NEWS

BIRMINGHAM
IS BUZZING
WITH ENERGY

CUTTING A COUNTRYS
CARBON EMISSIONS BY
80% IS NOT TRIVIAL;
IT REQUIRES A REVOLUTION IN THE
WAY WE LIVE OUR LIVES, THE WAY
WE UTILISE AND GENERATE ENERGY,
AND THE ROLE TECHNOLOGY CAN
PLAY IN THIS TRANSFORMATION
THIS IS OUR FOCUS

THE EUROPEAN ENERGY RESEARCH ALLIANCES FIRST CONFERENCE

COMES TO THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM
The University of Birmingham will be host
to the European Energy Research Alliance
(EERA) Conference on 2425 November 2016.
The conference will be a forum for researchers from across
the EU to discuss low-carbon research with their scientific peers.
For the first time since its establishment, EERA is organising a scientific
conference. This conference is the occasion for energy researchers
active in EERA, representing more than 175 research organisations
working in all fields of research on low-carbon energy, to meet,
discuss research findings and discover each others challenges.
The European Energy Research Alliance (EERA) contributes to
coordinate a massive public research effort to develop more efficient
and cheaper low carbon energy technologies. Wind turbines and solar
panels, building a smart electricity grid, harnessing energy from the
oceans and underground heat sources, as well as finding new ways
to store and use energy instead of wasting it. EERA is the public
research pillar of the EU Strategic Energy Technology Plan
(SET-Plan). This tightly focused strategy aims at accelerating the
development and market uptake of key low carbon technologies.

The goal is to provide the opportunity for cross-fertilisation of ideas

between joint programmes; to discuss topics of common interest;
and to input into the objectives of the SET-Plan and EU policy priorities
in energy research. A key objective of EERA is to accelerate the
development of new energy technologies by conceiving and
implementing Joint Research Programmes in support of the Strategic
Energy Technology (SET) plan by pooling and integrating activities and
resources, combining national and community sources of funding and
maximising complementary initiatives.

ACADEMICS ENGAGED

Professor Martin Freer, Director, Birmingham Energy Institute,

said: We look forward to welcoming you all to our lively campus
and the City of Birmingham in 2016. With a critical mass of strategic
investments, and triple-helix collaborations between industry,
academia and the local authority, Birmingham is fast gaining
a reputation as Britains Energy Capital.

SEE OUR ENERGY CAPITAL VISION

FOR INTERGRATED ENERGY P67

Dr Nick Eyre, UKERC Co-Director & Jackson Senior Research Fellow

and Associate Professor at the University of Oxford, said: We expect
the conference to become a platform for the many researchers active
in EERA to exchange ideas about ongoing research as well as how
to develop our joint programmes. It is part of creating a vibrant
European-wide community of energy researchers.

ENERGY RESEARCH
ACCELERATOR:

BIRMINGHAM:
ENERGY CAPITAL

Government invests in the Midlands:

60 million committed to this new,
ambitious energy research project.

The city of Birmingham has ambitious

plans to deliver emission reductions,
create a low-carbon infrastructure and
to modernise how it deals with waste.

PAGE 2

WE HAVE OVER

PAGES 5-8

ENERGY THOUGHT
LEADERS COME
TO BIRMINGHAM
Leading thinkers discuss the energy
challenges of our society in the Birmingham
Energy Institute Distinguished Lecture Series.

PAGE 9

INTERNATIONAL
REACH
Birmingham Energy Institutes
latest collaborations with leading
international academic institutions
and industrial organisations.

PAGE 12

2 WELCOME

WELCOME TO THE
FIRST EDITION OF THE
BIRMINGHAM ENERGY
INSTITUTE NEWSPAPER.
The Birmingham Energy Institute is the focal point for the
University of Birmingham and its national partners, to create
change in the way we deliver, consume and think about energy.
The Institute harnesses expertise from the fundamental sciences
and engineering through to business and economics to deliver
co-ordinated research, education and the development of global
partnerships. By creating technology and guiding policy today,
we aim to help shape energy solutions tomorrow.
The Birmingham Energy Institute is also leading on the
Thermal Energy Accelerator (T-ERA), component of the Energy
Research Accelerator (ERA) project, to drive the development
and integration of a range of thermal energy technologies.
I hope that you enjoy catching up with our latest work if you
would like to stay in the loop with all of our latest news, you
can subscribe to our Birmingham Energy Institute Newsletter
at www.birmingham.ac.uk/energy, I would also encourage
you to tweet us @bhamenergy.
As ever, I look forward to receiving your thoughts,
comments and opinions, but, most of all, your involvement.

PROFESSOR MARTIN
FREER, DIRECTOR OF THE
BIRMINGHAM ENERGY
INSTITUTE

Government has committed

60 million to bold new
energy research project
BIRMINGHAM KEY PARTNER IN ENERGY RESEARCH ACCELERATOR (ERA)
At the forefront of energy transformation, the Energy Research
Accelerator (ERA) will tackle some of the biggest energy challenges
facing the UK. The Energy Research Accelerator is a bold new project
that aims to foster research and develop new technologies to shape
the UKs energy landscape over the next 40 years. The Government
has confirmed a 60m capital investment in the Energy Research
Accelerator (ERA). Together with private sector and university support,
the decision unlocks 180m total investment in the Midlands region.
ERA will tackle some of the biggest challenges facing the global
economy by transforming research and development in three critical
areas of energy: thermal, integrated systems and geo-energy. The core
objectives of ERA are to make better use of primary resources, bring
about smarter energy systems, reduce our dependence on importing
energy, enhance energy security and resilience, and help achieve the
UKs carbon reduction targets. The University of Birmingham is a key
member of the Midlands Innovation consortium that is delivering ERA.
The initiative builds on a strong history of collaboration and the
heritage of the Midlands Energy Consortium.

