Summary of the Challenge
Sources of renewable energy are key to the transition to net-zero. However, the manufacture, installation and ongoing operation of renewable energy-based power plants have their own environmental impact, which is not well understood. Understanding the life cycle environmental impact assessment of these technologies will help shape their future application.
Renewable sources of energy are often considered in isolation. Considering how we couple technologies such as wind, solar and geothermal to generate low-carbon electricity will benefit the region in our transition to net-zero.
Our Response
This project will focus on renewable sources of energy that are used within South Yorkshire and the UK and consider, in various combinations, how they can be combined to deliver low-carbon energy. This research will allow us to more comprehensively understand the environmental impact of integrated power cycles and relevant carbon footprint reductions that could be achieved through the transition to renewable resources from fossil fuel-based power plants.
As part of this project we will complete a comparative life cycle assessment of renewable energy sources including geothermal, solar and wind technologies. This means comparing the environmental damage of each technology based on different midpoint and endpoint impact categories.
