Position:
Core Staff
Professor
Email:
sheliem@umich.edu
Website:
Office Location:
1532 Dana Building, 440 Church Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1041
Degrees:
PhD., Civil and Materials Engineering, University of Illinois at Chicago, 2006
M.E., Civil and Environmental Engineering, Clarkson University, 2001
B.S., Chemistry, Denison University, 2000
Research Interests:
Dr. Miller’s research interests center around the life cycle impacts of emerging energy systems. Recent work focuses on the non-carbon aspects of biofuels, such as disruptions to the nitrogen cycle and changes in land use. Interests also include advancing Life Cycle Assessment methods to analyze dynamic and emerging systems, such as hydraulic fracturing in the US and electricity grids in developing countries.
Projects:
- CAREER: Creation of a Predictive and Dynamic Life Cycle Assessment Tool
- Changes in Energy Use and Water Stress Caused by the Emergence of the Cold Chain
- Comparing toxic emissions of shale gas and coal for electricity
- Developing a Spatially-Explicit Agent-Based Life Cycle Analysis Framework for Improving the Environmental Sustainability of Bioenergy Systems
- Dow Distinguished Awards: De-silting Minor Irrigation Ponds in South India: The Sustainability of Decentralized Resource Distribution
- Integrated Energy-Economy-Environment (3E) Modeling for Clean Vehicle Development in China
- M-Cubed Diamond: Defining Innovative Sustainable Solutions for Film-Based Packages
- M-CUBED: Hydraulic Fracturing of Shales: Water Contamination Risks, Treatment Options, and Fate of Fracking Fluids
- MASTER'S PROJECT: Building the Business Case for Sustainable Agriculture in Asia
- MASTER'S PROJECT: Environmental and Economic Life Cycle Assessment of Alternative Source Water at Bell’s Brewery, Inc.
- MASTER'S PROJECT: Estimating Greenhouse Gas Emissions on Cattle Ranches in the Brazilian Amazon
- MASTER'S PROJECT: Improving Energy Sustainability for the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians (LTBB) Reservation
- MASTER'S PROJECT: Life-Cycle Modeling and Environmental Impact Assessment of Commercial Scale Biogas Production
- MASTER'S PROJECT: Modeling Circular Urban Metabolism in Santiago, Chile
- MASTER'S PROJECT: More than Me! Sustainable School Yard Design, Liberia
- MASTER's PROJECT: Towards a Global Plastics Protocol: Policy Solutions for Closing the Loop on Plastics
- Morgan Stanley Plastics Waste Reduction Research and Fellowship
- REFRESCH: Researching Fresh Solutions to the Energy/Water/Food Challenge in Resource-Constrained Environments
- Sustainability and Development Conference - Enterprise Funds
- The Global CO2 Initiative: Transforming a liability into an opportunity
- U.S.-China: Integrated Systems Modeling of Food-Energy-Water (FEW) Nexus for Urban Sustainability
- Update Material Production Modules in the GREET 2 Model
- Value of Wind Diversity for Increased Integration of Wind Power into the Grid
Publications:
- A comparison of two methods to conduct material flow analysis on waste tires in a Small Island Developing State
- A Game Theory Analysis of Market Incentives for US Switchgrass Ethanol
- A Stochastic Approach to Model Dynamic Systems in Life Cycle Assessment
- Agent-Based Life Cycle Assessment for Switchgrass-Based Bioenergy Systems
- An applied analysis of the recyclability of electric vehicle battery packs
- Applying Industrial Symbiosis to Smallholder Farms: Modeling a Case Study in Liberia, West Africa
- Assessing the lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of perishable food products delivered by the cold chain in China
- Assessing The Non-Carbon Impacts Of An Emerging Bioenergy Industry
- Assessing the Relative Climate Impact of Carbon Utilization for Concrete, Chemical, and Mineral Production
- Avoiding the unintended consequences of bioenergy
- Beyond Life Cycle Analysis: Using an Agent-Based Approach to Model the Emerging Bio-Energy Industry
- Carbon dioxide utilization in concrete curing or mixing might not produce a net climate benefit
- Cellulosic ethanol production: Landscape scale net carbon strongly affected by forest decision making
- Comparative Human Toxicity Impact of Electricity Produced from Shale Gas and Coal
