Design Life-Cycle

Tiffany Lui

Professor Cogdell 

DES 40A

2 December 2021

Apple iPhone 12: Materials 

Apple’s iPhone 12 was officially released on October 23, 2020, with consumers’ excitement of a newly released phone and at the first attempt from Apple to create an environmentally friendly phone. Apple boasts that the iPhone 12 is "made with better materials," made with ninety-nine percent tungsten and ninety-eight percent recycled rare earth elements. And it is clear to the public that Apple is attempting to make huge strides in making their products more environmentally friendly in the future with their claim to shift their “entire manufacturing supply chain to 100 percent renewable electricity by 2030.” However, despite claims and efforts from Apple about how environmentally friendly they have become for the iPhone 12, evidence of the materials they use to create their phones proves to be highly detrimental to the environment. 

In a general breakdown of the iPhone 12’s main components, the phone has six main parts: the OLED display, A14 Bionic processor, CMOS image sensor camera, battery, 5G antenna, and the memory chip. All of these parts besides one come from overseas. The Super Retina XDR display comes from South Korea’s Samsung, the A14 Bionic processor chip comes from Europe's ARM architecture, the CMOS image sensor camera comes from Japan's Sony, the battery comes from Hong Kong's Ampex Technology, and the 5G antenna comes from San Diego's Qualcomm, and the memory chip comes from Japan's Kioxia. (Howley) 

To manufacture the iPhone 12, Apple needs multiple materials to create specific components of the phone. Aluminum is used as a casing of the phone, with some used to make the batteries of phones, along with cobalt and lithium. Copper is used for the logic boards and wireless charging capabilities. Glass is mainly used for the phones’ displays. Gold is also used for logic and circuit boards, with some parts used in the camera modules. Rare earth elements are used for cameras, and plastic, alongside rare earth metals, is used for speakers. Steel is used for screws and structural components. And Zinc is used for power adapters. (Apple Environmental Progress Report 34) According to Apple, they used ninety-nine percent recycled tungsten, ninety-eight percent recycled rare earth elements, 100 percent recycled tin, and thirty-five percent or more recycled plastic in the materials for the device. The iPhone 12 has parts made using non-recycled aluminum. And as “aluminum is the most widely used nonferrous metal,” so throughout time, aluminum production has notably increased. (Zhang et al.) Producing aluminum requires high energy intensity and can gravely damage the environment and human health of people living in that area when producing using coal or fossil fuels. Using a cleaner energy source, such as hydropower, can reduce some of the environmental burdens of the production of aluminum. Apple has stated that some of the aluminum in the iPhone 12 is actually smelted by hydroelectricity. However, an important fact to note is that "'while bioenergy can reduce climate change and non-renewable energy effects, it can greatly increase human toxicity effects.'" (Zhang et al.) One suggestion that Apple could take into consideration is to recycle some of their aluminum, as according to Zhang, “More than 94% of the global warming and fossil depletion potential impacts can be saved through aluminum recycling." Now going briefly into lithium-ion batteries. Some benefits of lithium-ion batteries include long-lasting life, safety, lightweight, and having a high energy density. However, a severe problem is the mining of lithium. One way Lithium is obtained is through pegmatite ores. Lithium processing is energy consuming, and while mining, there is an environmental risk of the waste products of the mining. For example, the water leftover from the mining all contains high concentrations of toxic compounds. (Wanger)

Apple made the packaging of the iPhone 12 environmentally friendly compared to past packaging for devices. According to Apple’s Product  Environmental Report, ninety-three percent of the packaging is fiber-based, seventy-two percent recycled content in the fiber packaging, and that all of the virgin wood fiber used in the packaging came from "responsibly managed forests." All of this consists of the box structure, like all Apple products; however, there is a thin plastic film around it to protect the box from damage. All of Apple’s packaging boxes can be recycled. 

