News Archives - Page 5 of 6

As part of the UK’s strategy for battery and fuel cell R&D, Professor Phil Taylor presented to the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee along with Professor Paul Dodds and Professor David Greenwood on the Role of Batteries and Fuel Cells in Achieving NetZero.

The recorded session is available to view.

The International Conference on Applied Energy (ICAE) due to be held in Bangkok, Thailand was held as a virtual conference in December 2020 with Professor Phil Taylor invited to give a keynote.

Professor Taylor’s keynote on Potential Technical, Economic & Environmental Benefits of Multi-Energy systems, Planning & Operation is available to view.

In these uncertain times, certain critical infrastructures are vital, including the energy networks
Dr Sara Walker and Professor Phil Taylor

Newcastle University researchers are rolling out a project to study the impact of the UK Government’s lock down on energy networks.

Led by Dr Sara Walker and Professor Phil Taylor through Newcastle University’s Supergen Energy Networks Hub, the study will link up to the Urban Observatory COVID dashboard, to bring together all the data linked to energy usage so the team can understand the impact of significant home working on network operation.

Dr Walker, Reader in Energy in the School of Engineering, said: “In these uncertain times, certain critical infrastructures are vital, including the energy networks. In order for these networks to operate effectively it is important to understand how much energy is being used and when. In a normal day this is easy – we know when to expect the peak hours of the day, and of the year, for demand for gas and electricity. But this is an unprecedented situation and we find ourselves trying to predict the patterns of demand when there is no historical basis for this monumental shift in working and home life.

“We hope to look at network resilience, particularly for temporary facilities like the proposed Nightingale hospital at Harrogate, and to look at how networks might cope under stress events such as the August 9th blackout, under this new “normal” of home working.”

System Balancing

Professor Taylor, Head of Engineering, added: “Energy networks are the backbone of our national energy system and they are designed and operated based upon assumptions about customer and organisational behaviour which have been analysed and modelled for decades. The current pandemic has profoundly changed these behaviours and energy consumption patterns. This research will work with Industry to understand these changes and interpret what they might mean for network resilience, overall carbon in the energy system and overall efficiency.

“There could be greater scope for participation in system balancing from customers who are at home by shifting their demand in time to match peaks in renewable energy. It is also worth noting that the increased use of digital technologies and the internet uses significant amounts of energy. Furthermore, it will be interesting to consider what the longer lasting effects on our energy networks might be if some of these practices stick even after lock down.”

Findings will be made available to the community through the COVID dashboard at Newcastle University. It is currently populated with data on changes in transport and travel behaviour, using an extensive sensor network maintained by the Urban Observatory https://covid.view.urbanobservatory.ac.uk/#intro

Dr Sara Walker, Supergen Energy Networks Deputy Director and Reader in Energy in the School of Engineering at Newcastle University, will join the judging panel for this year’s Network Awards.

To coincide with her announcement as an award judge, Dr Sara Walker has been interviewed for Network Magazine. In the interview, Sara discusses her hopes for award entries taking a collaborative, whole systems approach.

As an example of such a cross-network collaboration, Sara highlights the demonstrator project at InTEGReL (Integrated Transport Electricity Gas Research Laboratory), where Newcastle University is working with Northern Gas Networks and Northern Powergrid. This demonstrator allows the two networks to be operated and controlled in tandem. The Control Rooms of the Future mini project is using the site to look at questions such as how the two networks talk to each other about their control decisions and whether the control room can work across more than one sector.

In the interview, Sara also talks about how important such cross-network collaborations and increased local renewables are for the UK to meet its 2050 net-zero targets.

See the interview in full in Network Magazine’s 15 November issue. The closing date for entries to the Network Awards is 16 December 2019.

The Supergen Programme represents our commitment to fund fundamental research that will accelerate the move to a low-carbon energy future.
Jenny Hill, Chair of the Supergen High Level Group

Today sees the formal launch of the latest phase of Supergen, UK Research and Innovation’s flagship programme to deliver coordinated research on sustainable energy generation, supply, distribution and use.

The Supergen Energy Networks Hub leads the programme’s work on energy networks. Led by Hub Director, Professor Phil Taylor, Head of School of Engineering at Newcastle University, the Hub brings together the diverse and vibrant energy networks community, from academia, industry and government. We aim to gain a deeper understanding of the interactions and inter-dependencies of energy networks.

