Volume 3, Issue 5, May – 2018 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology

ISSN No:-2456-2165

Practice Green Computing to Combat Global

Warming
Sridevi Tharanidharan1 Shamim Kamal Abdul Nazar2 Dr. Amal Mushyat3
Rincy Merlin Mathew4 Wigdan Mohammed AtaEmanan5 Sheemaa Ali Mohamed Hashim6
1, 2,4,5
Computer Science, King Khalid University, Abha, K.S.A.
3
Geography, King Khalid University, Abha, K.S.A.
6
Phd Scholar in UTM Razak School of Engineering and Advanced Technology, Malaysia.

Abstract:- Technological developments and advancements harmful to the Earth. As we all know, Global warming is one
are making a significant effect on our daily lives, be it in of the most talked about the danger to our Mother Earth. It is
the industry, in arts, in science etc., However, the increasing day by day. There are a lot of causes for increasing
knowledge and skill dedicated by the human society the Global Warming. The mankind’s contamination of the
towards these lifestyle improvements has indirectly atmosphere will effect in global warming. During the past 10
contributed to an ecological threat that the world is facing decades, the Earth’s temperature has increased to 0.6°C.
today, called Global Warming. When we scrap the old to Whereas, it is predicted to rise further 2 to 3°C by the end of
accept the new, greenhouse gases like CO2, Methane and 21st century. An environmental awareness must be raised in
Nitrous Oxide are emitted in the process, contributing to people subsequently all the necessary action should be taken to
Global Warming. save the Earth ultimately save the human life upon the earth.

In today’s era, computers have become an integral II. GLOBAL WARMING - CAUSES AND IMPACTS
part of our life to solve our various problems. Everyone
uses computers for their own purpose without being aware The raise in the average temperature of Earth's
of the harmful side effects, impacting the environment. As atmosphere is Global warming. Greenhouse gases such as
increase in the number of computer user’s around the Carbon dioxide, Methane, Nitrous oxide cause Global
world, the consumption of electricity also increases. warming. The most significant cause of Global warming is
Ultimately, increase in carbon emissions in the Carbon dioxide, as it emits 72% comparatively more than
surroundings. Controlling the CO2 emissions is one of the other green house gas emissions. It is unavoidably created by
first of many steps that we must take in order to combat burning fuels; by deforestation; the heat generated by
global warming, which can be done by practicing Green computer and its devices. From the last 5 decades, CO2
Computing. emissions have been radically raised and yet rising by around
3% annually. The emitted CO2 remains in the atmosphere for
Green computing refers to an environmentally 10-20 decades. Thus, an increase in the concentration of
sustainable computing. It is the study and practice of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere eventually increases the
design, manufacture, use, and dispose of computers temperature of the Earth. Due to this natural disasters such as
efficiently with minimal or no impact on the environment hurricanes, storms will become more powerful, floods and
[11]. In this paper, we discuss the different aspects to droughts will become more common, transformation in Eco-
understand “Green Computing”. Also, questionnaire has system etc.,
been done on the awareness of Green Computing.
Comparative data has been collected before and after III. METHODOLOGY
practicing Green Computing. We are promoting Green
Computing in The Community College for Girls, Khamis A. Green Computing
mushyat, KSA, through seminars and are implementing There is no use of just talking about the causes and
the techniques as well. Also, propagating awareness to impacts. It’s essential to think optimistically to take necessary
neighbors, friends and relatives. Green computing action to reduce Global Warming. Reducing the CO2
approaches aid us to make a secure place to inhabit. emissions is one of the primary steps that we must take in
Consequently, Green computing is the eventual requisite to order to combat global warming. These CO2 emissions can be
defend the environment and save energy. reduced by practicing Green Computing. Green computing
refers to an environmentally sustainable computing. It is the
Keywords:- Green Computing, Global Warming, EPEAT, study and practice of designing, manufacturing, utilizing, and
Power Management. disposing of computing devices efficiently with minimal or no
impact on the environment [12].
I. INTRODUCTION
B. History of Green Computing
In the tremendous and vast universe, the Earth is the only In 1992, the U.S Environmental Protection Agency
planet known to support life. But, the lifestyles of human are (EPA) launched “Energy Star”, a labeling program designed to
extremely destructive towards nature. The lifestyle from promote and recognize energy-efficient products to reduce
finding the food, clothing, shelter and the method in greenhouse gas emissions [22]. The device contains Energy
manufacturing and using the devices, almost everything is Star logo uses 20-30% less energy than required by federal

