Hiring: Three PhD positions – H-Wind

H-Wind project (Hydrogen from offshore wind) at MaREI, UCC has three open PhD positions (1) electrical, (2) market development, and (3) offshore wind – hydrogen hub optimisations.

Closing date for applications: Tuesday, 13th April 2021.

PhD position – Electrical grid aspects and offshore wind – hydrogen production hybrid plants

Position Summary

This PhD position is part of the industry-led collaborative project H-Wind (Hydrogen from offshore wind) co-funded by the industry partners and Science Foundation Ireland (SFI). The MaREI Research Centre in University College Cork (UCC) is the research performing organisation and Gas Networks Ireland (GNI), Electricity Supply Board (ESB), DP Energy Ireland and Equinor ASA are the collaboration industry partners in the consortium.

Principal Investigators: Dr Paul Leahy and Dr Nguyen Dinh

Key Duties and Responsibilities

The PhD candidate will conduct a specified programme of research of the H-Wind project WP1, under the supervision and direction of Dr Paul Leahy and Dr Nguyen Dinh from the UCC ERI’s MaREI Centre in collaboration with other technical advisors and industry experts. The research is expected to produce and validate technical models for offshore wind – hydrogen production hybrid plants considering aspects including the interaction with the electricity grid and energy markets and seasonal storage of hydrogen and implement case studies. The researcher will also assist with other aspects of WP1 of H-Wind including data collection, engagement with stakeholders, and policy recommendations.

Selection Criteria

Minimum 2H1 (second class honours, grade 1) honours degree (or equivalent) in an engineering discipline. A master’s degree in engineering by research is desirable (but not required).
Proven technical competence and accomplishment in as many as possible the areas of power systems, electrical engineering, wind farm electrical work, power system operation and modelling.
Demonstrable capability of working within a project team and ability to innovate.
Good communication, organisation and interpersonal skills.
Excellent academic writing skills in the language of English. Having published relevant papers in peer-reviewed journals is desirable (but not required).

Funding details: €18,500 stipend per annum. EU fees of €5,500 per annum will be covered for up to three years

PhD position – Hydrogen energy markets development and distribution

Position Summary

Principal Investigators: Dr Paul Leahy and Dr Nguyen Dinh

Key Duties and Responsibilities

The PhD candidate will conduct a specified programme of research on the H-Wind project WP2, under the supervision and direction of Dr Paul Leahy and Dr Nguyen Dinh from the UCC ERI’s MaREI Centre and in collaboration with other technical advisors and industry experts. The research is expected to produce quantitative analysis of domestic and potential export markets and the customer value chain of hydrogen production from offshore wind, and develop a plan for initial roll out of that value chain in Ireland. The researcher will also assist with other aspects of WP2 and the H-Wind project including data collection, engagement with stakeholders, and policy recommendations.

Selection Criteria

Minimum 2H1 (second class honours, grade 1) honours degree (or equivalent) in an energy, economics or engineering discipline. Previous research/industry experience in the areas of energy markets (electricity, natural gas, oil & gas, and/or hydrogen) is desirable (but not required).
Proven technical competence and accomplishment in as many as possible the areas of market simulations, programming, and quantitative analysis.
Demonstrable capability of working within a project team and ability to innovate.
Good communication, organisation and interpersonal skills.
Excellent academic writing skills in the language of English. Having published relevant papers in peer-reviewed journals is desirable (but not required).

Funding details: €18,500 stipend per annum. EU fees of €5,500 per annum will be covered for up to three years

PhD position – Development of optimisations for offshore wind – hydrogen hubs

Position Summary

Principal Investigators: Dr Nguyen Dinh and Dr Paul Leahy

Key Duties and Responsibilities

The PhD candidate will conduct a specified programme of research of the H-Wind project WP3, under the supervision and direction of Dr Nguyen Dinh and Dr Paul Leahy from the UCC ERI’s MaREI Centre in collaboration with other technical advisors and industry experts. The research is expected to produce and validate mathematical and integrated models for offshore wind – hydrogen hubs, develop optimisation methodology and implement case studies. The researcher will also assist with other aspects of WP3 including data collection, engagement with stakeholders, and policy recommendations.

Selection Criteria

Minimum 2H1 (second class honours, grade 1) honours degree (or equivalent) in an engineering discipline. A master’s degree in engineering by research is desirable (but not required).
Proven technical competence and accomplishment in as many as possible the areas of wind energy, system modelling and programming, mechanical/structural engineering, and system optimisation.
Demonstrable capability of working within a project team and ability to innovate.
Good communication, organisation and interpersonal skills.
Excellent academic writing skills in the language of English. Having published relevant papers in peer-reviewed journals is desirable (but not required).

Funding details: €18,500 stipend per annum. EU fees of €5,500 per annum will be covered for up to three years

H-Wind Background

Ireland has one of the world’s best offshore wind resources with high potential for offshore wind farm (OWF) development. However, using future electricity demand forecast, contributions by other renewables and maximum export capacity via interconnectors, a cumulative OWF capacity of only 6 – 12% and 15 – 20% of the total technical potential can be deployed in 2030 and 2040, respectively. Whereas, in the recent shares of total energy supply, oil accounts for around 45 – 48%, natural gas 30%, and only around 10% was from renewables. Therefore, there is an opportunity for green hydrogen generated by electrolysis from OWFs in Ireland to partly replace the use of oil and natural gas, to contribute to security of energy supply, and to reducethe reduction of GHG emissions, and to serve export markets. is important, and will be initiallyThese opportunities will be identified quantified in the industry-led collaborative project H-Wind (Hydrogen from offshore Wind) at UCC the MaREI Centre. The H-Wind project has been built upon the completed EirWind project (www.marei.ie/project/eirwind/) and consultation with the industry partners and experts, and will look at hydrogen production from OWFs, customer value chain, policy recommendations, and procedures for hydrogen safety, and develop concepts for scalable and optimised offshore wind – hydrogen hubs suitable to the Irish, Celtic and Atlantic Seas. H-Wind will facilitate the delivery of the MaREI Centre vision to position Ireland as a global leader in energy, climate and marine.

Application

Please send

Short cover letter (max 01 page) describing your motivation for applying for the position and how your experience and expertise match the research topic.
CV including lists of relevant courses taken, research/industry projects performed and papers published.

to Ms Grainne Lynch (ei.ccu@hcnyl.enniarg) – MaREI Research Support Officer – Admin and quoting exactly “PhD3 in Offshore wind – hydrogen hub optimisation” in the subject line.