PhD Position Title

Research on flexible heat pump technology

PhD Position Summary

In the UK, heat constitutes about half of energy consumption. The government plans to install 19 million heat pumps in homes over the coming decades to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. However, the current adoption rate of heat pumps in the UK is low, with only 240,000 operational units as of 2020.

Challenges persist for heat pump technologies, particularly in the UK. Most of UK homes are connected to the gas grid, relying on gas boilers as the primary heating method. This poses a challenge as most available heat pumps operate at temperatures lower than what is typically required by the existing high-temperature heat emitters, necessitating costly retrofitting. Addressing these challenges requires innovations to enhance the cost-effectiveness of heat pump products, especially those designed for high temperatures.

The newly developed flexible heat pump technology integrates a heat storage into a conventional vapour compression heat pump cycle to recover, store and reuse the waste heat generated by the heat pump operation. As a result, it can achieve energy efficiency than conventional heat pumps.

In this PhD project, the student will have the opportunity to work on the modelling and experimental research on the flexible heat pump technology. The student will also benefit from close collaboration with industrial partners.

We want all of our staff and Students to feel that Liverpool is an inclusive and welcoming environment that actively celebrates and encourages diversity. We are committed to working with students to make all reasonable project adaptations including supporting those with caring responsibilities, disabilities or other personal circumstances. For example, If you have a disability you may be entitled to a Disabled Students Allowance on top of your studentship to help cover the costs of any additional support that a person studying for a doctorate might need as a result.

We believe everyone deserves an excellent education and encourage students from all backgrounds and personal circumstances to apply

Eligibility and requirements

Candidates will have, or be due to obtain, a Master’s Degree or equivalent from a reputable University in an appropriate field of Engineering. Exceptional candidates with a First Class Bachelor’s Degree in an appropriate field will also be considered.

Our Offer

Funded studentship

The funded Studentship will cover full tuition fees of £4,786 per year and pay a maintenance grant for 3.5 years, starting at the UKRI minimum of £19,237 pa. for 2024-2025. The Studentship also comes with access to additional funding in the form of a research training support grant

Application Deadline

August 1, 2025

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