Active Clean Energy Chemistry

Digital Solutions for Optimizing the Hydrogen Supply Chain

Funder EPSRC (part of UKRI)
Recipient organisation University of Warwick
Funding Not disclosed
Period Mar 2025 — Sept 2028

In plain English

AI plain-English summary

Hydrogen supply chains are currently fragmented and inefficient, with no single digital system to manage production, storage, and delivery from a power plant to a home boiler. This research builds digital twins—virtual replicas of the entire hydrogen supply network—to model how hydrogen moves from production facilities through pipelines and trucks to factories, homes, and power stations. The problem is that hydrogen is difficult to handle: it leaks easily, requires high-pressure storage, and demand fluctuates unpredictably across different sectors. Without a coordinated system, suppliers either overproduce wastefully or underdeliver at critical moments. The project will identify where bottlenecks occur, what resources are available, and how to match supply with demand in real time. If successful, these digital tools could allow energy companies to simulate disruptions—a plant shutdown, a sudden spike in industrial demand—and adjust distribution before problems arise. The broader impact is making hydrogen a reliable, cost-competitive alternative to fossil fuels for heating, transport, and heavy industry, accelerating the UK’s transition away from natural gas without requiring every user to install new infrastructure blindly.

View original technical description
This research aims to address the significant challenges within the hydrogen supply chain by exploring its needs and developing digital supply chain solutions, including digital twins. Key areas of focus include understanding the requirements for hydrogen production, storage, transportation, distribution, and consumption across various applications such as industrial use, transportation, residential heating, and power generation. By analyzing these components, the research will identify critical supply chain challenges, resource availabilities, and opportunities to enhance efficiency and reduce costs while effectively meeting demand. The project will then develop digital solutions for supply chain optimization alongside creating digital twins for comprehensive modeling and simulation. These digital twins will enable detailed scenario analysis and predictive capabilities, providing insights into potential bottlenecks and enabling proactive management of the supply chain. The ultimate goal is to improve the efficiency, reliability, and sustainability of the hydrogen supply chain, fostering collaboration among stakeholders and paving the way for the broader adoption of hydrogen as a key energy source. Your PhD will be a part of the HI-Act (Hydrogen Integration for Accelerated Energy Transition) national hydrogen research hub project funded by UKRI.

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Related Research

Grants with similar aims, by meaning.

Novel multi-objective optimisation strategies for enhanced efficiencies and agility in hydrogen gas supply
EPSRC Centre for Doctoral Training in Sustainable Hydrogen - SusHy
UK-HyRES: Hub for Research Challenges in Hydrogen and Alternative Liquid Fuels
HydroTrans for Hydrogen Transport: Implementation Feasibility Study
Hydrogen Integration for Accelerated Energy Transitions Hub (HI-ACT)

Original classification

Studentship

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