There are a variety of ways that Apple ships its iPhone 12s  to customers. A newly established way is by shipping out products from within local stores to the customers. (Gartenberg) By doing this, the products get to customers a lot faster. Delivery trucks need gasoline in order to run, which comes from Petroleum, a fossil fuel. When shipping products from overseas to the United States, "FedEx ships Apple handsets...mainly using Boeing 777s...those planes can make the fifteen-hour flight from China to the main United States hub without refueling, Jindel said." (Worstall) Although shipping by boat would be cheaper than shipping the iPhones by air, as it would take longer to ship by boat, the loss of time overweighs the pricing. Planes require fuel to take flight, which comes from crude oils. 

Inside the box, the customers get the iPhone 12 and a cable to charge; however, there is no wall charger. This was done as an attempt to become more environmentally friendly, to avoid extra items. So a wall charger might be an item a customer might need if they do not have another wall charger or way to wireless charge their iPhone 12. A phone plan is also something a user would need in order to use the device. By using a phone, there is also a carbon footprint. By using a phone an hour a day, there are 63kg CO2e a year, for 195 minutes a day, there are 69kg CO2e a year, and for ten hours a day, there are 86kg CO2e a year. To reduce the carbon footprint of using a phone, there are many recommended tips, like switching autoplay settings from high definition to a lower resolution when the top quality picture is not necessary, streaming over Wi-Fi rather than mobile networks, turning off cloud backups that you do not need, and when making a call, call using the mobile network rather than using the internet. “The majority of carbon emissions linked to mobile phones are generated during the manufacturing.” (Thorne) 

Apple offers recycling programs, such as Daisy and Dave, which are two robots Apple owns that can take apart Apple devices in order to recycle them. Besides recycling them at Apple, customers can also trade them in for newer products in the Apple Trade-In program. Those traded in devices may end up refurbished, recycled, or exchanged for store credit. In 2018, Apple refurbished more than 7.8 million devices and diverted more than 48,000 tons of electronic waste from the landfill. (Fulton) While it is unknown really how much of a device Apple actually recycles, the metal parts of the phone can definitely be recycled and be reused for another device in the future. It would also be hard to recycle the plastic components within the device.  

There are a number of things that critics believe Apple should first focus on, before selling new phones products that frequently. Stone mentions, “While Apple reduced its carbon footprint 35% between 2015 and 2019, global electronic waste production rose 21% over the same period.” Critics believe that Apple should focus on using materials that can be recycled, in contrast to materials that end up being shredded and tossed in landfills. Another criticism is from the Inside, regarding that the iPhone 12 comes with a USB-C to Lightning cable, which is not compatible with the iPhone 11 or even the iPad Pro. They believe that Apple creates more emissions and e-waste by not having a universal adapter. And despite their attempt to become more environmentally friendly, they still have different charging structures for all of their products. 

With the creation of the iPhone 12, Apple has attempted to lower the environmental impact on Earth, and considering all of the materials and steps Apple has used and done to lower this impact, it is an excellent first step towards creating environmentally friendly products. However, there are still many significant components that the company should focus on and consider to lower the environmental impact of their products in the future.

Bibliography

Apple. “Apple Conflict Minerals Report.” Apple, 2020, https://www.apple.com/supplier-responsibility/pdf/Apple-Conflict-Minerals-Report.pdf.

Apple. “Environmental Progress Report.” Apple, 25 March 2020, https://www.apple.com/environment/pdf/Apple_Environmental_Progress_Report_2020.pdf.

Apple. “iPhone 12 and iPhone 12 mini.” Apple, https://www.apple.com/iphone-12/specs/.

Apple. “Product Environmental Report.” iPhone 12, Apple, 2020, https://www.apple.com/environment/pdf/products/iphone/iPhone_12_PER_Oct2020.pdf.

Apple. “2021 Supplier List.” Apple, 2020, https://www.apple.com/supplier-responsibility/pdf/Apple-Supplier-List.pdf.

Fulton, Keri. “Apple expands global recycling programs.” Apple, 18 April 2019, https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2019/04/apple-expands-global-recycling-programs/.

Gartenberg, Chaim. “Apple is starting to ship devices directly from its stores.” The Verge, 9 October 2020, https://www.theverge.com/2020/10/9/21509992/apple-store-ship-devices-directly-faster-iphone.

