Publications#

BioSTEAM has enabled over 55 published studies. A majority of studies have leveraged the BioSTEAM platform to compare conversion technologies, inform policy making, and build new modeling tools. Modeled technologies include a range of fermentation-based bioproduct pathways, going from conventional/cellulosic crops, municipal solid waste, and flue gas all the way to diols, organic acids, oleochemicals, and biofuels. Newer applications for BioSTEAM include thermochemical upcycling of waste plastics through pyrolysis and solvent-based dissolution and precipitation.

Software tools#

  1. BioSTEAM: A Fast and Flexible Platform for the Design, Simulation, and Techno-Economic Analysis of Biorefineries under Uncertainty. ACS Sustainable Chem Eng 2020

  2. Thermosteam: BioSTEAM’s Premier Thermodynamic Engine. Journal of Open Source Software 2020

  3. QSDsan: an integrated platform for quantitative sustainable design of sanitation and resource recovery systems. Environ Sci: Water Res Technol 2022

Advances in process simulation#

  1. Phenomena-based graph representations and applications to chemical process simulation. Comput. & Chem. Eng. 2026

Social, economic, and policy studies#

  1. Filling the Cellulosic Bio-Economy Gap by Utilizing a Wedge Approach Combined with Stakeholder Collaboration. Renewable Energy 2026

  2. An agent-based modeling tool supporting bioenergy and bio-product community communication regarding cellulosic bioeconomy development. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 2022

  3. Implications of Biorefinery Policy Incentives and Location-Specific Economic Parameters for the Financial Viability of Biofuels. Environ Sci Technol 2023

Waste valorization#

  1. From wastewater to value: Techno-Economic and life-cycle assessment of a continuous microalgae biorefinery for high-value metabolites and bioenergy. Biomass and Energy 2026

  2. Kinetic-based techno-economic and life cycle assessment of slaughterhouse waste co-digestion for renewable natural gas production. Chemical Engineering Journal 2026

  3. Enabling Refinery Integration for Plastic Waste Recycling: A Probabilistic Techno-economic Analysis and Carbon Footprint Assessment of Poly-Crude Production. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering 2026

  4. Production of High-Quality Polyethylene (PE) Films from Post-Consumer Shrink Wrap with Solvent Targeted Recovery and Precipitation (STRAP). Waste Management 2026

  5. An Agile Benchmarking Framework for Wastewater Resource Recovery Technologies. npj Clean Water 2025

  6. Cost-Effective Urine Recycling Enabled by a Synthetic Osteoyeast Platform for Production of Hydroxyapatite. Nat Commun 2025

  7. Advancing the Economic and Environmental Sustainability of Rare Earth Element Recovery from Phosphogypsum. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2025

  8. Hydrothermal-Based Wastewater Solids Management for Targeted Resource Recovery and Decarbonization in the Contiguous U.S. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2025

  9. Recycling of Single-Use Multilayer Plastics for Biomanufacturing with Solvent-Targeted Recovery and Precipitation. ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng. 2025

  10. Screening green solvents for multilayer plastic film recycling processes. Computers & Chemical Engineering 2025

  11. Recycling of a Post-Industrial Printed Multilayer Plastic Film Containing Polyurethane Inks by Solvent-Targeted Recovery and Precipitation. Resources, Conservation and Recycling 2023

  12. Comparative Techno-Economic Analysis and Life Cycle Assessment of Producing High-Value Chemicals and Fuels from Waste Plastic via Conventional Pyrolysis and Thermal Oxo-Degradation. Energy Fuels 2023

  13. High-purity polypropylene from disposable face masks via solvent-targeted recovery and precipitation. Green Chemistry 2023

Biomanufacturing and biorefining#

  1. Integrated techno-economic and life cycle assessment of 3-hydroxypropionic acid bioproduction from a glycerol-molasses blend. Bioresource Technology 2026

  2. Rational engineering to enhance C8-fatty acid biosynthesis in Picosynechococcus sp. PCC 7002. Metabolic Engineering 2026

  3. Techno-Economic and Life Cycle Assessment of Renewable Natural Gas Production from Spent Coffee Grounds Co-Digestion: A European and North American Biorefinery Comparison. ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng. 2026

  4. Cost and Carbon Intensity Implications of Coprocessing Sustainable Aviation Fuel at Petroleum Refineries. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2026

  5. An Integrated ionoSolv Process with Ethanol-Free Pulp Washing for Lignocellulosic Biomass Valorisation and High-Purity Cellulose Pulp Production. ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering 2026

