Professor Alan Guwy: Energy, Environment, and Sustainability
To mark the announcement of our 2019 cohort of Fellows, earlier this year we invited some of those elected to reflect on their career to date.
Below, you can find details of one such Fellow.
Professor Alan Guwy is a scientist with over 30 years of experience in the field of Energy and Environment. He is a leading academic currently based at the University of South Wales, where he is the Head of the Sustainable Environment Research Centre (SERC). SERC is an established and recognised multidisciplinary research team consisting of more than 40 researchers, including 5 Professors and 7 lecturers. Professor Guwy and the team carry out research in key areas of the sustainable environment and renewable energy systems, including: green hydrogen production, biohydrogen and anaerobic digestion, novel fuel cells, and hydrogen transport and storage systems.
Professor Guwy has published over 100 papers, gaining him international recognition as an authority in his field. He has also carried out and completed numerous research projects in the specific areas of sustainable energy and environment science. His research interests are focused upon renewable hydrogen production; hydrogen energy systems; and recovering energy from waste products and biomass using biological and bioelectrochemical systems. These include developing novel fermentative processes that convert municipal wastes to produce green platform chemicals and biopolymers, which was the subject of a H2020 project “RESURBIS”, of which Professor Guwy was University of South Wales’ lead investigator.
Professor Guwy also leads the hydrogen systems within the FLEXIS project (a £24 million research operation designed to develop an energy systems research capability in Wales) and, in 2010, he was a cofounder of the Low Carbon Research Institute in Wales where he led the CymruH2Wales theme and project. As well as working as one of the principal investigators of the FLEXIS team, he also works on a project to Reduce Industrial Carbon Emissions (RICE) for the University of South Wales and has undertaken work with the International Energy Agency. This work includes acting as an Operating Agent for the Biohydrogen Task 34.
A scientific advisor for the EPSRC’s H2FCSUPERGEN Hub, Professor Guwy has worked with the Royal Society to produce a policy briefing concerning the production of low-carbon hydrogen. In Wales, he led the establishment of the Hydrogen Research Centre, one of the UK’s first renewable hydrogen refuelling facilities, which the Welsh Government uses to promote Wales internationally. Now a Fellow of the Learned Society of Wales, we look forward to also working with Professor Guwy.