Research Publications

Materials move through communities in the form of products and raw materials to satisfy human needs such as shelter and transportation. Though the flows of materials into and out of communities provid...

This study is a life cycle assessment (LCA) comparing two types of a powertrain structural component: one made of diecast primary aluminum and another hypothetical part made of semi-solid injection...

Life-cycle inventory and cost-analysis tools applied to milk packaging offer guidelines for achieving better environmental design and management of these systems. Life-cycle solid waste, energy, an...

Invasive species pose a serious environmental threat to this country and countries all around the world. Global commerce essential to the economic well being of the citizens of the world provides impo...

This report (CSS99-02R2) is a second revision of CSS99-02. Model results presented in the second revised report were computed using a zero degree tilt.  Model results presented in the first revis...

This paper discusses the development of a software tool called PV-BIDPAT, that is used to evaluate, design, and plan building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) installations. The tool consists of life cy...

Proceedings from Sustainable Agriculture Indicators workshop

The document presents a list of implementation strategies for "sustainable" building practices in the non-residential-buildings sector. The strategies, developed by the workshop participants, are grou...

Concern about the environmental impacts of tourism has grown widely in the 1990s, corresponding with the rapid growth in the popularity of ecotourism (Ceballos-Lascurain, 1993). Various definitions an...

This study provides a framework upon which to base management for ecological sustainability in the University of Michigan's Housing Division (Housing). The study presents mechanisms for organizational...

The document presents a list of obstacles to "sustainable" building practices in the non-residential-buildings sector. The obstacles, developed by the workshop participants, are grouped by the followi...

The document presents a list of sustainability indicators in the non-residential-buildings sector. The indicators, developed by the workshop participants, are grouped by the following aspects: -Env...

Federal standards that mandate improved fuel economy have resulted in the increased use of lightweight materials in automotive applications. However, the environmental burdens associated with a pro...

While the results are generally the most exciting aspects of an LCI study, the details of the LCI model that generates the results are equally significant; particularly when modeling the life cycle...

This paper describes a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) done to evaluate the relative environmental performance of magnesium (Mg) and aluminum (Al) automatic transmission cases. Magnesium is considered ...

This article investigates the influence of environmental, cost, and performance requirements on the design and management of automotive components through a case study involving instrument panels. ...

Life Cycle Assessment is becoming an important tool for guiding environmental design improvements in the automotive industry. This paper reports the life cycle inventory profiles for two fuel tank ...

This life cycle design (LCD) project was a collaborative effort between the National Pollution Prevention Center at the University of Michigan, General Motors (GM), and the U.S. Environmental Protecti...

An assessment of the environmental burdens and human health effects of perchloroethylene-based dry cleaning and aqueous-based wet cleaning was documented in the first paper of this two part series....