The four research hubs that comprise the energy programme will welcome members of parliament, policy makers and industry representatives to the meeting hosted by James Heappey MP at Portcullis House, to look at the challenges associated with reducing the UK’s reliance on fossil fuels and implementing a sustainable energy system.

Attendees will hear from representatives of the research hubs and funding councils about previous research, the history of successful investment and the interactions between research and industry.

A panel of industry leaders will discuss questions such as what skills are needed for a decarbonised society, what trading opportunities a low-carbon economy offers and what regulation and governance changes are needed to accelerate the UK’s move to a low-carbon energy system.

The Government, with UK research funding councils, has committed to furthering UK excellence in energy research through sustained funding of Supergen, which now represents one of the UK Government’s largest single investments in fundamental research on low-carbon energy generation, sustainable networks and use.

The latest phase comprises four multidisciplinary research consortia: Supergen ORE (Offshore Renewable Energy), Supergen Bioenergy, Supergen Energy Networks and Supergen SuperSolar. The hubs work to connect academia, industry, policy and public stakeholders, encouraging the transfer of knowledge and resources to support the development of sustainable energy systems in the UK and beyond.

Chair of the Supergen High Level Group, Jenny Cooper, comments: “The Supergen Programme represents our commitment to fund fundamental research that will accelerate the move to a low-carbon energy future. This event provides the hub with a platform to connect with policy makers, demonstrate their successes to date and position sustainable energy high on the political agenda.”

Achieving Government targets of net-zero emissions by 2050 will require contributions from a variety of renewable resources and conversion technologies deployed across a range of demand sectors. The combined efforts of the Supergen hubs and the energy programme will be critical in achieving this.

About the hubs
Despite their vital importance to the UK’s energy sector, industry and society, there is no current whole systems approach to studying the interconnected and interdependent nature of energy network infrastructure and the challenges it faces. The Supergen Energy Networks Hub will establish a vibrant, well-connected, diverse, open and communicative energy networks community with a deeper understanding of whole systems approaches to energy networks.

The Supergen Offshore Renewable Energy Hub provides research leadership to connect academia, industry, policy and public stakeholders, inspire innovation and maximise societal value in offshore wind, wave and tidal energy.

The SuperSolar Hub is a complementary mix of researchers within the photovoltaics (PV) field in the UK, with internationally recognised expertise. By working together and engaging with industry, the SuperSolar Hub has played a crucial role in the development of perovskites as exciting Third Generation PV materials that are now on the cusp of commercial realisation.

Research within the Supergen Bioenergy Hub looks at the whole bioenergy chain, examining the characteristics and potential of different biomass and feedstocks, developing pre-treatment and conversion processes and identifying the best ways to deliver bioenergy. It also takes a holistic view of energy systems, assessing the role and impact of bioenergy on them and on related sectors. The hub’s research is underpinned by strong engagement with industry, policy and societal stakeholders.

The role of UK energy research hubs and centres in cutting greenhouse gas emissions from UK energy supply

The UK Government has made significant investments into essential research for low-carbon energy production and sustainable distribution. The Supergen (SUstainable PowER GENeration and supply) Programme was established in 2001 by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and has just moved into its 4^th phase.

This £16 million phase comprises of the following 4 multidisciplinary research hubs

Each hub will not only interact with academics but will also include crucial engagement with the wider energy sector including national and international industry, government, trade association partners, policy and public stakeholders.

A joint Houses of Parliament launch event, hosted by James Heappey MP, will take place on Monday 17^th June 2019. The event will introduce the Hubs and their work to a select audience and highlight the important research that has already been carried out. The launch will also provide a valuable opportunity to network and contribute to the future work carried out.

A full press release will be available after the event.

Bringing industry and academia together, the EPSRC Supergen Energy Networks Hub intends to provide a network centric multi-vector approach to our energy needs.

“Our article discusses our future energy needs and how, with the interaction of both academics and industry, we can provide an interdisciplinary approach to understand, shape and challenge the whole energy network infrastructure”
Dr Susan C Scholes

Dr Susan C Scholes, Dr Sara L Walker and Professor Phil Taylor have recently produced an interesting article published in the May (2019) edition of Network Magazine, page 17. The magazine is available free on line with a free Networks.online subscription.

