ReNU+ is a fully funded PhD programme. 100% fees are covered for four years and a minimum tax-free annual living allowance of £20,780 (2025/26 UKRI rate). An additional allowance will be provided to contribute towards consumables, equipment, and travel related to the project.
We welcome and encourage applications from candidates from a diverse range of backgrounds and experiences. Find out more about this via the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion page.
Deadline for the PhD project still open for applications is 13th April 2025 for a PhD start date of 1st October 2025. All applicants should review the application process and additional information in the relevant drop-down sections below
If you have any questions or queries please contact us.
To APPLY for our fully funded studentships, click on the relevant project in the drop down sections below and follow the step by step guides.
Newcastle University, Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering
Application Deadline: Sunday 13th April 2025
Title of the award
PhD Studentship: Developing Self-Healing Coatings for Hydrogen Storage Systems
Award summary
100% fees covered for four years and a minimum tax-free annual living allowance of £20,780 (2025/26 UKRI rate). An additional allowance will be provided to contribute towards consumables, equipment, and travel related to the project.
Overview
ReNU+ is a unique and ambitious programme that will train the next-generation of doctoral carbon champions who are renowned for research excellence and interdisciplinary systemic thinking for Net Zero. The ReNU+ vision is that they will become living examples of a highly skilled workforce delivering an equitable energy transition so that Net Zero is inclusive for all.
Hydrogen has emerged as a promising, clean, and versatile energy carrier, playing a key role in achieving global sustainability goals. One of the biggest challenges lies in its the safe and efficient storage, particularly due to hydrogen embrittlement – a phenomenon where hydrogen permeates storage materials, compromising their structural integrity. The research will focus on this critical issue by developing a Self-Healing, Hybrid Coating to enhance the safety and durability of steel-based hydrogen storage systems. The coating will ensure safer, more efficient hydrogen storage by preventing material degradation and failure.
Number of awards
1
Start date
1st October 2025
Award duration
4 years
Application closing date
13th April 2025
Sponsor
EPSRC
Name of supervisor/s
Eligibility Criteria
You must have, or expect to gain, a minimum 2:1 Honours degree or international equivalent in a subject relevant to the proposed PhD project (inc. chemistry, physics, engineering). Enthusiasm for research, the ability to think and work independently, excellent analytical skills and strong verbal and written communication skills are also essential requirements.
If you do not hold the entry requirements above but have evidence of equivalent skills and expertise, please get in touch with institution director (Prof Elizabeth Gibson) to discuss further.
Home and international applicants (inc. EU) are welcome to apply and if successful will receive a full studentship. Applicants whose first language is not English require an IELTS score of 6.5 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in all sub-skills.
International applicants may require an ATAS (Academic Technology Approval Scheme) clearance certificate prior to obtaining their visa and to study on this programme.
How to apply
Please follow the step by step guide below.
You must apply through the University’s Apply to Newcastle Portal
Once registered select ‘Create a Postgraduate Application’.
Use ‘Course Search’ to identify your programme of study:
You will then need to provide the following information in the ‘Further Details’ section:
In the ‘Supporting Documentation’ section please upload:
You must submit one application per studentship, you cannot apply for multiple studentships on one application. You are welcome to apply to other studentships at the same time, as long as you cite the relevant code on each application (e.g. ReNU25_6 for this studentship).
Contact Details
ReNU+ welcomes and encourages applications from candidates from a diverse range of backgrounds and experiences such as:
Find out further information at the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion page.
Programme Duration: 4 years (Full Time). Studentships are also available for applicants who wish to study on a part-time basis (please see individual adverts on findaphd for further details).
Funding: Each studentship supports a full stipend, paid for four years at UKRI rates (for 2025/26 full-time study this is £20,780 per year) and full tuition fees and a Research Training Support Grant (for travel, consumables, and further training). UK and international (including EU) candidates may apply.
Please access the FindaPhD landing page for ReNU+ here.
If you do not hold the entry requirements but you feel you have evidence of relevant skills and expertise that is equivalent, please get in touch with both the project contact and relevant institution director.
Please note: to be classed as a Home student, candidates must meet the following criteria:
If a candidate does not meet the criteria above, they would be classed as an International student. Applicants will need to be in the UK and fully enrolled before stipend payments can commence, and be aware of the following additional costs that may be incurred, as these are not covered by the studentship.
Immigration Health Surcharge https://www.gov.uk/healthcare-immigration-application
If you need to apply for a Student Visa to enter the UK, please refer to the information on https://www.gov.uk/student-visa. It is important that you read this information very carefully as it is your responsibility to ensure that you hold the correct funds required for your visa application otherwise your visa may be refused.
Costs associated with English Language requirements which may be required for students not having completed a first degree in English, will not be borne by the university. Please see individual adverts for further details of the English Language requirements for the university you are applying to.
Please access the FindaPhD landing page for ReNU+ here.
We need a supply of talented next-generation leaders who will drive getting towards Net Zero. Programs like ReNU and ReNU Plus really focus on making sure those people understand the wider context for energy, not just their individual research project, but also things like the energy system, energy policy, and also finance and economics associated with getting towards Net Zero.
Why did you choose to pursue a PhD?
"I'm a PhD scholar in Northumbria University funded by ReNU. I chose to pursue my PhD because of my passion in material science and engineering and to contribute towards the digital sustainable technologies. "
"I decided to pursue a PhD was because I really enjoyed my master's project and I realized that doing more research would probably be very interesting to me. The long answer is that I've always thought of research as one of the things I wanted to do so it made sense in terms of my future path."
Why did you choose to apply for the ReNU program specifically?
"I chose to apply in the ReNU program specifically because it focuses on the interdisciplinary research and the renewable energy. ReNU is actually part of three universities that is Northumbria, Newcastle and Durham University. So this gives us more support from various experts in the field and the state of art that we are working on."
"The ReNU training program brings in a lot of support so there's to begin with very wide lectures on what kind of problems we're facing in terms of reaching net zero or just the energy problem. There's also a lot of help with careers advice and stuff like progression."
What would you say are the benefits of being part of a cohort of students?
"The benefits for being part of the cohort of students is that it creates a collaborative environment for everyone and we all can interact with each other and this creates a good support network and exchange of ideas and research which actually helps us in our research. And secondly, with the help of this, we can have access to various labs, be it Northumbria University, be it Durham University or Newcastle University, for example, in my research I need TEM for morphological studies of the films. And it's not in Northumbria University and I'm planning to use the one that is in Durham. So it actually helps to overcome the barriers."
"Being part of a cohort is really motivating for me because I can talk about what I'm facing and find someone with similar problems or find solace in the fact that we're all stuck in the same problems but also it's more than that it's sharing experiences and ways to deal with certain problems that a normal PhD student might not be able to have."
In terms of the ReNU Plus program specifically, what would your advice be to future students who might be interested in that?
"I would highly recommend that they join the ReNU Plus program. They're going to find access to a lot of different resources within the program spanning from biology, physics, electrical engineering and chemistry and they're going to have crossovers with industry partners to find job opportunities as they go further afield."
Please visit our Frequently Asked Questions page for more information.
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