University of Groningen
Towards sustainable quality. A methodological principle for sustainable management
of material use
Tromp, Onno-Sven
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1995
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Tromp, O-S. (1995). Towards sustainable quality. A methodological principle for sustainable management
of material use s.n.
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Summary 221
Towards sustainablequality
A methodological principle fo,
materials use
sustainable management of
Summary
This thesis is structuredas shown in figure S.1. As we can see,the thesiscan be
'Introduction', 'Background', 'Analysis',
divided into five parts called
'Implications',
and'Conclusions'.
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An lyolt
A metfpdologrcal pnnclple
for sustairabls nnnagsment
of nraterials use
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Figure S. I
Structure of the thesis
222
Introduction
Chapter I presents an introduction and the scope of this thesis. Since the
industrial revolution, the Western economy has evolved into a complex system
with materials and energy as its major pillars. Because of the environmental
consequencesof the present Westem way of using materials, and because
developing countriesin other parts of the world seemto adopt a similar way of
using materials, it is uncertain whether the present Westem way of using
materialscan be sustainedin the future. Within this context, this thesis aimsat
developing a methodologicalprinciple for sustainablemanagementof materials
use.
In a broad sense, this thesis on sustainable materials use involves a
discussionon physical interactionsbetween the economy and the environment.
These interactionscan be conceived as flows of matter and energy..In caseof
matter flows, the economy and the environment can be related by matter lifecycles that reflect several stagesof matter transformationin the economy.In
general, we use different forms of matter like substances,materials, and
products.Productscan be said to be made of materials,materialsof substances,
and substances are refined raw materials. Together with life-cycles and
recycling, theseforms of matter are major conceptsin this thesis.
The scopeof the thesisgeneratesthe following five researchquestionsin the
'What
context of the thesis: (1)
are major trends in presentWestern materials
'How
use?', (2)
can the general notion of sustainability be made operational
'How
with respectto the specific field of materialsuse?', (3)
do the trendsin
present Western materials use relate to sustainablemanagementof materials
'Is it possible
use?', (4)
to develop a methodologicalprinciple for sustainable
managementof materialsuse?', and if so: (5) 'What are the implications of the
methodological principle for the way materials are used and for related future
research?'.
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Background
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Chapter 2 deals with a general trend in presentWestern materials use which
involves attempts to achieve a high level of material performance with less
'doing
'Doing
material inputs. This trend can be called
more with /ess'.
more
with less' encompasses
both changesin the amount of materialsused and in the
kind of materialsused, and can be seenas a combination of other major trends.
Miniaturization and dematerializationare trends involving attempts to use less
materials. Miniaturization means that materials are used in ever smaller
quantities within products, and that products become smaller measured by
weight. Dematerialization indicates a decoupling of consumption of
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Summary 223
(conventional) materials and economic growth in terms of GDP. The trends
materials substitution.transmaterialization.and materials innovation are related
to attempts to use materials with a high level of functionality. Materials
substitution means that materials used in products are replaced by other ones,
often because of functional advantages. Transmaterialization involves a
periodical shift in materials used at the overall level of materialsuse which is
related to cyclical theories of industrial growth. Materials innovation applies to
the development of new, advancedmaterials.In practice, these five trends are
relatedand they underliethe generaltrend'doing more with less'.
The trends are illustrated by the increasing use of glass-fibre-reinforced
materials, dissipative applicationsof heavy metals, and the increasinguse of a
wide variety of packaging materials.Furthermore,it is signalizedthat the trends
in materials use can generally have both positive and negative environmental
for the recyclability of
consequences.In this thesis, I focus on the consequences
'doing
materials. While
more with less' is a guideline for materials use at the
level of single products,problems in materialsrecycling may turn the trend into
'doing more with more' at the overall level of materialsuse.
