The research group “Sustainable Energy System Analysis and Modelling” (SESAM) is part of Politecnico di Milano, Department of Energy, and operates under the flag of the UNESCO Chair for Sustainable Development.

SESAM's research goals is to assess the overall impact of energy scenarios and technology roadmaps in the frame of the energy transition requested by the Agenda 2030 and compliant with the different national energy, environmental and economic policies.

SESAM's research focuses on the development and application of models for the analysis of systems and components within the energy field with application in both developed and developing countries.

Our research builds on the well-established potentiality of integrated and cross-sectoral (electricity, heat, transport...) energy system optimisation and simulation models by expanding their domain of application to multiple spatial and temporal scales. This is achieved through:

• Technological characterisation (of products and/or systems) based on thermo-fluid dynamics detailed modelling of components and plants, realised through the use of both commercial and open-source Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) codes;

• Operational and planning analysis of energy systems at the local and national scales based on energy systems modelling and optimisation including both sectorial and integrated power, transportation and residential;

• Investigation of inter-linkages between the energy sector and other productive sectors (industry, services) based on empirical models within the industrial ecology field (Input-Output models, Life Cycle Assessment) to estimate the economic-environmental impact of alternative energy strategies and policy options;

• Formulation of the multidimensional complexites of the energy-development nexus in the energy access field, based on conceptual and simulation models (e.g. system thinking, system dynamics, impact evaluation frameworks) to support the planning of off-grid systems and electrification strategies.