BE: MUSES: Life Cycle and Economic Impacts of Bio-Based Production

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This BE: MUSES planning process is aimed at the investigation of the life cycle environmental and economic impacts of the manufacture and development of products manufactured from plant-based materials, referred to as bioproducts. Key questions revolve around understanding the design, efficiency and capacity of biorefineries, the material and energy cycles of bioproduction, and the durability of bioproducts during the product use stage. To gain a better understanding of these aspects of bio-based production, modeling the complex interplay of economics and policy with other factors such as technical innovations, scientific breakthroughs, and advances in design and product development will be necessary. The overall goals of this planning project are to create a foundation for a holistic approach to bio-based production and to construct a viable framework for evaluating future advances in sustainable bioproduction. The project has three parts. First, a rigorous life cycle assessment (LCA) will be conducted for a promising biomolecule, polylactic acid (PLA) inclusive of the agricultural, processing, and product use cycles. Conducting an LCA at this time can help to focus on those processing steps or components of the system that offer the greatest potential for environmental benefit and are the most sensitive to economic and policy considerations. Second, a workshop will be convened with experts from both technical/scientific and economic/policy areas. This workshop is envisioned as complimentary to previous workshops and symposia on the topic (Dartmouth 2001, AIChE 2002, Oklahoma 2003) in that emphasis will be placed on the inclusion of economics and policy elements and how these inform and in turn are informed by scientific and technical findings. Third, the results of the LCA and workshop will be incorporated into educational materials through involvement with the Chicago Academy of Sciences' Nature Museum, a facility with extensive educational outreach programs in the community