Development of integrated intensified technologies for renewable and low-carbon energy applications

Due to the limited fossil fuel resources available and the plans to reduce greenhouse gas emission to reach net zero by 2050, renewable and low-carbon energy sources have become an important part of the global energy mix. The shift to a non-carbon-based economy will certainly be a major incentive for process intensification (PI) to emerge in the near future as an established technology in process industries worldwide.

In this project we will focus on the development of novel automated intensified processes that will intensify energy generation from sustainable and low-carbon sources. Specific focus will be given on the design and characterisation of intensified small-scale reactors, both experimentally and numerically, to get a better understanding of the heat and mass transfer mechanism. Combination of experimental data and results from computational engineering tools (CFD), will aid the development of robust optimisation-based design methods with low degree of uncertainty. The findings will enable the development of an innovative framework to explore where these novel technologies may have the most impact in various industrial processes such as biofuel production, nuclear waste management, concentrated solar power, etc.

There will be also opportunities to collaborate with world-class academic partners at other leading universities, as well as apply the developed technologies to our industrial partners.

The successful candidate will work under the supervision of Dr Dimitrios Tsaoulidis and Prof Tao Chen and will be based at the Department of Chemical and Process Engineering. The successful candidate will also receive extensive research training and will be given opportunities to participate and present the work in conferences, workshops and seminars to develop professional skills and research network.

The post is initially offered for a start in April 2022.

Applicants are expected to hold a first or upper-second class degree in a relevant discipline (or equivalent overseas qualification), or a lower second plus a good masters degree (distinction normally required).

Sustainable energy and materials