  6. Bacterial cellulose as a promising biodegradable bioplastic for sustainability. Nature communications 2026

  7. Economic analysis and optimization of renewable natural gas production from prairie biomass. Bioresource Technology 2026

  8. Lifecycle Cost, Environmental, and Machine-Learning Value Assessment for Synthetic Spider Silk Production from E. Coli. Green Chem. 2026

  9. A KPI-Based Experimental Design Strategy for Bioprocess Development. Biochemical Engineering Journal 2026

  10. Co-Deploying Algal Biocarbon Capture with Coal Power in China Reduces Carbon Emissions and Improves Cost-Effectiveness. Sustainable Production and Consumption 2026

  11. Integrated Dynamic Control and Enzyme Co-Localization Strategies Enable High-Efficiency Stilbenoid Biosynthesis. Bioresource Technology 2026

  12. Conversion of Waste Microalgae into Caproic Acid Using Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactors without External Electron Donors. Green Chem. 2026

  13. Bio-Based Oxalic Acid Production in Issatchenkia Orientalis Enables Sustainable Rare Earth Recovery. Nat Commun 2026

  14. Co-Location of Cellulosic Bioethanol and Alcohol-to-Jet (ATJ) Production Facilities for Targeted Scale-Up of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Production. Environ. Sci. Technol. 2026

  15. High Yield Production of 3-Hydroxypropionic Acid Using Issatchenkia Orientalis. Nat Commun 2026.

  16. Technoeconomic and Life Cycle Assessment of a Modular Bioprocess System for Producing Polyhydroxyalkanoates from Food Waste via Heterogeneous Fermentation. Journal of Cleaner Production 2025

  17. Decompartmentalization of the Yeast Mitochondrial Metabolism to Improve Chemical Production in Issatchenkia Orientalis. Nat Commun 2025

  18. Rational Multienzyme Architecture Design with iMARS. Cell 2025

  19. Sustainable potassium sorbate production from triacetic acid lactone in food-grade solvents. Green Chem 2025

  20. Techno-Economic Analysis and Life Cycle Assessment of Lignin Derived 4-Hydroxy-3,5-Dimethoxyphenylacetic Acid. Chemical Engineering Journal 2025

  21. Integration of plant and microbial oil processing at oilcane biorefineries for more sustainable biofuel production. GCB Bioenergy 2024

  22. Economic and Environmental Sustainability of Bio-Based HMF Production and Recovery from Lignocellulosic Biomass. Green Chem 2024

  23. Comparative techno-economic and life cycle assessment of electrocatalytic processes for lignin valorization. Green Chem 2024

  24. The Economic and Environmental Case for Cattle Manure and Prairie Grass-Derived Sustainable Aviation Fuel. Energy Fuels 2024

  25. A Microbial Process for the Production of Benzyl Acetate. Nat Chem Eng 2024.

  26. Characterizing the Opportunity Space for Sustainable Hydrothermal Valorization of Wet Organic Wastes. Environ Sci Technol

  27. An End-to-End Pipeline for Succinic Acid Production at an Industrially Relevant Scale Using Issatchenkia Orientalis. Nat Commun 2023

  28. Metabolic engineering of Yarrowia lipolytica to produce 1,2-diacyl-3-acetyl triacylglycerol. Metabolic Engineering 2023

  29. Economic and Environmental Sustainability of Vegetative Oil Extraction Strategies at Integrated Oilcane and Oil-sorghum Biorefineries. ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng. 2022

  30. Adsorptive separation and recovery of triacetic acid lactone from fermentation broth. Biofuels Bioprod Bioref 2022

  31. Rewiring yeast metabolism for producing 2,3-butanediol and two downstream applications: Techno-economic analysis and life cycle assessment of methyl ethyl ketone (MEK) and agricultural biostimulant production. Chemical Engineering Journal 2022

  32. Sustainable Production of Acrylic Acid via 3-Hydroxypropionic Acid from Lignocellulosic Biomass. ACS Sustainable Chem Eng 2021

  33. Renewable linear alpha-olefins by base-catalyzed dehydration of biologically-derived fatty alcohols. Green Chemistry 2021

  34. Sustainable Lactic Acid Production from Lignocellulosic Biomass. ACS Sustainable Chem Eng 2021

  35. Techno-Economic Evaluation of Biorefineries Based on Low-Value Feedstocks Using the BioSTEAM Software: A Case Study for Animal Bedding. Processes 2020

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