Collaborative Research: DESC: Type I: Extending lifetimes of partially broken machines to repurpose e-waste

该项目的目标是通过延长计算设备的使用寿命来提高计算硬件的可持续性，即使它们开始部分损坏。生产计算机设备的碳排放量很高，当大多数功能仍然可以工作时，简单地扔掉计算机是浪费的。然而，由于诊断和维修成本高，这是一种常见的做法。该项目研究了一种新的方法，而不是维修设备，其余的工作组件被利用。软件系统的设计并不是为了处理部分损坏的机器，因此研究人员将开发新的方法来管理这些部分损坏的机器，无论是消费级硬件还是工业级硬件。调查人员将重点关注的一个关键组件是固态硬盘（SSD），它的设计将随着使用而磨损。通过将设备年龄纳入调度决策，这项调查将发现如何通过智能年龄感知调度和管理来延长其有效寿命。这项研究的结果将使一个替代选择，利用故障硬件，而不是维修或处置。利用这些原本无用的设备将提供额外的计算能力，这将减少需要生产的新硬件的数量。这符合计算环境可持续性设计（DESC）计划，重点是计算设备的整个生命周期及其相应的环境影响。具体而言，延长计算设备的使用寿命减少了需要生产的设备数量，从而降低了制造过程中相关的碳排放和有毒副产品。调查人员将与行业和学术研究人员合作，提高对问题的认识并传播结果，包括将可持续性主题纳入调查人员各自机构的课程。研究人员还将在适用的情况下让本科生和高中生参与，以便更广泛、更多样化地参与研究。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并且通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的知识价值进行评估，被认为值得支持影响审查标准。

The goal of this project is to improve sustainability of computing hardware by extending the lifetimes of computing equipment even when they start to partially break down. The carbon emissions from producing computing equipment is high and it is wasteful to simply throw away computers when most of the functionality may still work. Yet this is a common practice due to high diagnosis and repair costs. This project investigates a new approach where instead of repairing devices, the remaining working components are utilized as-is. Software systems are not designed to handle partially broken machines, so the investigators will develop new approaches for managing these partially broken machines, both for consumer-grade hardware and datacenter-grade hardware. One key component the investigators will focus on is Solid State Drives (SSDs), which by design will wear-out with use. By incorporating device age into scheduling decisions, this investigation will discover how to extend their effective lifetimes through intelligent age-aware scheduling and management. The results of this research will enable an alternative option for utilizing failing hardware instead of repair or disposal. Utilizing this otherwise useless equipment will provide additional compute capacity, which would reduce the amount of new hardware that needs to be produced. This fits within the Design for Environmental Sustainability in Computing (DESC) program where the focus is on the entire lifecycle of computing equipment and its corresponding environmental impact. Specifically, extending the lifetimes of computing equipment reduces the amount of equipment that needs to be produced, thereby lowering the associated carbon emissions and toxic byproducts from the manufacturing process. The investigators will engage with both industry and academic researchers to raise awareness of the problem and disseminate results, including incorporating sustainability topics in the curriculum at the investigators' respective institutions. The investigators will also involve undergraduates and high school students where applicable to allow for broader and more diverse participation in the research.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.