UW SER and Cardiff University Launch Hydrogen Energy Webinar Series

The Hydrogen Energy Research Center (H₂ERC) in the University of Wyoming’s School of Energy Resources (SER) is partnering with Cardiff University in Wales, United Kingdom, to launch a webinar series that focuses on emerging topics in hydrogen energy.

The first webinar in the series will feature Eugene Holubnyak, UW’s H₂ERC director, and Meysam Qadrdan, a professor of energy networks and systems at Cardiff University. They will cover such topics as hydrogen hubs in the U.S. and energy infrastructures, and they will give an overview of the current challenges that the U.K. faces to achieve its net-zero goal by 2050.

The collaboration is the result of a memorandum of understanding between the two institutions that was created in 2021. The partnership is intended to cultivate academic and cultural interchange; highlight research capabilities; and identify complementary expertise across the universities that will facilitate future collaborations on joint projects.

The partnership also brings industry partners, local and tribal communities, and Wyoming community colleges into the fold.

“We are excited about this partnership,” Holubnyak says. “In a race to meet net-zero goals, advancements in energy technologies -- such as hydrogen -- are happening all over the world. The collaboration with Cardiff University is a chance to bring our discussions and research onto a bigger stage and work together to find solutions that will hopefully expedite the creation of the hydrogen ecosystem.”

The seminar series is to provide a discussion and networking platform for researchers at Cardiff University and UW who have interests in hydrogen energy research, he adds. The seminars will cover topics related to all aspects of hydrogen energy and its integration into the whole energy system. Science, engineering, economics, and public and policy challenges related to hydrogen energy and its value chain will be covered in future seminars.

“It is our goal that, as a result of these discussions, researchers in our respective institutions will work toward co-developing a special issue on the role of hydrogen in achieving net-zero and submit a joint funding proposal,” Holubnyak says.

The seminar series is planned for a full calendar year, with each online program featuring a one-hour discussion, followed by a question-and-answer session. Programs are scheduled during the last week of each month.

The first presentation will be offered from 8-9 a.m. Friday, April 28. To register for the weekly seminars, participants are asked to go to the SER events webpage to gain access to the webinar link and to receive future presentations and topics.

For more information, call Christine Reed, SER outreach director, at (307) 766-6708 or email christine.reed@uwyo.edu.