Pre-Laboratory TEA/LCA-Driven Innovation Workflow for Early-Stage Technology Development

Main Presenter:    Xiaohan Wu 

Co-Authors:                                                  

Techno-economic analysis (TEA) and life cycle assessment (LCA) are often treated as ex post evaluation tools applied after laboratory proof-of-concept is established. This timing can allow avoidable lock-ins: research pathways may look promising at bench scale, yet become environmentally unfavorable once realistic scale-up assumptions, supply-chain constraints, and background system conditions are considered. Here, we propose a practical TEA/LCA-driven innovation workflow that repositions LCA as a front-end design instrument for early-stage R&D. The workflow consists of four modules: (1) baseline definition to bound plausible environmental and economic performance using transparent system boundaries, functional units, and scale-relevant inventories; (2) hotspot diagnosis to identify dominant contributors and reveal whether improvement leverage lies in foreground technology parameters (e.g., yield, reagent use, energy intensity) or background system transitions (e.g., grid mix, material
supply); (3) quantitative target setting to translate hotspot insights into measurable performance thresholds and data priorities; and (4) iterative evaluation to create fast feedback loops between experimental updates and system-level environmental outcomes. We demonstrate the workflow using a series of Purdue University case studies focused on critical materials and mechanical design. Collectively, these cases illustrate how pre-laboratory baseline modeling and hotspot-driven target setting can improve the likelihood that early-stage innovations remain scalable and environmentally advantageous.

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