Howley, Daniel. “Apple's iPhone deconstructed: This 3-D image shows where your iPhone 12 parts come from.” Yahoo Finance, 24 December 2020, https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/where-your-iphone-12s-parts-come-from-161719303.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAANWuaa6ZJbMYSYlZuyhshm_HgEhCgXYjDfKeebW_IE_8vDiqrw0UJtERLMEZLcKbE8z5gTX1pGdF6ENazqhXVZYFku.

Inside. “Apple's charger decision – good or bad for the environment?” Inside, 16 March 2021, https://features.inside.com/apple-chargers-iphone-carbon-emissions-ewaste/.

Owen, Malcolm. “iPhone 12 teardown reveals simpler internal design, 5G radio details.” Apple Insider, 24 October 2020, https://appleinsider.com/articles/20/10/24/teardown-reveals-major-iphone-12-design-changes-to-include-5g.

Stone, Maddie. “Apple's iPhone 12 Is Not Green | Debugger.” Debugger, 22 October 2020, https://debugger.medium.com/apples-new-iphone-is-far-from-green-1803f4f9a58a.

Teirstein, Zoya. “Apple is aiming for ‘zero climate impact.’ The iPhone 12 won’t help.” Grist, 23 October 2020, https://grist.org/climate/apple-is-aiming-for-zero-climate-impact-the-iphone-12-wont-help/.

Thome, Matt. “The carbon footprint of your phone – and how you can reduce it.” Reboxed, 26 February 2021, https://reboxed.co/blogs/outsidethebox/the-carbon-footprint-of-your-phone-and-how-you-can-reduce-it.

Wanger, Thomas Cherico. “The Lithium future—resources, recycling, and the environment.” Conservation Letters, vol. 4, no. 3, 2011, pp. 202-206. Google Scholar, https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1755-263X.2011.00166.x.

Worstall, Tim. “It's Cheaper To Send Apple's iPhones By Air Than By Sea.” Forbes, 12 September 2013, https://www.forbes.com/sites/timworstall/2013/09/12/its-cheaper-to-send-apples-iphones-by-air-than-by-sea/?sh=41559e4835f7.

Zhang, Yanlu, et al. “Environmental footprint of aluminum production in China.” Journal of Cleaner Production, vol. 133, 2016, pp. 1242-1251. ScienceDirect, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652616304255.

Yena Won 

Sarah & Tiffany 

DES 40 A 

Professor Cogdell 

The life cycle of iPhone 12

Apple is used all over the world and iPhone 12 is one of the most popular phones used. During the life cycle of the iPhone 12 energy is a very important part. The parts of the energy can be described in two parts. It can be described with which charger is used to charge and the energy that goes into the charger. Another part of the energy can be discussed with which energy is used to charge the phone and how it affects people if it is harmful or not If it is harmful how harmful and how it can be prevented. The charger that iPhone 12 only gets charged by is the type USB-C charger. iPhone battery holds a charge of 1,440 mAh or about 5.45-watt-hours. In one year 2000 watts hour or 2 kWh are needed. When the phone is not actively used the battery lasts for 2 days.  

The c type charger that is used to charge iPhone 12 is defined as a charger that is aimed to provide high-speed data based on the website all about the circuit. USB-C and USB Type-C these two names are used at the same time officially. USB-C type example photo from Microchip.

It has three main features. According to all about the circuit, USB-C has a flippable connector and it has an interface design and it is designed that way so the plug can be flipped relative to the receptacle. The second main feature is that it supports USB2.0, USB 3.0, and USB 3. Also, it can support extra DisplayPort and HDMI operation which is called Alternate Mode. The last main feature is that the USB-C type can arrange and make a choice of the right level of power flow through the interface. 

An example of the diagram is from Microchip. In accordion to all about the circuit, these two diagrams show 24 pins for the Type USB-C  receptacle and plug. 

