A new research project aimed at tackling three major innovations for the UK transport industry has received substantial backing from the British Government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).
The project will link Brunel with eight research partners – including BP, Shell, Lubrizol, Mahle Powertrain, Camcon Auto, Osprey Ltd, Malvern P and China’s Tianjin University – who aim to push the technologies to market over the next few years for use in the aviation, marine and automotive sectors.
Backed by the likes of Shell and BP, the new £1.4m UKRI project aims to promote research into the development of hydrogen microbubble liquid fuels, multi-fuel combustion engines and high-efficiency integrated engine generators – three developments which, if mastered, could help dramatically reduce carbon emissions from the UK transport industry.
“Calculations estimate the combined benefit of these three new technologies can account for 90% of CO2 reductions in the UK transport sector, delivering a means to resolve the biggest challenge we are facing now as humans,” said Dr Xinyan Wang, a researcher at Brunel University London’s Centre for Advanced Powertrain and Fuels, who was awarded a UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship to lead the initial four year project, with a further three years set aside to continue development.
The project’s announcement comes as part of a larger £109m package being funded by UKRI’s Future Leadership Fellowship programme which awards researchers between £400,000 and £1.5m to develop novel and challenging projects.
“It is a relief that all efforts have paid off,” said Dr Wang. “I am very excited about the next four years on this ambitious project.”Announcing the successful fellows and their projects at today’s Future Leaders Conference, UK Science Minister Amanda Solloway said: “We are committed to building back better through research and innovation, and supporting our science superstars in every corner of the UK.“By backing these inspirational Future Leaders Fellows, we will ensure that their brilliant ideas can be transferred straight from the lab into vital everyday products and services that will help to change all our lives for the better.”
