Research Publications

The key attributes of sustainable infrastructure systems are – extended service life, enhanced performance, optimal life cycle costs, and minimal environmental life cycle impacts including the use ...

In 1998 the United States Automotive Materials Partnership published the life cycle inventory of a generic US family sedan. Several years later, researchers at the University of Michigan expanded t...

Automotive manufacturers and suppliers view China as the largest combination of automotive market and low-cost manufacturing and supply base to appear in decades. Companies are deluged with informatio...

An increasingly important concern for indoor work environments is the environmental quality of the office space. Building- and insulation materials have often polluted the indoor air by off-gasing ...

It has been widely recognized that environmental protection is a global issue and developing countries are making increasingly significant contributions to global environmental problems. Studies sh...

The photovoltaic (PV) system on the roof of the School of Natural Resources and Environment (SNRE) serves as another model for the installation of PV systems in urbanized areas, which could play a maj...

Short-rotation woody crops (SRWC) along with other woody biomass feedstocks will play a significant role in a more secure and sustainable energy future for the United States and around the world. I...

Electricity is a key energy carrier for residential, commercial and industrial activities, particularly in developed countries. In the United States, electricity generation accounts for 39% of ...

Traditionally, the foremost concern among transportation engineers has been the safety and reliability of major infrastructure components. Until recently, sustainability has not been included in most ...

Concrete infrastructure systems require large capital investments and resource flows to construct and maintain. An integrated life cycle assessment and cost model was developed to evaluate i...

Concrete infrastructure systems require large capital investments and resource flows to construct and maintain. An integrated life cycle assessment and cost model was developed to evaluate infrastruct...

In 1989, the U.S. EPA and the then Michigan Department of Natural Resources (now the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality) issued orders to compel communitiesand counties discharging wet weath...

Water is essential for the production of food and energy, human and ecosystem health, and much more.  Our clean water needs range from the water we drink to the water we use to wash clothes.&nb...

Aveda Corporation's product delivery system (PDS) is evaluated in terms of energy consumption and global warming potential (GWP). Two components of the PDS are analyzed in this study:  the tertia...

We review the economics of electricity generated, or conserved, from a diverse range of fossil-fuel, nuclear, and renewable energy sources and energy efficiency options. At the same time, we survey th...

Vehicles typically deteriorate with accumulating mileage and emit more tailpipe air pollutants per mile. Although incentive programs for scrapping old, high-emitting vehicles have been implemented ...

EDITOR's NOTE: This report is temporarily unavailable and will be posted again once a correction on a metric pertaining to the nuclear fuel cycle is made.  - October 25, 2010.  See also the ...

Land use is an increasingly important component of sustainability evaluations, and numerous performance metrics have evolved to meet this need. The selection of appropriate land-use metrics for dec...