WE NEED TO BACK INNOVATION HERE

TO SUPPORT OUR GREAT UNIVERSITIES
TO TURN THEIR DISCOVERIES INTO
BUSINESS, AND GET BEHIND MIDLANDS
ENTREPRENEURS. THATS WHY WERE
INVESTING 60 MILLION IN THE EXCITING
WORK OF BIRMINGHAM, ASTON AND
FOUR OTHER UNIVERSITIES* ON THE
ENERGY RESEARCH ACCELERATOR,
WHICH WILL HELP MAKE THE MIDLANDS
A CENTRE FOR NEW ENERGY
TECHNOLOGIES.
PRIME MINISTER, THE RT. HON. THERESA MAY MP,
AUGUST 2016

JOIN US
We would be delighted to discuss your requirements
with you for Research, Consultancy, Education or
partnerships through the Birmingham Energy Institute.
Our contact details are set out below:
Birmingham Energy Institute
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston B15 2TT
United Kingdom
www.birmingham.ac.uk/energy

energy@contacts.bham.ac.uk
@bhamenergy
Read our energy blog:
www.birminghamenergyinstitute.org

EARLY PRIORITIES FOR THE ENERGY

RESEARCH ACCELERATOR

Storing Energy Efficiently

The global energy storage market is forecast to grow
by 8% per annum and be worth 35 billion by 2020.

Harnessing heating and cooling for transport

and domestic applications
40% of the UKs energy demand is linked to heating, producing
25% of all our carbon emissions. An underdeveloped cold
economy means 200 billion tonnes of food is wasted in
developing countries every year.

Integrating smart networks

Smart networks allow responsive management of energy
generation and storage capacity and intelligent demand
side management of system load.

The safe and sustainable use of fossil fuel resources

Next generation technologies can assist in the monitoring and
utilisation of underground energy assets to investigate whether
extraction is safe and secure, as well as limit the environmental
impact of using carbon rich fuel.

THERMAL ENERGY RESEARCH ACCELERATOR 3

COOL RESEARCH
ON THERMAL
TECHNOLOGY
HOTTING UP
The Thermal Energy Research Accelerator
will provide a step-change in research on
efficient heating and cooling.
The Thermal Energy Research Accelerator (T-ERA) is one of
three work streams that form the Energy Research Accelerator
(ERA). Led by the University of Birmingham, T-ERA is driving
the development and integration of a range of thermal and
cryogenic energy technologies and collaborating with industry
to convert innovation and emerging technologies into practical
solutions with powerful global benefit. It will deliver jobs and
apprenticeships, wealth creation and the next generation
of scientists and engineers in the energy sector and
emerging industries.
Our scientists are working on the next generation of materials
for storing thermal energy, hot and cold. We are researching
ways of turning waste thermal energy into useful power. We are
developing new ways of recycling and conserving the strategic
elements and critical materials used in energy efficient
solid-state cooling.
The Birmingham Policy Commission Doing Cold Smarter
identified the need for a range of more efficient cooling
and refrigeration technologies (See page 11).

University of Birmingham Develops

Novel Factory-in-a-Box with the
Manufacturing Technology Centre
The University of Birmingham and Manufacturing Technology Centre
are working with Dearman Engine establish to build mini-factories
for clean thermal technologies in foreign markets.
A series of new Government-funded projects as part of the Thermal
Energy Research Accelerator (T-ERA), are designed to help transform
small and medium-sized UK manufacturing companies into some of the
most efficient digital factories in the world, and leading players in the
Fourth Industrial Revolution.
One, the Factory in a Box concept will allow manufacturers
globally, which are missing key components from local suppliers,
to soon have a British technology solution delivered to their doorstep.
This will be instrumental in exporting British clean-tech know-how
to export markets.
Backed by 10m funding from the T-ERA, the Manufacturing
Technology Centre (MTC) together with the University of Birmingham
and Loughborough University have developed the Factory in a Box
concept that deploys custom-designed mini-factories into established
manufacturing operations across the world.
The mobile factories, which can be shipped in a container, will
use next generation Industry 4.0 technology, such as smart sensors,
super-fast broadband and big data to measure and control production
processes remotely.
T-ERA and the MTC believe this will reduce the significant expense
of setting up stand-alone production facilities, while also giving UK
companies the opportunity to establish manufacturing footprints in
new markets relatively quickly.

It is a new approach that one British technology firm is already

working with T-ERA and the MTC to take advantage of, as it moves
its technology from first commercial field trials through full design
for manufacture ready for commercial production.
Many companies need specific production capabilities near to
where they make big assemblies, but often ship them in at great
expense, says Neil Rawlinson, strategic development director
at the Manufacturing Technology Centre, part of the High Value
Manufacturing Catapult.
He adds: Factory in a Box could also be the answer to increasing
the UKs ability to commercialise the R&D it has developed, offering
greater speed to market and flexible production opportunities.
Having helped to develop the concept of Factory in a Box, Dearman,
a Croydon-based clean energy technology specialist, is planning
to work with T-ERA and the new Advanced Thermal Manufacturing
Centre to use the model to scale-up rapidly the manufacture of
its cryogenic liquid air engines internationally.

WE HAVE DESIGNED A METHOD

FOR DEPLOYING CAPACITY IN OTHER
COUNTRIES VERY QUICKLY, BUT
MANAGED REMOTELY FROM THE UK
AND CAPTURING THE ADDED VALUE AND
KNOWLEDGE OF OUR MANUFACTURERS.
THIS KNOW-HOW WOULD BE A BRITISH
EXPORT AND DELIVER NEW JOBS.
NEIL RAWLINSON, STRATEGIC DEVELOPMENT
DIRECTOR AT THE MTC

THE MANUFACTURING
TECHNOLOGY CENTRE
The 40million Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) based
at Ansty Park near Coventry was founded by the Universities of
Birmingham, Loughborough and Nottingham in partnership with
TWI Ltd. The collective vision for the MTC is a world-class
global research facility, making the future through
transformational manufacturing technology development
MTC currently focuses of five major technology themes:
Netshape manufacturing (NSM)
High integrity fabrication
Intelligent automation
Advanced tooling and fixturing
Computational engineering

http://tiny.cc/factoryinabox

4 T-ERA

International Thermal Energy Manufacturing

Accelerator (ITEMA) at the Vanguard of the
Fourth Industrial Revolution
THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM
AND LOUGHBOROUGH UNIVERSITY
ARE ENTERING INTO AN EXCITING
COLLABORATION WITH THE
MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGY
CENTRE (MTC) TO DEVELOP
THE ITEMA; CO-FUNDED BY
GOVERNMENT, INDUSTRY
AND THE UNIVERSITIES
THEMSELVES.