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Volume 3, Issue 5, May – 2018 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165

standards. The first energy star labeled products are

Computers and monitors. The name, “Green Computing ” Component Energy Energy
coined after the Energy Star began. consumption consumption
(On Mode) (Off Mode)
Desktop 180 83.3
PC
15-17” 50 – 60 7.8
Monitor
Laser 481 4.5
Printer
Inkjet 22 5
Printer
CPU 120 85
Fig 1:- Logo: Energy Star
Table 1. Energy consumption in watts
C. Purpose of Green Computing There are many different approaches to solve this issue.
In this technological world, no one can live without They are Power Management, EPEAT, Virtualization, and
Personal Computers (PC’s), so, wise utilization of the Material Recycling.
electronic devices makes them friendlier to the environment.
Nowadays, PC consumes large amount electricity and produce D. Power Management
CO2 emissions by the heat generate by it to be considered an The Advance Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI),
Eco Friendly solution. an open industry standard, allows an operating system to
control the power saving aspects of its underlying hardware.
The main purpose of Green computing are, This permits a system to automatically turn off components
To inculcate the social responsibility among public and such as monitors and hard drives after set periods of inactivity
create environmental awareness; To lower the carbon [24]. By purchasing and using such standard product is one of
footprints on the environment; To avoid the improper use of the best approaches towards green computing.
power consumption and to get better energy management;
maximize energy efficiency during products’ life time; E. EPEAT
promote reuse, refurbish and recyclability; To reduce pollution EPEAT (Electronic Product Environmental Assessment
and toxicity by reducing the usage of hazardous material; Tool) is a tool through which the consumer can assess the
Curtail travel requirements for employees; Manufacturing effect of a product on the environment. It helps in identifying
greener products leads new business opportunities. Lessen the greener products and other electronic devices. Also, it
usage of paper; Promote refurbishing for the next generation. provides guidance on performance criteria which facilitates
sound purchase decisions and recognizes the efforts of
IV. APPROACHES TO GREEN COMPUTING manufacturer’s in reducing the environmental impact of the
products [20].
Today’s computer users are started to rely on special fan F. Virtualization
to cool the computer system. It is possible to make cool for one
computer system. But it is hard to balance to achieve the same Virtualization is the replacement of hardware with
for each and every computer worldwide. According to research, software.
if 8 hours of usage of a computer for 5 days a week needs 562 It makes one physical computer, acts and performs like
Kilowatts but if the computer is left switched “on” without many physical computers. Advantages are greater efficiencies
proper power saver modes, this can lead to 1600 Kilowatts. In in power consumption; no need of any new hardware, no need
large institution, eg., a university, the invoice of the power to update individual software, inexpensive and uses less
consumption for computers alone hits to $2 million per year, energy eventually saves the natural resources.
obviously, much carbon-dioxide has been emitted to the
atmosphere! The United States produce 22 billion pounds of
electronics annually. Since the computer/electronic sectors
consume lot of electricity accordingly, the yearly energy output
has lot of carbon footprint which further contributing to
Climate Change.