The article discusses energy networks and the technological, societal and environmental challenges they face. It also provides more information about the Supergen Energy Network Hub, its aims and area of focus.

The Hub would love to hear from anyone currently working in the energy networks space or considering doing so.

To join the Hub community or to find out more about the Supergen Energy Networks Hub, please contact our team by email at supergenEN@newcastle.ac.uk.

Prof Phil Taylor discusses whole energy systems and the integration of Hydrogen

Prof Phil Taylor from Newcastle University is the Supergen Energy Networks Hub Lead, Director of the EPSRC National Centre for Energy Systems Integration (CESI) and Siemens Professor on Energy. He delivered a seminar on the ‘Latest Developments in Green Hydrogen in the UK’ at the Technical Seminar on Hydrogen Economy in Hong Kong.

His talk discussed whole energy systems and how Hydrogen would fit into it within the UK on its journey to becoming NetZero by 2050.

Leading climate experts at Newcastle University, including our Hub Director Prof Phil Taylor, respond to today’s report calling on the UK to end its contribution to global warming within 30 years.

“We need to stop talking about low carbon solutions being too expensive and look instead at the cost of climate change if we don’t adopt them”
Professor Phil Taylor, Supergen EN Hub Director and Head of Engineering at Newcastle University

Ten years after the Climate Change Act became law, the Commission on Climate Change (CCC) has today issued a report calling on the UK to end its contribution to global warming within 30 years.

Setting an ambitious new target for the country to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2050, the target is in line with the UK’s commitment under the Paris Agreement – the pact which the UK and the rest of the world signed in 2015 to curb dramatically the polluting gases that cause climate change.

The CCC’s recommended targets, which cover all sectors of the UK, Scottish and Welsh economies, are achievable with known technologies, alongside improvements in people’s lives, and should be put into law as soon as possible, the Committee says.

Task ahead “is immense but not insurmountable”
Emphasising the vital importance of limiting further warming to as low a level as possible and the need for deep and rapid emissions reductions in order to do so, the CCC report found that “the foundations are in place throughout the UK” and the policies required to deliver key pillars of a net-zero economy are already active or in development.

But leading energy expert Professor Phil Taylor, Head of Engineering at Newcastle University, said he did not agree the foundations were in place to decarbonise the UK.

“Achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions is necessary, feasible and cost effective but UK Policy is still way off the mark and the foundations are not in place to be able to meet this target,” says Professor Taylor, who is also Director of the EPSRC National Centre for Energy Systems Integration and the Supergen Energy Networks Hub.

“Even with all the evidence before us we are still opening new coal mines, extending Heathrow airport and flirting with fracking. We have unambitious building regulations, our drive to phase out petrol and diesel cars is too late, and we are withdrawing from carbon capture and storage demonstration.

“To have any hope of achieving the net-zero target we must move on from our obsession about decarbonising electricity and deal with more difficult challenges of decarbonising heating and transport as soon as possible.

“We need to stop talking about low carbon solutions being too expensive and look instead at the cost of climate change if we don’t adopt them. And we need to do this without delay. Due to the lag in the climate system we must recognise that even if we act now we will still see significant climate change between now and 2050.

“As a country that became wealthy from exploiting fossil fuels at the expense of the global climate we have a duty to lead the way in decarbonising.”

Phase out greenhouse gas emissions by 2050
Last month, Newcastle University signalled its commitment to climate change action by joining a number of organisations in the UK and all over the world to declare a climate emergency. The University has committed to further substantial progress in the de-carbonisation of its activities with the aim of achieving net-zero carbon dioxide emissions by 2040.

The CCC report found that:
The foundations are in place throughout the UK and the policies required to deliver key pillars of a net-zero economy are already active or in development. These include a supply of low-carbon electricity, efficient buildings and low-carbon heating, electric vehicles, developing carbon capture and storage technology and low-carbon hydrogen.

