BURA Collection:

The hydrogen Gulf: Quantitative supply chain optimisation for a trans-regional green hydrogen economy in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Title: The hydrogen Gulf: Quantitative supply chain optimisation for a trans-regional green hydrogen economy in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Authors: Olabi, Valentina Abstract: The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region is exceptionally well positioned for large-scale green hydrogen development, combining among the highest global solar irradiance levels with strategically significant export access to both the Red Sea and Arabian Gulf maritime corridors. However, despite strong policy momentum and ambitious national decarbonisation targets, the systematic design of resilient, economically viable, and temporally robust green hydrogen supply chains (HSCs) in the GCC remains insufficiently addressed in the literature. Existing approaches are predominantly static, single-criterion, or single-country in scope, and fail to capture the dynamic interplay between evolving stakeholder priorities, multi-period technology maturation, and multi-objective trade-offs inherent in large-scale hydrogen infrastructure deployment. This thesis develops a multi-objective optimisation framework for green HSC design in the GCC, integrating Mixed-Integer Linear Programming (MILP) with an adaptive Analytic Hierarchy Process–Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (AHP–TOPSIS) methodology. The framework incorporates time-dependent stakeholder preferences and multi-period planning horizons to represent the evolution of technology performance, cost trajectories, and sustainability objectives under demand uncertainty. The model is applied to two regional case studies: Kuwait, analysed under a single-period static framework representing a 2050 planning horizon, and Saudi Arabia’s Northwestern region (Al Jawf, Tabuk, Hail, and Al Madinah provinces; 477,089 km²), evaluated under a dynamic multi-period framework spanning 2025 to 2060. Both cases assess alternative hydrogen production technologies (PEM, AEM, and alkaline water electrolysis), storage options (compressed gas tanks, cryogenic tanks and salt caverns), and transportation modes (compressed gas trucks, cryogenic trucks, and pipelines). Results indicate that production technology selection is the most demand-sensitive component of the supply chain. Alkaline water electrolysis is preferred under low-to-medium demand conditions due to operational stability and lower capital intensity, while PEM electrolysis becomes preferable under high-demand conditions in 2060, where sustained high utilisation enables its higher efficiency to be fully realised. Across both case studies, geological storage consistently dominates surface alternatives under all evaluated scenarios, with substantial performance margins in both MILP and TOPSIS frameworks. Pipeline transportation emerges as the preferred long-term transport mode, with increasing dominance at higher demand levels and under capital cost prioritisation, reflecting strong scale economies relative to cryogenic logistics. Collectively, these findings support a regionally coordinated hydrogen infrastructure design, conceptualised as a GCC Hydrogen Corridor Architecture comprising a pipeline backbone and geographically distributed geological storage network. This framework highlights the potential efficiency gains from coordinated infrastructure development across GCC states, particularly through shared transport corridors, diversified storage siting, and spatial optimisation of production and demand centres. The thesis contributes four principal advances: an integrated MILP- AHP-TOPSIS framework for hydrogen supply chain optimisation across multiple GCC contexts; the identification of regime-dependent technology optimality as a structural feature of hydrogen system design; a quantitative basis for assessing coordinated GCC hydrogen infrastructure at the regional scale; and a methodological demonstration that static and multi-period optimisation frameworks provide complementary insights into different dimensions of system behaviour under uncertainty. Description: This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University London

Integrated simulation and multi-site optimisation of wind-operated alkaline water electrolysis for green hydrogen production in Kuwait

