Integrating Triple-Bottom-Line Sustainability into Space Mission Design

Why It Matters

Traditional environmental assessments often overlook social and economic factors. By adopting an LCSA approach, designers can achieve a more balanced and robust sustainability profile for complex systems, ensuring long-term viability and responsible resource utilization.

Key Finding

Current environmental assessments for space missions are insufficient. A new framework called LCSA, which considers environmental, social, and economic factors together, can help designers make space missions more sustainable and justifiable.

Key Findings

• Existing environmental life cycle assessments (E-LCA) in the space sector do not fully address the triple-bottom-line concept of sustainability.
• A novel LCSA framework can integrate environmental, social, and economic dimensions for space missions.
• The LCSA framework, when applied to a mission concept, can demonstrate how design choices impact overall sustainability.
• The framework enables engineers to create space systems that are cost-efficient, eco-efficient, and socially responsible.

Research Evidence

Aim: How can a Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) framework be developed and applied to improve the system-level design of space missions by considering environmental, social, and economic dimensions?

Method: Systematic Literature Review and Framework Development

Procedure: A systematic literature review was conducted to identify knowledge gaps in life cycle methodologies and context-specific sustainability aspects for space missions. Based on this review, an LCSA framework was developed and integrated into a life cycle database (SSSD). This framework was then tested on a mission concept (Moon Ice Observation Satellite) to demonstrate its application in evaluating design choices related to circular economy principles and other sustainability factors.

Context: Space Mission Design

Design Principle

Holistic sustainability assessment is essential for complex system design.

How to Apply

When designing any complex system, consider developing or adapting an LCSA framework to evaluate trade-offs between environmental, social, and economic factors throughout the product's life cycle.

Limitations

The study focused on a single mission concept, and the practical implementation of the LCSA framework may require further refinement and validation across a wider range of space mission types.

Student Guide (IB Design Technology)

Simple Explanation: Think about the planet, people, and profit all at once when designing something, especially for big projects like space missions. This study shows how to do that using a special assessment method.

Why This Matters: Understanding the full impact of a design, not just its environmental footprint, is crucial for creating truly sustainable and successful products and systems.

Critical Thinking: To what extent can the 'social' and 'economic' dimensions of LCSA be objectively quantified and compared with environmental metrics in a design context?

IA-Ready Paragraph: This research highlights the importance of a Life Cycle Sustainability Assessment (LCSA) framework for evaluating complex systems like space missions. By integrating environmental, social, and economic factors, designers can achieve a more comprehensive understanding of a design's impact and make more informed decisions towards achieving true sustainability.

Project Tips

• When evaluating design choices, consider the broader impacts beyond just environmental factors.
• Research existing life cycle assessment tools and adapt them to include social and economic metrics relevant to your project.

How to Use in IA

• Reference this study when discussing the limitations of single-issue assessments and the benefits of a holistic sustainability approach in your design project.

Examiner Tips

• Demonstrate an understanding of the interconnectedness of sustainability dimensions, not just isolated environmental concerns.

Independent Variable: Application of LCSA framework, design choices related to circular economy principles.

Dependent Variable: System-level design functionality, overall sustainability of the mission.

Controlled Variables: Mission concept (Moon Ice Observation Satellite), life cycle database (SSSD).

Strengths

• Addresses a significant gap in sustainability assessment for the space sector.
• Proposes a novel, integrated framework for LCSA.

Critical Questions

• How can the LCSA framework be adapted for different types of engineering projects beyond space missions?
• What are the primary challenges in obtaining reliable social and economic data for LCSA?

Extended Essay Application

• An Extended Essay could explore the development and application of an LCSA for a specific consumer product, comparing its findings to traditional environmental assessments.

Source

Implementing life cycle sustainability assessment for improved space mission design · Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management · 2022 · 10.1002/ieam.4722