Lifecycle Of Headphones
Natural Resources found in Headphones:
Artificial Leather
A natural resource found on headphones is artificial leather. Artificial leather is found on most headphones which come from China. The largest producer of faux leather is China. This country also has the largest market for synthetic leather products, and it exports these products all over the world to consumers in Asia, Europe, South America, and North America.
PVC
For on-ear headphones, the usual design is a rigid plastic casing with a rubber or PVC layer to act as a cushion on the ear. PVC is made in China.
Rubber
For in-ear headphones, rubber or silicone is common, as it has more flexibility and can thus fit comfortably but snugly into the ear or ear canal. The world's largest rubber producing countries are Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam.
How are these Natural Resources Extracted?:
Artificial Leather: Faux leather begins with a fabric base such as polyester. The fabric is then given an imitation leather finish and texture with wax, dye, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), or polyurethane. Faux leather is obviously designed to look like real leather, but the surface of synthetic leather is uniform.
PVC: The electrolysis of saltwater produces chlorine. The chlorine is then combined with ethylene that has been obtained from oil. The resulting element is ethylene dichloride, which is converted at very high temperatures to vinyl chloride monomer. These monomer molecules are polymerized forming polyvinyl chloride resin.
Rubber: Rubber latex is extracted from rubber trees (Hevea brasiliensis) through a process called tapping. The latex is collected by slicing a groove in the bark of the tree using a hooked knife and peeling the bark. After collecting the latex, rubber is recovered by coagulation with an acid such as formic acid.
Environmental Impacts of these extractions:
Artificial Leather: The environmental impact of the extraction of artificial leather is how the plastic polymer in artificial leather can pollute oceans and have negative health impacts on the environment.
PVC: PVC is the most environmentally damaging plastic. The PVC lifecycle -- its production, use, and disposal -- results in the release of toxic, chlorine-based chemicals. These toxins are building up in the water, air and food chain.
Rubber: Environmental problems related to natural rubber production include air and water pollutions in dried rubber sheet production. Problems in rubber latex industry are particularly water and odor pollution, while main problem in block rubber is odor.
What are the social impacts of the extractions?
Artificial Leather: Plastics harm human health because they release toxic chemicals throughout the life cycle of the product.
PVC: PVC products can release heavy metals into the building environment. Significant quantities of lead have been found to be released from vinyl window blinds into air and from PVC pipes into water. Toxicological effects of these substances include neurological, development, and reproductive damage.
Rubber: Rubber extraction pollutes water. Infectious diseases can be spread through contaminated water and kill many people. Air pollution causes long-term health effects from air pollution include heart disease, lung cancer, and respiratory diseases such as emphysema. Air pollution can also cause long-term damage to people's nerves, brain, kidneys, liver, and other organs
Where are the raw materials transported?:
Artificial Leather:
Artificial leather is made in factories in China, and they get transported to other factories in China to get ready for the final assembly of the headphone.
PVC:
PVC is made in factories in China, and they get transported to other factories in China to get ready for the final assembly of the headphone.
Rubber:
Natural rubber latex is shipped from factories in south-east Asia, South America, and West and Center Africa to destinations around the world to get ready for the final assembly of the headphone.
What components are the raw materials turned into?:
Artificial Leather: Items that qualify as vegan or faux leather can be produced from materials as varied as cork, barkcloth, glazed cotton, waxed cotton, paper, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), and polyurethane. It is those last two materials that are the most common materials used for synthetic leather.
PVC: The term “plastics” includes materials composed of various elements such as carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, chlorine, and sulfur. Plastics typically have high molecular weight, meaning each molecule can have thousands of atoms bound together.
Rubber: The main chemical constituents of rubber are elastomers, or “elastic polymers,” large chainlike molecules that can be stretched to great lengths and yet recover their original shape. The first common elastomer was polyisoprene, from which natural rubber is made.
What is the environmental impact of this processing?:
The combustion of fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide (CO2), a major greenhouse gas (GHG), into the atmosphere, and there is strong evidence that the buildup of GHGs is the primary cause of the global warming that has occurred in recent decades.
Where does the final assembly happen:
Final Assembly:
The final assembly of the headphones happens in China. Most headphones are made in China and shipped all across the world. They are made in China according to the box they arrived in. Most small electronic items are made in China these days.
What is the contribution to greenhouse emission of this transportation?:
The contribution of greenhouse emission of the transportation from one end of china to the other is 3780. The materials that are taken to other factories for the final assembly have contributed to 3780 greenhouse emissions.
The countries which have sold the most headphones:
What is the contribution to greenhouse emission of this transportation?:
USA: The contribution of greenhouse emission of the transportation from China to USA is 48888000.
Netherlands: The contribution of greenhouse emission of the transportation from China to Netherlands is 31424400.
Germany: The contribution of greenhouse emission of the transportation from China to Germany is 30319800.
Vietnam: The contribution of greenhouse emission of the transportation from China to Vietnam is 10319400.
Japan: The contribution of greenhouse emission of the transportation from China to Japan is 12789000.
The lifespan of headphones:
You can spend less money and buy headphones that will last a month or two, or invest in a higher quality set that will last 10 years, according to audio expert Steve Guttenberg in an article on the CNN website.
What happens to headphones when it reaches the end of its lifespan?:
Old and broken headphones are taken to any City landfill for free electronics recycling.
Where does this waste go?:
It depends on where you throw out your headphones. If you throw them out in Canada they can go to the Philippines and other countries.
Environmental impact of the recycling of headphones:
When e-waste is not able to be recycled or is improperly disposed of, these materials can pollute our soil and water. Electronics also contain reusable materials like glass and plastics.
Social impact of the recycling of headphones:
All of the environmental impacts also negatively impact human health. If it doesn't recycle properly then it can affect the society in a negative way. Recycling headphones can also affect the society in a good way. Recycling products reduces demands for raw materials, creates jobs, saves energy, and conserves natural resources. There are many ways which recycling can socially impact us, and those were just a few.