Fig 2:- Virtualization

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Volume 3, Issue 5, May – 2018 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165

G. Material Recycling
Every year 130 million cell phones get retired. It is
estimated that 315 million computers become obsolete in
every 7 years. Users in China and India require the creation of
new computers. Then think about the old equipment? What to
do? Obviously, it leads to dispose of. This waste is called E-
Waste. E-Waste caused by the improper practice of disposing
computer and its components. It has a number of indirect
contributions on the environment. As a result, soil, water and
air are easily contaminated. Becoming aware of the effects of
E-Waste is the first step in arresting this problem. July,
2015 (NBC NEWS). E-Waste management includes
manufacturing, processing techniques, recycling and consumer Fig 3:- (b) Solar charger Laptop bag
awareness efforts. By practicing 3R’s (Reuse, Refurbish and
Recycle) protects the environment from harmful emissions. A. The Zonbu Computer
The Zonbu computer is
 Reuse: Instead of disposing electronic devices such as an energy efficient computer
computer, donate to the people who may not have or have consumes less power supply.
lesser quality computers. Donate computers to schools, The device runs the Linux
churches, libraries, non-profit organizations and lower operating system using a 1.2
income families. gigahertz processor and 512
 Refurbish: Whenever the device’s new version releases, Mega of RAM [16].
instead of discarding or replacing the computer, it can be
upgraded by getting a new CPU, memory chips etc.
 Recycling: If it is inevitable to reuse or refurbish then there
is a better option of Recycling. Companies can recycle the
plastics and other components can reduce the waste and
toxins which affect the environment. Fig 4:- Zonbu Computer

V. IMPLEMENTATION OF GREEN COMPUTING B. Fit –PC

TECHNIQUES Fit-PC consumes only 5
watts of power in a day than a
Organizations all over the globe realize the corporate traditional PC consumes in 1
social responsibility towards the environment. Most hour. Fit-PC emits less carbon
companies believe in conserving energy, power and using dioxide.
environmental friendly products that helps in reducing the
carbon footprint. Nowadays, it is essential for all sized Fig 5:- Fit –PC
organizations to implement the aspects of green computing in
their daily workings. D. The ultra-portable and Asus Eee
PC
 Switching to Greener Products The computer is small in size,
B. Solar Computing: Powering PCs with the Sun: It is a low power CPU, compact screen, light
part of VIA Green Computing Initiative, VIA Solar weight, inexpensive, embedded Wi-Fi
Computing seeks to defeat the challenges of power and uses USB for storage and uses
infrastructure deficiencies and to define clean energy less power than a standard laptop
solutions. Solar-powered computing solutions are less which ultimately emits less CO2.
polluting, inexpensive, more reliable and more flexible for a
wide variety of new markets, applications and environments. Fig 6:- Asus Eee PC
The CO2 emissions can be reduced by utilizing solar power
products. Many solar power products are available which E. Sunray thin client
promotes Green computing such as Chipsets, Processor Solar A Sun Ray Thin client
charger Laptop bags etc., consumes less electricity from 4 to 8
watts of power, eventually emits less
CO2[21].

Fig 7:- Thin Client

 Practicing Greener Techniques: Ways to reduce energy

consumption; reduce CO2 emissions to reduce Global
Warming.
Fig 3:- (a) VIA Green Product

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Volume 3, Issue 5, May – 2018 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165

 Turn “off” the computer when not in use, even for an  Paper and Printing Techniques: Trees were cut down for
hour. It can reduce energy use by 810 kWh/year. many purposes, whereas 90% of trees were cut down
 Use power saver mode (Sleep mode, Hibernate mode). every year for paper usage. The cutting down of trees
results in rising the amount of carbon dioxide in the
atmosphere. Controlling deforestation controls global
warming.1 ton of office paper needs to cut down 24 trees;
whereas 1 ton of recycled paper saves 17 trees. So,
 Promoter recycling and use recycled papers
 Reduce excess printing / photocopying
 Avoid unwanted printing / photocopying
 Take double-sided printing / photocopying
 Use projector instead of giving handouts in the meeting
room.
 Encourage reduction of paper generation through e-mail.
 Reduce Margins settings so that your printer uses less
paper.

