Following the Paris Climate Change Agreement, 197 countries, including the UK, are now obligated to reduce their anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to hold the global mean temperature increase from pre-industrial levels well below 2 deg. C and pursuing efforts to limit it to 1.5 deg. C. Meeting this ambitious goal requires near-complete decarbonisation of the power sector, as it generates a third of the anthropogenic GHG emissions. To maintain its sustainability and international competitiveness, as well as to meet the environmental targets, the UK economy requires a secure supply of low-carbon electricity at an affordable cost. This is especially important in light of the forecast 30-60% increase in the peak electricity demand in the UK by 2050. Although the unabated conventional fossil fuel power systems are well-suited to flexibly meet the market demand, and thus to balance the intermittency of the renewable energy sources, they are heavy CO2 emitters. As there are no other technologies that could significantly reduce emissions from conventional power generation from fossil fuel, which are expected to remain in the electricity mix for the foreseeable future, carbon capture and storage (CCS) is seen as crucial to decarbonising the power sector. Yet, the integration of the most mature technologies, such as oxy-combustion and chemical solvent scrubbing, to the conventional fossil fuel power plants is predicted to reduce their electric efficiency by 7-13% points. This corresponds to an increase in the electricity cost by at least 60%. Carbonate looping, which is based on the reversible carbonation reaction of CO2 with a metal oxide, is regarded as an emerging CO2 capture technology that can reduce the electric efficiency penalties to 5-8% points. The main reason behind such improvement is the high-temperature operation (500-950 deg. C) of carbonate looping that enables high-grade heat recovery and a clean and efficient syngas generation. As this process can act as a standalone combustor or gasifier, carbonate looping combustion and gasification can be seen as an emerging class of technologies for thermochemical conversion of carbonaceous fuels whose feasibility, in conjunction with high-efficiency power cycles and/or solid oxide fuel cells, needs to be thoroughly evaluated. Following the results of the preliminary studies performed by the applicants and the developments in nuclear and solar power generation technologies, it is speculated that such novel power generation systems will have higher net thermal efficiency (>38%HHV), lower CO2 specific emissions (<100 gCO2/kWh) and affordable cost of electricity (30-60 £/kWh) compared to conventional fossil fuel power generation systems. This proposal will employ the state-of-the-art engineering procedures to develop, and assess the feasibility of, novel power generation concepts based on the emerging carbonate looping process and high-efficiency power cycles, and/or fuel cells. These concepts will be identified through a design matrix generated during screening of carbonate looping cycles, power cycles and fuel cells. Then, the process models of the sub-systems included in the design matrix will be built using first principles and validated with data retrieved from the literature. Synthesis of novel power generation concepts will be conducted by employing the process wide approach to process modelling. The initial configurations of the concepts will be revised by employing the heat exchanger network and parametric analyses. The concepts will be then assessed in terms of thermodynamic, environmental and economic performance using both deterministic and probabilistic approach. In addition, the reliability, availability and maintainability assessment will be performed. Finally, the feasibility of the novel power generation concepts will be assessed and benchmarked against the conventional fossil fuel power plants in the multi-criteria analysis.

This user-need CDT will equip graduates with the skills needed by the UK formulation industry to manufacture the next generation of formulated products at net zero, addressing the decarbonisation needs for the sector and aligning with this EPSRC priority. Formulated products, including foods, battery electrodes, pharmaceuticals, paints, catalysts, structured ceramics, thin films and coatings, cosmetics, detergents and agrochemicals, are central to UK prosperity (sector size > £95bn GVA in 2021) and Formulation Engineering is concerned with the design and manufacture of these products whose effectiveness is determined by the microstructure of the material. Containing complex soft materials: structured solids, soft solids or structured liquids, whose nano- to micro-scale physical and chemical structures are highly process dependent and critical to product function, their manufacture poses common challenges across different industry sectors. Moving towards Net Zero manufacture thus needs systems thinking underpinned by interdisciplinary understanding of chemistry, processing and materials science pioneered by the CDT for Formulation Engineering at the University of Birmingham over the past twenty years, with a proven delivery of industrial impact evidenced by our partner's letters of support and three Impact Case Studies ranked at 4* in the recent Research Excellence Framework in 2021. A new CDT strategy has been co-created with our industry partners, where we address new user-led research challenges through our theme of Formulation for Net Zero ('FFN0), articulated in two research areas: 'Manufacturing Net Zero (MN0)', and 'Towards 4.0rmulation'. Formulation engineering is not taught in first degree courses, so