Across the UK, 80% of the heating in buildings and industries is generated using natural gas [1]. According to the Department for Business, Energy & Industry Strategy, transitioning to electricity, hydrogen and bioenergy have the potential to make a significant contribution toward low carbon heating. With respect to hydrogen, one potential approach is to use the existing natural gas distribution grid to transport hydrogen. In this research we explore a zero-carbon emission ICHP energy network concept for decarbonising heating and cooling through the production, distribution and utilisation of hydrogen. At the national scale, existing gas grid infrastructure would be modified and used to deliver natural gas and hydrogen produced from clean sources to distributed ICHP energy centres across the UK. At the local scale, intelligent thermal networks, would convert this hydrogen and distribute its energy as electricity, heating or cooling across urban areas in localised industry and residential networks. Furthermore, ICHP energy centres would also offer additional flexibility, resilience etc. and provide an opportunity to integrate transport energy services through the provision of hydrogen fuelling and electric vehicle fast charging. The project will be focus on investigating the role and value of the ICHP concept in supporting cost effective heat sector decarbonisation and transition to low carbon whole-energy system. The aim of the proposal will enable in depth assess of the role of ICHP concept from whole system perspective by: - Quantifying the techno-economic value of ICHP based heat sector decarbonisation in the whole-energy system context, considering infrastructure investment and operating costs for different carbon emissions targets in short, medium and long term. - Identifying and quantifying the benefits of flexibility options (i.e., energy storage, demand side response, hydrogen-based flexible gas plants). - Assessing the role of ICHP paradigm in enhancing the electricity system resiliency, given that the extreme weather conditions should be considered when planning low carbon energy system. Outputs will be technical evidence of the potential of the technology for stakeholders across the whole system (policy, national, local and consumers).

Background: The UK has legally-binding targets to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and increase the use of renewable sources of energy. There is a target of reducing 80% of GHG emissions by 2050, compared to the 1990 level, as well as interim targets to reduce emissions and increase the use of renewable energy for 2020 and 2030. The electrification of heat along with a large utilisation of renewable sources for power generation are considered as a solution to meet the emission and renewable targets for UK. However, these will result in variability and uncertainty in electricity supply as well as substantially higher peaks of electricity demand. If these issues are to be addressed through a "predict and provide" approach (i.e. building more capacity for back-up power generation, transmission and distribution infrastructure), significantly high costs will be incurred. These costs can be reduced by employing flexibility technologies enabling peak shaving and supporting electricity demand and supply balancing. A study for the UK Government estimates that deploying flexibility technologies (electricity storage, electricity demand response, flexible power station operation and international interconnectors) in the Great Britain power system can save up to £40bn of the power system costs to 2050 [1]. In addition to the flexibility offered by battery storage which requires massive investment to be realised, there already exist substantial energy storage and demand response potentials within heat and gas systems which can be exploited to support the operation of electricity system and facilitate a cost-effective transition to a low carbon and resilient energy system. To achieve this, efficient integration of electricity, heat and gas systems across different scales is required. For example, the correct integration of the electricity and heating sectors through optimal operation of "power-to-heat" technologies and thermal storage (in the form of hot water tanks, and also as thermal storage using the thermal inertia of networks and buildings) enables a shift in electricity demand required for heating. Research aims: This research will (i) identify and quantify potential flexibility that is inherent in gas and heat systems (e.g. gas and thermal storage and demand response capability) across various scales (i.e. buildings, district heating system, national gas transmission systems), (ii) optimise the provision of flexibility from gas and heat systems to support the operation of a low carbon power system, and (iii) develop modelling tools and methodologies to inform energy policy and provide technical and regulatory recommendations to enable maximum exploitation of flexibility through energy systems integration. Work Programme: WP1. Project management, engagement and exploitation WP2. Quantification of flexibility requirement in a low carbon power system WP3. Characterisation and quantification of flexibility technologies in heat and gas sectors WP4. Optimisation of integrated energy systems for flexibility provision WP5. Agent-based game-theoretic model to investigate interactions between key players in integrated energy systems WP6. Identifying real world barriers to exploitation of flexibility from energy systems integration References [1] Carbon Trust, "An analysis of electricity system flexibility for Great Britain," https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/568982/An_analysis_of_electricity_flexibility_for_Great_Britain.pdf , 2016.

We have assembled a strong and committed team to deliver this vision: Principal Investigator Prof Tim Mays, University of Bath with Co-Investigators Dr Rachael Rothman, University of Sheffield, and Prof Shanwen Tao, University of Warwick, will work with a group of Special Advisors to engage and partner with policy makers and industry from across the supply chain from the project start. The Team have expertise both spanning the H&ALF value chain and in planning and successfully delivering interdisciplinary research projects. We will organise a series of facilitated workshops to engage stakeholder communities and use a Theory of Change process to map the greatest research challenges for H&ALFs and potential solutions. Engagement will be as wide as possible, with workshops geographically spread across the UK, as well as online, and will span research topics and industrial sectors. In addition, we will coordinate visits and a vigorous online presence. We will concentrate on the potential for H&ALFs to decarbonise transport (land, sea, air), electricity generation and domestic and industrial heat, as these sectors and industries make up nearly 80 % of the UK's total carbon emissions . We will also work with important, high emmitting UK industries such as steel, cement, glass and fertiliser manufacture.

