Publications

The study focused on designing a sustainable building involving rooftop agrivoltaics advanced glazing technologies and onsite hydrogen production for a residential property in Birmingham UK where green hydrogen produced by harnessing electricity generated by agrivoltaics system on rooftop of the building is employed to change the transparency of vacuum gasochromic glazing and refuel hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicle using storage hydrogen for a sustainable building approach. The change in the transparency of the glazing reduces the energy requirement of the building according to the occupant’s requirement and weather conditions. This research investigates the performance of various rooftop agrivoltaic systems including vertical optimal 30◦ tilt and dome setups for both monofacial and bifacial agrivoltaic consisting of tomato farming. Promising results were observed for agrivoltaic systems with consistent tomato production of 0.31 kg/m2 with varying shading experienced due to the different photovoltaic setups. Maximum electricity is produced by bifacial 30◦ with 7919 kWh though the lowest LCOE can be observed by monofacial 30◦ with £0.061/kWh. It also compares the efficiency of vacuum gasochromic windows against double glazing vacuum double glazing electrochromic and gasochromic options which can play an essential role in energy saving and reduced carbon emission. Vacuum gasochromic demonstrated the lowest U-value of 1.32 Wm2 K though it has the highest thickness with 24.6 mm. Additionally the study examines the feasibility of small-scale green hydrogen production from the electricity generated by agrivoltaics to fuel hydrogen vehicles and glazing considering the economic viability. The results suggested that the hydrogen required by the glazing accounts for 52.56 g annually and the maximum distance that can be covered theoretically is by bifacial 30◦ which is approximately 64.23 km per day. The interdisciplinary approach aims to optimise land use enhance energy efficiency and promote sustainable urban agriculture to contribute to the UK’s goal of increasing solar energy capacity and achieving net-zero emissions while addressing food security concerns. The findings of this study have potential implications for urban planning renewable energy integration especially solar and sustainable residential design.

The Yangtze River as the world’s largest clean energy corridor links key economic regions and plays a crucial role in inland waterway transportation. However few studies have comprehensively evaluated the potential of the Yangtze River for cross-regional hydrogen transport. Here we develop a comprehensive integrated power and hydrogen supply chain (IPHSC) optimization model to evaluate the potential of cross-regional hydrogen transport via the Yangtze River. The IPHSC optimization model covers the entire hydrogen production-storage-transportation-utilization chain through cross-sector modeling of energy transportation water scheduling and environmental protection. Results show that in the 2060 carbon neutrality scenario the deployment of 62.2 kilotons of 574 differentiated liquid hydrogen (LH2) carrier ships could enable the transportation of 5018 kilotons (1512 million ton-km) of hydrogen annually meeting nearly 20% of the total electrolytic hydrogen demand across eight riverine provinces. Unlike west-to-east electricity transmission in China the central Yangtze River region is expected to become the main hub for hydrogen exports in the future. Compared with alternative methods such as transmission lines or pipelines LH2 carrier ships offer the lowest energy supply costs at 3 US cents/kWh for electricity and 5 US cents/kWh for hydrogen. Additionally a full-parameter attribution analysis of over 40 factors is conducted to assess variations in supply costs. Our study offers a thorough evaluation of the feasibility and economic benefits of hydrogen transportation via inland waterways providing a comprehensive multi-sectoral coupling assessment framework for regions with well-established inland waterway networks such as Europe and the United States.

The rational design of Cu-based catalysts with tailored interfacial structures and electronic states remains challenging yet essential for advancing hydrogen production via methanol steam reforming (MSR). Here we developed a samarium-mediated strategy to construct a 30Sm-CuAl catalyst. The introduction of Sm promotes Cu dispersion and induces strong metal-support interactions resulting in the formation of Sm2O3- encapsulated Cu nanoparticles enriched with Cu+ -O-Sm interfaces. The optimized 30Sm-CuAl demonstrates exceptional MSR performance achieving a hydrogen production rate of 1126 mmol gcat− 1 h− 1 at 250◦C. Mechanistic studies revealed that the reaction follows the formate pathway in xSm-CuAl with formate accumulation identified as the primary reason for the deactivation of 30Sm-CuAl. Dynamic regeneration of 30SmCuAl through redox treatment restores its activity thereby enabling cyclic operation. These findings provide insights into rare-earth oxide regulation of Cu-based catalysts and lay the foundation for targeted resolution of formate intermediate accumulation to enhance MSR stability.

