British universities to collaborate on global centers for advancing net zero innovations

A multinational collaboration involving partners from the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia is set to establish four Global Centers dedicated to advancing innovations in clean energy. Backed by a substantial £61 million (US$74.4 million) in funding, of which £18 million is provided by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), these Global Centers comprise:

1. Global Hydrogen Production Technologies (HyPT) Center: A £14.1 million five-year initiative led by Cranfield University, Arizona State University, the University of Adelaide, and the University of Toronto, with UK partners including Imperial College London, Newcastle University, the University of Cambridge, and the University of Birmingham. The primary goal of HyPT is to make large-scale, low-cost, clean hydrogen production a reality. By accelerating technologies such as water electrolysis, methane pyrolysis, and photocatalytic solar water splitting, HyPT aims to produce hydrogen at just US$1 per kilogram, significantly undercutting the current production cost of green hydrogen.
2. Electric Power Innovation for a Carbon-free Society (EPICS): A £6.67 million project based at Johns Hopkins University in the US, EPICS focuses on developing methods and tools necessary for achieving a 100% emissions-free power grid. The research team includes 26 researchers from nine universities, including Imperial College London, the University of Edinburgh, Newcastle University, University of Strathclyde, and the University of Melbourne.
3. Global Center for Clean Energy and Equitable Transportation Solutions (CLEETS): CLEETS concentrates on reducing emissions from road transport, with case studies in the West Midlands and South Wales in the UK, as well as the Great Lakes megaregion of the US. Led by Jonathan Radcliffe at the University of Birmingham in the UK, CLEETS involves an interdisciplinary team of academics. Cardiff University is another UK project partner, while the Discovery Partners Institute, part of the University of Illinois System, leads the US project.
4. Global Nitrogen Innovation Center for Clean Energy and the Environment (NICCEE): This trilateral partnership between Canada, the US, and the UK, with UK representation through Rothamsted Research, focuses on the challenges and opportunities surrounding the production of green ammonia, responding to the heavy energy dependence and centralization of traditional ammonia production methods. By harnessing solar and renewable energy sources, NICCEE aims to decentralize fertiliser production, reduce emissions, and support food production in regions with limited nitrogen fertiliser access. Additionally, NICCEE will improve fertiliser timing and dosing to match crop needs, reducing nitrogen losses, and serve as an information hub with advanced cyberinfrastructure for monitoring nitrogen’s impact in agriculture-food-energy systems.

Dame Ottoline Leyser, CEO UKRI, said: “UKRI’s Building a Green Future Programme aims to harness the power of research and innovation to tackle hard-to-decarbonise sectors in our economy. We are excited to be partnering with our sister organisations in the US, Canada, and Australia to accelerate progress toward this crucial goal. 

“Our combined investment in Global Centers enables exciting researcher and innovation-led international and interdisciplinary collaboration to drive the energy transition. I look forward to seeing the creative solutions developed through these global collaborations.”