Next-Gen Energy
Capturing, converting, and storing; Providing power for a sustainable future
The next generation energy (Next-Gen) industry is constantly evolving, with new technologies and business models emerging all the time. This industry is driven by the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and meet the growing demand for energy worldwide. Next-Gen covers all forms of energy production, storage, and distribution, including fossil fuels, nuclear power, fuel cells, hydrogen technology and renewable energy.
Some of the key stakeholders in the Next-Gen Industry include:
- Renewable energy project developers and operators
- Battery storage manufacturers
- Electric vehicle manufacturers
- Smart grid technology providers
- Energy efficiency and demand response companies
Next generation energy industry research in the UK and Europe is focused on developing new technologies and solutions that can help to decarbonise the energy sector and meet the growing demand for clean energy.
Below are examples of the many partnerships in the UK and Europe that are focused on next generation energy industry research. These partnerships play a vital role in developing the technologies and solutions needed to transition to a clean energy future. They allow access to expertise and technology, testing facilities, and joint funding to accelerate the commercialisation of the solutions and support the training of future energy leaders.
The Next-Gen energy industry is an exciting one to be involved in and PI-KEM’s Energy Research and Material Processing Team are available to support researchers on small through to large scale projects ensuring they have the materials and equipment most suitable for the work they are looking to complete.
Industry Insights
The next generation energy industry development is being driven by several trends, including:
- The rise of renewable energy: Solar, wind, and geothermal are becoming increasingly competitive with fossil fuels. Researchers are developing new technologies to make renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, and geothermal power more efficient and affordable
- The electrification of transportation: The shift to electric vehicles is driving demand for electricity
- The growth of distributed energy resources: Distributed energy resources, such as rooftop solar and battery storage, are giving consumers more control over their energy use
- The digitalisation of the energy grid: Smart grid technologies are being used to improve the efficiency and reliability of the electricity grid
- The move to Net-Zero: Many governments have set ambitious targets to reduce carbon emissions and the use of fossil fuels requiring significant research and investment in new processes, storage, infrastructure, and devices
Innovation Trends
- Renewable energy generation: New technologies to make renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, and geothermal power more efficient and affordable. For example, the UK's Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult is developing new offshore wind turbines that are more powerful and less expensive to build. Click here to read article
- Energy storage: Essential for integrating renewable energy into the grid, as it allows excess energy to be stored for future use. Researchers are developing new energy storage technologies such as batteries and pumped hydro storage. For example, Part of the European Union's Horizon 2020 Batt4EU Program is funding projects across the whole battery and energy supply chain. Projects include refining and recycling of raw materials, manufacturing of solid-state batteries (SSB) and photovoltaics, non-lithium sustainable batteries including sodium and fuel cells, all focused on increasing storage capacity. Click here to read article
- Smart grids: Use digital technology to improve the efficiency and reliability of electricity distribution grids. Researchers are developing new smart grid technologies such as demand response and grid-scale energy storage. For example, the UK's National Grid is developing a new smart grid project called the Electricity Systems Operator (ESO) that will help to integrate more renewable energy into the grid. Click here to read article
- Energy efficiency: Using less energy to perform the same tasks. Researchers are developing new energy efficiency technologies for buildings, transportation, and industry. For example, the European Commission's Horizon Europe Built4People Partnership is funding projects to drive a transition towards sustainability in the built environment, ensuring affordability, improved energy performance ad increased use of low carbon technologies. Click here to read article
Academic/ Industrial Partnerships
- The University of Sheffield Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC), University of Hull, and Siemens are working together to develop new wind turbine generators. Click here to read article
- Imperial College London and BP are working together to develop new technologies for carbon capture and storage. Click here to read article.
- The University of Manchester and Rolls-Royce are working together to develop new technologies for small modular nuclear reactors. Projects focus on material properties, modelling of processes in the nuclear plant, as well as safety and reliability with applications in both civil nuclear power and submarines. Click here to read article.
- The Technical University of Munich and BMW are working together to develop new technologies and software for electric and autonomous vehicles, and improvement of fuel economy in electric vehicles. Click here to read article.
- The University of Durham, The National Grid and other stakeholders are focused on developing hydrogen fuelled transportation that utilise fuel cells and significantly reduce environmentally damaging emissions. Click here to read article
- The South Denmark University support junior researchers to set up spin-off companies to commercialise their innovation. One current company is developing non-toxic solar panels for integration into home items, including computer keyboards, clocks that use solar panels that collect energy from both the sun and indoor light sources e.g., computer screens and so replace the need for the use of Li-ion batteries or charging using electricity supplies. Click here to read article
