Bioenergy: research into a renewable energy resource

9f45f433-c008-4a27-a599-1d42563dc1aa

Closed

EPSRC
NERC
NERC
NERC
NERC

No funds listed.

Sept. 30, 2017

Jan. 31, 2022

This project will look at bioenergy from wood, waste, agricultural residues and energy crops (including algae) is a major global renewable energy source. It can make a significant contribution to all three energy sectors: electricity, heat and transport, and can also contribute to social and economic development in developing countries, by providing access to modern energy services and creating job opportunities.
However, there are challenges concerning technical performance, cost effectiveness, ensuring that it is sustainably produced and that it does not adversely impact food security and biodiversity. These challenges will be addressed in this project.

Potential Impact:
Impacts and benefits to the Non-Academic Users of the Centre include:
- Access to high quality, interdisciplinary R&D support to increase competitiveness
- Cutting edge research with high value for money;
- Access to knowledge and expertise;
- Recruitment from a pool of talented early-career students for future employment, and input into shaping the skill development of those students (engineers and scientists with training in the wider context of sustainability, economics, policy and commercial awareness).
- Technology transfer research;
- Access to a breadth or research facilities and expertise and interdisciplinary teams;
- Consultancy,
- Networking and participating in focussed forums with other technolgogy users and policy makers - sharing experiences;
- Training or secondments of their staff for enhanced knowledge transfer;
- Partnerships in innovation in the sector;
- Access to assessments of technolgoies and innovation with the best chance of a positive impact to society;

Impacts and benefits to Academic users in the fields of [1] Feedstocks, pre-processing and safety; [2] Conversion; [3] Utilisation, emissions and impact; [4] Sustainability and Whole systems, include:
- Access to and collaboration in world-leading, transformative research, which advances knowledge concerning innovative bioenergy technologies, sustainability and social acceptability, and policy mechanisms for acheiving these;
- Development of new collaborations and leaverage of further funding to support their activities;
- Access to knowledge and expertise and networking and dissemination events;
- Research exchange opportunities for mutual benefit and cross-fertilisation of ideas and innovation