Our CDT students will have the opportunity to visit some of the world’s leading facilities, flex their innovation muscles and work directly with industry partners to help drive the transition to net zero.

Want to become the next global leader in industrial decarbonisation. Find out more below.

Programme Details

The fully-funded, four year PhD programme supports students with an annual stipend of £19,237* (2024/25 stipend). In addition, all CDT training opportunities are covered by the centre and students will have access to £3000 per annum for their own research costs.

*excluding London weightings

Research projects

We are offering pioneering research projects that will enable you to explore key technologies that will support UK industry to reach net zero. CDT in Green Industrial Futures has five research themes. Our students will develop expertise in their chosen research field, whilst also understanding cross-thematically how technologies integrate.

Advancing carbon capture, utilisation and storage technologies will push forward research frontiers in advanced materials and technologies for CO2 capture and utilisation from industrial sources and a range of socio-economic, engineering, and geological issues required to achieve the scaleup of CO2 storage to gigatonnes per year, particularly to unlock the UK’s potential as a regional European hub for CO2 storage.
Theme Leads: Professor Paul Fennell, Professor Mercedes Maroto-Valer, Professor Sam Krevor
This theme focuses on critical challenges on scaling up and integration of hydrogen and sustainable fuels into large energy systems. This includes the development and optimisation of novel materials and devices with high conversion & selectivity, long lifetimes & low cost, in combination with cost reductions in CO2 capture, particularly Direct Air Capture (DAC). This theme also addresses the challenges that arise from curtailed renewable energy, the utilisation of low carbon fuels and novel designs of equipment needed for difficult to decarbonised processes.
Theme Leads: Professor John Andresen, Professor Yannis Hardalupas. Professor Mohamed Pourkashanian
Developing next generation CO2 removal technology (CDR) generates novel understanding of the fundamental mechanisms underlying DAC, ocean alkalinity enhancement, accelerated weathering, Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS), Biomass Carbon Removal and Storage (BiCRS) technologies, and uses this to develop next generation CDR solutions. It includes developing state of the art methods for materials characterisation, fit-for-purpose model development combining first principles and empirical modelling with machine learning and a systems architecting approach to technology design.
Theme Leads: Professor Lin Ma, Professor Mijndert Van der Spek
With the themes above, the system integration theme develops effective ways to integrate solutions considering site-specific industrial symbiosis, energy and resource efficiency and assessment studies for fuel switching. This includes integrating process modelling, techno-economic and life cycle analysis (LCA) to support the net-zero production of base/platform chemicals and fuels. These assessments will use prospective and consequential methods so solutions are assessed for their current and future performance and the wider system. Novel advanced optimisation and value models will be coupled to a superstructure approach to design energy-materials-technology pathways to achieve net-zero manufacturing at minimum cost.
Theme Leads: Professor Marcelle McManus, Professor John Andresen
Critical to the success of a green industrial transition is uptake and use in industry and society. Working across the themes, this theme applies cutting-edge social science and behavioural insights to ensure a people-based focus. Research projects will address evidence gaps, understanding what is required for net zero-consistent behaviour change in industry and society and testing mechanisms for transformative changes. We will apply an expanded concept of behaviour change to include people’s professional, consumer, citizen and community roles, and assess underpinning policy and regulatory frameworks linked with systems integration to understand the complex challenges posed by net zero.
Theme Leads: Professor Lorraine Whitmarsh, Professor Mijndert Van der Spek

Training Programme

Alongside the four year research project, all students will undertake valuble training to enhance and contextualise their research. There are three elements of the training programme: (1) modular taught course exploring the technical, social and economic aspects of the net zero industrial transition, (2) a Net Zero Leadership Portfolio (NZLP) involving a series of activities and workshops to develop skills sought after by industry partners and boost exposure to different career pathways (e.g. secondments, site visits, guest lectures, skills workshops), (3) an opportunity to visit world-leading facilities and meet industrial stakeholders from around the world.

Flexibility will be offered throughout the programme to meet the individual needs of each student, considering caring responsibilities, disability and other factors. Where international opportunities cannot be carried out, we will strive to provide an alternative arrangement of equal standing. We will ensure sustainability principles are considered when choosing travel modes.

Typical modular training courses

All students will complete 120 credits of postgraduate courses (majority at SCQF Level 11 NQF/QCF Level 7). Normal entry is in October of each year, with core technical courses delivered across Year 1 & 2 as two-week residentials at each of the four university partners.

Year 1

Semester 1Heriot Watt UniversityCarbon solutions (15 credits)
Semester 2University of BathWhole systems & Transformative Change (15 credits)
Semester 3Imperial College LondonBusiness Model Innovation and Investor Pitching for Net Zero
Carbon Capture Pilot Plant (15 credits)
Students will also complete Portfolio A during Year 1 (10 credits)

Year 2

Semester 1University of SheffieldPilot-Scale Facilities Practical Training At TERC (15 credits)
Semester 2Heriot-Watt University Industry Challenge Project (15 credits)
Semester 2/3International opportunities
Students will also complete Portfolio B during Year 2 (20 credits)

Elective courses

In Year 1 & 2, students will complete 15 credits of elective courses from a wide choice from across the partner universities, subject to course availability and timetabling.

Year 3 & 4

The focus of years 3 & 4 will be on your PhD research, however there will be opportunities for professional development including industry secondments, site visits, training workshops and guest lectures.

International Opportunities

These opportunities provide students access and training at the state-of-the-art facilities, and aims to bridge the gap between lab and demonstrator/pilot plant research. These opportunities provide students with extensive exposure to industry-aligned networks, different stakeholder perspectives and contextualise the UK’s global standing in industrial decarbonisation. Our CDT has partnerships with: