The CATENERG UPV Chair is leading the debate on urban decarbonisation at SDEWES 2026 with 27 contributions and two international awards

The Universitat Politècnica de València’s (UPV) Urban Energy Transition Chair has strengthened its international standing at the 21st Conference on Sustainable Development of Energy, Water and Environment Systems (SDEWES), held in Gran Canaria, taking home 1st and 2nd prize for best research papers.

The transition towards climate-neutral, resilient cities requires public decision-making to be grounded in robust data and solid predictive models. With this aim, the Urban Energy Transition Chair (CATENERG UPV), led by Professor Carla Montagud Montalvá, maintained a strong presence at the 21st SDEWES Conference, one of the leading international interdisciplinary forums for the integration of sustainable energy, water and environmental systems. The UPV delegation linked to the Chair presented a total of 26 scientific studies (16 oral presentations and 11 posters), showcasing internationally the projects, methodologies and tools being developed to accelerate the decarbonisation of the city of València.

Recognising UPV’s Research Excellence

The conference opened with a landmark moment for our academic community: the awarding of the two top research honours at the opening gala.

• • 🥇 1st Best Paper Award: Awarded to the study «Reassessing Last-Mile Electrification Pathways Considering Greenhouse Gas Emissions», developed within the Chair by Lucas Martínez-Rodríguez, David Ribó-Pérez, Tomás Gómez-Navarro, Manuel Enrique Salas Salazar, Camilo Ramírez and Francesco Fuso Nerini.

• • 🥈 2nd Best Paper Award: Given to the work «How Do Closed-Loop Floating Photovoltaic Systems in Tropical Climates Affect Adjacent Water Body Temperatures?», co-authored by Chair researcher Carlos Vargas-Salgado, together with Fabian Alonso Lara Vargas, Hader Vladimir Martínez Tejada, Michael Bierhoff and Alfonso Carlos-Daza.

València at the Heart of Applied Energy Research

CATENERG’s presence at SDEWES allowed the four major strategic action areas the Chair is developing for the city to be put to the test before the international scientific community:

1. 1. Decarbonisation and climate resilience assessment: Methodologies for territorial inventories, neighbourhood-scale retrofit planning, quantification of rooftop photovoltaic potential on municipal buildings using Artificial Intelligence (the SAM tool), and post-DANA road network resilience models for the València metropolitan area.

1. 1. Energy modelling and flexibility: Optimisation algorithms for Renewable Energy Communities (RECs), hybrid storage management, Smart Charging strategies, and automated optimal design of public electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

1. 1. Energy justice and vulnerability mitigation: Socioeconomic models aimed at turning traditional subsidies into structural renewable investment through solidarity energy communities, alongside analysis of intersectional energy poverty (in collaboration with INGENIO-UPV).

1. 1. Smart buildings and Living Labs: Dynamic thermal simulation (TRNSYS) and BIM models geared towards the nZEB standard in municipal assets such as La Harinera, façade-integrated photovoltaic solutions (BIPV), and energy management (EMS) algorithms for batteries and photovoltaics at Las Naves.

Young Talent as the Team’s Driving Force

Beyond the scientific output and knowledge-transfer figures, taking part in this gathering was an opportunity to strengthen team cohesion and consolidate the Chair’s true operational engine: UPV’s undergraduate and master’s students and early-career researchers. Their involvement in preparing and presenting these 27 contributions shows that retaining talent and training in advanced energy engineering are key levers for the Valencian ecosystem. All of this is made possible thanks to the partnership and public-service commitment of our collaborating and sponsoring bodies: OAM València Sostenible and the València Innovation Capital Foundation, under Valencia City Council.

List of Contributions to SDEWES 2026

Oral Presentations (16)

• • Águila-León, J., Camas-Náfate, M., Vargas-Salgado, C., Coronado Mendoza, A. — Enhanced Physics-Informed Lithium-Ion Battery Model for Energy Storage Integration: An Adaptive Neural-Enhanced Optimization Approach.

• • Águila-León, J., Vargas-Salgado, C., Lucero-Tenorio, M., Díaz-Bello, D. — Neural-Enhanced Photovoltaic MPPT Controller Optimization Using the ANEMMSO Algorithm: Performance Analysis Against Traditional and Metaheuristic Approaches.

• • Alfonso-Solar, D., Brines-Gimeno, N., Peñalvo-Lopez, E., Valencia-Salazar, I. — Nature-based solutions for urban heat stress mitigation: LiDAR-enhanced GIS and SOLWEIG modeling of thermal comfort in Mediterranean cities.

• • Berna-Escriche, C., Bastida-Molina, P., Álvarez-Piñeiro, L., Blanco-Muelas, D. — Local Energy Communities: A Participatory Model for Decarbonization through Self-Consumption and Smart Energy Management.

• • Calvete Sala, A., Martínez-Rodríguez, L., Bastida-Molina, P., Beltrán, F., Montagud Montalvá, C. — Decarbonisation Strategy through Progressive Heat Pump Implementation: Case Study of the UPV Vera Campus.

• • Díaz-Bello, D., Vargas-Salgado, C., Águila-León, J., Gómez-Navarro, T. — A Meta-Optimized Grey Wolf Optimizer – Genetic Algorithm Framework for Dynamic Decision Making in Renewable-Based Microgrids.

