Lieve Helsen graduated in 1993 as chemical engineer at K.U.leuven and obtained her doctoral degree in mechanical engineering in 2000 at the same university. In 2004 she started her professorship in the field of thermal systems simulation, with focos on (1) waste-to-energy and (2) thermal systems in buildings. All topics studied are multidsiciplinary in nature, either combining reactor technology, thermal fluid dynamics and material sciences, or combining building phusics, thermal systems and electrical engineering. Within waste-to-energy the thermochemical treatment of metal impregnated wood waste has been a key topic, resulting in the new concept of Pyrolytic Distillation. Today the plasma gasification of RDF is studied within the concept of Enhanced Landfill Mining.