Yan, Xiaoyu

Dr Xiaoyu Yan is lecturer (assistant professor) in clean technology and renewable energy in the Environment and Sustainability Institute at the University of Exeter. He was previously a research associate at the Universities of Cambridge, Oxford and London, with a PhD in mechanical engineering. Xiaoyu has a broad interest in energy and the environment and more than 10 years of experience in a range of interdisciplinary areas, including engine testing of biofuels, energy system modelling, and using life cycle assessment (LCA) to evaluate the sustainability of bioenergy pathways, electricity generation, transport technologies, water systems, metal mining and waste processing operations.

His current research is funded by Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), British Council and the EU and mainly focuses on: developing dynamical spatiotemporal LCA tools covering environmental, economic and social impacts; assessing the effects of renewable energy systems on ecosystem services from a life cycle perspective; sustainability assessment of bioenergy systems in the UK and China, domestic rainwater harvesting, production of rare earth metals, co-processing of coal mine and electronic wastes and intelligent community energy systems; mapping the Water-Energy-Food Nexus; and integrating marine ecosystem services into macroeconomic modelling. Xiaoyu is supervising 1 postdoctoral research fellow and 5 PhD students and has published more than 20 articles in these areas.