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Title: Integrated simulation and multi-site optimisation of wind-operated alkaline water electrolysis for green hydrogen production in Kuwait Authors: Alhajeri, Abdulrahman M H A H Abstract: Diversification of energy mix to meet Vision 2035 sustainability goals is a main challenge facing Kuwait. Green hydrogen production is expected to be one of the solutions. Therefore, this research investigates the technical and economic feasibility of using alkaline water electrolysis to convert intermittent wind resources into green hydrogen, focusing on three strategic sites: Airport, Wafra, and Abdaly. The methodology includes utilisation of a multi-stage modeling framework. A mathematical model was developed in Excel, using semi-empirical equations (Hug and Ulleberg models) to characterise the non-linear relationships between current density, cell voltage, and Faraday efficiency. The Excel model was integrated with TRNSYS for transient system analysis and optimised using HOMER Pro to determine the Levelised Cost of Hydrogen (LCOH). The results show significant differences in site potential and performance. The Airport site appeared as the most feasible, achieving an annual hydrogen production of 469.8 kg (Excel) and 162.65 kg (TRNSYS), with Specific Energy Consumption (SEC) of 52.9 kWh/kg. The Abdaly site showed an efficiency cliff, where low current densities during winter months decreased Faraday efficiency and increased SEC to 407.4 kWh/kg. The comparative analysis reveals that static models (Excel) tend to overpredict energy penalties at Wafra and Abdaly sites by up to 69% compared to dynamic simulations (TRNSYS), which benefit from control logic and battery buffering. HOMER Pro techno-economic analysis results show that system at the Airport site achieved lowest Levelised Cost of Energy (LCOE) of $1.14/kWh and LCOH of $9.03/kg. Irrespective of the high initial capital investment ($103,652), the system demonstrates strategic feasibility for decentralised, zero-emission applications. The study concludes that off-grid wind-operated systems at the Wafra and Abdaly sites are technically inefficient and economically unfeasible without hybridisation with solar arrays. These findings provide a critical roadmap for Kuwaiti policymakers to develop site-specific renewable clusters and adopt encouraging subsidy amendments to evolve competitive local hydrogen systems. Description: This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University London

Development of social sustainability assessment methods for solar thermal energy systems applied to industrial processes

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Title: Development of social sustainability assessment methods for solar thermal energy systems applied to industrial processes Authors: Zafar, Imaad Abstract: This thesis assessed the social sustainability of a newly developed Solar Thermal Energy (STE) system using the following methods. First, a Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA) was conducted using Social Hotspot Database (SHDB) inventory data to assess social risks on employees involved in producing the system’s three components: Fresnel solar collectors (SunDial), the Phase Change Material (PCM) storage tank, and the Control Unit. Next, surveys involving 56 employees engaged in the technology’s Product Development phase were conducted to assess social impact in the following impact categories: Training Satisfaction (TS), Professional Development (PD), and Working Intensity (WI). Industrial and social acceptance of the technology was then assessed through surveys with 318 industries and 279 members of the public, capturing perceptions of the system’s adoption potential, greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction, and economic savings. Finally, a regression model was conducted to predict future trends in social impact and industrial acceptance over a 10-year timeframe, providing insights into long-term technological and financial improvements. Results of the S-LCA revealed substantial Health & Safety (H&S) risks for employees involved in the technology’s production, particularly in aluminium manufacturing of the PCM storage tank due to non-compliance with regional H&S policies. In the Product Development phase, positive impact was observed in PD and WI, whereas a negative impact score of -0.5 in TS revealed training provision gaps. Regression analysis identified strong correlations between social impact and influencing investments in Human Resource Management (HRM) including provision of training; PT (ρ = 0.54), employee engagement in R&D; EE, (ρ = 0.48), provision of professional development opportunities; PPD (ρ = 0.80), and task allocation; AT (ρ = 0.63), all statistically significant (p < 0.05). Next, surveys gauging the acceptance of worldwide industries showed strong results for the STE system’s technical compatibility (82%), costs (82%), and impact on standard compliance (87%), with highest scores reported by the Aerospace (92%), Metallic (89%), and Automotive (86%) industries. Acceptance was particularly strong among large companies (84%) and medium-sized companies (87%), whereas lower rates were observed for small (45%) and micro (37%) enterprises, largely due to the upfront costs of STE systems, which posed a greater financial burden for firms of this scale. Moreover, surveys involving the general public showed strong agreement with STE’s environmental benefits (86%) and willingness to consume products manufactured using STE’s clean energy goods (79%). Results of the future predictions showed that social impact on employees improved over the decade, as indicated by the probability of observing TS = 5 increased from 0.10 to 0.30 and TS = 4 from 0.35 to 0.60 due to annual investment in EE. Similarly, the probability of observing PD = 5 increased from 0.20 to 0.50 and WI = 4 from 0.25 to 0.50 from investment in PPD and AT, respectively. Industrial acceptance also marginally improved over the decade; most notably, AC = 5 rose from 0.44 to 0.52, and AC = 4 increased from 0.41 to 0.46. A large improvement was found amongst small and micro-sized companies as the probability of observing a high score rose 0.45 to 0.67 for small companies and 0.37 to 0.62 for micro-sized companies. The findings provide nuanced technological and monetary improvement measures to enhance the long-term sustainability and industrial relevance of newly developed STE systems. The findings of this thesis demonstrate the strong influence of targeted investments in workforce development, technological improvements, and financial support mechanisms on enhancing both social impact and industrial acceptance of STE systems over the decade. These thesis insights on influencing factors provide valuable implications for workforce managers, industrial stakeholders, and policymakers by offering practical guidance on forecasting, prioritising, and strategically allocating resources to maximise stakeholder satisfaction and support industrial adoption of current and future emerging STE deployments. Description: This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University London

