DrStephen Doliente

My training and background are in chemical and energy engineering from the University of the Philippines Diliman. I have over ten years of research experience in sustainable energy and chemical technologies. The pillars of my research are process development, techno-economic assessment, life cycle thinking, supply chain optimisation, and whole-systems analysis for evidence-based, strategic, and conscientious deployment of biomass-based, circular, and carbon abatement solutions. I started as an experimentalist in my career and moved towards computational research. In my PhD project in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Bath, UK, I studied biomass value chains and their interactions with the environment-food-energy-water nexus, wherein I developed and applied whole-systems analysis and optimisation techniques to maximise the benefits and minimise the trade-offs of bioeconomy in the Philippines. For my first postdoctoral work at the University of Bath, I collaborated on a UKRI-funded Supergen Bioenergy Hub project that applied life cycle thinking, value chain approach, and whole-systems analysis to decarbonise the UK’s petrochemical sector. For my second postdoctoral work, I collaborated on a VKRF-funded C-THRU project, a collaboration of the University of Cambridge, University of Bath, University of Texas Austin, and University of California Santa Barbara, to develop a global petrochemicals carbon calculator – based on material flow analysis, life cycle thinking, and data visualisation techniques – to aid in understanding the various or defossilisation interventions along the supply chains and their interactions, benefits, and trade-offs. In my current postdoctoral post, I am affiliated with Imperial's Department of Chemical Engineering and its recently inaugurated Centre for Sectoral Economic Performance to collaborate on a sectoral study of the UK's fine chemicals industry. This project aims to understand the current local and global industry landscapes; analyse the technological, innovation, business, and regulatory environments; and develop policy and industry recommendations for the sector's future competitiveness and sustainability.