training is needed to develop the future leaders in this area. This was the industry need that led to the creation of the CDT in Formulation Engineering, based within the School of Chemical Engineering at Birmingham. The CDT leads the field: we won for the University one of the 2011 Diamond Jubilee Queen's Anniversary Prizes, demonstrating the highest national excellence. The UK is a world-leader in Formulation; many multinational formulation companies base research and manufacture in the UK, and the supply of trained graduates, and open innovation research partnerships facilitated by the CDT are critical to their success. The CDT receives significant industry funding (>£650k pa), supported by 31 industry partners including multinationals: P&G, Colgate, Unilever, Diageo, Devro, Fonterra, Samworth Bros., Jacobs Douwe Egberts, Nestle, Pepsico, Mondelez, GSK, AZ, Lonza, Novartis, BMS, BASF, Celanese, Croda, Innospec, Linde/BOC, Origen, Imerys, Johnson Matthey, Rolls-Royce/HTRC, JLR Lucideon and SMEs: Aquapak, CALGAVIN and ITS/StreamSensing. Intra and cross cohort training is central to our strategy, through our taught programme and twice-yearly internal conferences, industry partner-led regional research meetings, student-led technical and soft skills workshops and social events and inter CDT meetings. We have embedded diversity and inclusion into all of our projects and processes, including blind CV recruitment. Since 2018 our cohorts have been > 50% female and >35% BAME. We will co-create training and research partnerships with other CDTs, Catapult Centres, and industry, and train at least 50 EngD and PhD graduates with the skills needed to enhance the UK's leading international position in this critical area. The taught programme delivers a common foundation in formulation engineering, specialist technical training, modules on business, entrepreneurship and soft skills including a course in Responsible Research in Formulation. We have obtained promises of significant industry and University funding, with 67 offers of projects already. EPSRC costs will be 44% of the cash total for the CDT, and ca. £27% of the whole cost when industry in-kind funding is included.

Observed, Strategic, sustained action is now needed to avoid further negative consequences of climate change and to build a greener, cleaner and fairer future. According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change the rise in global temperature is largely driven by total carbon dioxide emissions over time. In order to avoid further global warming, international Governments agreed to work towards a balance between emissions and greenhouse gas removal (GGR), known 'net zero', in the Paris Agreement. In June 2019 the UK committed to reaching net zero emissions by 2050, making it the first G7 country to legislate such a target. Transitioning to net zero means that we will have to remove as many emissions as we produce. Much of the focus of climate action to date has been on reducing emissions, for example through renewable power and electric vehicles. However, pathways to net zero require not just cutting fossil fuel emissions but also turning the land into a net carbon sink and scaling up new technologies to remove and store greenhouse gases. This will require new legislation to pave the way for investment in new infrastructure and businesses expected to be worth billions of pounds a year within 30 years. This challenge has far-reaching implications for technology, business models, social practices and policy. GGR has been much less studied, developed and incentivised than actions to cut emissions. The proposed CO2RE Hub brings together leading UK academics with a wide range of expertise to co-ordinate a suite of GGR demonstration projects to accelerate progress in this area. In particular the Hub will study how we can (1) reduce technology costs so that GGR becomes economically viable; (2) ensure industry adopts the concept of net zero in a way that will maintain and create jobs; (3) put in place sensible policy incentives; (4) make sure there is social license for GGR (unlike fracking or nuclear); (5) set up regulatory oversight of environmental sustainability and risks of GGR; (6) understand what is required to achieve GGR at large scale and (7) guarantee there are the skills and knowledge required for all this to happen. Building on extensive existing links to stakeholders in business, Government and NGOs, the Hub will work extensively with everyone involved in regulating and delivering GGR to ensure our research provides solutions to strategic priorities. We will also encourage the teams working on demonstrator technologies to think responsibly about the risks, benefits and public perceptions of their work and consider the full environmental, social and economic implications of implementation from the outset. CO2RE will seek to bring the GGR community in the UK as a whole closer together, functioning as a gateway to UK inter-disciplinary research expertise on GGR. We will inform, and stay informed, about the latest developments nationally and internationally, and reach out to engage the wider public. In doing so we will be able to respond to a rapidly evolving landscape recognising that technical and social change are not separate, but happen together. To accelerate and achieve meaningful change, we will be guided by consultation with key decision-makers and the general public, and set up a £1m flexible fund to respond to priorities that emerge with the help of the wider UK academic community. Ultimately we will help the UK and the world understand how GGR can be scaled up responsibly as part of climate action to meet the ambition of net zero.