Loughborough Research Associate Matt Brenton has been awarded one of 10 national places on the Royce Hydrogen Accelerator, delivered with Conception X. The programme will help scale the University’s multi‑award‑winning lead‑acid battery‑electrolyser – an affordable, recyclable route to clean hydrogen.

Matt is a Research Associate on LoCEL‑H2, a €10 million Horizon Europe Sustainable Energy Storage project working with communities in Zambia and Côte d’Ivoire to deliver reliable power and clean fuel where it matters most. His role is central to meeting key grant milestones towards commercialising the battery‑electrolyser.

The battery‑electrolyser combines energy storage and green hydrogen production in a single, recyclable lead‑acid unit. It delivers around 20 L/min of high‑purity hydrogen without membranes or rare metal catalysts. Full system testing was completed in July 2025, and the technology is now being commissioned in Malawi. A deployment in Côte d’Ivoire is planned for June 2026, where it will enable a remote village community to establish a restaurant as a new source of income.

Matt has been involved in developing the battery‑electrolyser since the outset. He successfully defended his PhD on lead‑acid battery‑electrolysers earlier this month and is part of the multidisciplinary team progressing the work at Loughborough’s Centre for Renewable Energy Systems Technology (CREST). The concept originated in a 2020–21 feasibility study undertaken during his MSc in Renewable Energy (Distinction), following his BEng in Chemical Engineering, both at Loughborough.

Loughborough Research Associate Matt Brenton has been awarded one of 10 national places on the Royce Hydrogen Accelerator, delivered with Conception X. The programme will help scale the University’s multi‑award‑winning lead‑acid battery‑electrolyser – an affordable, recyclable route to clean hydrogen.

Matt is a Research Associate on LoCEL‑H2, a €10 million Horizon Europe Sustainable Energy Storage project working with communities in Zambia and Côte d’Ivoire to deliver reliable power and clean fuel where it matters most. His role is central to meeting key grant milestones towards commercialising the battery‑electrolyser.

The battery‑electrolyser combines energy storage and green hydrogen production in a single, recyclable lead‑acid unit. It delivers around 20 L/min of high‑purity hydrogen without membranes or rare metal catalysts. Full system testing was completed in July 2025, and the technology is now being commissioned in Malawi. A deployment in Côte d’Ivoire is planned for June 2026, where it will enable a remote village community to establish a restaurant as a new source of income.

Matt has been involved in developing the battery‑electrolyser since the outset. He successfully defended his PhD on lead‑acid battery‑electrolysers earlier this month and is part of the multidisciplinary team progressing the work at Loughborough’s Centre for Renewable Energy Systems Technology (CREST). The concept originated in a 2020–21 feasibility study undertaken during his MSc in Renewable Energy (Distinction), following his BEng in Chemical Engineering, both at Loughborough.

Professor Dan Parsons, Pro Vice‑Chancellor for Research and Innovation at Loughborough University, said: “This recognition follows perfectly from Matt’s PhD. He has also been a fantastic public engagement ambassador for Loughborough, taking part in a range of industry and outreach activities, including Pint of Science and the Festival of Tomorrow. All of us at Loughborough wish him all the very best as he embarks on the programme.”

Source:  Fuel Cells Works