Loughborough-made battery system promises clean cooking with hydrogen for remote African communities – Loughborough University

Loughborough University Develops Battery Electrolyser System to Advance Sustainable Development Goals in Remote Communities

1.0 Introduction

A project led by Loughborough University has resulted in the creation of an innovative battery electrolyser system. This technology is designed to provide clean energy for cooking and electricity to remote African communities, directly addressing several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The system offers a sustainable alternative to traditional biomass fuels, tackling critical issues related to health, environment, and energy access.

2.0 Technology Overview

The containerised battery electrolyser, developed by the School of Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering, functions as a dual-purpose energy solution:

1. Electricity Storage: It stores electrical energy generated from renewable sources, such as solar panels, in its integrated batteries.
2. Hydrogen Production: Through electrolysis, the system uses this stored energy to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. The produced hydrogen is then compressed and stored for use as a clean cooking fuel, with water being the only byproduct.

3.0 Contribution to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

The project provides a multi-faceted approach to achieving global sustainability targets, with significant emphasis on the following SDGs:

• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy: The core objective is to provide access to affordable, reliable, and sustainable modern energy. The system delivers both electricity and a clean cooking fuel (hydrogen) from renewable sources, directly supporting targets for universal energy access.
• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being: By replacing biomass fuels like wood, the technology eliminates the emission of harmful indoor pollutants. This directly mitigates premature deaths and respiratory illnesses, particularly affecting women and children who are heavily involved in cooking.
• SDG 5: Gender Equality: The provision of clean cooking fuel reduces the burden on women and children for collecting firewood and improves their health outcomes, contributing to gender equality and empowerment.
• SDG 13: Climate Action & SDG 15: Life on Land: The system promotes climate action by offering a green alternative to biomass, which contributes to deforestation and CO₂ emissions. This helps protect and restore terrestrial ecosystems.
• SDG 4: Quality Education: The initial deployment will electrify school classrooms, improving the learning environment and educational opportunities for students.

4.0 Pilot Implementation and Impact

The first battery electrolyser unit is scheduled for deployment at a school in Zambia. The intended applications will demonstrate the system’s direct community benefits:

• Electrification of school classrooms and teachers’ houses.
• Provision of clean hydrogen for community cooking needs.
• Powering essential services, such as refrigeration for hospitals.

5.0 Scalability and Future Applications

The project team envisions broad applications for the battery electrolyser concept beyond the initial pilot, aiming to enhance global energy sustainability.

• Renewable Energy Integration: The system can be coupled with intermittent renewable energy sources, such as wind farms in the UK, to store excess energy and prevent curtailment.
• Diesel Generator Replacement: It offers a completely renewable and pollutant-free alternative to diesel backup generators commonly used in off-grid locations for construction, filming, and other industrial applications.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

The article discusses a project that aligns with several Sustainable Development Goals by addressing interconnected issues of energy poverty, health, education, and environmental degradation in remote African communities.

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being: The project aims to replace traditional biomass cooking methods, which “release harmful pollutants which cause premature deaths, particularly in women and young children.” By providing a clean cooking alternative (hydrogen), it directly contributes to reducing mortality from indoor air pollution. Additionally, the system can provide “backup power for hospitals for refrigeration,” which is crucial for storing medicines and vaccines.
• SDG 4: Quality Education: The article explicitly states that the battery electrolyser will be used to “electrify school classrooms and teachers’ houses” in a school in Zambia. Access to electricity in educational facilities is fundamental for improving the quality of education.
• SDG 5: Gender Equality: The article highlights that women are disproportionately affected by the health impacts of traditional cooking methods. By introducing clean cooking technology, the project helps to alleviate a significant health burden placed on women, who are often “heavily involved in the cooking process.”
• SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy: This is the central SDG addressed. The project’s primary goal is to provide a “source of renewable energy” to communities that “lack access to electricity.” It does this by using solar panels to generate electricity and produce hydrogen for “clean cooking,” directly tackling energy poverty with a sustainable solution.
• SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure: The project itself is an example of technological innovation, described as a “battery electrolyser, designed by academics from Loughborough’s School of Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering.” It represents an upgrade in technology for supplying sustainable energy services.
• SDG 13: Climate Action: The project provides an alternative to energy sources with high carbon footprints. It replaces biomass burning, which contributes to emissions, and is proposed as a substitute for “diesel backup generators” that have “unsustainable CO₂ emissions associated with them.”
• SDG 15: Life on Land: The article notes that the current reliance on biomass for cooking “can often lead to a depletion of natural resources and contributes to deforestation.” By providing an alternative fuel source, the project helps to reduce the pressure on local forests and ecosystems.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

Based on the issues and solutions presented, several specific SDG targets are relevant:

1. Target 3.9: By 2030, substantially reduce the number of deaths and illnesses from hazardous chemicals and air, water and soil pollution and contamination. The project directly addresses this by aiming to eliminate the “harmful pollutants” from burning wood for cooking.
2. Target 4.a: Build and upgrade education facilities that are child, disability and gender sensitive and provide safe, non-violent, inclusive and effective learning environments for all. The project contributes to this target by providing electricity to “electrify school classrooms,” which is a fundamental upgrade for a modern learning environment.
3. Target 5.4: Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work… and promote shared responsibility within the household and the family as nationally appropriate. By providing clean cooking technology, the project improves the health and safety conditions associated with domestic work, which disproportionately affects women.
4. Target 7.1: By 2030, ensure universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services. The project’s core mission is to provide energy to “remote African communities” and people in “sub-Saharan Africa, [who] lack access to electricity.”
5. Target 7.2: By 2030, increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix. The system is entirely based on renewable energy, using “solar panels” to generate electricity and produce green hydrogen.
6. Target 15.2: By 2020, promote the implementation of sustainable management of all types of forests, halt deforestation, restore degraded forests and substantially increase afforestation and reforestation globally. The project helps halt deforestation by reducing the need for communities to use biomass and burn wood for fuel.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

The article implies several ways to measure the project’s success, which align with official SDG indicators:

• Indicator 7.1.1 (Proportion of population with access to electricity): Progress can be measured by the number of school classrooms, teachers’ houses, and community buildings that gain access to electricity through the battery system. The article mentions the system will “electrify school classrooms and teachers’ houses.”
• Indicator 7.1.2 (Proportion of population with primary reliance on clean fuels and technology): This can be measured by the number of households or community members who switch from using biomass to using the hydrogen produced by the system for “clean cooking.”
• Indicator 3.9.1 (Mortality rate attributed to household and ambient air pollution): While not directly measured in the project’s scope, a long-term indicator of success would be a reduction in premature deaths and respiratory illnesses, particularly among women and children, in the communities that adopt this technology.
• Indicator 4.a.1 (Proportion of schools with access to electricity): The project’s success can be directly measured by tracking the number of schools, starting with the one in Zambia, that are provided with electricity.
• Indicator 15.2.1 (Progress towards sustainable forest management): An implied indicator would be the reduction in the volume of biomass and wood collected and burned by the community for cooking purposes, which would demonstrate a decrease in pressure on local forests.

4. Summary Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: lboro.ac.uk