Toxicity potential indicator analysis for alternatives recommendations in the RIO Tronics utility meter pulse products

The scope of material selection has now evolved to consider not only traditional material function (e.g., mechanical, optical and electrical properties) and manufacturing economics but also inherent potential toxicity to humans and ecosystems. A rising challenge in the materials community is the integration of a robust toxicity indicator tool for comparing various materials within components in products. Prominent comparative approaches such as life cycle assessment (LCA) can enable a product designer to systematically and quantitatively benchmark environmental impacts across material life cycle stages. In practical applications however, comprehensive LCA studies require significant time-investment, expertise and can be particularly challenging to implement for companies with fast product turnover rates. Therefore, reliable and more convenient toxicity screening methods are desired to expedite the materials selection process.This research applies a methodology to analyze energy meter products and to compare the toxicity potential of components simultaneously with traditional functionality requirements. Uncertainly in source data is reflected to denote the reliability of toxicity and materials composition information used to assess the toxicity profile of components. Such approach can be extended to other alternative assessments to effectively help manufacturers understand the environmental burden of components used in their products while considering other factors such as cost and technical performance during design.