Engineering Degree Program in China - Green Technologies

1. Introduction

Green Technologies are the technology systems that can reduce pollution, reduce consumption and improve the ecological environment. Green technology is a dynamic system, which is composed of related knowledge, ability and material means. Environmental protection and ecological knowledge are indispensable elements of green technology; green technology innovation is the application of environmental protection and ecological knowledge. Developing green technology needs to strengthen the basic research and education, training in environmental protection and ecological knowledge in order to improve the level of knowledge and technology.

2. Main Characteristics

1) Green technology not only refers to a single technology, but a set of technologies, including energy technology, material technology, biological technology, pollution control technology, resource recycling technology and environmental monitoring and clean production technology controlling from the source and process.

2) Green technology has a high degree of strategic; it is inseparable with the sustainable development strategy.

3) With the time going by and the progress of science and technology, green technology itself is constantly changing and developing.

4) Green technology has closely the relationship with high and new technology.

3. Subject

The subject of green technology innovation is the enterprise. Under the comprehensive function of government regulation, market power and public pressure, more and more enterprises choose green strategy, promote green technology innovation, and produce green products. The reason that enterprises develop and apply green technology lies in that green technology has economic value. These economic values may be explicit, monetary, or implicit, non - monetary.

4. Classification

The green technology can be divided into two kinds, the auxiliary technology and the core technology from the angle of the industrial community. The role of green technology on industrial community is mainly embodied in two aspects; one is the transformation and innovation of auxiliary green technology to production process of the industry, another is the impact of the core green technology on final products of the industry. The final result of the role of green technology is to promote the evolution of the industry through the application and promotion in the field of industry.

5. Economic Value

1) Internal value

Internal value refers to the value acquired by green technology developer or green product producer. For example, green technology transfer fees, clean production equipment, environmental protection equipment and green consumer goods obtain high share in the market, etc.

2) Direct external value

Direct external value refers to the benefits acquired by green technology users and consumers of green products. For example, the use of blast furnace waste heat recovery equipment to reduce energy consumption, oil sewage separation device to remove water pollution, the use of green food to reduce the incidence of people and so on.

3) Indirect external value

Indirect external value refers to the benefits obtained by the users of green technology (product). This is the benefit of all members of society (such as clean water, fresh air), and the highest economic value of the green technology.

6. Relationship with Cleaner Production

Cleaner production is a new and creative thinking way about the production process. Cleaner production means the environmental strategy for the continuous use of the overall prevention of production processes, products and services, in order to increase the ecological efficiency and reduce the risk of human and environment. Undoubtedly, cleaner production technology is a green technology, but the green technology cannot be equated with cleaner production technology.

In function, the technology of pollution control and clean production technology in green technology is complementary to each other. Pollution control technology is through decomposition, recycling and other ways to clear the environmental pollutants, namely, to solve the problem of pollution, and clean production technology is to ensure that the future does not have pollution problems. In the absence of human disturbance, local natural ecology may also deteriorate, such as desertification, mud rock flow, lake and so on. Ecological deterioration will also affect the survival of mankind, therefore, to improve the natural ecological needs corresponding technology, such as desert vegetation, soil and rock engineering, lake dredging etc. Although these techniques belong to conventional technology, but the function should be included in the range of green technology.