Associate Professor
Canada Research Chair in System-Scale Environmental Impacts of Energy and Transport Technologies
Background
Research Interests
Publications & Media
Teaching
News
Contact
Background
My research focuses on system-scale environmental sustainability analysis. This work draws on a range of tools from Engineering, Science, Economics, and Public Policy to provide quantitative analysis to guide environmental policy and decision making. My work is grounded in the tools of life cycle assessment (LCA) and life cycle thinking, with application to a wide range of systems including fuel and chemical production, biobased products, electric vehicles and vehicle fleets, electricity generation, and infrastructure systems.
Education and Designations
- PhD Engineering & Public Policy, and Civil & Environmental Engineering (2016)
Carnegie Mellon University - MSc Economics (2012)
London School of Economics - MRes Green Chemistry: Energy and the Environment (2010)
Imperial College London - BA Chemistry with Certificate in Applied Mathematics (2009)
Princeton University
Please note that this page is not updated frequently.
For more recent information, please consult my profile on the
Sustainable Systems research group page.
Research Interests
Life cycle assessment and life cycle thinking
Greenhouse gas mitigation strategies
Alternative fuels and chemicals, including carbon capture & utilization, biofuels, bio-based products, and electrification
Sustainability consequences of technology deployment at scale
Interactions between climate science and greenhouse gas mitigation
Economic modeling of fossil fuel and energy markets
Public policy, decision support models, and uncertainty in environmental decision making
Publications
Selected Publications
Note: Please see updated information on the Sustainable Systems Research Group website.
Posen, I. D.; Griffin, W. M.; Matthews, H. S.; Azevedo, I. L., Changing the Renewable Fuel Standard to a Renewable Material Standard: Bioethylene Case Study. Environ Sci Technol 2015, 49, (1), 93-102. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/es503521r
Posen, I. D., Jaramillo, P., & Griffin, W. M. (2016). Uncertainty in the Life Cycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions from U.S. Production of Three Bio-based Polymer Families. Environmental Science & Technology, 50(6), 2846-2858. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5b05589
Faria, F., Klima, K., Posen, I. D., & Azevedo, I. M. L. (2015). A New Approach of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Outreach in Climate Change, Energy, and Environmental Decision Making. Sustainability: The Journal of Record, 8(5), 261-271. http://dx.doi.org/10.1089/SUS.2015.29023
Selected Media
- "We Need More Than Just Electric Vehicles”, IEEE Spectrum Magazine, August 20, 2022. https://spectrum.ieee.org/electric-cars-2657880896
- “Our Annual Holiday Listener Question Show – Is Scrapping an old gasoline-powered car and replacing it with a new electric one always better for the environment?”, CBC Radio, Quirks & Quarks, January 1, 2022.
- “Are Electric Cars Really Better for the Environment?”, Wall Street Journal, March 2, 2021. https://www.wsj.com/graphics/are-electric-cars-really-better-for-the-environment/
- “Core Concept: Bioplastics offer carbon-cutting advantages but are no panacea”, PNAS, March 23, 2021.
- “Ninety Percent of U.S. Cars Must Be Electric by 2050 to Meet Climate Goals”, Scientific American E&E News, September 29, 2020. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/ninety-percent-of-u-s-cars-must-be-electric-by-2050-to-meet-climate-goals/
- “Researchers Analyze Greenhouse Gas Emissions Through the Life Cycle of Plant-Based Plastics.” Carnegie Mellon University News, June 23, 2016. http://engineering.cmu.edu/media/feature/2016/06_23_plant_based_plastics.html
- “A life-cycle look at plant-based plastics.” Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), March 18, 2016. http://cen.acs.org/articles/94/web/2016/03/life-cycle-look-plant-based.html
- “Carnegie Mellon Researchers Call for Broader U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard.” Carnegie Mellon University News, April 7, 2015. http://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2015/april/renewable-fuel-standard.html
Teaching
| Course Code | Title & Description | Session | Day(s) | Start Time | End | Section |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CME368H | Fall 2020 | Scheduled by the Office of the Faculty Registrar. |
News Mentions
New Certificate in Public Policy and Engineering expands the skill set of future engineering leaders
U of T Engineering students can now sign up for courses delivered by the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy Starting this fall, undergraduate engineering students at U of T will be able to augment their degree with a new certificate in Public Policy and Engineering. The program is the result of a collaboration […]
In advance of the coming Graduate Research Days, February 24 & 25, CivMin contacted previous participants to get their point of view on the event and their research goals at U of T. Our Q&A is with PhD candidate Mengqing Kan. Can you please tell us a little about yourself?My name is Mengqing Kan. […]
Two Department of Civil & Mineral Engineering (CivMin) professors are among seven University of Toronto Engineering researchers awarded Canada Research Chairs (CRC). The announcement from the Government of Canada was made Wednesday, Jan. 12. Prof. Heather MacLean and Prof. Daniel Posen are the Department’s newest recipients of a CRC. MacLean receives a CRC in […]
Contact
Daniel Posen
Department of Civil & Mineral Engineering
University of Toronto
35 St. George St.
Toronto, Ontario
Canada, M5S 1A4
Guidance for how best to reach me:
- For prospective students and postdocs, please review information here.
- For students in my class, please use course discussion board or Quercus inbox.
- For others at U of T, please use Microsoft Teams
- For all others, email is fine, but please note that you may need to send your message multiple times