Systems dynamics and optimization based design of sustainable transport sector in India

Decarbonization of the transport sector is important for India to achieve net zero status by 2070. A particular challenge for India is the rapid expansion of the personal vehicle segment in the next couple of decades. Multiple options such as electric vehicles (EVs), biofuels based vehicles, compressed biogas driven vehicles and so on are being promoted. The optimal adoption of these technologies should be a function of technology performance, cost, environmental impact and policies, all of which are a function of time. 

This project will extend the work we have done in developing a system dynamics modeling framework to study the adoption of various vehicle options and recommend strategies to promote a desired outcome for decarbonization (System dynamics-based assessment of novel transport options adoption in India | SpringerLink). The framework needs to be extended further to make it more useful. Some of the key ideas include:

• Considering the availability of resources for biofuels sector
• Incorporating performance of vehicle with age and vehicle scrappage policy
• Capturing diversity in consumer decision making through agent-based modeling (complex systems theory)
• Modeling spatial uncertainty in the country in terms of infrastructure and environment impacts

This project will focus on addressing some of these issues and develop a decision making framework. 

This project is completely computational. The nature of work is very interdisciplinary, going beyond the field of chemical engineering. The programming will be using MATLAB.

Prior work based using the model can be found at the following links. These papers will give you a sense of the type of work expected:

System dynamics-based assessment of novel transport options adoption in India | SpringerLink