Research
The Department of Chemical and Process Engineering is a thriving research environment within a research-led university. We have purpose-built laboratories to support much of our research along with all the modern IT facilities expected in a leading research institution.
Our research is internationally renowned and supported through funding from government and industrial sources in the UK, the EU and the rest of the world.
Our Research Environment
A very important feature of the research environment in CPE is our interdisciplinary research groups:
The focus of our research effort through our four groups means that we have been able to build up dedicated, high-quality facilities and to tackle problems larger than those typically associated with single university researchers.
Below is a summary of the research groups in the Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, along with links to their individual webpages.
Energy & Environmental Engineering Research Group
The Group has a worldwide reputation for its broad range of innovative process research particularly that into mathematical modelling, combustion of fossil fuels, fires and explosions, and energy utilisation. Four academics, seven postdoctoral research associates and several research students work in two dedicated labs as well as in extensive research facilities at Harpur Hill, Buxton. The Group's work is supported by the EPSRC (including platform and consortium grants) and through sponsorship by industry.
Sheffield University Waste Incineration Centre (SUWIC), which forms part of the Group, has a global reputation for fundamental investigations into combustion, gasification and pyrolysis of biomass/waste and the associated electrical power generation systems.
Process Fluidics Group
The Group's core skill is modelling and visualising reacting flows with themes of microchemical engineering, power fluidics, green chemistry, massive scale Hydrogen production and biophysicochemical hydrodynamics. It comprises five academics and is host to several important international collaborations. It receives funding from both the EPSRC and the EU as well as from both UK and overseas industry.
Particle Products Group
The group comprises four academics, four research associates and twenty two research students. Research focuses on crystallisation, granulation, fragmentation and deformation, and population balance modelling. The work is supported by grants from Research Councils and industry.
Biological and Environmental Systems Group
Research areas include exploitation of extremophiles for pharmaceuticals, biofuels and bioremediation purposes, characterisation of biofilms in industrial systems, and bioseparation processes. The Group has a wide range of experimental facilities available including micro-litre laboratory scale to full pilot plant and field test facilities. HPLC and tandem mass spectrometry have been installed in custom-built laboratories.
Information on projects and people can be found on the individual Research Group pages.
Postgraduate Opportunities
We have openings for well-qualified students of all nationalities and for the very best can offer generous tuition and support scholarships.
For further details visit our postgraduate research pages.