- Comparison of Life Cycle Environmental Impacts from Meal Kits and Grocery Store Meals
- Critical Research Needed to Examine the Environmental Impacts of Expanded Refrigeration on the Food System
- Emerging challenges and opportunities for the food-energy-water nexus in urban systems
- Environmental payback periods of reusable alternatives to single-use plastic kitchenware products
- Estimating maximum land use change potential from a regional biofuel industry
- Evaluating The Development And Demographics Of Electrical Grids In Third World Countries Through Agent Based Models
- Exploring adoption price effects on life cycle inventory results
- Five Misperceptions Surrounding the Environmental Impacts of Single-Use Plastic
- Framework for Analyzing Transformative Technologies in Life Cycle Assessment
- Growing Algae for Biodiesel on Direct Sunlight or Sugars: A Comparative Life Cycle Assessment
- Growing Algae for Biodiesel on Direct Sunlight or Sugars: A Comparative Life Cycle Assessment [Conference Proceedings]
- Impact of Updated Material Production Data in GREET Life Cycle Model
- Improving Rural Electricity System Planning: An agent-based model for stakeholder engagement and decision making
- Informing the Development of the Renewable Energy Sector in Liberia through Industrial Ecology and Complexity
- Life cycle assessment of emerging technologies: Evaluation techniques at different stages of market and technical maturity
- Life Cycle Assessment of End-of-Life Treatments for Plastic Film Waste
- Life Cycle Material Data Update for GREET Model
- Modeling nitrogen loss from switchgrass agricultural systems
- Modelling the Socio-Economic Impacts of Modern Bioenergy in Rural Communities in Ghana
- Overview of cold chain development in China and methods of studying its environmental impacts
- Planning the Development of Electricity Grids in Developing Countries: An Initial Approach Using Agent Based Models
- Policy incentives for switchgrass production using valuation of non-market ecosystem services
- Potential for Integrating Diffusion of Innovation Principles into Life Cycle Assessment of Emerging Technologies
- Potential Greenhouse Gas Changes from Refrigerated Supply Chain Introduction in a Developing Food System
- Potentials of GHG Emission Reductions from Cold from Cold Chain Systems: Case studies of China and the United States
- Predicting The Future: Determining Biomass Production Of New Crops For Bioenergy
- Quantifying the Urban Food-Energy-Water (FEW) Nexus: The Case of the Detroit Metropolitan Area
- Reference and Functional Unit Can Change Bioenergy Pathway Choices
- Regional differences in impacts to water quality from the bioenergy mandate
- Satisfying the Rural Residential Demand in Liberia with Decentralized Renewable Energy Schemes
- Sustainability implications of connected and autonomous vehicles for the food supply chain
- The Environmental Impacts of Autonomous Vehicles Depends on Adoption Patterns
- The environmental opportunity cost of using renewable energy for carbon capture and utilization for methanol production
- The need for and path to harmonized life cycle assessment and techno-economic assessment for carbon dioxide capture and utilization
- Using DAYCENT to quantify impacts of land use conversion to nitrogen-managed switchgrass in the southern U.S.
- Water quality impacts of converting intensively managed agricultural lands to switchgrass
Press:
- The Big Problem With Plastic
- Reusable Packaging Is the Latest Eco-Friendly Trend. But Does It Actually Make a Difference?
- Climate benefits vs. burdens: Which products are best suited for emerging carbon capture technologies?
- Think reusable straws, wraps, and cups are always better for the environment? Think again.
- Your Reusable Coffee Cup Might Not Be So Green After All
- University of Michigan researchers: Reusable products aren’t always best for environment
- Is reusable always best? Comparing environmental impacts of reusable vs. single-use kitchenware
- Reusable bags aren’t the sustainable solution you might think they are
- The truth about processed foods' environmental impact
- Regents Roundup — May 2021
- Survey finds consumers are concerned about waste from fast-food containers [RADIO]
- Shelie Miller: Environmental Sustainability…and Roller Derby?
