Kantian Ethics Chemical Engineering

Chemical engineers today face a major dilemma when it comes to deciding what should hold paramount, economic gain or moral statute? Many practicing engineers are faced with problems that result from the consequences of their engineering decisions. Engineers have to realize the importance of proper engineering decisions and how one should act when faced with a problem such as deciding what comes first safety or economic gain. When faced with such a problem, engineers often employ the risk-benefit analysis to determine what the best course of action is regarding a given scenario. The analysis allows for the acceptance of a decision despite its risk as long as the benefits of such an act is greater than that of the risk. As such, chemical engineers
Kantian ethics revolves around the idea that one should have good will and that will should align with duty. Furthermore, consequences do not matter and one should act according to their duty as long as they have good intentions in mind. A general maxim that should be used in this situation would be that one should act accordingly in a way that does not harm the environment and positively affect those around him. If one can will everyone else to follow his maxim, then he should follow it as well. However, one should not treat anyone as a means to an end only to an end. Therefore, a chemical engineer who follows Kantian ethics will find that designing a flare stack is unnecessary and he needs to prevent the release of harmful gases into the environment by going to the source and not allowing for over pressuring to even occur. The chemical engineer needs to prevent the entry of the waste gas into the flare stack to begin with. In order to accomplish this task, the chemical engineer will have to resize the main chemical process reactors in order to prevent an upset or over pressure. This type of engineering decision design is very expensive and is economically impossible to be implemented. It is almost impossible to totally get rid of the flare stacks because it is the last line of safety/defense for
Virtue ethics is the idea that it is who one is that counts. It is the character or moral habits that make a person who he/she is. Virtue ethics say that if an act develops the right kind of moral habits, then it should be done. A chemical engineer develops his moral habits through his education and how he has lived his life. A proper chemical engineer would have implemented his education in the most effective way and would have obtained the virtues of courage, temperance, prudence, and justice. By following the virtues of thought and character, the chemical engineer will use his knowledge obtained from his higher education and apply his obtained moral habits. In the situation regarding the flare stacks, a chemical engineer will use proper engineering decision and have the courage to propose a design to his superiors that allow for the flare stacks to meet regulations and prevent the release of harmful gases. He will have the temperance to think of the environment and other people over himself, thus giving him the power to realize the importance of an environmentally friendly flare stack. Also, the chemical engineer needs to adhere to prudence and justice when choosing his actions. He needs to think about the environment and how it positively affects the living things that live in and around it. A chemical engineer following virtue ethics will realize that he needs to propose an