 Hawthorne's most outstanding work at Cambridge was in the understanding of loss mechanisms in turbomachinery, and during his time as Head of Department he and Professor John Horlock (later Vice-Chancellor of the Open University) established the Turbomachinery Laboratory.The oil shortage following the Suez Crisis and Hawthorne's interest in energy matters led to his invention and development of Dracone flexible barges for transporting oil, fresh water, or other liquids.