Department of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering

Biocomplexity in the Bioeconomy

The overall objective of this research is to assess the potential ecological, economic, and social impacts of a large-scale transition to the use of biomass-derived feedstock for the production of energy, fuels and products. Considerable emphasis is being placed on shifting bioproduction from a function that is largely food-based to one in which a variety of chemical feedstocks are generated. Most studies to date suggest that products made from biomass have lower net greenhouse gas emissions than similar petroleum-based products. However, there are several important unknowns, such as changes in nutrient flows through agricultural and environmental systems and the societal impacts of a shift from petroleum-based to biobased products, and the uncertain economic impacts and resultant policy implications.

This research comprises a set of interdisciplinary studies designed to improve our understanding of the interactions between the economic, social, biological and environmental components of bioproduction.  The work will involve a series of analyses/models:

• Biorefinery process modeling and scenario analysis

• Agriculture sector economic and environmental modeling

• Life Cycle Assessment

• Substance Flow Analysis

• Farm enterprise economic and environmental modeling

• Social impact assessment

This work funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation, Biocomplexity in the Environment Program.

This project was recently profiled in the "Pathways" report from the NSF Advisory Committee for Environmental Research and Education.  More...