Face masks are currently considered key equipment to protect people against the COVID-19 pandemic. The demand for such devices is considerable, as is the amount of plastic waste generated after their use (approximately 1.6 million tons/day since the outbreak). Even if the sanitary emergency must have the maximum priority, environmental concerns require investigation to find possible mitigation solutions. The aim of this work is to develop an eco-design actions guide that supports the design of dedicated masks, in a manner to reduce the negative impacts of these devices on the environment during the pandemic period. Toward this aim, an environmental assessment based on life cycle assessment and circularity assessment (material circularity indicator) of different types of masks have been carried out on (i) a 3D-printed mask with changeable filters, (ii) a surgical mask, (iii) an FFP2 mask with valve, (iv) an FFP2 mask without valve, and (v) a washable mask. Results highlight how reusable masks (i.e., 3D-printed masks and washable masks) are the most sustainable from a life cycle perspective, drastically reducing the environmental impacts in all categories. The outcomes of the analysis provide a framework to derive a set of eco-design guidelines which have been used to design a new device that couples protection requirements against the virus and environmental sustainability.

According to the European energy consumption reports, the highest energy/fuel consumption in the residential sector is due to space heating, followed by water heating. Generally, the product used to warm water in residential buildings is a boiler system where a heat exchanger is the core of the system. The paper provides a Life Cycle Assessment analysis of a traditional heat exchanger used in domestic boilers with the aim to identify critical aspects and environmental hotspots for the development of a novel concept of the heat exchanger. The methodology used to collect eco-design guidelines from the Life Cycle Assessment analysis is proposed within the paper. Several eco-design actions were put into practice to reduce the environmental issues in each phase of the life cycle from the materials used, the manufacturing processes as well as the product geometry to increase energy efficiency during the use. Concerning the materials and manufacturing phase, a novel design based on a different material (e.g., stainless steel) was developed to replace a mix of materials (i.e., copper and aluminum alloy). Concerning the use phase, the overall product efficiency was increased allowing important savings in terms of gas/energy consumption, by the adoption of a novel design (e.g., spiral pipe). The new heat exchanger design shows better environmental performance in each Life Cycle Assessment indicator, saving more than 40% in CO2 emissions (Global Warming Potential) in the whole product life cycle.

Face masks are currently considered essential devices that people must wear today and in the near future, until the COVID-19 pandemic will be completely defeated through specific medicines and vaccines. Such devices are generally made of thermoplastic polymers, as polypropylene and polyethylene and are single use products. Even if in this period the sanitary emergency must have the maximum priority, the world society should not completely forget the environmental problem that are causing more and more obvious climate changes with correlated damages to ecosystems and human health. Despite the well-known correlation among anti-COVID protective equipment (or more generally medical devices) and environmental issues, the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and eco-design-based studies in this field is very scarce. The present study aims to derive the most important environmental criticalities of such products, by using LCA and product circularity indicators of five different common masks. The final aim is to provide eco-design guidelines, useful to design new face masks by preventing negative impact on the environment.