EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Resilient Decarbonised Fuel Energy Systems

Started

Fossil Fuels: Oil Gas and Coal(Oil and Gas, Non-conventional oil and gas production)
Hydrogen and Fuel Cells(Hydrogen, Other infrastructure and systems R&D)
Fossil Fuels: Oil Gas and Coal(CO2 Capture and Storage)
Renewable Energy Sources(Bio-Energy)

Training

SOCIAL SCIENCES (Politics and International Studies)
BIOLOGICAL AND AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES (Agriculture, Veterinary and Food Science)
PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Metallurgy and Materials)
PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Computer Science and Informatics)
ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Electrical and Electronic Engineering)
ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY (Mechanical, Aeronautical and Manufacturing Engineering)

Not Cross-cutting
Other (Energy technology information dissemination)

Professor R Irons
Faculty of Engineering
University of Nottingham

Standard

EPSRC

01 October 2019

31 March 2028

102 months

£5,771,301

Energy

East Midlands

Non Theme Specific

Professor R Irons, Faculty of Engineering, University of Nottingham

Professor P Bowen, Engineering, Cardiff University
Dr KNN Finney, Mechanical Engineering, University of Sheffield
Dr H Liu, Architecture and Built Environment, University of Nottingham
Dr L Ma, Computational Fluid Dynamics, University of Leeds
Dr R Marsh, Engineering, Cardiff University
Dr AL Mohr, Sociology and Social Policy, University of Nottingham
Professor M Pourkashanian, Energy Resources Research Unit, University of Leeds
Dr C Sun, Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Nottingham

EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Resilient Decarbonised Fuel Energy SystemsLed by the University of Nottingham, with Sheffield and CardiffSUMMARYThis Centre is designed to support the UK energy sector at a time of fundamental change. The UK needs a knowledgeable but flexible workforce to deliver against this uncertain future.Our vision is to develop a world-leading CDT, delivering research leaders with broad economic, societal and contextual awareness, having excellent technical skills and capable of operating in multi-disciplinary teams covering a range of roles. The Centre builds on a heritage of two successful predecessor CDTs but adds significant new capabilities to meet research needs which are now fundamentally different. Over 80% of our graduates to date have entered high-quality jobs in energy-related industry or academe, showing a demand for the highly trained yet flexible graduates we produce.National Need for a CentreThe need for a Centre is demonstrated by both industry pull and by government strategic thinking. More than forty industrial and government organisations have been consulted in the shaping and preparation of this proposal. The bid is strongly aligned with EPSRC's Priority Area 5 (Energy Resilience through Security, Integration, Demand Management and Decarbonisation) and government policy.Working with our partners, we have identified the following priority research themes. They have a unifying vision of re-purposing and re-using existing energy infrastructure to deliver rapid and cost-effective decarbonisation.1. Allowing the re-use and development of existing processes to generate energy and co-products from low-carbon biomass and waste fuels, and to maximise the social, environmental and economic benefits for the UK from this transition2. Decreasing CO2 emissions from industrial processes by implementation of CCUS, integrating with heat networks where appropriate.3. Assessing options for the decarbonisation of natural gas users (as fuel or feedstock) in the power generation, industry and domestic heating system through a combination of hydrogen enhancement and/or CO2 capture. Also critical in this theme is the development of technologies that enable the sustainable supply of carbon-lean H2 and the adoption of H2 or H2 enriched fuel/feedstock in various applications.4. Automating existing electricity, gas and other vector infrastructure (including existing and new methods of energy storage) based on advanced control technologies, data-mining and development of novel instrumentation, ensuring a smarter, more flexible energy system at lower cost.TrainingOur current Centre operates a training programme branded 'exemplary' by our external examiner and our intention is to use this as solid basis for further improvements which will include a new technical core module, a module on risk management and enhanced training in inclusivity and responsible research.Equality, Diversity and InclusionOur current statistics on gender balance and disability are better than the EPSRC mean. We will seek to further improve this record. We are also keen to demonstrate ED&I within the Centre staff and our team also reflects a diversity in gender, ethnicity and experience.Management and GovernanceOur PI has joined us after a career conducting and managing energy research for a major energy company and led development of technologies from benchtop to full-scale implementation. He sharpens our industrial focus and enhances an already excellent team with a track record of research delivery. One Co-I chairs the UoN Ethics Committee, ensuring that Responsible Innovation remains a priority.Value for MoneyBecause most of the Centre infrastructure and organisation is already in place, start-up costs for the new centre will be minimal giving the benefit of giving a new, highly refreshed technical capability but with a very low organisational on-cost.

08/10/21