Leading edge blowing: A targeted approach to reduce aerofoil noise

Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Title: Leading edge blowing: A targeted approach to reduce aerofoil noise Authors: Bakrania, Yash Abstract: This thesis investigates steady leading-edge blowing as an active flow-control strategy for reducing aerofoil self-noise from a NACA 65(12)-10 aerofoil. The work considers three noise mechanisms: trailing-edge tonal noise, leading-edge broadband turbulence-interaction noise, and separation-stall noise. Far-field acoustic measurements are combined with hot-wire anemometry, surface-pressure measurements, and aerodynamic force measurements so that the acoustic response can be interpreted alongside the underlying flow physics. The first part of the study examines trailing-edge tonal noise. The results show that leading-edge blowing can strongly suppress the discrete tonal radiation associated with a suction-side laminar separation bubble and the aeroacoustic feedback loop it supports. Under the most effec-tive conditions, tonal levels are reduced by up to 20–25 dB. The main effect is not a large shift in tonal frequency, but a weakening of the organised instability and of the flow-acoustic coupling that sustains the tone. The second part addresses leading-edge broadband noise under both isotropic and anisotropic turbulent inflow conditions. Here, the effectiveness of the control is found to depend strongly on the incoming turbulence, particularly its length scale, anisotropy, and spatial coherence. When the actuation is suitably matched to the inflow, measurable broadband reductions are achieved. These reductions are linked to a weakening of spanwise coherence and to a shortening of the effective interaction length at the leading edge, showing that the control acts by modifying the structure of the incoming disturbances before they are scattered into sound. The final part of the thesis considers separation-stall noise at high incidence. In this regime, leading-edge blowing delays the onset of stall-related separation by up to about 3.7◦ and reduces the associated low-frequency acoustic radiation by up to 5 dB. The measurements show that the blowing modifies the separated-flow topology and weakens the large-scale unsteady structures that dominate the noise generation process. Overall, the thesis shows that steady leading-edge blowing is more than a case-specific method of reducing noise. It acts as a targeted control strategy that can influence several aerofoil self-noise mechanisms through changes to the near-field flow structure. The central finding is that noise reduction is achieved by weakening the coherence and organisation of the source regions that radiate most efficiently. This provides a basis for the future design of quieter aerofoils and blade sections using tunable leading-edge actuation in applications such as aircraft, turbomachinery, propellers, and wind turbines. Description: This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University London