Industry 4.0, heralded also as the Fourth Industrial Revolution,

promises to transform the way we manufacture products; improving
productivity and competitive advantage. It aims to leverage digital
technologies to create cyber-physical systems and informatics to
create Smart Factories of the future.
The Industry 4.0 approach ensures the interoperability of cyberphysical systems with human operators, communicating using the
Internet of Things and Internet of Systems. By using virtualisation,
manufacturing spaces are modelled in virtual space. In operation,
sensor information provides feedback from manufacturing processes
and compares measured data against computer models, ensuring
quality and providing early feedback of potential errors conditions.
The mobile factories, which can be shipped in a container, will use next
generation Industry 4.0 technology, such as smart sensors, super-fast

broadband and big data to measure and control production processes

remotely. T-ERA and the MTC believe this will reduce the significant
expense of setting up stand-alone production facilities, while also
giving UK companies the opportunity to establish manufacturing
footprints in new markets relatively quickly. Factory in a Box could also
be the answer to increasing the UKs ability to commercialise the R&D
it has developed, offering greater speed to market and flexible
production opportunities.

1780s

1870s

1970s

Today

First Industrial
Revolution

Second Industrial
Revolution

Third Industrial
Revolution

Fourth Industrial
Revolution

Introduction of mechanical
production facilities using
water and stream power

Introduction of division of
labour, mass production
and electricity

Introduction of
electronic and
IT systems

Introduction of
cyber-physical systems

DEARMANS
CLEAN VEHICLE
REFRIGERATION
HITS THE ROAD
NOVEL CRYOGENIC COOLING
TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPED WITH THE
UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM IN REALWORLD TESTS WITH SAINSBURYS
Dearman is a technology company developing zero-emission
cold and power systems for transport and the built environment.
The transport of food and medicine management of data, and
modern transportation all demand cooling; however, the need for
cold is generally met without-dated, disproportionately polluting
diesel systems. The recent agreement in Rwanda to phase out HFCs,
refrigerants that are also potent greenhouse gases will further drive
the need for innovation in the cooling sector. Working with the
Birmingham Centre for Cryogenic Energy Storage (BCCES) part
of the Birmingham Energy Institute, and partners across the Midlands,
such as the MTC, Dearman is rapidly developing applications for
this clean cold technology.

Partnership with BCCES has enabled Dearman to conduct

durability and efficiency testing on the engine with a focus
on tribology the study of friction, wear and lubrication. More
importantly, collaboration with BCCES has enabled Dearman
to develop the knowledge and skills needed to develop the
revolutionary clean cold technology, as it moves quickly from
idea to commercially available product.
Dearmans first application on zero emission transport refrigeration
unit, began on-road trials in 2015. Since this summer, Dearman
have been conducting real-world field trials with Sainsburys the
first supermarket to adopt the new zero-emissions technology.
During the three-month trial the vehicle will save up to 1.6 tonnes
of carbon dioxide; the equivalent of driving over 14,500 km in a
modern family car thats 10 trips from Lands End to John o
Groats. The trial will also save 37kg of nitrogen oxides and 2kg
of particulate matter, compared to a similar diesel system. The trial
will help supermarkets to understand how the technology might
perform in real-world conditions. New applications, such as hybrid
systems for buses and a back-up power and cooling system for
buildings, are being developed.
As the company grows, so is it recruiting more talented engineers
and analytics, a number of which have joined the company as
graduates from the University of Birmingham.

FIND ALL OF OUR LATEST

LITERATURE AND BROCHURE AT:
WWW.BIRMINGHAM.AC.UK/ENERGY

ENERGY CAPITAL 5

BIRMINGHAM: UKS ENERGY CAPITAL

STRATEGIC INVESTMENTS AND A BOLD VISION FOR A CITY ON THE
MOVE GIVE BIRMINGHAM THE KNOWLEDGE CAPITAL TO POSITION
ITSELF AS THE UKS ENERGY CAPITAL.
With a constellation of stellar universities, the new Energy
Systems Catapult and a dynamic local authority working together
to revolutionise the citys energy infrastructure, Energy Capital
paints an exciting picture for Birminghams sustainable future.
Tyseley Environmental Enterprise District is one of six Economic Zones
launched as part of the City Councils Economic Zones Prospectus in
September 2012. The Prospectus promotes Tyseley as a location of
choice for local and inward investment in the resource recovery sector
and in emerging energy-from-waste and related technologies.
Energy Capital is a triple-helix project, combining industry,
academia, Birmingham City Council and other stakeholders to
transform Birmingham into a beacon of best practice associated with
its energy, waste and transport infrastructure. This involves exploiting

CRYOGENIC LIQUID AIR NETWORK

Cryogenic energy storage systems use renewables and/or off-peak
electricity to liquefy air which involves compression
and expansion processes. The cryogenic liquid has a temperature
below -190C and is stored in a vessel. It is pumped to a
high pressure (150 bar) when electricity is needed. It is then
vapourised into a gas, and then superheated using either or
both heat and waste heat if available, before going through
an expansion process in a turbine to generate electricity.

the expertise within the Birmingham Energy Institute, coupled with

the deployment of new technologies being developed both within
the University and in collaboration with our partners to create a large
scale demonstrator. This will attract international companies to the
region and catalyse the skills development required to underpin
the transformation that is required.
The project will see Tyseley Environmental Enterprise District become
the principal location of Birmingham City Councils CO2 emissions
reduction plan. The Birmingham Energy Institute will be establishing in
this environment a thermo catalytic reforming (TCR) plant to transform
organic waste into biofuels. Tyseley will be the location
for new technology demonstration.

NATURAL GAS NETWORK

Filling stations Liquid Natural Gas
Natural Gas from the Grid is compressed for use

in CNG powered vehicles

SMART MICROGRID
Import/Export Electricity
Onsite Wind Power Generation
Solar Power Microgrid
Bio Power Plant

HYDROGEN NETWORK
TCR plant: produces biodiesel from a range of feedstocks

that can be used in Euro IV diesel engines. It also produces

green Hydrogen.
Hydrogen powered Buses and Taxis filling station.
Hydrogen Electrolyser.

Cryogenic Energy Storage pilot facility: This plant is connected

to the Universitys electrical grid, providing a small amount of power
to the campus. A larger facility of this kind could be built at Tyseley.