All of the cell phones use low power radiofrequency (RF) energy which is the type of non-ionizing radiation. To give a more detailed explanation about low-powered radiofrequency (RF) energy, according to the American Cancer Society it includes radio waves and microwaves at the low-energy end of the electromagnetic spectrum and also types of non-ionizing radiation. to further explanation non-ionizing radiation refers to electromagnetic radiation which doesn’t carry enough energy. According to the American Cancer Society, visible light can be one example o  non-ionizing radiation. 

The concern that people are related to the low power radiofrequency (RF) energy is what if it gets absorbed into the body?  According to the research made in Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, it does get absorbed by the body but it depends on how close our body holds the cell phone and the strength of the signal. Also, according to the American Cancer Society whenever low power radiofrequency (RF) energy gets absorbed by the body it produces heat and burns, and damages the body tissue. After absorbing a lot of low-power radiofrequency (RF) energy not everyone and there is a low percentage of getting cancer, but people can get cancer and damage by it. 

People are so easy to get exposed to low power radiofrequency (RF) energy. According to the American Cancer Society people can be exposed to low-power radiofrequency (RF) energy from both natural and man-made sources. For example, natural sources include outer space and the sun, the sky, the earth itself. Also, man-made sources include: broadcasting radio and television signals, WiFi, Bluetooth, devices (cell phones, and more. Most people are exposed to low-power radiofrequency (RF) energy of man-made radiation every day of using cell phones and other devices and not only the devices but also come from radio, television, and more sources. iPhone 12 use low-power radiofrequency (RF) energy and other cell phones use it to transmit and receive signals. To go into more details according to Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety the exposure can be effect less when the distances of the phone get farther. 

To prevent cancer there are a few ways to follow. According to the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health limiting the number and length of calls (time spent talking on the phone), using hands-free devices, sending a text message instead of talking on the phone, encouraging children to reduce the time they spend on cell phones. Not only these precautions can be helpful but also pay attention to self-safety while using the iPhone. 

Through the research, the energy that is used to charge the iPhone is somewhat not safe to the body but it can’t be avoided and need to be used. Also, the specific energy that is used is all around the place not only used in the cell phone but also in all of the devices including microwave and minor devices and also the WiFi and Bluetooth. People just have to be careful using the iPhone to prevent cancer. 

Work Cited 

Arar, Steve. “Guide to USB-C Pinout and Features - Technical Articles.” All About Circuits, https://www.allaboutcircuits.com/technical-articles/introduction-to-usb-type-c-which-pins-power-delivery-data-transfer/.

Government of Canada, Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety. “Exposure to Radiofrequency Energy from Cellular Telephones : Osh Answers.” Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, 2 Dec. 2021, https://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/phys_agents/cellular_telephones.html.

Helman, Christopher. “How Much Electricity Do Your Gadgets Really Use?” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 29 June 2021, https://www.forbes.com/sites/christopherhelman/2013/09/07/how-much-energy-does-your-iphone-and-other-devices-use-and-what-to-do-about-it/?sh=3b31ed4e2f70.

“IPhone 전원 어댑터.” Apple Support, https://support.apple.com/ko-kr/guide/iphone/iph8c1e31583/ios#:~:text=Apple%2020W%20USB%2DC%20power,to%2060%20Hz%2C%20single%20phase.

“Non-Ionizing Radiation.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 3 Nov. 2021, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Non-ionizing_radiation.

“Radiofrequency (RF) Radiation.” American Cancer Society, https://www.cancer.org/cancer/cancer-causes/radiation-exposure/radiofrequency-radiation.html.

Rodgers, Andrew. “AN1953 - Microchip Technology.” Introduction to USB Type-C, https://ww1.microchip.com/downloads/en/AppNotes/00001953A.pdf. 

Sarah Ng

Cogdell

DES 40A

2 December 2021

Waste and Pollution

In October 2020, Apple released the iPhone 12 and advocated that the product is more environmentally friendly than the previous ones. They have been making clear efforts in their goal of becoming carbon neutral, however, their consumers have not been as active in their cause. Apple has implemented many procedures to recycle the materials in the iPhone 12 that can be beneficial to the environment, however, it still has negative impacts due to a low rate of recycling by consumers.

