Sustainable Futures
From air travel to our food choices, join us to find out how Faculty of Science researchers are working towards a more sustainable future.
Professor Darren Walsh, School of Chemistry
Making High-Energy Batteries for Santa’s Sleigh
Lithium-ion batteries have changed how we communicate, work, are entertained, and travel around our planet. However, these batteries are reaching the limits of how much energy they store, they contain unsustainable ‘endangered’ elements, and they are too heavy for use in some emerging applications, including new types of electric vehicles and aeroplanes. So, Professor Walsh and colleagues are developing next generation lithium-sulfur and lithium-air batteries, which are based on sustainable and lightweight materials. He will describe how they are trying to make these batteries a realistic prospect and whether we might actually fly on battery-powered planes in the near future.
Professor Alexa Spence, School of Psychology
From Data to Dinner: The Psychology Behind Sustainable Eating
Food is central to our lives, but it’s also one of the biggest drivers of climate change: the UK food system accounts for over a third of UK greenhouse gas emissions. However, many people misunderstand how sustainable different foods are, and it’s not surprising as the environmental impact of food is complex and the UK lacks consistent labelling. Professor Spence and her research team have been exploring how people think about food’s environmental impact versus what they actually do. Find out how they use real supermarket data to uncover surprising gaps — and opportunities for change.
Dr Geert De Maere, School of Computer Science
How the World’s Fastest Algorithm is Reducing Emissions at Heathrow
Dr De Maere and colleagues at the Computational Optimisation and Learning (COL) research group in the School of Computer Science have been developing state-of-the-art algorithms for real world applications in air transportation for over 20 years. They work with some of the world’s largest airlines and airports and this presentation will focus on their work with London Heathrow. Dr De Maere will outline why runway sequencing is important and how the TSAT and DMAN systems, which COL developed are helping to improve operational performance and reduce aircraft emissions, making air transport more sustainable.
After the lecture there will be festive refreshments and interactive stands, allowing the audience to further engage with the faculty’s sustainability related research.
This lecture is part of our monthly Science Public Lecture series, and everyone is welcome to join