DISTRICT HEATING NETWORK

Waste is turned into heat and power
Heat provided to businesses and industry
Connection with Cryogenic energy storage

Tyseley Energy-from-Waste plant : A diagram of the Tyseley

Environmental Enterprise District is shown in pages 6-7. The
Energy-from-waste plant has long been a feature of the Tyseley
skyline. The new developments will complement the plant with
a range of innovative technologies. Built in 1996, it has become
a notable building in Birmingham with a lighting scheme that
illuminates the plant during the hours of darkness. It was built
to comply with the European emissions standards that came
into force in 1996.

5,000 PEOPLE
LOW
CARBON

RESOURCE
SECURE

LIVEABLE CITIES

WELLBEING
MAXIMISED

ARE
EMPLOYED IN TYSELEY.
THE SITE IS CONNECTED TO THE CITY VIA A RAIL, ROAD

AND CANAL NETWORK AND HAS BECOME THE FOCUS FOR

TRANSFORMING HOW THE CITY OF BIRMINGHAM COULD
DO INTEGRATED ENERGY SYSTEMS MORE EFFECTIVELY,

LEADING THE UK AN ENERGY CAPITAL.

6 ENERGY CAPITAL

BIRMINGHAM: ENERGY CAPITAL

TYSELEY ENVIRONMENTAL ENTERPRISE DISTRICT
LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM

Inside the biodigester,

biological residues are
broken down in the
absence of air and light

Liquefied Natural Gas

Imported to the site by tanker. Stored for
refuelling vehicles. Provides a lower-carbon
alternative than conventional petrol
and diesel.

REDUCE TOTAL
CO2 EMISSIONS

Waste, low grade

heat from the district
heating network
used to promote
anaerobic digestion.

BY 60% BY 2027

FROM 1990 LEVELS

BIO POWER PLANT

The waste products from
the anaerobic digestor
can be sent to the TCR
plant for further energy
recovery.

The gas treatment plant improves

the methane quality and content
in order to make it suitable for
injection into the gas grid.

CNG FILLING STATION

Natural Gas from the Grid
is compressed for use in
CNG (Compressed Natural
Gas) powered vehicles.

Filling station
provides clean
LNG and CNG for
refuelling vehicles.

The new Birmingham Bio Power Plant

gasification technology used to generate
electricity from recovered wood waste.
The 10.3 MW biomass power project
has been developed by Carbonarius.

Waste wood will be

gasified and turned into
heat and power. This
class A-C waste wood
would otherwise have
ended up in landfill.

80,000

tonnes/year

ENERGY SKILLS ACADEMY

UNIVERSITY TECHNICAL COLLEGE
Signature building with exemplar energy
performance and technologies.

COMMUNITY ENERGY ENABLEMENT HUB

As a waste product, the TCR process

produces Biochar which is useful as
a soil improver for agricultural purposes.

Funding from the Local Growth Fund will

enable the creation of a facility to help in
the development of bottom-up distributed
energy solutions that meet the needs of
communities. This will help communities
deliver cleaner more efficient solutions
for their energy services.

BIOCHAR BYPRODUCT

BUSINESS ACCELERATOR
AND SME SUPPORT HUB
The Tyseley Environmental Enterprise District
covers over 230 businesses and around 100
hectares of traditional industrial land.

ENERGY VECTORS
District Heating Network
Cryogenic Liquid Air Network
Natural Gas (Grid) Network
Liquefied Natural Gas
Hydrogen Network
Electricity Network
Tyseley Smart Microgrid

The SME Support Hub will help local

businesses consider more sustainable and
efficient ways to deliver the energy services
that their business require. This could be
through the introduction of new energy
technologies, systems integration, or through
new energy business models.

INPUTS
High Feedstock Flexibility
Animal Manure
Agricultural Residues
Straw, Husk
Food Waste
Organic Waste
Sewage Sludge
Municipal Solid Waste
Biogas Digestage

Canal Wharf on the Tyseley Energy Park

site could provide a distribution point for
clean fuels to river barges. Waste for the
biomass plant and Energy from Waste
plant could be brought in by barge as an
alternative to the road

ENERGY CAPITAL 7
The City of Birmingham has ambitious plans to
deliver carbon reductions, create a low carbon
infrastructure and to modernise how it deals
with waste. These priorities are captured in the
Carbon Roadmap produced by the Citys Green
Commission which articulates the ambition via
CO2 Emissions Target and Carbon Budgets.

ENERGY
FROM WASTE

ONSITE WIND POWER GENERATION

The state-of-the-art Energy Recovery

Facility in Tyseley takes 350,000 tonnes
of Birminghams rubbish each year and
converts it into electricity at a rate of
23.5 tonnes per hour. The output is
25MW exported to the National Grid.

Wrong time renewable energy generated

by the on-site renewables and/or taken from
the grid is used to produce cryogenic liquid
air which can be stored easily to generate
electricity at times of peak load. The liquid
air can also be shipped off-site and used
to power Dearman engines to provide cold
and power.

Liquid Nitrogen

25MW
The new district
heating network will
provide heat to businesses
and industry for space
and process heat. Using
clean energy made
from waste.

10.3MW

LIQUID AIR FILLING STATION

107,000 tonnes/year

CO2 SAVING

SOLAR POWER RETROFIT

Solar panels mounted on
the roof of industrial units
generates clean electricity
which can be fed into the
local microgrid.

CRYOGENIC
ENERGY STORAGE
Webster & Horsfall Wire
Manufacturing Operation

ELECTRIC VEHICLE
CHARGING STATION

The hydrogen is clean

green hydrogen from
renewables, rather than
brown hydrogen from steam
reformation of methane.

(TCR PLANT) BIO-BATTERY:

THERMAL CATALYTIC REFORMING
The TCR process used in the bio battery
produces biodiesel from a range of
feedstocks. This can be used in clean
Euro IV diesel engines. Efficiency can be
improved further by creating a heat
hybrid with a diesel engine.

The refrigerated lorry uses a

revolutionary new Dearman
Engine to provide clean
cooling, without the associated
emissions of Diesel transport
refrigeration units. Liquid
nitrogen produced on the
Tyseley site powers the vehicle.

HYDROGEN
ELECTROLYSER

The hydrogen filling station supplies

green hydrogen from both the electrolyser and
bio-battery thermo-catalytic reforming process.

Low grade waste

heat from the district
heating system is used
to boost the efficiency
of the cryogenic energy
storage system.

