Alexandra Hetherington
BEng(Hons) MSc
Profile
Alex Hetherington is a PhD researcher with the Sustainable Energy Research Team (SERT) in the Department of Mechanical Engineering and a part-time distance-learning tutor with the Integrated Environmental Management (by distance learning) MSc. Her research involves the life cycle assessment (LCA) of the production of edible oil emulsions from oilseeds.
Alex graduated from the University of Bath in 1990 with an Honours degree in Chemical and Bio-Process Engineering. She then went on to enjoy a variety of roles encompassing process design, product development & manufacturing management within the petrochemicals, specialities and Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) sectors.
Whilst taking a career break, Alex consolidated the practical experience gained in environmental issues and change management by studying for an MSc in Integrated Environmental Management (IEM) (by distance learning), again at The University of Bath. She graduated (with distinction) in 2006 with a dissertation that used life cycle assessment (LCA) to assess the environmental performance of Hull and East Riding’s integrated waste management programme.
Since then, Alex has been actively involved with tutoring and course development for IEM, in addition to delivering Environmental Management and Sustainable Development courses to the Doctoral Training Centre in Sustainable Chemical Technologies at Bath.
To further her expertise in LCA, Alex started her PhD in June 2010, utilising LCA to assess the environmental impacts of the production of food grade oil seed emulsions using rape, sunflower and echium. This is part of the multidisciplinary DEFRA Link project – Sustainable Emulsion Ingredients through Bio-Innovation) SEIBI.
Alex is a Chartered Chemical Engineer and a corporate member of the Institution of Chemical Engineers. She is also an associate member of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA).
Research
Alex's research focuses on the life cycle assessment of the production of food grade emulsions using rape and sunflower seed oils.
This research is part of a DEFRA funded project (Sustainable Emulsion Ingredients through Bio-Innovation (SEIBI)) with the University of Nottingham and a number of industrial partners.
Current oilseed processing practices, together with the subsequent incorporation of oil into food products, is considered to be inefficient. The oil is extracted and processed using high temperatures, organic solvents, and antioxidants. The SEIBI project aims to reduce and simplify these processes. It is proposed that a simplified process will reduce the environmental impact of the production.
The overarching aim of the research is to use environmental life cycle assessment (LCA) techniques to examine the oil recovery and emulsification processes from oil seeds, thereby determining whether the new, novel process route for production of edible oil emulsions from oil-bodies has a better environmental profile than that of the existing technology route.
LCA is an environmental management tool that examines the environmental impact of a product or system through all stages of its life; from production, through use, to disposal. Working closely with colleagues in the University of Nottingham and within industry, the impacts of novel extraction technologies have been modelled and compared with current practices. As the LCA work has, and continues to be, carried out along-side the experimentation stages of the research there are opportunities to shape the process to ensure the environmental impact of the new processes is minimised.