- Wasteful packaging concerns balanced by consumer mindfulness
- 5 Myths about Single-Use Plastic
- Reusable grocery bags aren’t as environmentally friendly as you might think
- Mythbusting: Five common misperceptions surrounding the environmental impacts of single-use plastics
- Mythbusting: 5 common misperceptions surrounding the environmental impacts of single-use plastics
- Is Microfiber Plastic? Here Are the Facts on Microfiber's Sustainability
- US rivers and lakes are shrinking for a surprising reason: cows
- Is Online Grocery Shopping Better for the Planet?
- Jeff Bezos says ordering groceries online is better for the planet. Is he right?
- Earth Day @ 50: Insights from a pandemic
- Changes in demand and disrupted supply chains feed into shortages at the store
- Coronavirus myth-busting: The truth about empty shelves and toilet paper shortages
- Locavores were resetting the American table. Then came a pandemic.
- Coronavirus Q&A: Shopping, supply chains, and sustainability in a pandemic
- COVID-19 and the U.S. Food Supply [starting at 4:30 in video]
- Grocery Shopping Tips Amid COVID-19 Outbreak
- Attention, shoppers: There's plenty of food for everyone; be patient and 'don't panic'
- Grocery Shopping During A Pandemic: How To Shop, What To Get
- 11 ways to make grocery shopping safer as coronavirus spreads
- Ask an expert your questions about shopping during the coronavirus pandemic
- University of Michigan professor: Grocery stores not equipped to keep up with level of demand
- While Microsoft Was Making Its Climate Pledge, It Was Sponsoring an Oil Conference
- Sustainable Food Systems Initiative holds 6th annual Fast Food for Thought event
- Now It’s a Snap to Donate Your Old Lego Bricks
- Annual 'Fast Food for Thought' talks to take place Oct. 1 in downtown Ann Arbor
- Issues Of The Environment: U-M Study Shows Delivered Meal Kits Are Greener Than Grocery Shopping
- Forecasting the Impact of Connected and Automated Vehicles on Energy Use: A Microeconomic Study
- Why The Best Thing For Your Cleaning Routine Is a $3 Diaper
- Meal kits better for the environment than meals cooked from supermarket ingredients, study finds
- Meal kits are better for the environment than grocery store meals
- Meal Kits Are Better for the Planet Than Grocery Shopping, Study Says
- Meal kits better for the environment than grocery shopping: study
- Meal kits are greener than grocery meals
- Concerned About Food Waste? Study Finds Meal Kits May Be Greener Than Grocery Shopping
- Are meal kits bad for the environment? You might be surprised.
- New Study Finds That Meal Kits Aren’t as Bad for the Environment as Grocery Shopping
- Home-Delivered Meal Kits Greener Than Those Bought From Grocery
- Meal kits are ‘greener than you thought’, new study concludes
- Meal Kits Are Better For The Environment Than Grocery Shopping: Study
- Meal kits better for the environment than grocery shopping, according to a new study
- Meal kits may be a greener alternative to grocery shopping
- Meal kits are BETTER for the environment than going to the store despite the extra packaging, study finds
- Home-delivered meal kits are greener than you might expect
- A new study says meal kits may be greener than a trip to the store
- Turns Out, Meal Kits Might Not Suck for the Planet
- Meal Kits Have A Smaller Carbon Footprint Than Grocery Shopping, Study Says
- Meal kits are full of wasteful packaging—but they might still beat the grocery store
- Those home-delivered meal kits are greener than you thought
- Ohio cement plant looks to wind to reduce footprint of energy-intensive industry
- Blue Apron Meal Kits Beat Grocery Shopping In Sustainability Study
- Those home-delivered meal kits are greener than you thought, new study concludes
- Meal Kit Delivery May Not Actually Be That Bad for the Environment
- Meal-prep kits better for environment than a trip to the store, study finds
- Why Meal Kits Aren't as Bad for the Environment as You Think
- Just chillin’: Is a refrigerated food chain a net win or loss for climate emissions?