The main way Apple has reduced the emissions of the iPhone 12 is through its recycling program that focuses on reusing certain materials. On their official website, they have a page dedicated to explaining what a consumer can do with their old product. For the United States, consumers can trade in their devices for free to be recycled. To recycle the iPhone 12 they transport it to one of their Material Recovery Labs where their robot Daisy will recovery materials for future products or refurbish them for more customers. This robot can recover, 1900 kg of aluminum, 0.97 kg of gold, 7.5 kg of silver, 11 kg of rare earth elements, 93 kg of tungsten, 710 kg of copper, 0.10 kg of palladium, 42 kg of tin, 770 kg of cobalt, and 1.8 kg of tantalum for every 100,000 iPhones. Each year, Daisy disassembles around 1.2 million devices, while 7.8 million devices are refurbished and resold to consumers. Recycling allows elements to be reused and lowers the need for mining. While refurbishing extends the lifespan of the product, decreasing the need to make a new device. Less mining and production of new devices lowers the emissions of the iPhone 12, making it better for the environment than past Apple products.

Despite the company’s efforts, recycling a product can only happen if the consumers themselves recycle the product. It has been seen that less than 20% of cell phones are recycled each year, meaning that the other 80% is improperly disposed of. This is due to consumers either being unaware of how and where to recycle the product, or believing that it can be recycled with regular household products. Each part of the iPhone 12 can be properly disposed of, and can equally be disposed of improperly. 

One of the most important parts of the iPhone 12 is the lithium-ion battery (LIB), which can be very dangerous when improperly disposed of and put through the waste management system. It has been seen that in every stage, the LIB can cause a fire when not properly sealed, jostled, and or damaged. Due to the large volume of waste, sometimes the LIBs are buried when ignited, making the fire unnoticeable for a period and allowed to grow. 

Typically the LIBs start in a waste container or storage, which are made for recycling waste or recycling, not batteries. It is then transported with municipal or commercial waste management vehicles. These are usually prepared to deal with garbage fires, however often have to locate a safe area to dump the burning trash and wait for assistance. Depending on the location, there might be a stop at an intermediate site, where waste from different collection routes is consolidated. 

After, the LIBs are transported to an end-of-life facility, which can be a battery recycler, electronics recyclers, scrap yards, materials recovery facility, waste to energy plant, landfill, and or hazardous waste disposal facility. 

Battery recyclers are designed to separate cobalt, nickel, lithium, and manganese through either pyrometallurgy or hydrometallurgy. Pyrometallurgy is when the material is heated to high temperatures to extract metals, it is typically for cobalt, nickel, and copper. Hydrometallurgy is a chemical leaching process, for batteries, it is a liquid bath composed of caustic reagents such as hydrochloric, nitric, or sulfuric acids. It can recover everything pyrometallurgy can in addition to lithium. 

Electronics recyclers disassemble the electronic products they receive, which allows for the components to be properly sorted and recycled. However, the iPhone 12 is complex and is not always worth the workers' time, and is still a fire risk. Workers are often paid based on the number of devices they can disassemble. Meaning that spending more time on an iPhone 12 will lower their pay, therefore making it more beneficial for them to disassemble a different device. At this stage, the LIB has not been carefully transported and is likely to have been damaged. It makes it dangerous for a worker to take apart the device because they will be nearby if a fire were to occur. 

Scrap yards collect, sort, and consolidate scrap metal to be either recycled or resold and often use shredders. These shredders are dangerous for LIBs since they can puncture them and cause them to ignite. However, there is a large amount of waste to be sorted through and fires are sometimes deep enough to be unnoticed for a long time. Not only is this a hazard for any workers, but it also damages the materials nearby. This can cause these materials to no longer be recyclable. 

