Synergies between climate measures and air quality strategies

This research project will involve investigation of a range of future energy and transport scenarios in the UK up to 2050, exploring emissions of air quality pollutants and their impacts on human health. It will be linked to a Defra contract on support for national air pollution control strategies, and build on existing work on electrification of road transport and other net zero climate measures modelled with our UK Integrated Assessment Model, UKIAM. This derives pollutant concentrations and exposure of the UK population, and the student will have access to it. There are many uncertainties in such modelling and the assumptions made. In particular the optimal deployment of air quality control measures to control atmospheric pollutants needs to take account of the temporal development of energy generation, and the capacity of non-polluting renewables to produce electricity and hydrogen/ammonia as alternative fuels in parallel with demands from electrification of road transport and other climate measures. The purpose of this studentship will be to look into these uncertainties in greater depth with respect to the relationship between projections for energy generation and climate measures, and abatement of air quality pollutants and associated benefits for health. Comparison will also be made with parallel modelling for other European countries undertaken by IIASA with the GAINS model.

The student will be based in the Integrated Assessment Unit of the Centre for Environmental Policy at Imperial College and will benefit from the expertise of energy and climate policy specialists and the Energy Futures Lab at Imperial. It will require good computing skills and a good degree in a relevant discipline, plus a strong interest in computer modelling related to environmental policy.

To apply please send a CV with academic qualifications and 2 referees, plus why you think you would be a strong candidate, to Professor Helen ApSimon ([Email Address Removed]) by 8 September. Selected candidates will be interviewed in the following week to start in October 2021 or shortly after.

Alternative Project: https://www.findaphd.com/phds/project/effects-of-future-agricultural-scenarios-on-air-quality-and-ecosystem-protection/?p134165