Dr Abigail Hathway

School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering

Senior Lecturer

Portrait of academic smiling wearing colourful top
Profile picture of Portrait of academic smiling wearing colourful top
a.hathway@sheffield.ac.uk
+44 114 222 5702
Room F129, Sir Frederick Mappin Building (Broad Lane Building)

Full contact details

Dr Abigail Hathway
School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering
Room F129
Sir Frederick Mappin Building (Broad Lane Building)
Mappin Street
Sheffield
S1 3JD
Profile

The most powerful way to fight climate change is to provide students with the knowledge and skills to engineer buildings holistically and, to contribute to decisions that will have implications on the sustainability of buildings.

Dr Abigail Hathway

Abigail completed her PhD at the University of Leeds, researching CFD modelling of bioaerosols released in hospital environments due to nursing activities.

Her research aims to ensure that in the drive for energy efficient buildings we maintain healthy indoor environments for the occupants.

Her focus is on building physics, with a particular interest in how the activity of people within a building and its interior spaces impact upon air flow. This focus on fluid flow in the built environment, incorporates building simulation with experimental and field work.

The role of human activity on indoor air continues to be an active research interest, and has developed to consider a variety of built environments, often through interdisciplinary collaboration.

Her main interest is in the interactions of people with their building and the resulting impacts on air flow across the building envelope and between interior spaces.

This includes researching the role of automated building systems to improve the comfort and quality of internal environments at low energy cost.

Publications

Journal articles

  • Matharu RK, Hoch G, Bhatti M, Hathway EA & Ciric L (2025) . Building and Environment, 283.
  • De-Ville S, Pott S, Wood C, Peng Z, Farooq MZ, Blouchou G, Suhag A, Murphy E & Hathway EA (2025) . Indoor Environments, 2(2).
  • Khatavkar PM, Rockett P, Kaszubowski Lopes YK & Hathway EA (2025) . Building and Environment, 278.
  • Malki-Epshtein L, Adzic F, Roberts BM, Hathway EA, Iddon C, Mustafa M & Cook M (2023) . Building Services Engineering Research and Technology, 44(2), 113-133.
  • Adzic F, Roberts BM, Hathway EA, Kaur Matharu R, Ciric L, Wild O, Cook M & Malki-Epshtein L (2022) . Building and Environment, 223.
  • Georgakarakos AD, Vand B, Hathway EA & Mayfield M (2021) . Buildings, 11(10).
  • Askari SH, De-Ville S, Hathway EA & Stovin V (2021) . Water, 13(16).
  • Jones B, Sharpe P, Iddon C, Hathway EA, Noakes CJ & Fitzgerald S (2021) . Building and Environment, 191.
  • Dou T, Lopes Y, Rockett P, Hathway E & Saber E (2020) . Genetic Programming and Evolvable Machines, 21(4), 605-627.
  • Dou T, Kaszubowski Lopes Y, Rockett P, Hathway E & Saber E (2020) . Applied Soft Computing, 97(Part B).
  • Georgakarakos AD, Mayfield M & Hathway EA (2018) . Energy Procedia, 151, 23-30.
  • Papakonstantis IG, Hathway EA & Brevis W (2018) . Building and Environment, 131, 220-230.
  • Rockett P & Hathway EA (2017) . Building Research and Information , 45(5), 556-571.
  • Davison JB, Densley Tingley D, Hathway A & Allwood D (2015) . Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers (London).
  • Hathway EA, Papkonstantis I, Bruce-Konuah A & Brevis W (2015) . International Journal of Ventilation, 14(2), 127-140.
  • Densley Tingley D, Hathway A & Davison B (2015) . Building and Environment, 85, 182-189.
  • Johnson N, Kang J & Hathway EA (2014) . Renewable Energy, 71, 351-360.
  • Castleton HF, Hathway EA, Murphy E & Beck SBM (2014) . Proceedings of the ICE - Engineering Sustainability, 167(3), 108-117.
  • Maidment CD, Jones CR, Webb TL, Hathway EA & Gilbertson JM (2013) . Energy Policy.
  • Carslaw N, Hathway A, Fletcher L, Hamilton J, Ingham T & Noakes C (2013) . Indoor Air, 23(3), 173-174.
  • Hathway EA, Noakes CJ, Fletcher LA, Sleigh PA, Clifton I & Elliott MW (2013) . Indoor and Built Environment, 22(2), 410-421.
  • Gill L, Hathway EA, Lange E, Morgan E & Romano D (2013) Coupling real-time 3D landscape models with microclimate simulations. International Journal of E-Planning Research, 2(1), 1-19.
  • Hathway EA & Sharples S (2012) . Building and Environment, 58, 14-22.
  • Sharples S, Fahmy M & Hathway A (2011) The role of urban microclimates in reducing CO emssions from cities. Journal of Harbin Institute of Technology (New Series), 18(Supplement 2), 1-5.
  • Hathway EA, Noakes CJ, Sleigh PA & Fletcher LA (2011) . Building and Environment, 46(12), 2500-2511.
  • Hathway EA, Noakes CJ, Sleigh PA & Fletcher LA (2011) CFD simulation of airborne pathogen transport due to human activities. Building and Environment.
  • Kasmin H, Stovin VR & Hathway EA (2010) . Water Science & Technology, 62, 898-905.
  • Beggs CB, Kerr KG, Noakes CJ, Hathway EA & Sleigh PA (2008) . American Journal of Infection Control, 36, 250-259.
  • Roberts K, Hathway A, Fletcher LA, Beggs CB, Elliott MW & Sleigh PA (2006) . Indoor and Built Environment, 15(1), 35-40.

