About Life Cycle Associates

Stefan Unnasch has performed fuel cycle analysis studies since 1987 when he developed analytical approaches that take into account the environmental constraints that apply to California. He develops models of the energy impacts and emissions including criteria pollutants, toxics, greenhouse gases, and global energy inputs on a full fuel cycle basis. His work on California fuel cycle analysis efforts includes serving as the Co-Chairman of the Societal Benefits Topic Team for the California Hydrogen Highway Blueprint Plan, support of California AB1007 and the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, California's ZEV program, and many other fuel cycle studies. Mr. Unnasch has performed extensive reviews and modifications of the GREET model to support various fuel cycle analysis programs.

Mr. Unnasch received his Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley in 1983. He specialized in thermodynamics and gas dynamics. He has over 70 publications in the area of alternative fuels and has presented and lectured at technical conferences and universities around the world.

Steffen Mueller, Ph.D. is a Senior Economist for the Energy Resources Center at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) and an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at UIC. His current research interest focuses on efficient energy utilization in order to reduce energy consumption and emissions. Prior to joining UIC, he was manager of business development for Calpine Corporation/Skygen Energy where he oversaw energy sales, natural gas procurement, and developed financial analyses for merchant power/co-generation projects.

Dr. Mueller received his Ph.D. in Public Policy Analysis from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 2004. He earned an MBA in Finance and Marketing from the Keller Graduate School of Management in Chicago in 1995, and received his BS in Environmental Engineering from the Technical Academy, Karlsruhe, Germany in 1991. He has published articles in the following publications: Energy Policy, Renewable Energy, Cogeneration and Onsite Power Generation, and Ethanol Producer Magazine.

Richard Plevin is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in the Energy and Resources Group at UC Berkeley. His research concerns the environmental consequences of different biofuel production pathways, modeling these impacts using combined life-cycle and economic analyses, and exploring policies that ensure climate benefits from the use of biofuels. He has published articles on biofuels and renewable energy in Science, REFOCUS, Renewable Energy World, and Ethanol Producer Magazine, and has produced bioenergy analyses for environmental organizations in California, Washington DC, and London. In addition, he has served as a peer reviewer to the California Air Resources Board on the state's life cycle analysis of alternative fuels, and is a co-author of the University of California report on the state's Low-Carbon Fuel Standard.

Mr. Plevin received an MS in Energy and Resources Group from the University of California, Berkeley in 2006. He also holds an MS in Computer Science from Yale University (1982) and a BS in Computer Science and Applied Mathematics from SUNY Albany (1981).

Brent Riffel has conducted lifecycle analysis of energy processes and fuel pathways for the past 3 years in an academic setting and for the state. He participated in the Hydrogen Pathways Research Group and STEPs program from 2003 to 2007 at the Institute of Transportation Studies (ITS) at UC Davis. His MS thesis focused on the NO_x impact on climate on a regional basis using the framework of Dr. Mark Delucchi's Lifecycle Emissions Model (LEM). These results have been incorporated into LEM to facilitate modeling carbon equivalency factors for NO_x across the range of fuel pathways treated in LEM.

Brent worked at the California Air Resources Board (ARB) from 2005 to 2007 where he supported Hydrogen Highway development and provided lifecycle emissions assessments. His specialty is the customization of lifecycle model inputs and structure, using technology- and region-specific factors to create robust analytical lifecycle tools.

Mr. Riffel received his B.S. in Chemistry from Pomona College in 2003 with a focus in physical chemistry. He studied atmospheric NO_x processing at NASA Ames Research Center from 2003 to 2004. He also holds an M.S. in Transportation Technology and Policy from ITS, UC Davis, where he studied lifecycle analysis of alternative and conventional fuels. He has published an article in the Journal of Atmospheric Chemistry related to NO_x cycling in the atmosphere.