How physics can power the UK's transition to Net Zero

I'm delighted to have been able to contribute to this exciting new report from the Institute of Physics, "Unleashing Physics to Power the UK Energy Sector - Assessment of technologies, challenges, strengths and potential". It was great working with Oliver Hannant, Paul Bryce, Tom Taylor and Iulia Georgescu to convert the output from strategy discussions at the 2024 IOP Nuclear Industry Group Reactor Physics Technical Forum (https://lnkd.in/eKmPqNaE), into the chapter on nuclear power. It complements the other chapters, on photovoltaics, batteries and high-temperature superconductors to show how, as Paul Monks notes in his foreword, physics can drive 'the clean energy revolution' in the UK. The report is accessible to non-specialists and I hope it reaches a wide audience at all levels.

The transition to a green economy is hugely important for our future, and physicists will have a key role shaping the technology that leads to our success in this area. It was a privilege to work with colleagues from EDF (UK) and Rolls-Royce, and Rolls-Royce SMR (Oliver Hannant, Chris O'Leary, Paul Bryce, Tom Taylor) to contribute to this Institute of Physics report. We outline how nuclear power will have a vital role to help maintain, safe, secure, low-carbon energy for the UK and what support is needed to enable physicists to deliver this mission alongside complimentary technologies including battery storage, photovoltaics and high-temperature semiconductors.

How can physics be used to unleash the power of the UK energy sector?   It’s a big question. And one that a new Institute of Physics report set out to answer.   The The Faraday Institution was pleased to contribute to the section on battery energy storage (one of 4 sectors examined) via the expertise of Martin Freer and Stephen Gifford.   Some interesting commentary on shared challenges across nuclear, PV, batteries and high temperature superconductivity including on scale-up, skills, and access of critical minerals.   Take a look ⬇️

🌍 The journey to a low-carbon future begins with research and innovation! On the occasion of the 2025 General Assembly of the European #SMRAlliance, explore how the EU is backing research in emerging low-carbon technologies like small modular reactors. The EU research efforts focus on: ☑️ Enhancing safety and security ☑️ Advancing combined power & heat generation, as well as hydrogen production, to reduce emissions and develop cleaner industrial processes ☑️ Maintaining the EU’s technological edge throughout the value chain Learn how EU research and innovation are at the forefront of building a cleaner and more resilient future: europa.eu/!rcVnFt #Euratom #CleanIndustrialDeal

Christopher Phebus of Hydrostor will be speaking at the #NCEW25 Policymakers Symposium on advances in energy technologies over the past year and discuss how innovative project deployments strengthen American energy dominance while creating a cleaner future.

New Research Alert 🌍 ‎I'm thrilled to share our latest research entitled "Unveiling the redox mediated synergism in Cex‒gC3N4/rTiO2 hybrid system for sustainable hydrogen generation", published in the prestigious Q1 journal, Surfaces and Interfaces! ‎ ‎Breakthrough Findings: This study reported groundbreaking Cex‒gC3N4/rTiO2 hybrid system that achieves remarkable rates of hydrogen evolution. This innovation showcases the potential for efficient and sustainable hydrogen generation via seawater splitting reactions. 🌊💡 ‎ ‎Read the Full Article: https://lnkd.in/d47Sm9ES ‎ ‎#HydrogenGeneration #Watersplitting #Sustainability #RenewableEnergy #ScientificBreakthrough

💡 ACER consultancy study recommends improvements for EU scenario development Achieving the #EU’s decarbonisation targets requires making better use of existing #energy grids as well as new investments. This goal must be supported by effective planning, based on robust and consistent energy scenarios that reflect both national and EU objectives. ACER has just published a consultancy study identifying current challenges and areas for improvement in how scenarios are developed for two key EU planning processes: 👉 the Ten-Year Network Development Plans (#TYNDPs) by ENTSO-E and ENTSOG; and 👉 the European Resource Adequacy Assessment (#ERAA) by ENTSO-E. ✔️ The study offers recommendations to improve scenario-building practices by strengthening consistency, transparency and stakeholder engagement. Why it matters? 🎯 Better scenarios = better decisions, supporting Europe’s clean transition through smarter investments and more resilient infrastructure. Key findings: 🔎 National energy and climate plans (#NECPs), which underpin the TYNDPs and ERAA scenarios, often lack sufficient detail and clarity. This limits the accuracy and consistency of the scenarios developed. 🔎 The timing of the ERAA, TYNDPs and national energy and climate plans is not aligned, raising concerns about the reliability and consistency of the input data. 🔎 National energy and climate plans integration into EU-wide scenarios remains partial (despite recent improvements), with no formal validation process. 🔎 Better alignment is needed to ensure consistency across TYNDP and ERAA scenarios and exercises. 🔎 Transparency and stakeholder engagement, particularly in the ERAA process, should be further enhanced. Interested in the study? ✍ Register for ACER’s webinar on 11 September 2025 (10-11 CEST) to hear directly from the experts 👉 https://lnkd.in/dbQqve4Y Read more 👉 https://lnkd.in/dYuTZ745

A good report looking at how to bring consistency to planning. We all need to be better about planning, and bring more consistency and data openness to it (a constant Canadian complaint).

Highly recommended, if you want to know how the EU energy system forecasting works and how it will be improved in the next cycle.

It was a privilege to join Heidi Lee, Satya Tanner, Rainer Korte, and Ian Oppermann at Engineers Australia’s Climate Smart Engineering Conference #CSE25, where our panel tackled the challenge of enhancing the #resilience and security of Australia’s clean energy future. ·      Satya introduced the concept of nested self-sufficiency—relevant to how resilient local energy systems can interconnect and scale to strengthen energy security. ·      Ian explored the importance of #digitaltwins for modelling system performance and stress-testing infrastructure under diverse future energy and climate scenarios. ·      Rainer underscored the value of consumer energy resources (CERs) as #distributed assets that can provide both flexibility and security to the grid. ·      I focused on the need for regulation and policy to create a level playing field for standalone power systems (#SAPs), #microgrids, and aggregated #DER as non-network solutions. ·     And Heidi encouraged us all to be #visionary. The session reinforced that achieving a secure, decarbonised grid requires system-of systems engineering, preferably thinking backwards from the future, not incrementally tweaking the present. Thank you to Romilly Madew and Engineers Australia for curating critical conversations on mitigation and adaptation in a rapidly changing climate, and to my fellow panellists for sharing their deep expertise. CSIRO, Integrate To Zero, Blunomy, NSW Decarbonisation Innovation Hub, IEEFA Australia