Dr Nader Karimi

• Process intensification in thermal systems and thermochemical reactors
• Heat and mass transfer, and advanced thermal management
• Reacting flows, combustion, and chemically reacting systems
• Production of sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs), e-fuels, hydrogen, ammonia, and other low-carbon synthetic fuels
• Modelling and optimisation of hybridised energy and fuel systems

Karimi’s research spans component- to system-level investigations in sustainable fuels and advanced thermal management.

Component level. Our group develops process-intensified thermochemical reactors—including gasification, pyrolysis, reforming, and fuel-synthesis systems—through the integrated study of fluid dynamics, transport phenomena, and reaction chemistry. Current work focuses on catalytic process intensification for hydrogen and synthetic-fuel production, as well as plasma-assisted biomass gasification and fuel reforming/pyrolysis. We also advance the intensification of thermal processes, targeting ultra-high heat-transfer performance with minimal pressure-drop penalties—an essential requirement for next-generation energy and aerospace technologies.

System level. At the systems scale, we optimise end-to-end fuel-production pathways through energy integration, waste-heat recovery, hybridisation with complementary energy vectors, and machine-learning-based optimisation under uncertainty. These studies identify cost-effective, low-carbon routes for sustainable fuel and energy production, with particular emphasis on waste-to-fuel/energy systems and Power-to-X technologies.

Methods and collaboration. Our research combines high-fidelity computational tools—from continuum-scale CFD to molecular dynamics—with laboratory experimentation and advanced machine-learning techniques. We work closely with academic and industrial partners to translate fundamental scientific insights into deployable, high-impact technologies for sustainable energy and fuels.