Young engineer recognised for her achievements

Dr Ruth Misener

An Imperial early career researcher is the overall winner of a prestigious prize awarded by the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng).

Dr Ruth Misener, from the Department of Computing at Imperial College London, was the overall winner out of a group of five engineers who were shortlisted for the RAEng Engineers Trust Young Engineer of the Year competition.

The awards are presented to early career researchers whose achievements are recognised as outstanding, having a major impact in their respective fields.

Dr Misener is a chemical engineer by training but now focuses on developing innovative approaches to process systems engineering and biomedical engineering in the Department of Computing.

Her research interests are diverse. For instance, she has optimised a bioreactor developed at Imperial for growing healthy red blood cells, which carry oxygen in the body in exchange for carbon dioxide. This approach could provide a new way for creating rare blood type supplies for transfusions in patients.

Another area of her work involves the petrochemical industry. Dr Misener has found ways to optimise industrial processes in the petrochemical sector, making them more efficient and sustainable.

Dr Misener has also developed in-depth mathematical models that map the progress in tissue of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia - a blood and bone marrow disease. Her work could have implications for disease management.

Her research has attracted the attention of industrial partners and her group now works with petrochemical and big data companies.

Professor Daniel Rueckert, Head of the Department of Computing at Imperial, said: “Ruth’s research integrates algorithm development and mathematical optimisation to solve real-world problems in biomedical engineering and process systems engineering. The department is really proud to have outstanding young engineers such as her. Well done on a much-deserved accolade.”

Dr Misener said: “It's always nice to be recognised by colleagues, but I am especially thankful to the awards committee because, as an interdisciplinary engineer, it is sometimes difficult to align myself with any one research community. A medal like this makes it easier to progress while avoiding labels. The medal reflects the great contributions of my talented, motivated research team – working with them and other associates and collaborators is definitely the best part of the job.”

Amongst her many activities, Dr Misener also engages in community outreach, participating in the Royal Society of Biology’s Voice of the Future 2016, where young scientists quiz politicians. She has also lectured at the Summer School for Girls, held at Imperial to promote engineering to young women.

Dr Misener received her recognition at the Royal Academy of Engineering Awards Dinner on Thursday 29 June 2017.