Description

In this school, we will focus on energy systems. In this way, participants will get a broad overview of the inherently diverse field of energy solutions through the lens of their connectivity and how these solutions may eventually come together. First we will give an overview of the issues and challenges for the energy transition (climate change and energy policy), then we will present several current and improvable fossil energy technologies (nuclear and carbon capture and sequestration), the main sustainable energy technologies (solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and biomass) and options for bringing these systems together (storage, buildings and electricity grids) and evaluating them (energy systems, systems modeling, life cycle assessment and urban design).

These topics will be split into 8 half day symposia. We will begin with systems that outline the challenges and intricacies of the energy transition. Specifically, we will begin by covering Climate Change, Energy Systems and Energy Policy (Symposium I) and Systems Modeling and Life Cycle Assessment (Symposium II). We will then begin our overview of various energy producing solutions with: Fossil Energy solutions (Symposium III), Wind and Hydro energy (Symposium IV), Solar Energy (Symposium V), Biomass and Sustainable chemistry (Symposium VI) and Geothermal Energy and sustainable buildings (Symposium VII). Finally, we will end with an overview of a particularly critical enabling technology for sustainable energy which will cover Electricity use both in terms of storage and grids (Symposium VIII). All symposia will be highly interdisciplinary and will provide a unique but necessary overview to the attendants of the larger context to the technology or system that their PhD focuses on.

The school will provide 2 ECTS credits.

Confirmed speakers

For the symposia, we are inviting a combination of outstanding scientists from EPFL and Switzerland and renowned international experts. We believe this will provide the PhD students with a view of the expertise available in Switzerland but also maximize the opportunities for scientific exchange.

Confirmed Swiss Contributors:

  1. Carbon sequestration (Prof. B. Smit, EPFL)
  2. Urban Systems Design (Prof. F. Maréchal, EPFL)
  3. Hydroenergy (Prof. F. Avellan, EPFL)
  4. Photovoltaics (Prof. C. Ballif, EPFL)
  5. Solar thermal energy (Prof. S. Haussener, EPFL)
  6. Electric grids (Prof. M. Paolone, EPFL)

Confirmed international contributors:

  1. Climate change (Prof. Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium)
  2. Energy Policy (Prof. M. Aklin, University of Pittsburgh, USA)
  3. Energy Economics (Prof. S. Pachauri, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, Austria)
  4. Sustainability (Prof. E. Stechel, Arizona State University, USA)
  5. Solar Fuels (Dr. J. Ager, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, USA)
  6. Biofuels (Dr. Blake Simmons, Joint Bioenergy Institute, USA)
  7. Sustainable Chemical Production (Prof. N. Lopez, Institut Català d’Investigació Química, Spain)
  8. Geothermal Energy (Dr. Katherine Young, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, USA)

Schedule

MONDAY June 10th

Symposium I “Climate Change and Energy Policy”

  • Climate change (Prof. Jean-Pascal van Ypersele, Université Catholique de Louvain)
  • Energy Policy (Prof. Michael Aklin, University of Pittsburgh)
  • Energy Economics (Prof. Shonali Pachauri, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis)
  • Sustainability and the Energy Transition (Prof. Ellen Stechel, Arizona State University)

TUESDAY June 11th

Symposium II “Energy Systems and Fossil Energy Solutions”

  • Carbon Sequestration (Prof. Berend Smit, EPFL)
  • Systems modeling and urban systems design (Prof. François Maréchal, EPFL)
  • Nuclear Energy (Prof. Shripad Revankar, Purdue University)

Symposium III “Wind and Hydro Energy”

  • Wind Energy (Prof. Karen Mulleners, EPFL)
  • Hydroelectric energy (Prof. François Avellan, EPFL)

WEDNESDAY June 12th

Symposium IV “Solar Energy”

  • Photovoltaic energy (Prof. Christophe Ballif, EPFL)
  • Solar Thermal (Prof. Sophia Haussener, EPFL)
  • Solar Fuels (Dr. Joel Ager, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory)

THURSDAY June 13th

Symposium V “Biomass conversion and Sustainable Chemistry”

  • Biofuels (Dr. Blake Simmons, Joint Bioenergy Institute)
  • Sustainable chemical production (Prof. Nuria Lopez, Institut Català d’Investigació Química)

Symposium VI “Geothermal Energy”

  • Geothermal Energy (Katherine Young, National Renewable Energy Laboratory)

FRIDAY June 14th

Symposium VII “Electricity Usage”

  • Batteries and energy storage (Dr. Nam Hee Kwon, Université de Fribourg)
  • Electrical Grid Management (Prof. Mario Paolone, EPFL)
  • Power conversion and motors (Michail Vasiladiotis, ABB corp.)

Where and when?

The school will take place from Monday June 10th starting at 15h00 to Friday June 14th 2019 at 12h30 in Champéry, a mountain resort in Switzerland (https://www.myswitzerland.com/en-ch/champery.html). Practical information on how to access Champéry from Switzerland or abroad is available here (https://www.palladiumdechampery.ch/en/divers/practical-information/pratical-information.htm?respp=9). If you are coming by train, which is likely the most convenient, we recommend using the Swiss Railways Website (https://www.sbb.ch/en/home.html) for scheduling and buying tickets (use Champéry as the destination).

Venue and Accommodation 

Attendees and speakers of the summer school will be hosted at either the Hotel Le National (http://www.lenational.ch/index.php/en/) or Le White (https://www.lewhite.ch/eng). All meals from Monday evening to Friday Lunch as well as the stay are included in the price of the summer school. We will also provide opportunities for activities and participation in social hours.

Registration

Please register here.

This summer school is open to both doctoral students and postdocs.

Price of the summer school:
– Single room at Le National: CHF 1220 (Le National is fully booked, but it is possible for some single rooms in Le White)
– Double room at Le White: CHF 820
– Triple room at Le National (if available, we only have a few left, please enquire before making your reservation): CHF 750

The registration deadline is 7th June 2019 at noon.

Cancellation penalty:
– 50% refund until 30th April 2019
– no refunds after 30th April 2019
– you are exempt from this penalty if you find a substitute

Contact 

Nathalie Matthey-de-l’Endroit

nathalie.matthey@epfl.ch

+41 21 69 35982

Meeting Chairs

Prof. Jeremy Luterbacher and Prof. François Maréchal (EPFL).

Sponsors