Systematic approach for the design of sustainable supply chains under quality uncertainty

Abstract

Sustainable processes have recently awaked an increasing interest in the process systems engineering literature. In industry, this kind of problems inevitably required a multi-objective analysis to evaluate the environmental impact in addition to the economic performance. Bio-based processes have the potential to enhance the sustainability level of the energy sector. Nevertheless, such processes very often show variable conditions and present an uncertain behavior. The approaches presented for solving multi-objective problems under uncertainty have neglected the potential effects of different quality streams on the overall system. Here, it is presented an alternative approach, based on a State Task Network formulation, capable of optimizing under uncertain conditions, considering multiple selection criteria and accounting for the material quality effect. The resulting set of Pareto solutions are then assessed using the Elimination and Choice Expressing Reality-IV method, which identify the ones showing better overall performance considering the uncertain parameters space