In terms of energy conservation and emission reduction in the manufacturing industry, it is necessary to balance economic development, resource consumption and environmental impact, constantly optimize the energy structure, and improve energy efficiency and carbon efficiency. The relevant concepts and methods of sustainable manufacturing are put forward, and the design optimization in terms of process parameters for the energy-intensive part of the manufacturing process can reduce the production of pollutants to a certain extent. For example, concepts such as energy indicators and energy benchmarks are applied to energy management and energy-saving transformation in the manufacturing process. The life cycle assessment (LCA) method of manufacturing process can be used to assess the potential environmental impact of inputs and outputs in product production.
The concept of “lean energy saving and emission reduction” is an effective way to improve energy efficiency and reduce waste emissions. The WEDM machining energy model established according to the characteristics of WEDM process reduces the final total energy consumption and processing time by 21.94% and 28.23%, respectively. The establishment of a multi-objective optimization model with the cutting speed and feed rate of NC machining as optimization variables, the minimum machining time (high efficiency) and the lowest carbon emission (low carbon) as optimization objectives can effectively reduce the environmental impact of the machining process. In addition, the implementation of different optimization methods and the establishment of corresponding evaluation indicators in product manufacturing are helpful to improve the sustainability of the manufacturing process. For example, genetic algorithm is used to optimize the machining of a kind of gear hobbing parts, and the optimization objectives are carbon emissions and processing costs, in order to greatly improve carbon emissions and reduce processing costs at the same time. Manufacturing cost, environmental impact and working time can be used as evaluation indicators to measure the economic, environmental and social sustainability of the manufacturing process. The establishment of the decision-making method of manufacturing process chain based on carbon efficiency can provide decision-makers with the best carbon efficiency process chain while considering environmental and economic factors.
In fact, there is a close relationship between product design and product manufacturing process. From the product design stage of manufacturing products, it is a very effective means to consider the carbon emissions and benefits in the subsequent production process. By modifying the process design plan can effectively reduce carbon emissions and improve efficiency, this approach is currently effective. By adding up the total energy consumption of all the features of the part in the design stage, a method is proposed to estimate the mechanical energy consumption of the part. by sorting the characteristics of the cutting tool, the energy consumption of the replacement tool and the cutting path can be reduced, thus the energy saving optimization can be carried out in the design stage. Combined with the advantages of the design stage and the requirements of sustainable development, the introduction of low-carbon design concept into the design can improve the energy efficiency of mechanical products and bring huge economic and social benefits by reducing carbon emissions and energy consumption in the production process.