Hydrogen is a key enabler of the energy transition and repurposing existing natural gas pipelines offers a costeffective pathway for large-scale hydrogen transport. However hydrogen embrittlement raises integrity concerns and current design standards such as ASME B31.12 Option A adopt highly conservative safety margins without a quantified reliability basis. This study evaluates whether the conservative safety margins in ASME B31.12 Option A for hydrogen pipelines can be safely relaxed. A semi-elliptical flaw (depth 0.25t length 1.5t) is assessed using the Failure Assessment Diagram (FAD) method and Monte Carlo simulations with up to 2.5 × 107 iterations. Fracture toughness is fixed at 69.3 MPa√m while wall thickness and yield strength vary statistically. Three design scenarios explore safety factor products from 0.388 to 0.720 at 0 ◦C and 20 ◦C. Results show that flaw acceptability is maintained in all deterministic cases and the probability of failure remains below 10− 6 . No failures occur when the safety factor product drops below 0.637. The analysis uses only codified flaw assumptions and public material data. These findings confirm that Option A provides a highly conservative envelope and demonstrate the value of a reliability-based approach for assessing hydrogen pipeline repurposing while addressing the gap between prescriptive standards and quantified reliability. This integrated FAD–probabilistic framework demonstrates that Option A includes significant conservatism and supports a reliability-based approach to evaluate hydrogen pipeline repurposing without experimental inputs.

This work provides a detailed evaluation of a novel biomass-fueled multigeneration system conceived to contribute to the growing emphasis on sustainable energy solutions. The architecture comprises a biomass gasifier an innovative cascaded organic Rankine cycle (CORC) incorporating a high-temperature mixture in the top cycle a proton exchange membrane electrolyzer (PEME) a Brayton cycle and waste heat utilization units all operating together to deliver electricity hydrogen (H2) and thermal output. A comprehensive thermodynamic modeling framework is established to evaluate the system’s performance across various operational scenarios. The framework emphasizes critical metrics including exergy efficiency levelized total emissions (LTE) and payback period (PP). These indicators ensure a holistic assessment of energy exergy economic and environmental considerations. Parametric studies demonstrate that enhancements in biomass mass flow rate and combustion chamber temperature significantly increase power output and H2 production while reducing the payback period underscoring the system’s flexibility and economic feasibility. Furthermore the study employs sophisticated machine learning optimization methods combining artificial neural networks (ANNs) with genetic algorithms (GA) to determine optimal operating conditions with minimal computational effort and maximum efficiency. When evaluated at nominal parameters the system records an exergy efficiency of 23.72 % achieves a PP of 5.61 years and yields an LTE value of 0.34 ton/GJ. However under optimized conditions these values improve to 35.01 % 3.78 years and 0.241 ton/GJ respectively.

This study presents the development of the long-term Household Hydrogen Supply Chain (HHSC) model aimed at supporting the decarbonisation of household energy consumption. Structured across three strategic phases: foundation expansion and maturation the model facilitates the systematic phase-out of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) by 2045 and natural gas (NG) by 2080. Employing demand estimation methodologies grounded in historical data and exponential decay functions the study forecasts long-term hydrogen adoption trajectories and allocates regional demand to optimise infrastructure placement. A network optimisation model identifies the optimal locations and capacities of national regional and local distribution centres (NDCs RDCs and LDCs). This staged development ensures operational scalability geographic equity and financial viability. A key finding is the substantial increase in profitability from $479 million in 2026 to $88.26 billion by 2090 driven by infrastructure growth and increasing hydrogen demand. Sensitivity analyses indicate that the adoption during the mid years (2040–2060) is particularly vulnerable to cost fluctuations. The model supports net-zero 2050 goals and aligns with several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including SDGs 7 9 and 13. While the HHSC provides a structured pathway for long-term hydrogen transition future research should focus on enhancing the resilience of the HHSC by incorporating real-time data integration assessing vulnerability to supply chain disruptions and developing risk mitigation strategies to ensure continuity and scalability in hydrogen delivery under uncertain operating conditions.

Hydrogen fuel cells (HFCs) are an efficient clean energy solution that performs well in backup or remote application but requires an uninterrupted supply of hydrogen. Current manual refueling procedures are laborintensive pose safety risks due to hydrogen’s explosive nature and can lead to power interruption if neglected. An automated system that manages the refueling procedure safely using computer simulations has been designed and demonstrated. The system employs a pressure sensor to monitor hydrogen levels and the microcontroller scans the safety of the environment by sensing leaks and ensuring there is no risk of over-pressure activates an electric solenoid valve when the pressure falls to or below a specified low threshold of 20 bar (P_low). The valve automatically closes when the tank reaches a high-pressure value of 280 bar(P_high) or immediately upon detection of anomalies such as a sensed leak excessive pressure exceeding 320 bar(Pmax_safe) or a prolonged refilling duration beyond 400 seconds. The whole system has been simulated using MATLAB/Simulink executing five distinct test scenarios including normal operation leaks over-pressure and time-out conditions. Simulation results indicate the design is robust with all safety features performing as intended. Furthermore a roadmap for the physical prototyping and testing of the system beginning with inert gases is presented. The automated system has the potential to enhance the ease and safety of operating stationary HFCs.