Materials recovery facilities are made to collect and sort scrap paper, plastics, glass, and metals into different systems and send them to recyclers. If a LIB is spotted it is either sent to a specialty recycler, such as the battery or electronic recyclers, or the landfill. When left unnoticed it can ignite which is especially dangerous due to most of the materials in these facilities being very flammable. LIBs are usually sent here because the labels on these can be confusing, an example is that it will have the chasing arrows symbol for recycling but also have a trashcan with an “X” over it. This means that the product is recyclable at a specific facility or recycling program, and not regular household recycling. 

Waste to energy plants burns waste to create energy. This sounds fitting for LIBs which are fire hazards, however, there are times when they combust before they are supposed to. These are also not the best way to dispose of LIBs because of the greenhouse gas emissions and the ashes are dumped into the landfill, which is waste on the environment. 

Landfills are the last place waste ends up if it is not recycled through the end-of-life facilities from above. Here the waste is dumped and left to sit in hopes it will eventually break down. These are harmful to the environment due to their contents often being either toxic or remaining for extended periods. Landfills also have various ways of damaging and igniting LIBs. When trucks and compact equipment drive through, they can come in contact with the LIBs and cause them to ignite. Fires can also be caused by direct sunlight on the waste, along with rising temperatures due to nearby garbage decomposing. 

Hazardous waste disposal facilities have more protection than municipal solid waste landfills. This is due to having restrictions on their land disposals, and the waste themselves is subject to certain treatment standards. However, there is still a chance of fires, in one extreme case the facility was burned to the point in which it was never rebuilt. 

When left to the waste management system, just the LIB in the iPhone 12 can have detrimental effects on the environment from emitting greenhouse gases when ignited, but also causing nearby materials to be damaged and unrecyclable. Along with the battery are other materials in the iPhone 12 that can significantly increase its negative impacts on the environment. These materials include silicone, glass, conflict minerals, and rare earth elements

Silicone is the key material in making the chips that run devices such as the iPhone 12.  It is a nonbiodegradable material that can withstand temperatures between -55 oC to 300 oC and can take anywhere from 50 to 500 years to break down. Due to its durability, it can remain in a landfill for a long period. Once it arrives at the landfill the chances of it being recycled are very low due to it being too time-consuming to sort out from the rest of the waste in the landfill. 

Glass is also a nonbiodegradable material that can stay intact for hundreds of years. Similar to silicone, it can stay in the landfill for a long time, and will most likely never be recycled once in the landfill. If 6 tons of glass is recycled, it can reduce emissions by 1 ton, meaning that glass in the landfill is a missed opportunity to reduce emissions. 

Conflict minerals are elements in which there can or is bloodshed over obtaining these materials, therefore we must recycle and reuse them when possible. These include cobalt, lithium, tin, tantalum, tungsten, and gold. All of which can be recycled for future products. However, when they are sent to the landfill these materials are lost and decrease the overall supply of them in the world. This causes a need for more mining and conflict, resulting in negative impacts on both the environment and relations with other countries. 

Rare earth elements consist of 15 lanthanide elements plus Sc and Y, 6 of which are used to make the iPhone 12. These elements are really good for electronics and magnets, there are in really high demand. As of right now, we had a lot of them, however, if we continue to use them and throw them into the landfill the supply will be depleted. Recycling the rare earth elements will decrease the amount of mining done for these elements, lowering emissions. Once the device arrives at the landfill the elements in it will never be recycled again. It will remain in the landfill, never to be used again. 

It has been seen that the iPhone 12 is made with many important recyclable materials and can have a much low effect on the environment if consumers properly dispose of them. Apple has its recycling programs that can reuse conflict minerals, rare earth elements, and a few more elements or even refurbish the whole device. Allowing for the materials to be recycled, lowering the need for mining the minerals. However, when not recycled properly, the device goes through the waste management process. This is dangerous because the properties of the lithium-ion battery cause it to be flammable, and can be ignited at almost any stage without warning. It is also dangerous for the environment because minerals in the device cannot be recycled once it is in the landfill; increasing the need to mine those minerals. The iPhone 12 is provided the means of having a small effect on the environment at the end of its life cycle because of Apple, however ends up having quite a negative impact because less than 20% of them are recycled by the consumers. 

Works Cited

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