Introduction
I am Michael Kerns and this is my documentation of the life cycle of a product which I have chosen, rubber erasers. http://www.madehow.com/Volume-5/Eraser.html
Timeline
Raise and Extract
First, for the main component in all erasers, rubber, the latex produced by rubber trees had to be extracted. That is natural rubber, but commonly, erasers with synthetic rubber are made out of Ethylbenzene, which is made from components extracted from petroleum.
In the process of extracting either materials and the harvesting of their base components, like petroleum, these all take some amount of energy to do.
In the process of extracting either materials and the harvesting of their base components, like petroleum, these all take some amount of energy to do.
Process
In processing natural rubber for the erasers arrives in bails and must be pulverized or dissolved into liquid before being able to be mixed, while synthetic rubber comes easier in powder or liquid form, ready to be mixed with different product changing elements on the spot. The refining happens early on as the rubbers are formed in their normal states.
The transportation and creation of the materials take energy.
The transportation and creation of the materials take energy.
Manufacture
In the creation of erasers, the rubber is first mixed with different components like dyes or sulfur to change their functionality and design slightly. Once mixed the rubber is finally condensed and solidified as lines of it in a more malleable state are funneled out of a nozzle onto a conveyor belt where there are different nozzles and different ways of sectioning the soon-to-be eraser. Finally, once all the additives are properly mixed and the non completed rubber bars are cut nicely, they are heated and finally turn into usable erasers.
This whole process in factory takes a lot of energy.
This whole process in factory takes a lot of energy.
Use
Simply enough, erasers are used to pull specific minerals from the surface of what you write on, like graphite from pencils on a sheet of paper. You rub the eraser back and forth and in the process of rubbing bits of rubber pick up the graphite and then come or tear off due to friction.
Disposal
In the use of erasers, due to friction, they slowly wither away. The eraser "shavings" are usually swept away onto the ground as they are extremely insignificant in size and noticeability. Truly, they are disposed of when a vacuum is used. They get sucked up, or in the case of sweeper, swept somewhere, and then dumped along with the rest of the particles on the floor into a garbage bin. They are plastic bagged and then taken to the dump somewhere.
(Source for timeline http://www.madehow.com/Volume-5/Eraser.html)
Creative Recycling or Reuse
Due to the functionality of erasers, recycling is not very feasible. After use when the rubber is turned into little strands with minerals stuck inside by friction, these are actually, with the technology today, impossible to do much of anything with. You can't turn eraser shavings back into an eraser, not only because rubber is already hard to recycle, but that it is so tiny and filled with the soot of graphite.
Aside from shavings themselves, you could take a massive amount of unspent erasers and chop them up, turning them into rubber mulch for projects with the specific need. You cannot reuse an eraser because of the way they are used, if fully used. If one did use some sort of eraser, but not every bit of it, you could also technically use these bits, chop them up, and implement them into roads just like how tires are used in rubberized asphalt.
Aside from shavings themselves, you could take a massive amount of unspent erasers and chop them up, turning them into rubber mulch for projects with the specific need. You cannot reuse an eraser because of the way they are used, if fully used. If one did use some sort of eraser, but not every bit of it, you could also technically use these bits, chop them up, and implement them into roads just like how tires are used in rubberized asphalt.
Picture of a rubberized asphalt road in progress(A road made with little bits of rubber in the mixture).
http://www.silive.com/eastshore/index.ssf/2014/10/city_tests_rubberized_asphalt.html |
Average pink rubber block eraser with shavings beside it. http://recyclenation.com/2014/05/practicing-three-rs-rubber-erasers
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Conclusion
What is meant by product Lifecycle?
Simply, the steps a product goes through from element extraction to disposal stages of its existence.
Why is it important for companies to make products to research and determine a product's potential Lifecycle?
This is so they can regulate how something is going to work and function, even after use. One specific instance would be to see how a plastic is disposed of and what threat it causes in that way of disposal.
