The Sustainable Energy Research Group at the University of Southampton, UK

Welcome to the Sustainable Energy Research Group

'Energy and its uses are an integral and essential part of our lives. Energy is coupled to civil and environmental engineering through infrastructure, procurement of primary energy sources and their utilization, generation of electricity, the end use of energy in industry, homes and transportation as well as its environmental impact.'

The Sustainable Energy Research Group within the Faculty of Engineering and the Environment undertakes research in core areas of energy, specifically in the built environment and in renewables such as solar and marine energy. The Group's interests include building envelopes and their impact on energy and comfort, photovoltaics and marine current energy converters.

Objectives

The aims of the Sustainable Energy Research Group are to promote and undertake fundamental and applied research alongside pre-industrial development in the areas of renewable energy technologies. In addition the group undertakes research related to the efficient use of energy in the built environment. The knowledge base encompasses:

The design of environmentally friendly energy systems, including methods and procedures for their efficient use.
Knowledge transfer between research and industry.
The promotion of teaching programmes for engineering and science students.
The future performance of the built environment under a changing climate.

Current Key Research Projects

Liveable Cities - Transforming cities to low carbon pathways and healthier living
(E4D) Replication of Rural Decentralised off-grid Electricity Generation through Technology and Business Innovation
Transforming Energy Demand through Digital Innovation - Intelligent Agents for Home Energy Management
Feasibility Study of the Impacts of Proposed Tidal Array Installations in Channel Islands
Community based initiatives in energy saving

more SERG projects

SERG News

30 May 2013: Prof. AbuBakr Bahaj, Head of Sustainable Energy Research Group, will give a talk on energy for development as part of the University of Southampton Lecture Series on Energy and Climate Change. The lecture series aims to promote debate on energy and climate change and inform on current state of the art research and development.

more about the lecture series

January 2013: A special issue journal of the Royal Society detailing current research in tidal energy has been published. The journal was guest edited by Prof AbuBakr Bahaj and includes research from several SERG members. The special issue describes the status of leading research and projects in the field to rapidly advance tidal energy technology.

Royal Society Tidal Energy Special Issue
University press release

September 2012: The Energy for Development project has successfully completed the installation of the 13.5 KW solar plant in the rural Kenyan village Kitonyoni. The project addresses the electricity needs of rural communities in East Africa and addresses the fundamental scientific, engineering, social and policy research issues in rural power generation and distribution, transferring knowledge between participating countries and building research capacity both in the UK and in the other collaborating nations.

more about the installation
E4D website

August 2012: The City of Southampton has appointed Professor AbuBakr Bahaj as their Chief Scientific Adviser. Professor Bahaj, Head of the University's Energy and Climate Change Division, has taken on the role to champion science and engineering as a key driver of the economy and ensure the city uses science effectively in all policy-making.
Guardian article on Prof. Bahaj's appointment
University press release

July 2012: Southampton's Future Cities programme has been short listed in a multi-million pound award that, if won, would see the city tranformed into a 21st-Century flagship for green technology and sustainable eneterprise. The city is one of 30 councils across the UK who have received government support to carry out a feasibility study in a bid to win the £24 million 'future city' prize. Southampton City Council will be working closely in collaboration with SERG and a number of other partners.
more about the Future Cities prize

May 2012: SERG and the University of Southampton received a £6.5 million programme grant from the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council to transform cities to include low carbon pathways and healthier living. The work is to provide pathways of novel engineering and social solutions that test acceptability and coherence for low carbon living under various CO₂ reduction scenarios.
more about the programme grant

more news

EWTEC Conference Series

Following on from the successful Ninth European Wave and Tidal Energy Conference and exhibition (EWTEC 2011), held from 5-9 September 2011 at the University of Southampton, the Sustainable Energy Research Group is continuing with the important role of hosting the EWTEC website. Organized by SERG, EWTEC 2011 was attended by over 300 delegates who listened to over 120 technical presentations spread over four days. The tenth EWTEC (EWTEC 2013) will be held in Aalborg, Denmark from 2-5 September 2013.

EWTEC Conference series website

Key Publications in 2011

Watts C., Jentsch M.F., James P.A.B. (2011)
Evaluation of domestic Energy Performance Certificates in use, Building Services Engineering Research & Technology, available online, 3 August 2011. view paper

Bahaj A.S. (2011)
Generating electricity from the oceans, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Volume 15, Issue 7, September 2011, pp 3399-3416. view paper

more publications