Chapter 3 makes a first step towards a methodologicalprinciple for sustainable
managementof materials use by exploring the concept of sustainability.With
respect to materials use, which can be seen as a subsystemof the physical
economic system, the definition of a sustainablesubsystemis important. A
subsystemcan be called sustainableif it meetstwo conditions.In the first place,
the major stocks and flows are maintained, and, in the second place, the
sustainability of other subsystems of the entire system is thereby not
endangered.
The so-called Daly criteria can in principle be used to make sustainable
materials use operational. They enable us to gain insight into the
(un)sustainability of the use of single materials. However, the Daly criteria
appear to be less appropriate for assessingthe sustainability of the entire
'materials
subsystem
use'. Moreover, the criteria only apply to the first
condition for sustainablematerialsuse. Therefore,this thesis focuseson a more
general methodological principle aimed at a reduction of the flows of matter
into and out of the economy.
As a guideline for the next two chapters,two basic elementsof a strategy
that can be the basis of such a methodologicalprinciple are discussed.These
elements are (1) an increaseof the efficiency of the subsystem'materialsuse'
and (2) a replacementof materialsused. They can be combined into a generic
strategy: pursuing materials recycling. This strategy involves the pursuit of an
increaseof the amount of matter cycling within the economy.This strategywill,
224
ceteris paribus, simultaneouslyreduce the amountsof matter that flow into and
out of the economy.
Analysis
Chapter 4 uses a systems approach to discuss the concept of materials
recycling. In chapter 3, materials recycling has been put forward as a generic
strategy that can be a basis for a methodological principle for sustainable
managementof materials use. In general, recycling can be defined as taking
back a certain form of pre-processedmatter to, and reprocessingit at, the same
or an earlier stage of the economic section of a certain life-cycle. Thereare
several feedback loops by which matter can be recycled, resulting in several
recycling options. Some of these options can be preferred to othersfrom an
'waste
environmental point of view. The Dutch
managementladder' and the
'resource cascadingstrategy' can be consideredas two approachesthat can
be
used to indicate the most preferablerecycling option in a practicalsituation.
The recyclability of a material can be defined as the extent to which the
material can be recycled in practice. Recyclability is influenced by several
technical, economic, and socio-cultural or institutional factors that may cause
obstaclesto the collection, separation,and reprocessingactivities in recycling
logistics. Recycling rates are used to quantify the amount recycledof a certain
material. Recycling rates can be defined in various ways and for different
regions and years.The recycling rate RR(n), which indicatesthe amountof the
material that is actually reprocessed as a percentage of the amount of the
material released,can be consideredas the most appropriaterecyclingrate,
Although materials recycling is usually expectedto result in raw materials
savings and waste reductions,materials recycling has the potentialto resultin
energy savings and emission reductionsas well. This is relevantwith respect
to
the secondcondition for sustainablematerizilsuse discussedin chapter3.
'doing more with less' discussed
The general trend in materials use
in
chapter 2 can be consideredto be oppositeto pursuing materialsrecycling,since
the trend generatesrecycling problemsby causingtechnicalobstacles.
Chapter.5 presentsa methodologicalprinciple for sustainablemanagement
of
materials use by analysing the contrast between materials recycling and the
trends discussedin chapter 2 in terms of material quality. The chapterfocuses
on a major characteristic of the current way of using materials that underlies
many of the technical obstacles to recycling. If this characteristiccan be
removed, this can be a substantial step towards sustainable management
of
materialsuse.
Summary 225
In the line of a discussion on managementof ecosystemsand 'resource
systems' in the literature, the way in which materialsare currently used in the
western world can be considered to be based on a misperception of the
associatedenvironmentalrisks. The current way of using materialsseemsto be
based on an optimization of short-term 'stability' at the cost of long-term
'resilience'.
Furthermorematerialsuse is generallycaught in a'benefit-risk trap'
'temporal
and in a
trap', which meansthat the benefits of current materialsuse
are optimized at the cost of the benefitsof future materialsuse, while associated
risks are underestimatedat'the sametime.
