UCL Chemical Engineering Celebrates INWED 2021

We are celebrating International Women in Engineering Day (INWED 2021) on 23 June 2021 with some examples of the amazing and inspiring work that our women engineers do in the Department in areas as diverse as energy, materials and pharmaceuticals. Our women engineers deeply care about promoting STEM activities and have been instrumental in supporting colleagues during this very challenging year.

Find out more below. 

Dr Elena Catalanotti - Research Fellow

“I am currently involved in the C4U project, an exciting project aiming to decarbonise the Steel Industry sector through the implementation of cutting-edge technologies for Carbon Capture and a complex CO2 transportation system for industrial clusters. Within the project, I am an active member of the Gender balance, Equality and Ethics Board (GEEB), which has a strong push to bringing more women in the mainly man-dominated world of CCS.

Dian Chia - PhD student

“I used to face doubts about my choice of becoming an engineer due to the stereotype that engineers are for men. However, my family ensures me that anyone can be successful in any profession they choose, regardless of gender, as long as they are persistent towards their goals. So, here I am now, a PhD in the Chemical Engineering Department researching on advanced distillation processes to change the world for the better, and I love doing so.

Dr Jennifer Hack - Research Fellow

“I was inspired to go into engineering because I wanted to work on solving real-world problems, such as the current need to decarbonise. I love that my research allows me to work across electrochemical engineering and materials science to investigate alternative energy technologies, like fuel cells and batteries. My work has given me insight into why these devices fail and I have recently been trying to find new ways to improve the materials within them to extend their lifetimes.

Clarissa Harman - PhD student

“Since I was little, I have always been curious about how things work and what we're made up of. Whether it was spending time on the weekends playing in my grandad's workshop or digging up my garden in search of remains of the next T-Rex. When asking my primary school teacher what vitamins were, and being deeply unsatisfied with her answer 'they are just parts of food', I knew I wanted to find out what vitamins really are. I became fascinated about learning about all things molecular, forging my passion for chemistry!

Maria Kalli - PhD student

“During my PhD studies I was elected as the President of Chemical Engineering Researchers’ Society (CheERS) at UCL. My main mission was to create equal opportunities for all PhD and PDRAs in the department to attend social and career events during the COVID-19 pandemic and keep the students engaged throughout the year. I had to manage the migration to a fully virtual event agenda, where I delivered 5 new events focusing on topics such as students’ mental health, diversity and career progression. As the PhD representative in the ED&I committee at UCL, I made sure the students felt inspired and supported at all times. I prepared targeted surveys for 250+ students and created a webpage, in collaboration with Gradcracker, where students benefit from access to frequent and relevant job vacancies.

Dr Nive Kulkarni - Research Fellow

“I was always interested in understanding the mechanics behind every single thing we use and that motivated me to be an Engineer and further pursue a career in engineering research.  Now, I am a post-doctoral research fellow working on image-based modelling of Li-S batteries. I study micro and nanostructures of battery electrodes and use maths to understand the electrochemistry behind battery performance. I am passionate about women in Engineering and promote STEM as one of the best career paths.  

Dr Han Wu - Research Laboratories Manager

“I was the first female technician in our Department. It’s a natural choice after I completed my 3 years PDRA project here. My current job involves setting up new research facility (such as small angle x-ray scattering), providing training /support to internal/external researchers to obtain good experimental data to advance their research. It is a great feeling interacting with researchers from diverse background in the field of fluidization, crystallisation, pharmaceuticals, Food/Medicine, Nanoparticles etc. So fulfilling and never ending exploration!