Priority Area Lead: Dr Alison Davenport, School of Metallurgy and Materials, a.davenport@bham.ac.uk
With increasing use of electricity generated from alternative large scale and distributed energy sources (including renewables), improved forms of energy storage are required to overcome the intermittency of renewable energy generation (in particular wind and PV) operating on different capacities and time-scales in order to match supply and demand. Energy demand is complex, and within the urban context, demand is not simply for electricity, but also heat, and energy for various modes of transport. Consequently, integrated resilient energy systems are required, incorporating energy storage technologies.
Future development of new and existing technologies, both centralised on a large scale and distributed on a local meso- and microscale will be vital for energy security. Energy storage capabilities also have much to offer in the drive to alleviate energy poverty in the developing world. Technologies of particular interest include:
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Cryogenic energy storage
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Compressed air electrical storage
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Phase change materials integrated into the fabric of buildings
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High power supercapacitors storage
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Large scale batteries storage
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Superconducting magnet energy storage
Consideration is given to their integration into energy systems.
The University of Birmingham has more than one hundred academics active in energy research and education in areas including:
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bioenergy
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energy distribution (including smart grids and smart infrastructures)energy and environment
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energy in manufacturing
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hydrogen
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materials
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nuclear
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oil and gas
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policy and society
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transport
Partners
Energy research at the University of Birmingham has global reach, actively partnering with universities and multinational organizations in counties such as India, China, Brazil, Japan, the United States and across the European Union. In the UK we have well established strategic academic partnerships with
As part of the Midlands Energy Consortium we co-deliver a number of energy-focused EPSRC-funded Centres for Doctoral Training:
We also have developed partnerships in the energy area with companies such as Jaguar Land Rover, Rolls Royce, QinetiQ, ARUP, Network Rail, IBM, National Express, National Grid, etc. and organisations such as DAIMOND, CERN, STFC, SEFFI, to name a few.
Related Disciplines
The development of integrated resilient energy systems are vital to enable cities to move towards lower carbon futures and at Birmingham our research capacity and activity in this area spans a number of disciplines including:
Key individuals
Key people working in this area at Birmingham include