Dr Karen Finney

BSc, MSc (Eng), PhD, CEng, MEI.

School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering

Research Fellow

Photo of Karen Finney
Profile picture of Photo of Karen Finney
k.n.finney@sheffield.ac.uk
+44 114 270 3085
Sir Frederick Mappin Building

Full contact details

Dr Karen Finney
School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering
Sir Frederick Mappin Building
Mappin Street
91Ö±²¥
S1 3JD
Profile

I am a research fellow in the Energy 2050 team, within the Department of Mechanical Engineering.

I graduated from the University of Southampton with a BSc in Geography, before defecting to engineering – achieving a distinction for my MSc (Eng) and then a PhD, both in energy and environmental engineering from the Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, at the University of 91Ö±²¥.

I have since worked as a researcher at the University of 91Ö±²¥ (Energy and Environmental Engineering Research Group in Chemical and Biological Engineering) and then at the University of Leeds (within the Energy Technology and Innovation Initiative), before returning to 91Ö±²¥ to take up my role in the new Energy 2050 team.

I am a Chartered Engineer and a member of the Energy Institute. I have recently completed a part-time secondment at Alstom Power Ltd. in their Alternative Energy Concepts group within the Future Technology Execution team at Rugby.

Research interests

My research experience and expertise is in low-carbon and sustainable energy generation, focussing on a range of aspects within this – including thermal treatments (combustion, gasification and pyrolysis) of fossils fuels, biomass and waste; carbon capture; gas turbines; combined heat and power; district heating; fuel processing techniques and pollutant minimisation.

I conduct both experimental and theoretical investigations into innovative aspects of evolving thermal processes under several RCUK-funded programmes. As well as a researcher on these projects, I also have a number of other roles; this includes being the deputy technical director for one project, running working groups and serving as work package leader.

The experimental work takes places at the UKCCSRC Pilot-scale Advanced Capture Technology (PACT) facilities, which are the national specialist R&D facilities for combustion and carbon capture technology research. Here, I work with a range of academic and industrial partners.

Current and previous research

At present, I am working on the following collaborative and multi-/inter-disciplinary projects:

  • EPSRC SELECT: Selective Exhaust Gas Recirculation for Carbon Capture with Gas Turbines: Integration, Intensification, Scale-up and Optimisation (EP/M001482/1)
  • UKCCSRC BIO-CAP-UK – Air/Oxy Biomass Combustion with CO2 Capture Technology (UKCCSRC-C1-40)
  • EPSRC Gas-FACTS: Gas – Future Advanced Capture Technology Options, Consortium (EP/J020788/1)
  • EPSRC Development and Evaluation of Sustainable Technologies for Flexible Operation of Conventional Power Plants (EP/K02115X/1)

I have also previously worked on a range of other research programmes:

  • EPSRC Thermal Management of Industrial Processes and the associated PRO-TEM network (EP/G056706/1 and EP/G059284/1)
  • EPSRC Joint UK-China Network to Investigate the Production of Clean Energy and Hydrogen via Novel Process Technologies (EP/G062374/1)
  • EPSRC PUrE: Pollutants in the Urban Environment: An Integrated Framework for Improving Sustainability of the Indoor Environment (EP/F007132/1)
  • EPSRC SUPERGEN Biomass Biofuels and Energy Crops II Core (EP/E039995/1)
Grants
  • Horizon 2020: NANOMEMC2 - NanoMaterials Enhanced Membranes for Carbon Capture (Grant Agreement Number: 727734)
  • EPSRC: UK Carbon Capture and Storage Research Centre 2017 (UKCCSRC 2017 - EP/P026214/1)
  • UKCCSRC: International Exchange Fund, for research visit to KIER, S Korea
  • EPSRC Opening New Fuels for UK Generation – Researcher co-investigator [total project funding – £1,035,606] (EP/M015351/1)
  • EPSRC SELECT: Selective Exhaust Gas Recirculation for Carbon Capture with Gas Turbines: Integration, Intensification, Scale-up and Optimisation – named researcher [total project funding – £ 1,099,891] (EP/M001482/1)
  • EPSRC Impact and Innovation Account Award (Knowledge Transfer Secondment) – a two-way secondment between ETII, University of Leeds and Alstom Power Ltd., where I am a secondee [total project funding awarded, including in-kind contributions, of ~£100,000]
Professional activities and memberships
  • UKCCSRC Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) Short Course 2013
  • Chartered Institute of Environmental Health Level 2 Award in Health and Safety in the Workplace 2012
  • UKKCSRC Early Career Researcher member
  • Chartered engineer, CEng status (Chartered Energy Engineer) in 2012
  • Member of Energy Institute, MEI status from 2012 (GradEI from 2005-2012)
  • 2011/2012 University’s ‘Exceptional Contribution Award’ for PDRA research
  • Awarded the 2010 Thring Prize for academic and personal promise displayed at postgraduate level
  • Awarded the 2009 Foxwell Memorial Prize for my PhD research
  • Third prize-winner of the EI Yorkshire Branch 2006 Prize