NSF Center for Sustainable Polymers: Quantitative framework for cost and sustainability evaluation of emerging sustainable polymers

The Center for Sustainable Polymers (CSP) developed a Sustainable Polymer Framework that provides center members a qualitative means to evaluate their contributions to enhancing polymer sustainability. While it is important for early stage technology developers to reflect on whether their technology meets criteria in these pillars (e.g., avoiding resource depletion, processing at ambient conditions), the current qualitative framework does not allow center members to quantitatively evaluate tradeoffs inherent in meeting these criteria or to target their research towards areas that will drive down cost and environmental effects. In this seed project, I therefore propose to fulfil two objectives: 1.) Collaborate with three CSP Principal Investigators to develop techno-economic and life cycle analyses (TEA, LCA) of polymers under development and explore approaches to incorporating these analyses into CSP more broadly 2.) Develop a conceptual framework to quantify systems-level effects of new sustainable polymers.