules that govern activities in Ant-

arctica. Collectively, they are known as the

Antarctic Treaty System (ATS). The three

international agreements are: Convention for

the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (1972);

Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic

Marine Living Resources (1980); Protocol on

Environmental Protection to the Antarctic

Treaty (1991).

1958 Convention on Fishing and Conservation

of Living Resources of the High Seas Also

known as Marine Life Conservation. Opened for

signature in 1958; signed by 37 countries;

1958 Convention on Fishing and Conservation of Living Resources of the High Seas 271

became effective in 1966. Twenty-one countries

have signed but not yet ratiﬁed the agreement.

The Convention seeks international cooperation

to conserve and preserve living resources of the

high seas, and to resolve the overexploitation of

marine resources.

1946 International Convention for the Regulation

of Whaling Became effective in 1948; signed

by 57 countries. The goal of the Convention is

to protect whales from overﬁshing, and to estab-

lish international conservation and protection of

whales.

272 1946 International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling

Appendix 3

The Periodic Table of elements

Table A3

Chemical element Symbol Atomic

number

Actinium Ac 89

Aluminum Al 13

Americium Am 95

Antimony Sb 51

Argon Ar 18

Arsenic As 33

Astatine At 85

Barium Ba 56

Berkelium Bk 97

Beryllium Be 4

Bismuth Bi 83

Bohrium Bh 107

Boron B 5

Bromine Br 35

Cadmium Cd 48

Calcium Ca 20

Californium Cf 98

Carbon C 6

Cerium Ce 58

Cesium Cs 55

Chlorine Cl 17

Chromium Cr 24

Cobalt Co 27

Copper Cu 29

Curium Cm 96

Darmstadtium Ds 110

Dubnium Db 105

Dysprosium Dy 66

Einsteinium Es 99

Erbium Er 68

Europium Eu 63

Fermium Fm 100

Fluorine F 9

Francium Fr

Gadolinium Gd 64

Gallium Ga 31

Germanium Ge 32

Gold Au 79

Hafnium Hf 72

Hassium Hs 108

Helium He 2

Chemical

element Symbol

Atomic

number

Holmium Ho 67

Hydrogen H 1

Indium In 49

Iodine I 53

Iridium Ir 77

Iron Fe 26

Krypton Kr 36

Lanthanum La 57

Lawrencium Lr 103

Lead Pb 82

Lithium Li 3

Lutetium Lu 71

Magnesium Mg 12

Manganese Mn 25

Meitnerium Mt 109

Mendelevium Md 101

Mercury Hg 80

Molybdenum Mo 42

Neodymium Nd 60

Neon Ne 10

Neptunium Np 93

Nickel Ni 28

Niobium Nb 41

Nitrogen N 7

Nobelium No 102

Osmium Os

Oxygen O 8

Palladium Pd 46

Phosphorus P 15

Platinum Pt 78

Plutonium Pu 94

Polonium Po 84

Potassium K 19

Praseodymium Pr 59

Promethium Pm 61

Protactinium Pa 91

Radium Ra 88

Radon Rn 86

Rhenium Re 75

Rhodium Rh 45

Rubidium Rb 37

Table A3 (continued)

Chemical element Symbol Atomic

number

Ruthenium Ru 44

Rutherfordium Rf 104

Samarium Sm 62

Scandium Sc 21

Seaborgium Sg 106

Selenium Se 34

Silicon Si 14

Silver Ag 47

Sodium Na 11

Strontium Sr 38

Sulfur S 16

Tantalum Ta 73

Technetium Tc 43

Tellurium Te 52

Terbium Tb 65

Thallium Tl 81

Thorium Th 90

Thulium Tm 69

Tin Sn 50

Titanium Ti 22

Tungsten W 74

Ununbium Uub 112

Ununhexium Uuh 116

Ununoctium Uuo 118

Ununpentium Uup 115

Ununquadium Uuq 114

Ununseptium Uus 117

Ununtrium Uut 113

Ununium Uuu 111

Uranium U 92

Vanadium V 23

Xenon Xe 54

Ytterbium Yb 70

Yttrium Y 39

Zinc Zn 30

Zirconium Zr 40

Source: Lenntech, the Netherlands

274 Appendix 3

Appendix 4

Photovoltaics

Photoelectric effect In 1839, at the age of 19,

French physicist Edmond Becquerel discovered

that certain materials would produce small

amounts of electric current when exposed to

sunlight – but it took scientists almost 75 years

to analyze and understand the process. In the

1870s, Heinrich Hertz studied the photoelectric

effect in solids such as selenium. This study

resulted in the use of selenium photovoltaic

(PV) cells to convert light to electricity, and was

subsequently adopted for use in light-measuring

devices in the infant ﬁeld of photography.

Continued experimentation and analysis by

scientists focused on the photoelectric or PV

effect, which causes certain materials to convert

light energy into electrical energy at the atomic

level. By the 1940s, the Czochralski process

was developed for producing highly pure crys-

talline silicon, and in 1954 scientists at Bell

Laboratories used this process to develop the

ﬁrst crystalline silicon PV cell.