BIODIESEL FILLING
STATION

Modern fuel cell vehicles can refill at the

hydrogen filling station. The hydrogen is
clean green hydrogen from renewables,
rather than brown hydrogen from steam
reformation of methane. The electrolyser
converts wrong-time renewable electricity
into hydrogen. This can be efficiently turned
back into electricity using a fuel cell.

HYDROGEN POWERED
BUSES AND TAXIS

The electrolyser can be used to provide

grid balancing by turning wrong-time
energy into clean hydrogen.

8 ENERGY CAPITAL

BIRMINGHAM PART OF GLOBAL

GROWTH IN HYDROGEN VEHICLES
THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM
TAKES DELIVERY OF ONE OF THE
UKS FIRST HYDROGEN FUEL CELL
FLEET VEHICLES

WITH ENERGY STORAGE

HIGHLIGHTED AS A GOVERNMENT
PRIORITY, BIRMINGHAM RESEARCH
IS OF MANIFEST IMPORTANCE.

The new vehicle will be used for staff transport and as part of the
Universitys chauffeur service for visitors, making it the first example
of the technology to be used solely as a working vehicle. An onsite
hydrogen fuelling station, unveiled in 2008 to support work carried
out at the Universitys Centre for Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Research,
will provide the power for the new vehicle.
Though a handful of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are already being
trialled in the UK, the University of Birmingham is believed to be the
first in the country to employ the technology as part of its day-to-day
fleet operations it previously ran five hydrogen powered cars on its
campus as part of a research project.
The University has long been renowned for pioneering research which
results in practical applications to improve peoples lives and the use
of this car as part of our regular fleet is a tangible example
of how scientific research can be turned into reality.

THE FIRST UNIVERSITY

TO HAVE OUR OWN
HYDROGEN
REFUELLING
STATION

Birmingham Catapults Energy

Systems into the Future
THE ENERGY SYSTEMS CATAPULT WILL
SUPPORT THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW
TECHNOLOGY TO DRIVE FUTURE
ECONOMIC GROWTH, SAYS NICK WINSER

With a focus on energy innovation to meet the 2050 climate and

energy target, Nick Winser informed students and guests that the
Energy Systems Catapult aims to transform the UKs capability for
innovation to help drive future economic growth.

In the transition to a decarbonised economy, with increasing

electricity generation from variable renewables, energy storage has
the potential to provide valuable flexibility to supply and demand,
improving the overall system efficiency. However, in order for this
family of technologies to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing
energy landscape, advances are needed in energy storage devices
themselves and a greater understanding of their future role.
In 2013, the government identified energy storage as one of the
eight great technologies in which the UK can be a world leader
and drive future economic growth and innovation, on top of its role
as an enabling technology which would help meet national CO2
reduction targets. This led to a wave of public sector investment,
including 30m into new equipment at universities around the
country. Birmingham was successful in being awarded 6m to
establish the Birmingham Centre for Energy Storage comprising
new laboratories, state-of-the-art equipment and a major
350kW/2.5MWh pilot plant on campus.

The project will integrate the collective expertise and facilities

funded under the eight great technologies call and address
research questions that span the storage technologies currently
being developed and tackle key issues in their use. These include
the materials used in storage devices, their integration into existing
energy systems, as well as using process modelling and data
from pilot plants to improve our understanding of how these
technologies perform operationally. A new national Observatory
for Energy Storage will also be based at Birmingham to collect
data and present the growing body of knowledge in the UK to
the wider world.

When discussing the Catapult, Nick Winser said: We are not short
of challenges both in the UK and globally. To tackle these challenges,
the Energy Systems Catapult will bring the worlds of research, industry
and Government together to encourage and support the development
of new technology and cost friendly products and services (covering
electricity, heat and combustible gases).

http://tiny.cc/energycatapult

Dr Jonathan Radcliffe, Senior Research

Fellow, University of Birmingham is
the Principle Investigator on project
MANIFEST (Multi-scale Analysis for
Facilities for Energy Storage), a new
5m EPSRC-funded project to tackle
challenges facing energy storage
technology, which he discusses.

Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research

Council (ESPRC), the project will bring together interdisciplinary
expertise from field-leading academics across the UK to tackle
key challenges facing energy storage technology. The project
will involve senior investigators from across the UK, including
academics from Imperial College, Loughborough University,
University of Sheffield and University of Manchester, as well as
drawing significant industrial support from the energy sector.

Nick Winser, Chairman of the Energy Systems Catapult, discussed

how the Catapult will help deliver the UKs objectives for the
transformation of energy systems at the University of Birmingham on
Thursday 11 February 2016.

The Catapult will also sit in the valley of death, where a variety of
great ideas fail to get through to commercialisation. The Catapult will
do whatever is most valuable to ensure these ideas progress to market,
to ultimately promote the countrys skills and strengths.

Birmingham leads
5m project to tackle
challenges facing energy
storage technology

The Energy Systems Catapult (ESC) is one of ten Catapult

centres, established in the UK to encourage innovation and growth
in the countrys high-potential industrial sectors. The Catapults
bold vision is: to enable the UK to be a global leader in the
development of new products and services for energy systems
(covering electricity, heat and combustible gases).

MANIFEST will lead to improved understanding of physical

processes and accelerated technology development, which will
help maximise the impact from existing UK facilities in both the
national and international energy landscape. Recruitment
is underway.
http://tiny.cc/manifestproject

DISTINGUISHED VISITORS 9

ENERGY THOUGHT LEADERS

CONVERGE ON BIRMINGHAM
GREAT MINDS VOICE THEIR VIEWS IN THE BIRMINGHAM ENERGY
INSTITUTE DISTINGUISHED LECTURE SERIES

Since July 2015, The Birmingham Energy Institute Distinguished Lecture series has brought some
of the leading thinkers on energy to Birmingham, the UKs Energy Capital. Our distinguished
lectures cover some of the most pressing energy challenges facing our society; presenting
solutions and insight into meeting our energy needs from some of the leading minds in the field.

WE ARE PLEASED TO WELCOME:

DR KARSTEN MLLER

PROFESSOR SIR DAVID KING

CHALLENGES AND PROGRESS

IN CHEMICAL ENERGY STORAGE
Monday 28 November 2016
5.006.00pm
University of Birmingham

ENERGY: MISSION INNOVATION

Wednesday 15 February 2017
5.306.30pm
G15, Muirhead Tower,
University of Birmingham

Large scale energy storage can only be based on chemical reactions.

