FMRG: Eco: A Systems-Enabled Paradigm Shift for Modular Sustainable Chemical Manufacturing

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Future manufacturing needs to be sustainable. This Future Manufacturing Research Grant (FMRG) EcoManufacturing project aims to impact the way chemical manufacturing of emerging technologies is developed and practiced. The vision of the project is to move a predominant raw material base for chemical manufacturing from non-renewable to renewable substrates. The goal of the project is to develop a blueprint for sustainable chemical manufacturing in emerging technologies by integrating computer science with mechanistic modeling and experimental data within a unified systems approach that considers market trends, accounts for process and product economics, and incorporates environmental, market, and policy impacts. The goal of this project will be pursued through three research thrusts. Thrust 1 centers on the identification of pathways from renewable raw materials to a slate of existing and new products using a machine-learning natural processing language platform, integrated with artificial intelligence, multiscale modeling, and in-silico guided experiments. This platform targets to enable assessment of manufacturability combined with product discovery. Thrust 2 will develop an integrated product and process synthesis optimization framework to incorporate economic, environmental, and market impact of various process/product alternatives, and optimize the product portfolio, process design, and operations. Thrust 3 will identify consumer needs and market behavior in introducing “green” products and integrate these features into supply chain optimization. Central to the project approach is developing a modular-based systems optimization framework to analyze a host of products and process alternatives, integrating economics and environmental considerations, optimizing the location and capacity of processing sites, and incorporating the effects of parametric and environmental uncertainty. Education is integral to the project and involves the training of (a) undergraduate and graduate students in convergence research and sustainable manufacturing, (b) undergraduates in interdisciplinary product development through Internet-of-Things design projects, and (c) chemical operators on future manufacturing across the US, in collaboration with RAPID/AIChE as a manufacturing partner. This project is jointly funded by the CBET Environmental Sustainability program, the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR), the SBE Directorate, and the CBET, CMMI, EEC, and CHE divisions.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.