Understanding water evolved gas and ionic transport in membrane-electrode-assemblies (MEAs) is essential for the development of high performance and durable anion exchange membrane water electrolyzers (AEMWEs). This study evaluates the MEA conditioning process operating conditions and short-term stability in a 1 M potassium hydroxide (KOH) electrolyte focusing on the underlying transport phenomena. We observe a significant initial voltage loss in continuous cell operation which could be associated with gas bubble accumulation transport layer or flow field passivation and changes in the catalyst oxidation state. Further we investigate the effects of materials and operational configurations including the membrane type and thickness and the electrolyte flow rate including KOH being fed to both electrodes as well as to the anode only. Furthermore the effect of membrane drying temperature on ex situ as well as in situ electrochemical performance is evaluated. Finally we discuss 700 h of AEMWE operation at 1 A/cm2 highlighting the underlying degradation phenomena.

Volatile fatty acid (VFA) accumulation is a common issue that compromises the performance of biological hydrogen methanation systems (BHMs). This accumulation is often triggered by fluctuations in hydrogen supply which can disrupt microbial activity and lead to system instability. To address this challenge this study investigated the impact of employing a microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) in BHMs to mitigate system instability and acid buildup. As such a conventional anaerobic digester (AD) and a microbial electrolysis cell both supplemented with exogenous hydrogen were evaluated for their performance in hydrogen methanation. The effect of exogenous hydrogen at high addition rates (>4:1 CO2:H2 molar ratio) under instantaneous and gradual injection modes was investigated. The results showed that the instantaneous addition of hydrogen resulted in the total failure of the anaerobic digestion system. Propionate accumulated in the system (>2 g/L) and resulted in low pH (pH=5.3). Methane production stopped and the reactor never recovered from hydrogen shock. However the microbial electrolysis system was able to withstand the instantaneous hydrogen addition and maintain normal operation under toxic hydrogen addition levels (>4:1 CO2:H2 molar ratio). Under the gradual injection mode both MEC and AD reactors remained reasonably unaffected; even though the hydrogen injection exceeded the stoichiometric molar ratio. This study provides a new perspective on the application of MECs for reliable operation and storage of surplus renewable energy via biological hydrogen methanation.

This study considers the use of an enhanced super-twisting sliding mode control (STSMC) scheme via the incorporation of a hybrid extended state observer (ESO) and a higher order sliding mode observer (HOSMO) state estimation and disturbance observer (DO) based on exponential decay embedded via a tracking element in order to hasten the estimation of disturbance thus improving performance significantly. This scheme is employed to generate single and multiple control signals per agent based on the microgrid’s presented components such as energy storage devices and renewable energy sources (RESs) alongside the harness of a puma optimizer (PO) metaheuristics scheme to optimize each area regulator’s performance. The sliding surface incorporated is chosen based on desired control objectives. Adjusting the constricted area frequency and reducing tie-line power transfer fluctuations are considered the primary goals for frequency regulation in a multi-area power system. Also based on the presented simulations adequate performance in terms of minimum chattering low complexity fast convergence and adequate robustness has been achieved. Using various microgrid peripheral components such as a multi-terminal soft open point (SOP) with a dedicated terminal for hydrogen energy storage alongside the proposed enhanced STSMC the frequency change and power transfer rate of change are maintained within the range of ×10−6 values substantially preserving proper performance compared to other simulated scenarios. In regard to the final simulated case involving SOP the following has been achieved: steady state errors of 2.538×10−6 Hz for ΔF1 3.125×10−6 Hz for ΔF2 and 1.920×10−6 p.u for ΔPtie alongside peak disturbance overshoot reduction in comparison to stochastic case of 99.580% 99.605% and 99.771% for same mentioned elements respectively. Also a reduction in peak disturbance undershoot of 95.589% 99.547% and 99.573% respectively has been achieved. Thus the enhanced STSMC can effectively mitigate frequency fluctuations and tie-line power transfer abnormalities.