Green Gown Awards 2020 - Keele University - Highly Commended

HyDeploy: A research and innovation partnership for decarbonising the nation’s gas network 

In October 2019 Keele University became the first UK site to blend hydrogen with natural gas and deliver this to homes and commercial premises - the first step to decarbonising the national gas network. This landmark moment was the result of an intensive programme of research by the HyDeploy project to demonstrate the safety of blended hydrogen in the gas network, and the start of a suite of related research and innovation projects to demonstrate a safety case for a nationwide transition to blended hydrogen gas, understand the social acceptability of hydrogen, and to prepare the gas industry and its supply chain for this clean energy transition.  

Nationwide rollout of up to 20%(vol) hydrogen in the existing gas network could see the carbon savings of 6 million tonnes, equivalent to taking 2.5 million cars off the road. This is all underpinned by a University partnership across academics, students, business development and estates, linking into a major national consortium with Cadent, Northern Gas Networks, Progressive Energy, ITM Power and the Health and Safety Executive.  

This project highlights the important role of University campuses as genuine test beds of sustainable innovation and research. 

Top 3 learnings:

1. Strong partnerships and a can-do attitude can break new ground in the energy transition. 
2. Building dissemination and impact in from the start of a research programme leads to genuine change. 
3. Embrace new opportunities. Many spin-off areas of research have emerged.