Not only batteries, but also other approaches such as Hydrogen
or thermochemical energy systems, are important in this respect.
However, there are still a huge number of challenges that need to be
addressed. The potential improvement related to these aspects are
often quite different. Thermodynamics not only allow for evaluating
processes before been set up, but also to identify the actual potentials
for improving chemical energy storage processes. New chemical
energy storage technologies, like Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carrier,
or, thermochemical storage systems based on innovative adsorptions
pairs, could be developed within recent years.
Karsten Mller is currently working as leader of the energy
research group at the Institute of Separation Science and
Technology, University Erlangen. His research interests include
chemical thermodynamics for energy applications and predictive
methods for thermophysical substance properties. His main research
focus is energy storage, energy system analysis and the study of
uncertainties in process simulations.

Professor Sir David King will talk about the importance of clean energy
innovation in tackling the challenge of climate change. He
will highlight the low-carbon transition as the greatest opportunity of
our age, highlighting the economic benefits of the transition to a
low-carbon economy.
In support of economic growth, energy access and security, and
an urgent and lasting response to global climate change, Mission
Innovation aims to accelerate the pace of clean energy innovation.
This will be key in achieving performance breakthroughs and cost
reduction to provide affordable and reliable clean energy solutions
that will revolutionise world energy systems.
Sir David King had an early career at the University of Witwatersrand,
Imperial College and the University of East Anglia. From 2008 to
2012 he was Director of the Smith School of Enterprise and the
Environment, University of Oxford. He was the Chief Scientific Adviser
to H.M. Government under both Tony Blair and Gordon Brown and
Head of the Government Office for Science from October 2000 to
31 December 2007. In that time, he raised the profile of the need for
governments to act on climate change and was instrumental in
creating the new 1 billion Energy Technologies Institute.

PREVIOUS LECTURES
HAVE INCLUDED:

Professor John Loughhead, Chief Scientific

Advisor, DECC, hosted the first lecture
in the series, sharing his thoughts on
planning ahead to meet the growing
demand for energy. In November 2015,
The Rt Hon Lord John Hutton of Furness,
Chairman of the Nuclear Industry Association, presented the
second lecture in the energy series on the Politics of Energy.
In February 2016, Nick Winser, Chairman of the Energy Systems
Catapult, presented the third lecture in the energy series on Global
Energy Policy Challenges, Innovation and the Catapult.
Suzanne Buchta Green is the new black:
An introduction to the green bond market.
Suzanne Butcha is Managing Director in
Debt Capital Markets and a 16 year veteran
at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Her team
work across global regions and industry
lines to advise capital markets clients on product-specific financings,
including Green Bond.
The lecture gave an overview of the Green Bond market, exploring
what a Green Bond is, why issuers are interested and why investors
are attracted to the product.
Professor Toby Peters Cold Economy or
The value of storing an absence of energy.
Toby Peters is the Founder of Dearman and
Visiting Professor in Power and Cold Economy
at the University of Birmingham. He is at the
forefront of the development of Cleantech
technology that utilises liquid air as a cost-effective energy storage
solution, which can be used to deliver sustainable, zero emission cold
and power in both transport and the built environment.
More at www.birmingham.ac.uk/research/activity/energy/events/
index.aspx

BIRMINGHAM ENERGY INSTITUTE LAUNCHES FIRST UK RESEARCH

CENTRE IN STRATEGIC ELEMENTS & CRITICAL MATERIALS
The Birmingham Energy Institute has created the first UK research
centre examining the challenges posed by Strategic Elements and
Critical Materials. The Birmingham Centre for Strategic Elements and
Critical Materials encompasses expertise from across the University
of Birmingham and the Birmingham Energy Institute in biosciences,
chemical engineering, chemistry, earth and environmental sciences,
economics, law, materials science, physics and social science.
The University of Birmingham has significant research activity on
strategic elements and critical materials across many science and
engineering disciplines.
The supply constraints that cause elements and materials to become
critical are often driven by economic or political factors and this
naturally draws in other expertise from across campus in Economics,
Social Sciences and Law. These elements are used to create materials

that are strategically important for many industrial sectors

and have very particular properties that often make them difficult
to replace by other less strategic elements.
The EU, US and Japan have all created critical materials roadmaps
to highlight at-risk elements and materials, which are also of high
economic and strategic importance. Supply restrictions for critical
elements occur for a number of reasons including: low natural
abundance in the earths crust, deliberate restrictions on supply
from one or more dominant producer, low recycling rates, rapid
expansion of technologies that use these elements, or the fact
that often the processing of materials containing them is
environmentally damaging.
Find out more: www.birmingham.ac.uk/bcsecm

Some countries have begun to use their position as a primary

producer of strategic elements to dominate the downstream supply
chains. Given the huge importance of critical materials to many of
the UKs largest industrial sectors, action is urgently required to
address these shortages.

10 ENGAGING POLICYMAKERS

Stamp of approval for pioneering

liquid air technology
WITH APPLICATIONS SUCH AS A ZERO-EMISSION TRANSPORT
REFRIGERATION SYSTEM, A CLEAN POWER AND COOLING SYSTEM
FOR BUILDINGS, AN AUXILIARY POWER UNIT FOR BUSES AND HGVS,
AND A LIQUID AIR HEAT HYBRID SYSTEM FOR TRUCKS AND BUSES.
Minister of State for Universities and Science, Jo Johnson, attended
the opening of ground-breaking Clean Cold and Power Technology
Centre by Dearman on Monday 14 September 2015.
The new facility is home to Dearmans extensive research and
development activities, which are focused on the delivery of a range
of zero-emission cold and power technologies and supported by
expertise from the University of Birmingham.
The tour of the new facility included: state-of-the-art engine test
facilities; engine build and component machining facilities: and space
for Dearmans growing number of engineers, designers and analysts.
The facility in Croydon, Greater London, also features the entire
cryogenic infrastructure needed to run a series of liquid air cold
and power systems.
Partnering with the Birmingham Centre for Cryogenic Energy Storage
at the University of Birmingham has enabled Dearman to conduct
durability and efficiency testing with a focus on tribology the study
of friction, wear and lubrication. Additionally, the collaboration has
supported Dearman in the development of knowledge and skills
needed to advance its revolutionary clean cold technology, on its
journey from idea, to commercially available product.