The photoelectric effect describes the release

of positive and negative charge carriers in a

solid state when light strikes a surface—the

basic physical process by which a PV cell con-

verts sunlight into electricity. When light shines

on a PV cell, it may be reﬂected, absorbed, or

pass right through. However, only the absorbed

light generates electricity.

The energy of the absorbed light is transferred

to electrons in the atoms of the PV cell. With

their additional energy, these electrons escape

from their normal positions in the atoms of the

semiconductor PV material and become part of

the electrical ﬂow, or current, in an electrical

circuit. A special electrical property of the PV

cell—a “built-in electric ﬁeld”—provides the

force, or voltage, needed to drive the current

through an external load, such as a light bulb.

To induce the built-in electric ﬁeld within a

PV cell, two layers of somewhat differing

semiconductor materials are placed in contact

with one another. One layer is an n-type semi-

conductor with an abundance of electrons,

which have a negative electrical charge. The

other layer is a p-type semiconductor with an

abundance of “holes,” which have a positive

electrical charge.

Figure A.1 Photoelectric effect

Source: US Department of Energy

Although both materials are electrically neutral,

n-type silicon has excess electrons, and p-type

silicon has excess holes. Sandwiching these

together creates a p/n junction at their interface,

thereby creating an electric ﬁeld.

When n-type and p-type silicon come into

contact with each other, excess electrons move

from the n-type side to the p-type side. The

result is a buildup of positive charge along the

n-type side of the interface, and a buildup of

negative charge along the p-type side.

Because of the ﬂow of electrons and holes,

the two semiconductors behave like a battery,

creating an electric ﬁeld at the surface where

they meet—the p/n junction. The electrical ﬁeld

causes the electrons to move from the semi-

conductor toward the negative surface, where

they become available to the electrical circuit.

At the same time, the holes move in the oppo-

site direction, toward the positive surface, where

they wait for incoming electrons.

The p-type (“positive”) and n-type (“negative”)

silicon materials become the PV cells that pro-

duce solar electricity through the addition of an

element that has an extra electron or lacks an

electron. This process of adding another element

is called doping.

Photovoltaic (PV) Pertaining to the direct

conversion of light into electricity.

Photovoltaic array An array is an inter-

connected system of PV modules, which in turn

are made of interconnected solar cells. The cells

convert solar energy into direct current (DC)

electricity via the PV effect. The power that one

module can produce is usually not sufﬁcient to

meet a consumer’s needs, so the modules are

linked together to form an array. Most PV arrays

use an inverter to convert the DC power pro-

duced by the modules into alternating current

(AC) that can plug into the existing infrastructure

to power lights, motors, and other loads. The

modules in a PV array are usually ﬁrst

connected in series to obtain the needed voltage,

but individual strings can be connected in par-

allel to allow the system to produce more cur-

rent. Solar arrays are usually measured by the

electrical power they produce: watts, kilowatts,

or megawatts.

Flat-plate stationary arrays are the most

common. Some of the tilts can be adjusted from

their horizontal position. These changes can

be made any time throughout the year,

although they are normally changed only twice

a year. The modules in the array do not move

throughout the day.

A stationary array does not capture as much

energy as a tracking array, which follows the

Figure A.2 Adjustable array tilts for summer and

winter solar angles

Source: Polar Power

276 Photovoltaic (PV)

daily movement of the Sun. As a result, more

stationary modules may be required. On the

other hand, there are no moving parts to fail.

Consequently, stationary arrays are often used

for remote or dangerous locations.

Photovoltaic cell Commonly known as solar

cells, individual PV cells are electricity-producing

devices made of semiconductor materials. PV

cells come in many sizes and shapes, from smaller

than a postage stamp to several inches across.

The size of an array depends on various fac-

tors, such as the amount of sunlight available in

a particular location, and the needs of the con-

sumer. The modules of the array make up the

major part of a PV system, which can also

include electrical connections, mounting hard-

ware, power-conditioning equipment, and bat-

teries that store solar energy for use when the

Sun is not shining.

The basic PV or solar cell usually produces

only a small amount of power. To produce

more power, cells can be interconnected to

form modules, which in turn can be connected

in arrays to produce yet more power. Because

of this modularity, PV systems can be designed

to meet any electrical requirement.

Solar cells are composed of various semi-

conducting materials, about 95% of which are

made of silicon. One side of the semiconductor

material has a positive charge and the other side

is negatively charged. Sunlight hitting the posi-

tive side will activate the negative-side electrons

and produce an electrical current.

A PV cell converts solar irradiance to elec-

tricity. It is the smallest semiconductor element

within a PV module to perform the immediate

conversion of light into electrical energy. A PV

cell is a specialized form of semiconductor

anode that converts visible light, infrared (IR)

radiation, or ultraviolet (UV) radiation directly

into electricity.

There are three types of PV cell: single-crystal

or monocrystalline; multi- or polycrystalline;

and amorphous.

 Monocrystalline rods are extracted from

melted silicon and then sawn into thin

plates. This produces a relatively high level

of efﬁciency.

Figure A.3 Photovoltaic cells

Source: US Department of Energy, Energy Efﬁciency and Renewable Energy

Photovoltaic cell 277