• • Garcia-Melon, M., Peris-Blanes, J. — Urban Climate Neutrality as Systemic Transformation: Strategic Foresight of Mission Cities and Climate City Contracts Using DEMATEL.

• • Lara Vargas, F. A., Vargas-Salgado, C., Águila-León, J., Montagud Montalvá, C., De-La-Ossa-Rivera, J. — From Data to Equation: The Dynamics Governing the Thermo-Energetic Behavior of Floating Photovoltaic Systems in the Tropics.

• • Lucero-Tenorio, M., Vargas-Salgado, C., Díaz-Bello, D., Gómez-Navarro, T., Fajardo-Farias, M. — Optimized Virtual Inertia Support Using BESS–Synchronverter Control for Frequency Stability in Isolated Microgrids.

• • Manso-Burgos, Á., Ribó-Pérez, D., Aparisi-Cerdá, I., Van Der Voort, S., Gómez-Navarro, T. — From Palliative Aid to Public Asset: Storage as a Tool for Inclusion and Efficiency in Solidarity Energy Communities.

• • Martínez-Rodríguez, L., Ribó-Pérez, D., Gómez Navarro, T., Salas Salazar, M. E., Ramirez, C., Fuso Nerini, F. — Reassessing Last-Mile Electrification Pathways Considering Greenhouse Gas Emissions (🥇 1st Best Paper Award).

• • Martínez-Romero, I., Peñalvo-Lopez, E., Valencia-Salazar, I. — Assessing the benefits of Renewable Energy Communities based on members’ ownership and individual demand-generation coupling.

• • Romero-Barrueco, A., Navarrete Ripoll, E., Berna-Escriche, C., Bastida-Molina, P., Montagud Montalvá, C. — Authomatic geolocated algorithm for determining the charging behaviour of electric vehicles in cities.

• • Roncero-Tarazona, M., Gómez-Navarro, T., Rytck Molodykh, I., Carot, J. M. — Assessing Environmental Performance of MICE Events through Entropy Metrics: A Case Study at the Conference Hall of Valencia.

• • Roncero-Tarazona, M., Ribó-Pérez, D., Aparisi-Cerdá, I., Coronado-Cuenca, M. — A spatial economic assessment of urban climate mitigation policies: The case of València.

• • Torres González, A., Águila-León, J., Vargas-Salgado, C., Lara Vargas, F. A., Montagud Montalvá, C. — Optimal Energy Management System for Hybrid PV–Battery Systems under Dynamic Tariffs: A Comparative Analysis of ANEMMSO, GWO, and PSO Algorithms.

• • Vivancos, J. L., Aparicio-Fernández, C., Cañada, M., Gonzalez De Juan, M., Montagud Montalvá, C. — Development of a BIM Model for the Energy Assessment and Rehabilitation of a Building and Proposal of Enhancements to the Achievement of the NZEB Standard.

Poster Presentations (10)

• • Alfonso-Solar, D., Costa-Perales, Á., Peñalvo-Lopez, E., Vargas-Salgado, C., Brines-Gimeno, N. — Multi-benefit evaluation of urban green infrastructure: a pilot case in a Mediterranean city for mitigating CO₂ and traffic-related pollutant emissions.

• • Álvarez-Piñeiro, L., Bastida-Molina, P., Blanco De Las Muelas, D., Berna-Escriche, C. — Block Length Selection in the Moving Block Bootstrap for Renewable Energy Time Series.

• • Andrada-Monrós, C., Peñalvo-Lopez, E., Valencia-Salazar, I., León-Martínez, V. — Methodology for Assessing Municipal Energy Transition Strategies Based on Local Data.

• • Blanco-Muelas, D., Berna-Escriche, C., Álvarez-Piñeiro, L., Bastida-Molina, P. — Agrivoltaics for Decarbonization: Uncertainties and Optimization of Self-Consumption in Greenhouses.

• • Caglio, A., Manso-Burgos, Á., Ribó-Pérez, D., Gómez-Navarro, T. — Demand Flexibility as a Driver for Energy Community Performance: A Holistic Assessment of Flexibility Mechanisms.

• • Cañada, M., Montagud Montalvá, C., Aparicio-Fernández, C., Vivancos, J. L., Ilyukhin, M. — Monitoring Comfort and Air Quality in Historic Office Buildings: Evidence from a Refurbished Industrial Building in Mediterranean Europe.

• • Díaz-Bello, D., Vargas-Salgado, C., Miriam Lucero-Tenorio, M., Gómez-Navarro, T. — Bio-Inspired Optimization Under Dynamic Partial Shading for Improving Proportional Integral Derivative – Maximum Power Point Tracking Controllers in Photovoltaic Systems.

• • Esteller Agusti, A., Aparicio-Fernández, C., Cañada, M., Vivancos, J. L., Royo-Pastor, R. — Limits of Passive Savings: Disaggregated Analysis of Residential Energy Consumption in Spain.

• • Lara Vargas, F. A., Vargas-Salgado, C., Martínez Tejada, H. V., Bierhoff, M., Carlos-Daza, A. — How Do Closed-Loop Floating Photovoltaic Systems in Tropical Climates Affect Adjacent Water Body Temperatures? (🥈 2nd Best Paper Award).

• • Martínez-Rodríguez, L., Gil Alhama, J. A., Vega, P., Montagud Montalvá, C., Bianco, V., De Rosa, M. — The energy transition from early stages towards a more sustainable future: RESSKILL to promote STEM careers.