FROM AN INVENTION DESIGNED

AND BUILT IN THE LAB TO THIS
IMPRESSIVE TECHNOLOGY CENTRE,
DEARMAN IS ONE OF THE GREAT
SUCCESS STORIES THAT GIVE THE
UK ITS REPUTATION FOR DRIVING
INNOVATION. I WANT TO CONTINUE
TO MAKE THE UK THE BEST PLACE
IN EUROPE TO INNOVATE AND
GROW A BUSINESS AND THIS NEW
FACILITY IS A STRONG SIGN OF THE
PROGRESS WE ARE MAKING TO
ACHIEVE THIS GOAL.

Jo Johnson, Minister of State for Universities and Science Dearman

executives and representatives of industry and academia
http://tiny.cc/dearmanlab

MINISTER OF STATE FOR UNIVERSITIES AND SCIENCE,

JO JOHNSON

SAJID JAVID MP OPENS UNIVERSITYS CRYOGENIC ENERGY STORAGE PILOT FACILITY

The then Secretary of State for Business, Sajid Javid MP, officially
opened the University of Birminghams cryogenic energy storage
pilot facility, a technology using liquid air to store and provide
power which could transform future energy systems.
The new facility, which is housed on the University of Birminghams
campus, is the UKs first dedicated research facility for energy storage
using cryogenic liquids, comprising new laboratories, equipment,
and a major demonstration plant.
Liquid air could revolutionise the way energy is stored, reducing the
costs of integrating intermittent generation into the electricity system
and ensuring power is available when it is most needed.
This system generates electricity when it is demand is high, taking
renewable and off-peak electricity and using it at peak times to solve
the wrong-time wrong-place energy generation and supply problem.
The cryogenic energy storage plant is also connected to the Universitys
electrical grid, providing a small amount of power to the campus.

CRYOGENIC ENERGY STORAGE

COULD BE A SIGNIFICANT
COMPONENT OF THE FUTURE
ENERGY MIX, PROVIDING AS IT
DOES THE ABILITY TO STORE
WRONG TIME ENERGY AND DEPLOY
IT AT TIMES OF GREATEST DEMAND.
THE BIRMINGHAM ENERGY
INSTITUTE AND THERMAL ENERGY
RESEARCH ACCELERATOR ARE
EXTREMELY PLEASED TO WORK
IN CLOSE PARTNERSHIP WITH
COMPANIES SUCH AS HIGHVIEW
TO TRY AND SHAPE THE ENERGY
SOLUTIONS OF TOMORROW.
PROFESSOR MARTIN FREER,
DIRECTOR OF THE BIRMINGHAM ENERGY
INSTITUTE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM

A GOVERNMENT INVESTMENT
OF 5.9 MILLION IN THESE
CUTTING EDGE FACILITIES AT
THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM
WILL HELP SCIENTISTS MAKE
THEIR RESEARCH A COMMERCIAL
SUCCESS. THE PROJECT HAS
THE POTENTIAL TO TRANSFORM
ENERGY STORAGE BY USING
INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY THAT
COULD CREATE A NEW INDUSTRY
WORTH AT LEAST 1 BILLION
TO THE UK ECONOMY.
BUSINESS SECRETARY SAJID JAVID

12 MILLION
INVESTMENT BY UK INDUSTRY AND EPSRC INTO THE
BIRMINGHAM CENTRE FOR CRYOGENIC ENERGY STORAGE

SHAPING ENERGY POLICY 11

A HYDROGEN CANAL BOAT AT THE

CONSERVATIVE PARTY CONFERENCE 2016
The University of Birminghams Hydrogen Powered Canal Boat was
host to the University of Birminghams Speakers Corner at the
Conservative Party conference held in Birmingham.
In 2007, the University of Birmingham constructed a hydrogenpowered canal boat on campus with British Waterways, Tempus,
Less Common Metals and EMPA (Switzerland). This boat is
powered by a combination of a metal hydride solid-state hydrogen
store, a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell, a lead acid
battery stack and a NdFeB permanent magnet electric motor.

This hydrogen barge, called Ross Barlow, was taken to the

Conservative Party Conference 2016, which took place in Birmingham
from the 3rd to the 5th of October. Speakers Corner offered
conference attendees the opportunity to engage with our experts on
issues as diverse as migration, elected mayors, health and social care,
gravitational waves and antibiotic resistance.
Find out more about out work on Hydrogen and Fuel Cells at
www.birmingham.ac.uk/fuelcells

Clean cold has

a key role to
THE BIRMINGHAM ENERGY
play in UN
INSTITUTE IS INFORMING
Global Goals
AND SHAPING POLICY
In September 2015 the United Nations
launched the Global Goals for Sustainable
Development, 17 goals to achieve three
extraordinary things by 2030 end poverty,
combat climate change, and fight injustice
and inequality.
Developments in thermal energy
technologies (heating and cooling)
and the global cold economy has an
important part to play if we are to achieve
the Global Goals, according to Professor
Toby Peters in his paper Clean cold sits
at the nexus of sustainable social and
economic progress.
Professor Peters also writes: It could help solve both the
problems caused by the absence of adequate cooling infrastructure
in developing countries, and those caused by booming demand
and highly polluting conventional cooling technologies.
Overall, clean cold could help achieve 14 of the 17 Global Goals;
therefore, a focus on developing and expanding clean cold will help
tackle major environmental challenges in modern life such meeting the
demand for food, water, health, energy and climate change. It is only
by resolving the cooling problem that economic and social progress
will be achieved.

THE COLD ECONOMY, AND

PARTICULARLY THE RECYCLING
OF LIQUID NATURAL GAS WASTE
COLD, COULD HAVE A SIGNIFICANT
PART TO PLAY IN ACHIEVING THE
GLOBAL GOALS.

