A Swansea University researcher has received international recognition for his work in the field of industrial decarbonisation.
Dr Waqas Hassan Tanveer was the first researcher to win the prestigious IUVSTA-EBARA Award for making sustainable solutions using vacuum-based technologies.
Now based at the University’s Energy Safety Research Institute, he was honoured for his contribution to studies into the use of wood pellets to create low carbon jet fuel which were highlighted in the latest International Union for Vacuum Science, Technique and Applications (IUVSTA) newsletter.
For this project Dr Waqas developed a state-of-the-art solid oxide electrolyser (SOEC) stack system to produce H2 rich syngas. The SOEC unit works with a gasifier using pellets taken from forestry waste to produce syngas streams which can be converted into value-added products including the jet fuel.
Dr Waqas joined ESRI last year as a researcher with the Swansea-led SUSTAIN project which aims to transform the UK steel sector into a carbon neutral, zero waste, digitally agile industry that is responsive to the fast-changing needs of customers.
He said he was attracted to the project as it involves evolution and lowering the carbon footprint of one of the most vital substance for modern society’s infrastructure.
“As a mechanical engineer I have had the opportunity of working on the production and maintenance of various industrial plants that develop aerodynamic vehicles, and most of them require steel in one form or the other.”
Dr Waqas added: “In ESRI my work focuses on electrochemically utilising the CO2 released during steel production and convert it into value added products. I achieve this through the development of electrolysers ready for pilot plant-based usage.
“I have been working on these systems for almost 11 years now and I have a lot of belief in the technology as it can potentially act as a carbon sink to industries in the existing infrastructure.”
Dr Enrico Andreoli, associate professor at ESRI, said the team was delighted to be able to benefit from Dr Tanveer’s experience.
He said: “We are very please to have a researcher of Waqas’s calibre joining the ESRI team. His prestigious recognition and trust in carbon utilisation is perfectly in line with our vision of a technology-driven decarbonised industry.”