Great Western Supercluster for Hydrogen Impact for Future Technologies (GW-SHIFT) is co-created by world-leading academic expertise (Universities of Bath, Exeter, Bristol, Cardiff, Swansea, South Wales, Plymouth), innovative civic partners (Western Gateway, Great South West, West of England Combined Authority) and cutting-edge industries (Hydrogen South West, Airbus, GKN, Bristol Airport, easyJet, Bristol Port Company, National Composites Centre, Offshore Renewable Energy Catapult, Johnson Matthey, etc.) to drive concentrated impact across the H2 ecosystem of South West England and South Wales. It will catalyse cross-sectoral, cross-regional and interdisciplinary opportunities for long-term impact. The ambition of GW-SHIFT is to grow from a nascent cluster to an established supercluster which is uniquely placed to lead the delivery of the green H2 economies needed to decarbonise the UK, driving joined-up impact that spans multiple sectors (maritime, road, rail, aerospace, chemicals) across the region's unique testbed of urban, rural, and coastal areas and resources. GW-SHIFT has been co-created by its academic, civic and industry partners with a shared vision to maximise the enormous potential of the region's H2 ecosystem. Its impact will power clean, inclusive growth across the region, maximising world-leading academic knowledge and H2 assets, and enabling key government strategies and targets for a low carbon H2 future. This includes Powering Up Britain and British Energy Strategy targets for 10GW H2 production capacity by 2030 and 100,000 new jobs, £13bn GVA by 2050. The creation of the supercluster directly addresses key regional strategies and action plans, including the Western Gateway's H2 vision and 'Powering a Greener, Fairer Future' strategy, Great South West's "Speed to the West," WECA's Climate and Ecological Strategy and Action Plan, the West of England Local Industrial Strategy and the Welsh Government's Hydrogen in Wales pathway. Success of the supercluster can deliver the region's targets for 17,000 new H2 jobs by 2050. GW-SHIFT will drive impact through its aims and objectives to: 1. Grow the GW-SHIFT supercluster of academic, civic and industry partners towards established and sustainable supercluster status via policy and theme conversations and academic-civic-industry secondments. 2. Deliver high impact co-created collaborative projects, with 20 short sprint projects and eight 1-2 year collaborative match-funded projects, leading to the development of new products, processes and techniques, new spin-out companies, significant follow-on funding, new jobs, and regional and national policy impacts. 3. Deliver place-based capacity building across the South-West of England and South Wales H2 ecosystem through entrepreneurial training to academic researchers (including early career), civic and industry staff, cross-mentoring programmes, and upskilling programmes to equip regional workforces for the opportunities of the future H2 economy. 4. Engage key stakeholders across the region (civic, industry, regulatory, public, schools, etc.) via public engagement, school outreach and curriculum development, wider academic, industry and policy engagement to raise awareness of the benefits and opportunities of a future H2 economy and to encourage public acceptability of hydrogen. The establishment of GW-SHIFT as a hydrogen supercluster for the South of England and South Wales will enable maximum impact from joined-up strategic advances in H2 production, storage and distribution, conversion, end-use applications (for mobility, heating, power), industrial feedstocks, and cross-cutting issues (economic, environmental, social and safety). It will be a critical enabler of a thriving low carbon hydrogen sector in the South-West and South Wales, with national and global applications, delivering energy security, skills, economic growth, supply chain development and driving Net Zero innovations.

A thriving, low carbon hydrogen sector is essential for the UK's plans to build back better with a cleaner, greener energy system. Hydrogen has the potential to reduce emissions in some of the highest-emitting and most difficult to decarbonise areas of the economy, which must be transformed rapidly to meet Net Zero targets. To achieve this, large amounts of low carbon hydrogen and alternative liquid fuels will be needed. These must be stored and transported to their point of use. There remain significant research challenges across the whole value chain and researchers, industry and policy makers must work collaboratively and across disciplines to drive forward large-scale implementation of hydrogen and alternative liquid fuels as energy vectors and feedstocks. The flagship UK-HyRES hub will identify, prioritise and deliver solutions to research challenges that must be overcome for widespread adoption of hydrogen and alternative liquid fuels. It will be a focus for the UK research community, both those who are already involved in hydrogen research and those who must be involved in future. The UK-HyRES hub will provide a network and collaboration platform for fundamental research, requiring the combined efforts of scientists, engineers, social scientists and others. The UK-HyRES team will coordinate a national, interdisciplinary programme of research to ensure a pipeline of projects that can deliver commercialisation of hydrogen and alternative liquid fuel technologies that are safe, acceptable, and environmentally, economically and socially sustainable, de-coupling fossil fuels from our energy system and delivering greener energy. We intend that, within its five-year funding window and beyond, UK-HyRES will be recognised internationally as a global centre of excellence and impact in hydrogen and alternative liquid fuel research.