Fig 8:- Sleep mode, Hibernate mode

 Turn “off” the monitor, printer and all peripherals when not
in use.
 Don’t use Screen saver as it consumes more power.
 Start using the “Energy Star” labeled products.
 Plug the computer to surge protector with a master control
outlet.
 Choose dark backgrounds because bright background
consumes more power.
 Liquid Crystal Displays are preferable than CRT monitors.
 Use LED or CFL bulbs instead of incandescent lights.
 Greener Browsing –:A Switch from Google to Blackle.
Blackle is an energy saving search engine powered by Fig 10:- Double-Sided Print option
Google search. It has a dark background which consumes
less energy. Computer screen with white background VI. CASE STUDY AND QUESTIONNAIRE
consumes 74 watts whereas Black background consumes
59 watts. By switching from Google to Blackle, Earth As a global citizen, we have responsibilities to our
would save 750 MW / year. mother Earth. Our first role towards nature is to raise
awareness to reduce carbon footprint which contributes Global
Warming by practicing Green Computing among students,
friends and neighbors.
We take an oath that for every semester, we have to raise
awareness of Green Practice by delivering a special lecture.
This semester, we started raising awareness with our 4th level
students of King Khalid University. Before we started our
lecture about the awareness of Green Computing Techniques,
we collected basic information from the students about
awareness and Green Computing practice and after a month of
our special lecture, again we collected the same information
from the same students. We found an optimistic comparative
result which encourages us to step forward.
Fig 9:- Blackle

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Volume 3, Issue 5, May – 2018 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165

The following chart shows the comparison between before and

after practicing Green Computing.

[2]. Maria Kazandijieva ,Brandon Heller, Omprakash

As a faculty of Computer Science, We have the Gnawali, Philip Levis, and Christos Kozyrakis “Green
responsibility to create awareness among students about an Enterprise Computing Data: Assumptions and Realities”.
importance of practicing Green Computing along with the
[3]. Mrs.Sharmila Shinde, Mrs.Simanitini Nalawade, Mr.Ajay
concept of 3R’s (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle).Though the
sample size may not be adequate but as we propagated, so do Nalawade “Green Computing: Go Green and Save
the students then thousands of students will join together Energy”, International Journal of Advanced research in
towards nature conservation; This great efforts will be a Computer Science and Software Engineering Volume 3
drastic step to protect our Mother Earth from destruction. Issue 7 July 2013.
[4]. J. V. Mashalkar, S. K. Kasbe, M. B. Bhatade,”Green
VII. CONCLUSION Computing: A Case Study of Rajarshi Shahu
Mahavidyalaya, Latur, INDIA”,International Journal of
Small changes eventually add up to a huge result.
Creating awareness of the techniques of Green Computing, use Computer Applications (0975 –8887) Volume 62–No.2,
of energy efficient products and 3R’s (Reduce, Reuse and January 2013.
Recycle) will reduce the harmful impacts of CO2 emissions. [5]. Ms.Swati Aggarwal, Mrs. Monika Garg, Mr.Pramod
Positive actions for a green computing take a slight effort, Kumar,International Journal of Emerging Technology and
however the decrease in energy consumption normally Advanced Engineering, February 2012- Green
transform into instant savings and controls Global Warming. Computing is Smart Computing – A Survey.
Every individual should assure for the 4th “R” viz. “Respect”;
[6]. Manisha Ganpati Patil , Dr.R.D.Kumbhar “Green
Respect our Mother Earth which ultimately leads us to save
the planet. The paper concludes with a take home message Computing: Somewhat Solution to Drought”,
that, “Practice Green Computing to initiate Global Cooling”. International Journal of Advanced Research in Computer
Science and Software Engineering Volume3,Issue6, June
2013.
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Volume 3, Issue 5, May – 2018 International Journal of Innovative Science and Research Technology
ISSN No:-2456-2165
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