Energy and Climate Change

Understanding the interactions between energy generation and climate is crucial to providing a resilient and secure energy supply in the future.

The role of power generation in driving climate change is well accepted and a significant amount of the work in this research theme aims to develop not only low carbon energy sources like marine, wind and hydropower but also enhance their contribution by managing variability through network-friendly machines and energy storage.

Climate change could affect many aspects of energy generation and distribution, by changing weather patterns and variability. The scale of these impacts must be quantified and understood in order to minimise risk under future scenarios.

A further focus of the group is to carry out analysis of the ‘carbon footprint’ of all aspects of the power system, in order to aid a reduction in the carbon emissions associated with energy use.
 
Theme leader: Gareth Harrison

 

Research areas within this research theme:
  • Renewable Resource Assessment
  • Climate Change Impacts on Energy Systems
  • Lifecycle Carbon Assessment (Carbon Footprint)
Scotland's Wave Resource (Scottish Executive Matching Study, 2006)
Scotland's Wave Resource (Scottish Executive Matching Study, 2006)
Life cycle of the Pelamis wave energy converter
Life cycle of the Pelamis wave energy converter
Percentage change in annual mean solar energy resource in the 2050s (medium emissions scenario)
Percentage change in annual mean solar energy resource in the 2050s (medium emissions scenario)