Academic biography

Dr. Lorna Fitzsimons Dr. Lorna Fitzsimons is an Assistant Professor in the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering in DCU. She is co-director of the DCU Centre for Decarbonisation, Sustainability and Innovation (DESI). Research expertise and interests include thermodynamics and exergy analysis; energy auditing, modelling and benchmarking; the water-energy nexus (desalination, water and wastewater treatment), control and automation for energy efficiency; and LCA. Currently, she is a funded investigator on the SFI NEXSYS project focusing on next generation energy systems, and CRT-AI and ML Labs projects focusing on the application of ML and AI to complex energy systems. She has coordinated and delivered two EPA funded projects which audited, benchmarked and modelled the energy and resource efficiency of Irish wastewater treatment plants: Increasing the Resource Efficiency of Irish Wastewater treatment Plants and Optimal design and operation of small-scale wastewater treatment plants. Successfully completed SFI and EU projects on the energy-water nexus include: ESIPP, SALTGAE and , and ALICE. Her PhD was in the area of semiconductor manufacturing energy efficiency, and the application of exergy analysis to Ultra-pure water treatment plants.