Sustainable, Scalable and Storable E-Fuels for Decarbonising Transport Sector

Dr. Nikhil Sharma is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur, India. He is Lab In-Charge of I.C. Engine Laboratory and is looking after overall management of I.C. Engine Research group. He received his Ph.D. degree from Department of Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur in 2018. Since 2018, his research has focused on two core areas: emissions from internal combustion engines and optical diagnostics applied to internal combustion engines.

Dr. Camille Hespel is Associate professor at the University of Orleans in PRISME laboratory since September 2009. These main research interests during 15 years are optical diagnostics development, study of spray, droplet vaporization, Diesel and Biofuel combustion, and more particularly the in?uence of fuel properties on the injection and the impact of air-fuel mixing on the combustion. In this context, she participated in the supervision of ?ve Ph.D. students since 2009 and co-author of 20 publications. She is participating in ADONIS project in EIG CONCERT-Japan (8th Call for Projects in the ?eld of “Sustainable Hydrogen Technology as Affordable and Clean Energy”). She has participated in two national projects: ANR DEVACOL (Diagnostics of vaporization of liquid fuels) and ANR ECN-France (Engine Combustion Network). She was the initiator and holder of regional project (ECOSIF: 200ke) on the behavior of Diesel injector on cold condition.

Dr. Snehasish Panigrahy is Assistant Professor in the Department of Energy Science and Engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi. Since the beginning of his research career, he has specialized in combustion science, particularly in chemical kinetic modeling for combustion. His expertise encompasses clean fuel technology, ab initio (quantum chemistry) calculations for combustion kinetics, and applications in ?uid and thermal engineering. Dr. Panigrahy has established a state-of-the-art rapid compression machine facility at IIT Delhi, the only one of its kind in India to study the auto-ignition properties of various jet and rocket fuels. He has been extensively involved in developing detailed chemical kinetic models to investigate the pyrolysis, ignition, and oxidation of hydrocarbons, ranging from small molecules to heavier and renewable fuels. In addition, Dr. Panigrahy has focused signi?cant efforts on the application of porous medium technology for cost-effective and environmentally sustainable cooking solutions. At IIT Delhi, his Clean Fuel and Energy Laboratory (CFEL) is engaged in various projects funded by organizations such as SERB, ISRO, and Hamilton India, among others. He has also collaborated with global clients, including Siemens Limited, Ford Motor Company, and Milton, contributing to industrial advancements. Dr. Panigrahy has published 28 high-impact papers in renowned journals such as Combustion and Flame, Proceedings of the Combustion Institute, Energy, etc.

Dr. Paramvir Singh currently holds the position of Assistant Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the National Institute of Technology, Agartala. He completed postdoctoral research in Combustion Chemistry Center at the National University of Ireland, Galway, in 2022, followed by another postdoc focusing on fuels and combustion at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay. In 2019, he was a visiting postdoc in the Mechanical Engineering Department of the University of Shef?eld, UK. He earned his Master’s and Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the National Institute of Technology Hamirpur, India, in 2013 and 2019, respectively. His research interests span a wide range of topics, including renewable energy, fuel, combustion systems, emission control, gasi?cation, and waste-to-energy technologies. He has a proli?c publication record, with more than 50 research articles in international journals and conferences, as well as ?ve book chapters and monographs.

Prof. Avinash Kumar Agarwal is Director at IIT Jodhpur. He obtained his Undergraduate Degree in Mechanical Engineering (1994) from Malaviya Regional Engineering College, Jaipur, and his M.Tech. (Energy, 1996) and Ph.D. (Energy, 1999) from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi. After his Post-Doctoral Fellowship (1999–2001) at the ERC, UW, Madison, USA, he returned to India in 2001 and joined IIT Kanpur. Prof. Agarwal has established a state-of-the-art “Engine Research Laboratory” at IIT Kanpur. Prof. Agarwal is interested in researching IC engines, combustion, conventional and alternative fuels, optical diagnostics, laser ignition, HCCI, particulates and emission control, and large bore engines. Prof. Agarwal has published over 550+ peer-reviewed international journal and conference papers, 65 edited books, and 129 book chapters, attracting 18300+ Scopus and 27400+ Google Scholar citations. For his outstanding contributions, Prof. Agarwal is conferred upon Sir J C Bose National Fellowship (2019) by SERB, Prestigious Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prize (2016) in Engineering Sciences, Rajib Goyal Prize in Physical Sciences (2015); NASI-Reliance Industries Platinum Jubilee Award (2012); INAE Silver Jubilee Young Engineer Award (2012); INSA Young Scientist Award (2007); UICT Young Scientist Award (2007); INAE Young Engineer Award (2005); Devendra Shukla Research Fellowship (2009–12), Poonam and Prabhu Goyal Endowed Chair Professorship (2013–16), SBI Endowed Chair Professorship (2018–21, 2022–25) at IIT Kanpur. He is an elected Fellow of TWAS, SAE, ASME, INAE, ISEES, RSC, NASI, WSSET, AAAS and Combustion Institute USA.