Risk and Impact Modeling
Mission:
Under the leadership of Professor Olivier Jolliet, the Risk and Impact Modeling group of UM aims to provide the scientific knowledge for assessing environmental risks and impacts of chemicals and of innovative technologies, in order to:
(1) model population-based exposure, intake fractions and body burden for outdoor and indoor chemical emissions
(2) assess the life cycle risks, impacts and benefits of new technologies and materials in order to prevent emissions
(3) guide the development of sustainable systems and of socially responsible investments.
Present Research:
Multiscale multi-media model
Human health risks and body burden modeling
IMPACT 2002
IMPACT 2002+
Risks of nanomaterials
Indoor intake fraction
New material and technological solutions for sustainability
Socially responsible Investments
Multiscale multi-media model (Cedric Wannaz, wannaz@umich.edu): Creation of an adaptive multimedia model determining intake fractions at local (1km grid around the emission source), regional (200km grid within the continent of emission) and continental (world divided in continents) levels. Special emphasis is given to further develop modeling of exposure in the food chain linked to highest intake fractions and high level of uncertainties. This research builds up on the Impact 2002 model, a spatial multimedia (air, water, soil, sediment) model, enabling to calculate the intake fraction, to analyze the spatial variations in toxic impacts over Europe. Top
Human health risks and body burden modeling (Yvan Wenger, yvan@umich.edu): Further improvement in the quantification of chemical risk is linked to better understanding of mechanistic effects of toxics in humans. Intake fraction is being extended consistently to a new metric accounting for uptake and transport within the body coupling multi-media model with physiologically based pharmacokinetics (PBPK). Top
Impact 2002: The IMPACT 2002 model provides close to 1000 characterization factors for the midpoint categories human toxicity, aquatic ecotoxicity and terrestrial ecotoxicity for the LCIA methodology IMPACT 2002+. The model is parameterised in a non-spatial and a spatial European model nested in a non-spatial world model, as well as a complete world model. Top
Impact 2002+: IMPACT 2002+ provides characterization factors for more than 1000 LCI results. This methodology is currently implemented into the database ecoinvent. Top
Risks of nanomaterials: This project aim to model the fate of nanoparticle in the body, based on measured kinetics of different nanoparticles and using PBPK approaches. This project is carried out in strong interaction with Dr. Martin Philbert's team, using measured value of peeble kinetics in animals. Top
Indoor intake fraction: (Yvan Wenger, yvan@umich.edu) Prediction of the intake fraction for indoor air emissions in a consistent way to outdoor intake fraction, i.e. the fraction of the emission that is ingested or inhaled by the world population (Bennett et al., 2002). This research opens very interesting perspectives to account for the different removal pathways in buildings that are air renewal, inside degradation, and surface adsorption and degradation. This opens the way to treat occupational and worker exposure in a consistent way with other exposure pathways. Top
New material and technological solutions for sustainability: Traditional Life cycle approaches are being extended by coupling them with Life Cycle Cost modelling for materials production, and component manufacturing. To support public policy in the domain of waste management or site remediation, existing knowledge is being extended to define the trade-off between treatments, as a function of e.g. the value of recycled/treated product (avoided burden), the magnitude of direct emissions during treatment and the transport requirements to the recycling or treatment facilities. Top
Socially responsible Investments: To support corporate managers and to advise investors, a quantitative evaluation of the overall life cycle environmental performances of companies is being developed, consistently with economic performances. Specific indicators are identified to cover the main impacts in the life cycle in order to provide guidance for company rating and socially responsible investments. Top