The Birmingham Energy Institute draws on the broad

capabilities and expertise at the University and its strong
relationship with collaborators from academia and industry,
to generate new thinking on contemporary issues of global
national and civic concern.
Doing Cold Smarter was launched earlier this year to produce
a roadmap for the UK to navigate the complexity of cold energy
provision and provide direction for investment in sustainable solutions.
Cold is a vital part of thermal energy policy for the future, but despite
14% (almost 5.2 billion each year) of Britains electricity goes to
cooling it has been little explored.
The provision of cold, or cooling, is integral to modern society; without
it, the supply of food, medicine and data would simply break down.
Cold is also vital for many other applications including air conditioning,
super-critical technologies and freezing and powdering materials for
recycling and easy disposal.

THE FOOD CURRENTLY WASTED

OR LOST IN AFRICA AND LATIN
AMERICA ALONE COULD FEED
600 MILLION PEOPLE;
THERE ARE 842 MILLION
PEOPLE WHO GO TO BED
HUNGRY EVERY NIGHT.

DO ING
CO LD
SM AR TE R

@BHAM ENERG Y
WWW.B IRMING HAM.A

C .UK/EN ERGY

11553-Bham-Policy-Commiss

ion-AW.indd 1
21/10/2015 16:34

Academic and industry experts behind the commission have put

together recommendations for policy highlighting that the next 10
years of development in the reconfiguration of the UKs energy
landscape and the rapid building out of the energy infrastructure in
emerging markets requires an accelerated adoption of sustainable
solutions to cooling.
The UK could become a global leader in the development of new
cold energy systems and the technical, economic, research and skills
issues around cold. We are calling for a step change in the energy
system which could provide an exciting opportunity for the UK to
embrace new business and export opportunities spurring innovation
and generating tens of thousands of jobs.

IF NOTHING IS DONE, WITHIN

FIFTEEN YEARS COOLING WILL
REQUIRE AN ADDITIONAL 139GW

MORE THAN THE GENERATING

CAPACITY OF CANADA AND RAISE
GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS BY OVER
1.5 BILLION TONNES OF CO2 PER YEAR,
THREE TIMES THE CURRENT ENERGY
EMISSIONS OF BRITAIN.

12 INTERNATIONAL

Birmingham partners with

China State Grid to build
a joint lab in novel energy
storage technologies

ENERGY STORAGE
EXPERTS WELCOME BRAZILIAN
INDUSTRY CHIEFS TO BIRMINGHAM
The University of Birmingham signed a
Memorandum of Understanding with the
Smart Grid Research Institute (SGRI) of State
Grid Corporation of China to develop a joint
laboratory in energy storage.
The signing, witnessed by Mr Liu Zhenya, the Chairman of State
Grid Corporation of China (SGCC), marks the start of an important
partnership between SGCC, the largest electric power transmission
and distribution company in the world, and the University of
Birmingham, a world leader in thermal energy storage technologies.
Under the MoU the two sides will further strengthen the already
existing strong research collaboration, working closely together to
build a joint laboratory in grid scale novel energy storage technologies.
http://tiny.cc/SGCCpartnership

THROUGH THIS AGREEMENT AND

THE JOINT LAB, THE UNIVERSITY
AND SGRI WILL WORK IN CLOSE
PARTNERSHIP TO CONTRIBUTE
TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF MORE
EFFICIENT, CLEAN AND LOW
CARBON ENERGY SYSTEMS IN THE
UK AND CHINA. THIS IMPORTANT
LINK WITH SGRI, AND THROUGH
IT WITH SGCC, WILL FURTHER
STRENGTHEN OUR EXISTING
STRONG RELATIONSHIPS WITH
CHINA IN THE ENERGY SECTOR.

Experts in energy storage research at the University of

Birmingham welcomed representatives from businesses and
universities across Brazil to explore future partnerships that
could see Brazilian cities testing innovative technology.

The visit included representatives from the Brazilian Electricity

Regulatory Agency (ANEEL), Brazilian universities UFSC and
UNICAMP, the Energy Quality and Storage Brazilian Association
(ABAQUE) and the LACTEC Institute.

Organised by the British Embassy, in Brasilia, the visit was

lined up because of the Universitys research strength
especially its role in the Research Councils-funded Energy
Storage Supergen Hub. This draws experts from universities,
industry and government to tackle energy storage challenges.

The University is investing 2 million into strengthening its

relationships with Brazil, which is one of its four key strategic
regions, alongside China, India and the United States. It aims
to be a UK higher education partner of choice with Brazilian
government agencies, research foundations, leading higher
education institutions, and industry partners.

The 21-strong delegation met University experts and learned

more about the Birmingham Energy Institute and Birmingham
Centre for Energy Storage. They also visited laboratories in
Chemical Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Mechanical
Engineering. Delegates met a range of research experts, led by Dr
Jonathan Radcliffe, Senior Research Fellow, Energy Storage, who
specialises in the development of policy and regulation in this area.
Dr Radcliffe gave an overview of the Institutes work and
introduced the delegates to a range of colleagues including
Professor Yulong Ding, Director of the Birmingham Centre
for Energy Storage, School of Chemical Engineering; Dr Karl
Dearn, Lecturer, Director of Industrial Liaison, Department
of Mechanical Engineering; and Professor Xiao-Ping Zhang,
Director of Smart Grid, Department of Electronic, Electrical
and Systems Engineering.

www.birmingham.ac.uk

THE UNIVERSITY OF
BIRMINGHAM IS EXTREMELY
STRONG IN ENERGY RESEARCH
AN AREA OF GREAT
IMPORTANCE TO BRAZIL, WHICH
IS THE THIRD-LARGEST ENERGY
CONSUMER IN THE WESTERN
HEMISPHERE, BEHIND THE
US AND CANADA. WE HAVE
MORE THAN 140 ACADEMICS
ENGAGED IN ENERGY AND
ENERGY-RELATED RESEARCH
AND DEVELOPMENT, WITH SOME
75 MILLION AWARDED FROM
EXTERNAL PROJECT FUNDING
RELATED TO ENERGY.
PROFESSOR MARTIN FREER, DIRECTOR OF THE BEI

PRO-VICE-CHANCELLOR PROFESSOR ANDY

SCHOFIELD, UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM

Birmingham Energy Institute

Edgbaston, Birmingham,
B15 2TT, United Kingdom

http://tiny.cc/PartnershipBrazil

Gavin Harper
Energy Development Manager
+44 (0) 121 414 8940

energy@contacts.bham.ac.uk

Follow all the latest updates from the

Birmingham Energy Institute at
www.birmingham.ac.uk/energy-news