Jun Fujimoto

Mechanical properties for CFRP/damping-material laminates

New materials that possess high damping capabilities and have high strength properties have been studied in carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP). These materials are referred to in this article as CFRP/damping-matenal laminates The CFRP/damping-material laminates investigated here are composed of a unidirectional car bon/epoxy prepreg sheet and a polyethylene-based damping material sheet used as an in terleaf. Cantilever beam tests revealed the high damping properties of these laminates. Loss factor values for these composites are 5 to 50 times as large as that for conventional CFRP. These values could be predicted by using the analysis constrained layer damping treatment, except for two specimens. Also, the interleaving effect on tensile and compres sion strength are discussed here. Tensile test results for quasi-isotropic laminate based composites indicated that the damping material interleaf is effective for suppressing delamination and multiple splitting in the 0° angle layer. The ultimate load increase of 3 to 15 % was caused by this suppression effect. Compression test results suggest that the in terleaf is not very effective for the compression strength increment.

Low-Carbon Society Scenario: ICT and Ecodesign

This article presents a scenario for a sustainable low carbon society with an emotionally healthy lifestyle in the year 2050. This scenario was developed on the basis of a survey of citizens, examination of science fiction and animation films, and consultations with experts and research teams. This analysis suggests that with a techno-ontological approach it would be possible to develop a low-carbon society in which advanced information and communication technology (ICT) and an emotionally healthy lifestyle are compatible.

Prospects for an environmentally sustainable ICT society

The article presents a study on the impacts of information and communication technology (ICT) on CO2 emission in our society in the short-term (until 2010) and long-term futures (until 2050). Studies on the ICTs impacts on CO2 emission in Japan in 2010 indicated that negative effects of ICT (increased CO2 emission by the use of ICT equipment and operation of infrastructures) were roughly up to 3% of the total CO2 emission in Japan, and that the positive effects (potential reduced CO2 emission by use of ICT systems) were up to 5%. To further clarify the relationship between ICT and energy consumption in our society, continuous verification of statistical data, such as paper production, newspaper circulation, amount of passenger transportation, is necessary. The article also introduces ongoing work on producing a vision for the long-term prospect for an ICT-supported environmentally sustainable society. It presents results of tentative quantitative evaluation of ICTs impacts on CO2 emissions in the long-term future. A critical issue that still requires consideration is the extent to which humans will accept substitution of reality with an ICT-supported virtual reality (e.g. substitution of in-store shopping with online shopping, substitution of conferences in meeting rooms with TV conferences, etc.)

Ecodesign of Multilateral Recycling System in Asia -2nd Report; Recycling Profit Analysis Model-

Recently, it is said that many home appliances and PCs are exported to Asian countries. Therefore, the economic effects of recycling and reusing in Asia, were estimated quantitatively using a tree model, and compared with recycling in Japan. As a result, it has been confirmed that there was a high possibility that recycling and reusing in Asia was carried out by exporters and disposers because it was profitable; especially, A/Cs and PCs. The importance of recycling in Asia has been recognized again.

Cost-profit analysis of multilateral recycling system in Asia

The objective of this study is to clarify quantitatively the driving force of multilateral recycling system in Asia, especially focusing on economic factors. To this end, we proposed a cost-profit analysis model for multilateral recycling system considering the differentials of economic factors between developed and developing countries at first. Based on this model, we conducted cost-profit analysis of multilateral recycling of four electronic products, namely, refrigerator, television, air conditioner and personal computer, to identify dominant economic drivers of multilateral recycling system in Asia. The result of analysis showed that high profitability and recycling ratio can be achieved by multilateral recycling system in spite of its extra transportation cost, mainly due to low labour cost in developing countries.

Ecodesign of multilateral recycling systems in Asia

The maintenance of lawful domestic recycling systems is essential. Therefore, it must be recognised that there are many products leaking out of lawful systems. However, the actual condition of leaked products has not been identified (invisible flow). For achieving ecodesign of multilateral recycling systems in Asia, it is necessary to clarify the condition of the invisible flow. We tried to identify the condition using the recycling profit analysis model. These results showed that material recycling utilised in Asian areas produce more profits from several hundreds to thousands of yen per product, than that of Japan. Regarding the reuse of the products and their parts, marine transportation costs have a large effect on the secondhand business and its strategies. To solve the problem of invisible flow, we proposed a system that allows the ownership of a product to be traced: Dual Traceable Ownership System (DTOS). DTOS is a system based on a different attitude towards ownership which makes traceability of a product visible. Two types of ownership forms were considered. A fundamental awareness that ownership means responsibility, will solve the invisible flow issue, and lead to the achievement of an adequate multilateral recycling system.

Modelling, analysis and risk evaluation of resource circulation in Asia

A considerable amount of resources is exchanged among Japan and other Asian countries. We call it global circulation. Although such circulation currently causes various environmental pollutions, it will become a hopeful measure for resource conservation. For clarifying the conditions for sustainable global circulation, we evaluate several scenarios of the global circulation from the viewpoints of economic and environmental aspects. When modelling the global circulation, we inevitably encounter two types of uncertainty, i.e. unexpected events and insufficient practical data. This article represents such uncertainty as risks and data width. The simulation results indicate that a product reuse scenario is the most promising for the sustainable global circulation. Concerning recycling scenarios, the risks are higher than those of reuse scenarios. This article also points out that the traceability, one of the most crucial elements for constructing the sustainable global circulation, can be measured by the risks.

Environmental Impact of using ICT in Industrial Sector: Effect of Environmental Load Reduction by using SCM techniques

The environmental impact of using ICT (Information and Communication Technology) in production and distribution management systems such as SCM (Supply Chain Management), in the food, textile, medicine, and cosmetics industries is investigated. The reduction of the environmental burden had much influence when information sharing progressed throughout the food, textile, medicine, and cosmetics industries. This study suggested that the reduction of environmental loads was about 3.9 million t-CO2, corresponding to more than 10% of the amount of total CO2 emissions in these industries

Concept of Dual Traceable Ownership System (DTOS) as a Sustainable Design for Product Recycling

According to statistics by Angus Madison at the Groningen Growth and Development Centre, world population has increased four-fold, and the level of global GDP in 2000 was 19 times the level it was in 1900 (Maddison, 2008). This incredible expansion has exposed several kinds of environmental issues such as climate change, natural resource depletion, environmental pollution, and disposal of waste. In the 21st century, there has been further population growth and economic expansion centred on developing countries. It has been estimated that the global population will reach 9,150 million in 2050 (6,115 million in 2000), and the Global GDP will be about four times larger in the following 50 years, if the GDP growth rate will be an average of 2.8 percent annually. The above trend will greatly increase the pressure of resource consumption. Will resources on our planet continue to support this population and economic expansion?

EcoDesign of Multilateral Recycling Systems in Asia -1st Report: Concept

The maintenance of lawful domestic recycling systems is certainly essential. And so, many products leaking out of lawful systems are recognized. However, the actual condition of leaked products has not been identified. For achieving ecodesign of multilateral recycling systems in Asia, it is necessary to clarify the condition of these leaked products. Then it is tried to identify the condition using the recycling profit analysis model. These results show that material recycling utilized in Asian areas produce more profits from several hundreds to thousands of yen per product, than that of Japan. Regarding the reuse of the products and their parts, marine transportation costs have a large effect on the secondhand business and its strategies