Policies will have to ramp up significantly for a ‘net-zero’ emissions target to be credible, given that most sectors of the economy will need to cut their emissions to zero by 2050. Government must set the direction and provide the urgency. The public will need to be engaged if the transition is to succeed. Serious plans are needed to clean up the UK’s heating systems, to deliver the infrastructure for carbon capture and storage technology and to drive transformational change in how we use our land.

The overall costs of the transition to a net-zero economy are manageable but they must be fairly distributed. Rapid cost reductions in essential technologies such as offshore wind and batteries for electric vehicles mean that a net-zero greenhouse gas target can be met at an annual cost of up to 1-2% of GDP to 2050. However, the costs of the transition must be fair, and must be perceived as such by workers and energy bill payers. The Committee recommends that the Treasury reviews how the remaining costs of achieving net- zero can be managed in a fair way for consumers and businesses.

This is a crucial time in the global effort to tackle climate change. In the last ten years, pledges to reduce emissions by the countries of the world have reduced the forecast of global warming from above 4°C by the end of the century to around 3°C. Net-zero in the UK would lead the global effort to further limit the rise to 1.5°C.

Welcoming the report, Hayley Fowler, Professor of Climate Change Impacts at Newcastle University, said:

“The world has already warmed more than one degree since pre-industrial times, with human activity the major cause.

“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recently released a report that stated that to keep below 1.5 degrees warmer we need to reduce our CO2 emissions by 50% in the next 12 years and to zero by 2050. For a 2-degree threshold we still need to reduce our emissions by half within the next 30 years.

“This challenge is necessary as we are already seeing the impacts of climate change: more powerful and intense storm events, flooding, droughts and sea level rise and science tells us that 2 degrees or warming brings us to some dangerous tipping points or thresholds that will serious affect human society.

“The scale of change is immense but not insurmountable. I welcome the publication of the new report today which sets out ambitious targets for phasing out CO2 emissions by 2050 to end the UK’s contribution to global warming.

“The UK has been a leader in this area since the Climate Change Act was implemented over 10 years ago. Climate change is a serious concern for us and future generations and we must start to make easy and more difficult changes to our lifestyles to reduce emissions, with the lead from Government as set out in the new report.”

Benefits of a zero-carbon economy

Newcastle University’s Professor Richard Dawson, who was recently appointed to the CCC Adaptation Committee, adds:

“Limiting climate change to 2oC will have significant benefits in terms of reducing the impact it will have.

“Analysis undertaken by the Adaptation Committee of the CCC for the 2017 Climate Change Risk Assessment shows the benefits to the UK economy and public wellbeing in terms of reduced infrastructure disruption

“For example, a 2oC rise would put 20-50% more roads and railways at high flood risk, whereas a 4oC rise would increase this to 70-160% in the worst case scenario.”

There are multiple benefits of the transition to a zero-carbon economy, the Committee’s report shows. These include benefits to people’s health from better air quality, less noise thanks to quieter vehicles, more active travel thanks to increased rates of cycling and walking, healthier diets, and increased recreational benefits from changes to land use.

In addition, the UK could receive an industrial boost as it leads the way in low-carbon products and services including electric vehicles, finance and engineering, carbon capture and storage and hydrogen technologies with potential benefits for exports, productivity and jobs.

Lord Deben, Chairman of the Committee on Climate Change, said: “We can all see that the climate is changing and it needs a serious response. The great news is that it is not only possible for the UK to play its full part – we explain how in our new report – but it can be done within the cost envelope that Parliament has already accepted. The Government should accept the recommendations and set about making the changes needed to deliver them without delay.”

The NUAcT Fellowship programme will recruit 100 new fellows over the next 5 years.

The NUAcT (Newcastle University Academic Track) Fellowship programme is now open for applications. This new programme offers five year, well resourced, academic-track Fellowships in any discipline. Beginning in 2019, the University is recruiting 100 new Fellows over the next 5 years.

All NUAcT Fellows will get:

A high level of dedicated time for research
Freedom to develop your research interests
Access to our cutting-edge facilities

NUAcT Targeted Fellowships in energy

In addition to the open call, two Targeted Fellowship opportunities are likely of particular interest to researchers working in the field of energy:

The Fellows appointed to both of these roles will have the opportunity to join large multidisciplinary centres in carrying out their research, including:

How to apply
You can find further information on how to apply and eligibility criteria on the University’s NUAcT web pages.