| The award | How you will study | Study duration | Course start | Domestic course fees | International course fees |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MPhil | Full-time | 12 months | find out | find out | find out |
| PhD | Full-time | 36 months | find out | find out | find out |
| MPhil | Part-time | 24 months | find out | find out | find out |
| PhD | Part-time | 72 months | find out | find out | find out |
Our Energy programmes allow you to specialise in areas such as bio-energy, novel geo-energy, sustainable power, fuel cell and hydrogen technologies, power electronics, drives and machines, and the sustainable development and use of key resources.
We can supervise MPhil and PhD projects in topics that relate to our main areas of research, which are:
Bio-energy
Our research spans the whole supply chain:
Cockle Park Farm has an innovative anaerobic digestion facility. Work at the farm will develop, integrate and exploit technologies associated with the generation and efficient utilisation of renewable energy from land-based resources, including biomass, biofuel and agricultural residues.
We also develop novel technologies for gasification and pyrolysis. This large multidisciplinary project brings together expertise in agronomy, land use and social science with process technologists and engineers and is complemented by molecular studies on the biology of non-edible oilseeds as sources for production of biodiesel.
Novel geo-energy
New ways of obtaining clean energy from the geosphere is a vital area of research, particularly given current concerns over the limited remaining resources of fossil fuels.
Newcastle University has been awarded a Queen's Anniversary Prize for Higher Education for its world-renowned Hydrogeochemical Engineering Research and Outreach (HERO) programme. Building on this record of excellence, the Sir Joseph Swan Centre for Energy Research seeks to place the North East at the forefront of research in ground-source heat pump systems, and other larger-scale sources of essentially carbon-free geothermal energy, and developing more responsible modes of fossil fuel use.
Our fossil fuel research encompasses both the use of a novel microbial process, recently patented by Newcastle University, to convert heavy oil (and, by extension, coal) to methane, and the coupling of carbon capture and storage (CCS) to underground coal gasification (UCG) using directionally drilled boreholes. This hybrid technology (UCG-CCS) is exceptionally well suited to early development in the North East, which still has 75% of its total coal resources in place.
Sustainable power
We undertake fundamental and applied research into various aspects of power generation and energy systems, including:
Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies
We are recognised as world leaders in hydrogen storage research. Our work covers the entire range of fuel cell technologies, from high-temperature hydrogen cells to low-temperature microbial fuel cells, and addresses some of the complex challenges which are slowing the uptake and impact of fuel cell technology.
Key areas of research include:
Sustainable development and use of key resources
Our research in this area has resulted in the development and commercialisation of novel gasifier technology for hydrogen production and subsequent energy generation.
We have developed ways to produce alternative fuels, in particular a novel biodiesel pilot plant that has attracted an Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) AspenTech Innovative Business Practice Award.
Major funding has been awarded for the development of fuel cells for commercial application and this has led to both patent activity and highly-cited research. Newcastle is a key member of the SUPERGEN Fuel Cell Consortium. Significant developments have been made in fuel cell modelling, membrane technology, anode development and catalyst and fuel cell performance improvements.
Find out more about staff specialisms and our current research projects.
Facilities
As a postgraduate student you will be based in the Sir Joseph Swan Centre for Energy Research. Depending on your chosen area of study, you may also work with one or more of our partner schools, providing you with a unique and personally designed training and supervision programme.
You have access to:
See our course fees and funding webpage - http://www.ncl.ac.uk/postgraduate/courses/degrees/energy-mphil-phd/#fees&funding
A 2:1 Honours degree, or international equivalent, in a relevant subject. However, combinations of the following can be taken into consideration:
Please contact us if you wish to discuss your individual circumstances.
International Students
To study this course you need to meet our Band 2 English Language requirements:
Direct Entry : IELTS 6.5 overall (with a minimum of 5.5 in all sub-skills)
If you have lower English Language scores, you may be accepted onto a pre-sessional English course.
Our typical English Language requirements are listed as IELTS scores but we also accept a wide range of English Language tests.
The equivalent academic qualifications that we accept are listed on our country pages.
Pre-sessional English Course Requirements
You can study a pre-sessional English course at our INTO Newcastle Centre.
You may need an ATAS (Academic Technology Approval Scheme) clearance certificate. You'll need to get this before you can get your visa or study on this programme. We'll let you know about the ATAS requirement in your offer letter.
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