Eco-friendly electronics
In both the realm food and textiles, the concept of an eco-score is becoming more prevalent in our everyday existence. This scoring system is a point-based indicator designed to quantify a product’s environmental impact, aiding consumers in making informed and environmentally conscious choices. It is often represented on a scale from A to E.
More and more work is being done to adapt the eco-score concept to the world of electronics (a PhD thesis at Arts et Métiers Bordeaux is currently in progress, see also Eco Rating Devices). In collaboration with Ecolotronic, CATIE sought to contribute by etablishing a straightforward method to calculate an ecological indicator for both the production and utilization of electronic boards within its 6TRON platform.
The methodology is segmented into five primary stages :
- Definition of the study objective and working hypothèses ;
- Determination of inputs at different stages of the card’s Life Cycle ;
- Evaluation of impact indicator values using appropriate tools ;
- Standardization of indicators to return to a single unit ;
- Generation of an eco-score for the card studied.
The resulting eco-score is expressed as Environmental Impact of an average European over one year.
Below are the results of the eco-score for the 6TRON boards:
| 6TRON board | Version | Eco-score |
|---|---|---|
| Z_Beacon | 1.0.0 | 0.215876415 |
| Z_ECG | 1.0.0 | 0.911785647 |
| Z_Environment | 1.0.0 | 24.45170316 |
| Z_IAQ | 1.1.0 | 0.245163708 |
| Zest_Actuator_DC-Stepper | 1.0.0 | 0.356614086 |
| Zest_Actuator_HalfBridges | 1.0.0 | 0.768867997 |
| Zest_Actuator_OpenDrain | 1.0.0 | 0.265997528 |
| Zest_Adapter_Click | 1.0.0 | 0.291711868 |
| Zest_Adapter_Shield | 2.1.0 | 0.440251333 |
| Zest_Adapter_XBee | 2.3.0 | 0.274357731 |
| Zest_Battery_LiPo | 1.3.0 | 0.370520158 |
| Zest_Carrier_Extension | 1.0.0 | 0.422074992 |
| Zest_Core_FMLR-72 | 1.0.0 | 0.36405159 |
| Zest_Core_MTXDOT | 1.0.0 | 1.423801904 |
| Zest_Core_nRF52832-QFAA | 1.2.0 | 0.354230291 |
| Zest_Core_STM32G474VET | 1.0.0 | 0.559559007 |
| Zest_Core_STM32H753ZIT6 | 2.0.0 | 1.246989501 |
| Zest_Core_STM32L4A6RG | 3.0.0 | 0.473953869 |
| Zest_Core_STM32L562VE | 1.0.0 | 0.554842626 |
| Zest_Display_1-Digit | 1.0.0 | 7.833757311 |
| Zest_Display_LCD | 1.1.0 | 0.465627281 |
| Zest_Extension_SPI | 1.0.0 | 0.25694615 |
| Zest_Radio_GNSS | 1.0.1 | 2.503323317 |
| Zest_Interface_Ethernet | 1.0.0 | 0.503142922 |
| Zest_Interface_FDCAN | 1.1.0 | 0.358787395 |
| Zest_Interface_RS232 | 2.1.0 | 0.286470277 |
| Zest_Interface_RS485_Isolated | 1.0.0 | 0.668712818 |
| Zest_Interface_RS485_No_Isolated | 1.0.0 | 0.296480871 |
| Zest_LED_WS2812B | 1.0.1 | 0.735834766 |
| Zest_Module_LoRa169 | 1.0.0 | 0.60975102 |
| Zest_Module_LoRa868 | 1.0.0 | 0.603750001 |
| Zest_Power_12-48V-to-10V | 1.1.0 | 0.815078198 |
| Zest_Radio_ATZBRF233 | 1.2.0 | 1.429131607 |
| Zest_Radio_Heracles224G | 1.2.0 | 1.248679861 |
| Zest_Radio_LoRa868 | 1.0.0 | 0.733142515 |
| Zest_Radio_SPBTLE-RF0 | 1.0.1 | 0.397738803 |
| Zest_Radio_WiFi | 1.0.0 | 0.363277406 |
| Zest_RTC_RV-8803-C7 | 1.0.0 | 0.257816638 |
| Zest_Sensor_4-20mA | 1.0.0 | 0.473422619 |
| Zest_Sensor_Audio-PDM | 1.0.0 | 0.292745366 |
| Zest_Sensor_Camera | 2.1.0 | 1.183319118 |
| Zest_Sensor_CO2 | 1.0.1 | 0.51020332 |
| Zest_Sensor_Dust | 1.1.0 | 1.85202068 |
| Zest_Sensor_ECG | 1.0.1 | 0.530542145 |
| Zest_Sensor_IMU | 1.0.2 | 1.340919708 |
| Zest_Sensor_Potentiostat | 2.0.0 | 5.944049741 |
| Zest_Sensor_P-T-RH | 1.0.1 | 0.538462515 |
| Zest_Sensor_VOC | 1.1.0 | 1.251023683 |
| Zest_Storage_Flash | 1.0.0 | 0.425348547 |
| Zest_Storage_microSD | 1.0.0 | 0.289465857 |
| Zest_Test_Header | 2.0.0 | 0.366236132 |
| Zest_Test_Prototyping | 1.1.0 | 0.24972762 |