At present, materials use is based on materials with a high 'functional
quality'. Materials with a high functional quality have propertiesthat, to a high
degree, conform to the functions and functional propertiesof the materialsand
of the products in which they are applied. The degree of conformance is
assessedin relation to the demandsmade by producersand consumers.Materials
with a high functional quality are produced basically by four methods:
destandardization,miniaturization, combination, and finishing. It appears that
such materials generally have properties that can cause technical obstaclesto
materialsrecycling.
In order to improve the recyclability of materials, materials use should
therefore shift from materials with a high functional quality to materials with a
'sustainable
high
quality'. Materials with a high sustainablequality are defined
to have propertiesthat conform to recycling. The shift to materialswith a high
sustainablequality can be seen as a methodologicalprinciple for sustainable
managementof materialsuse. Application of the principle generallyimplies that
materials should perform fewer functions with fewer functional properties.In
practice, fewer and simpler kinds of materials should be used in not too small
quantities within products.
The shift to sustainablequality implies that fewer benefits can be derived
from materials use, which, ceteris paribus, meansa decreaseof current welfare.
The shift to sustainablequality may therefore run up against opposition.It is a
challenge, however, to cope with this opposition by taking additional measures
to compensatethe loss of functional quality.
Implications
Chapter 6 deals with implications of the methodologicalprinciple presentedin
this thesis.As an initial applicationand an illustration,the principle is applied to
materials used for household packaging. Several 'standardizationoptions' are
compared to choose a material that can serve as a standard in order to increase
the recyclability of packagingmaterials.In addition, it is discussedwhat kind of
measuresshould be taken in order to compensatethe loss of functional quality.
226
This loss will be experienced by consumers and producers if the use of
packagingmaterialsis standardized.
Furthermore, it is attempted to put the principle in the context of other
environmental approaches involving materials, products, life-cycles, and
technology. In principle, the principle can be integrated with approaches
like
'green products
by design','integral chain management',and'resource
cascading'.Integration of the methodologicalprinciple and other environmental
approaches is an important aspect of developing the principle into a
methodology.On the basis of relationsbetweenelementsof this thesisandother
environmental approaches,figure 6.1 outlines a methodology for sustainable
managementof materialsuse.
Finally, it is discussedwhat can be the first stepstowards implementation
of
the principle. Firstly, a broader scientific basis can be createdby integration
of
the principle and other environmentalapproaches.Secondly, the principlecan
most fruitfully be applied in fields of materials use with low recyclingrates
and/or much 'downcycling'. It may also be useful to integratethe principleinto
current developmentsin materials standardization.Thirdly, relevantinstitutions
should play a major role in creating a basis for, initiating, coordinating,and
managingthe shift to sustainablequality.
Conclusions
I
Chapter 7 presentsand discussesthe generalconclusionsof this thesisandputs
the ideas on sustainablematerialsuse, materialsrecycling, and materialsquality
in a broader context. The generalconclusionsare formulated as answersto the
central questionsraised in chapter l. In general,it can be concludedthat many
technical obstacles to materials recycling generated by the major trendsin
presentWestern materialsuse can be related to the use of materialswith a high
functional quality. The methodologicalprincipte for sustainablemanagement
of
presented
in
this
thesis
involves
towards
materials
with
materials use
a shift
a
high sustainablequality. In practice, this means that we should improvethe
recyclability of materialsby using fewer and simpler kinds of materialsin not
too small quantities.In order to facilitate this shift, additional measures
should
be taken to compensatethe accompanyingloss of functional quality. It should
be noted that the conclusions are based on assumptions and limitations
involving, for example, the point of view used with respect to environmenteconomy interactions,the application of the conceptof sustainabilityto theuse
of materials, and the focus on technical obstacles to recycling. The
to
methodologicalprinciple presentedin this thesis,i.e. the shift from functional
sustainablequality, should be seen as a first, necessarybut insufficientstep
towards sustainabilityof the entire economic system.