Conference proceedings

  • Rockett P, Kaszubowski Lopes Y, Dou T & Hathway EA (2019) . Hybrid Artificial Intelligent Systems(11734) (pp 133-144). León, Spain, 4 September 2019 - 4 September 2019.
  • Hathway EA, Rockett P & Sykes J (2018) Big Data and Model Predictive Control for Improved Building Performance. 2018 Stretching the Envelope. London, UK, 12 April 2018 - 12 April 2018.
  • Sykes JS, Hathway EA & Rockett P (2015) Model identification for the control of naturally ventilated buildings. 14th International Conference of Ibpsa Building Simulation 2015 Bs 2015 Conference Proceedings (pp 573-580)
  • Hathway A & Papakonstantis I (2015) CFD Simulation of airflow due to door motion using a momentum source method. 14th International Conference of Ibpsa Building Simulation 2015 Bs 2015 Conference Proceedings (pp 911-916)
  • Hathway A, Papakonstantis I, Konuah AB & Brevis W (2014) Towards understanding the role of human activity on indoor air flows: A case study of door motion based on both field and experimental activities. Indoor Air 2014 13th International Conference on Indoor Air Quality and Climate (pp 435-442)
  • Davison JB, Hathway EA & Cruise R (2014) Educating Engineers for the Challenges of Low Carbon Environments.. Sustainable Structures Symposium. Portland, Oregon,USA, 17 April 2014 - 19 May 2014.
  • Castleton HF, Beck SBM, Hathway EA & Murphy E (2013) Exceeding energy consumption design expectations. International Conference for Enhanced Building Operation. Montreal, 8 October 2013 - 11 October 2013.
  • Hathway EA, Rockett PI & Carpenter P (2013) The use of machine learning in model predictive control for the operation of non-domestic buildings. FutureBuild 2013. Bath, UK, 4 September 2013 - 6 September 2013.
  • Densley Tingley D, Davison JB & Hathway EA (2013) The environmental impact of retrofitting solid wall homes. Engineering Sustainability 2013. Pittsburgh USA, 7 April 2013 - 9 April 2013.
  • Bruce-Konuah A, Hathway EA & Fotios S (2012) Window use in single person offices: Do occupants control personal ventilation to provide adequate IAQ?. Healthy Buildings 2012. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, 8 July 2012 - 12 July 2012.
  • Johnson N, Kang J, Sharples S & Hathway EA (2011) Acoustic impact of an urban micro hydro scheme. World Renewable Energy Congress 2011. Linkoping, Sweden
  • Fahmy M, Hathway EA, Pattacini L & Elwan A (2011) Environmental thermal impact assessment of regenerated urban form: A case study in Sheffield. World Renewable Energy Congress 2011. Linkoping, Sweden
  • Hathway A & Sharples S (2011) Urban river microclimates. PLEA 2011 Architecture and Sustainable Development Conference Proceedings of the 27th International Conference on Passive and Low Energy Architecture (pp 183-187)
  • Moore SL, Hathway EA, Fahmy M & Stovin VR (2011) Beyond drainage: The role of SUDS in the mitigation of Urban Heat Island effects. Cities of the Future: Sustainable Urban Planning and Water Management. Stockholm, Sweden
  • Hathway EA & Sharples S (2011) River Microclimates. International Conference on Passive and Low Energy Architecture. Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
  • Sleigh A, Noakes C & Hathway A (2009) Simulation of bioaerosol release and transport in a four-bay hospital ward using CFD and a multi-zone ventilation with quantification of infection risk. 9th International Conference and Exhibition Healthy Buildings 2009 Hb 2009
  • Kasmin H, Stovin VR & Hathway EA (2009) Towards a generic rainfall runoff model for green roofs. International Conference on Urban Drainage Modelling. Tokyo, Japan
  • Hathway EA, Noakes C & Sleigh PA (2008) CFD modelling of a hospital ward: assessing risk from bacteria produced from respiratory and activity sources. Indoor Air. Copenhagen, Denmark
  • Hathway EA, Fletcher L, Noakes C, Sleigh PA & Elliot M (2008) Bioaerosol production from routine activities within a hospital ward. Indoor Air. Copenhagen, Denmark
  • Hathway EA, Sleigh PA & Noakes CJ (2007) CFD modelling of transient pathogen release in indoor environments due to human activity. Roomvent 2007 10th International Conference on Air Distribution in Rooms. Helsinki, Finland

Other

  • Dou T, Kaszubowski Lopes Y & Rockett PI (2018) GPML: An XML-based Standard for the Interchange of Genetic Programming Trees.
Research group

Resources, Infrastructure Systems and built Environments Discipline

Grants

PhD opportunities

Beyond Drainage: The Impact Of SuDS On Urban Microclimates

Urban stormwater management increasingly makes use of SuDS (Sustainable Drainage Systems), which often incorporate open water and/or vegetation. Evapotranspiration from SuDS is expected to have a beneficial (cooling) impact on the urban microclimate, and may also have benefits for the indoor climate in adjacent buildings. The project will use a range of modelling tools (and possibly some experimental work) to quantify these effects.

If you're interested in one of these projects, or would like to self-propose a project, please contact Abigail at the above email. Current PhD opportunities in the department can be viewed here.

Links

Resources, Infrastructure Systems and built Environments Discipline  Structural Engineering & Materials Discipline