Trends in the lifespan evolution of personal computers and implications for life cycle assessment studies: A case study of the U.S. higher education sector

It was our goal to study the evolution of personal computer lifespan and to identify methods by which this aspect of technological progress could be quantified and integrated into life cycle assessments and other environmental assessment studies. This approach was operationalized through a case study of computer adoption and life cycle parameters in a major U.S. university, Arizona State University (ASU), in Tempe, Arizona. The study represents the first quantification and characterization of personal computers specific to higher education, including purchase rates, stocks, ownership percentages, lifetimes, and obsolete equipment generation rates.