Developing solutions for the energy transition

View of wind farm taken from a drone

Justin Paget via Getty Images

Justin Paget via Getty Images

Climate change is the greatest challenge of our age. The impacts of climate change are now being felt in every region of the planet.

Solutions are being developed at Cambridge that can be implemented, grown to scale, and used to accelerate the rapid transition to a net zero and then zero emissions economy.

In this series of short films, Cambridge researchers discuss how their work is supporting the energy transition.

Professor Sir Richard Friend's research focuses on the development of new types of semiconductors, particularly for use in solar cell technology.

Dr Ruchi Choudhary, from the Department of Engineering, specialises in building simulation and environmental characteristics of the built environment. At Cambridge, she is leading the multi-disciplinary Energy Efficient Cities initiative (EECi) with colleagues in transport technologies and urban planning. Her current research concerns urban-scale energy simulation of built environments, with specific emphasis on uncertainty analysis and retrofits of existing buildings.

Professor David Cebon's research is concerned with the decarbonisation of road freight, which represents between 7 and 8 percent of global carbon emissions.

Professor Adam Boies' research focuses on the evolution, dynamics and impacts of gas-phase nanoparticles. The applications of his research extend from engineered nanoparticles for energy applications to transportation emissions and air quality.

Professor Srinivasan Keshav, from the Department of Computer Science and Technology, focuses on reducing the carbon footprint of energy generation, transportation, and buildings. He has recently been studying digital monitoring, reporting, and verification for trustworthy carbon credits, especially from avoided deforestation.

Professor Rob Miller is Director of Whittle Laboratory, a leading global centre for net-zero aviation and energy. The King recently broke ground for the New Whittle Laboratory: its mission is to halve the time to develop key technologies to support a sustainable aviation industry.

Professor Garth Wells' research focuses on the development of new computer models for simulating complex engineering systems, particularly around the energy transition.

Professor Rachel Garrett's research is focused on ending deforestation globally. She examines the drivers and impacts of land change, primarily in forest landscapes, and the effectiveness and equity of forest conservation and sustainable agriculture policies and practices. I work closely with farmers and national agriculture and forestry agencies. My research spans Brazil, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Indonesia, Switzerland, and the Republic of Georgia.

Dr Israel Temprano is working to improve existing and develop new types of batteries, a technology that is critical to the energy transition.

Professor Andy Woods is Director of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Flows, an interdisciplinary centre focused on granular flows and fluid dynamics for sustainability and the energy transition.

Professor Markus Kraft is Director of the Cambridge Centre for Advanced Research and Education in Singapore (CARES), the University of Cambridge’s first overseas research centre. One of the Centre's key research areas is reducing the carbon emissions of the chemical industry.

Professor Andy Sederman, from the Magnetic Resonance Research Centre in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, uses MRI and magnetic resonance methods to accelerate the development of new systems to support the circular economy.