What would you change about your product?
Modern erasers are hard to imagine as able to be better, but if possible I wold make them out of a material which erased more per use so less would have to be made.
Do you think your product will ever become obsolete in the future? Why?
I doubt rubber erasers will ever become obsolete, and this is because of their simplicity and functionality. They serve a very big purpose anywhere where documentation is not digital due to pencil and paper, and even certain pens, and also, they are very basic and easy to dispose of, so it;'s not like it is ever a struggle to handle rubber erasers. Also, rubber is one of the few materials which can erase minerals while also being able to be shaped by molding and cutting, making specifically rubber erasers very useful and easy to change.
What is a trade-off?
The exchange of one thing for another, and in this case, materials, designs, and possible additives could be traded-off.
Do you think trade-offs were made in the design phase of my product?
I think specific types of rubber are constantly traded off in the designs of rubber erasers by different companies, and even within companies, additives additives and dyes are switched out for better ones, like a different color to suit the market they are aiming to.
Why is it important to recycle?
This is important because if you don't recycle and continue to make new products that turn into trash, trash builds up and will continue to harm the environment, and eventually, ourselves. It also saves materials which saves the energy used to normally get them.
How do product designers play a role in recycling?
They try to make their products have more ways to recycle them by making it easier with using different materials, and with the design. So if they can use a recyclable plastic which is only a little more costly than normal throw away plastic then they certainly should and could.
What role does society play in the recycling effort?
People in a society have to be active in recycling so companies who do the recycling decide to take their materials since they are in a great amount. Also they have to spread the idea of recycling enough so that it makes at least some sort of difference instead of only a small amount of people doing it.
What can you do to help?
I could, and should, start by popularizing the idea of recycling being beneficial and important enough to take the time out of the day to do. This would then lead to myself recycling more because my family and I really don't do it that much.
Simply, the steps a product goes through from element extraction to disposal stages of its existence.
Why is it important for companies to make products to research and determine a product's potential Lifecycle?
This is so they can regulate how something is going to work and function, even after use. One specific instance would be to see how a plastic is disposed of and what threat it causes in that way of disposal.
What would you change about your product?
Modern erasers are hard to imagine as able to be better, but if possible I wold make them out of a material which erased more per use so less would have to be made.
Do you think your product will ever become obsolete in the future? Why?
I doubt rubber erasers will ever become obsolete, and this is because of their simplicity and functionality. They serve a very big purpose anywhere where documentation is not digital due to pencil and paper, and even certain pens, and also, they are very basic and easy to dispose of, so it;'s not like it is ever a struggle to handle rubber erasers. Also, rubber is one of the few materials which can erase minerals while also being able to be shaped by molding and cutting, making specifically rubber erasers very useful and easy to change.
What is a trade-off?
The exchange of one thing for another, and in this case, materials, designs, and possible additives could be traded-off.
Do you think trade-offs were made in the design phase of my product?
I think specific types of rubber are constantly traded off in the designs of rubber erasers by different companies, and even within companies, additives additives and dyes are switched out for better ones, like a different color to suit the market they are aiming to.
Why is it important to recycle?
This is important because if you don't recycle and continue to make new products that turn into trash, trash builds up and will continue to harm the environment, and eventually, ourselves. It also saves materials which saves the energy used to normally get them.
How do product designers play a role in recycling?
They try to make their products have more ways to recycle them by making it easier with using different materials, and with the design. So if they can use a recyclable plastic which is only a little more costly than normal throw away plastic then they certainly should and could.
What role does society play in the recycling effort?
People in a society have to be active in recycling so companies who do the recycling decide to take their materials since they are in a great amount. Also they have to spread the idea of recycling enough so that it makes at least some sort of difference instead of only a small amount of people doing it.
What can you do to help?
I could, and should, start by popularizing the idea of recycling being beneficial and important enough to take the time out of the day to do. This would then lead to myself recycling more because my family and I really don't do it that much.