climate change guide
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? The State of Recycling
In our already-climate-disrupted world, we are inundated with petro-based plastics. We could rehash the numerous statistics that we probably already know, like the fact that only 9 percent of plastic…
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? Distributed Manufacturing
The concept of distributed manufacturing, which we’ve covered numerous times, could play an interesting role in a climate-disrupted world. Just as large swaths of a centralized electrical grid can suddenly…
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? Jevons Paradox
In this series so far, we’ve discussed the many ways that additive manufacturing (AM) can fit into our already climate-disrupted world, as well as the many obstacles yet to be…
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? Emergency Response to Extreme Weather
Immediately in the wake of Hurricane Maria, small communities in Puerto Rico found themselves relying on the few sites that maintained electricity after the island’s gas power plant went offline….
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? Optimizing Designs for Efficiency
If industrialized society is determined to maintain its industrial activities, its engineers will need to completely rethink how parts are designed in order to improve energy efficiency. This is true…
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? The Circular Economy
In trying to prevent the total collapse of our natural ecosystem, we can work toward building a circular ecosystem of goods production and consumption. The goal of a circular economy…
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? Lignin, Cellulose, & Starch Bioplastics
In our series on 3D printing in a climate-disrupted world, we have been exploring the variety of biodegradable bioplastics that could be used to replace petro-based materials. We have so…
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? Chitin and Keratin Bioplastics
If we plan on continuing to make plastics past the point that oil is no longer profitable, easily accessible or socially acceptable, we will need to turn to more ecologically…
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? The Promise of PHA
In our last article in our series covering 3D printing in a climate-disrupted world, we discussed the myriad problems associated with polylactic acid (PLA), the most popular plastic and bioplastic…
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? 3D Printing and the Problem(s) with PLA
While our ecosystem is collapsing, we are at the very least fortunate to witness the rise of a potentially more sustainable form of manufacturing coinciding with the rise of potentially…
Eco Friendly 3D Printing? Oil Companies Bet on Plastic
Given the global shift to renewable energy, fossil fuel companies are looking for new ways to maintain their livelihoods. In a 2018 investor report, ExxonMobil admitted to a decline in…
