Qatar Foundation Annual Research Conference Proceedings Volume 2014 Issue 1

The main two challenges hindering the deployment of solar cells in large scale are the high cost and low efficiency. One of the strategies to reduce the cost is by using thin film materials with enhanced solar cell conversion efficiency. However, thin film materials suffer from weak absorption and the presence of defects, which act as recombination canters for charge carriers. Various studies were conducted to improve absorption Read More

BACKGROUND & OBJECTIVES: Improving materials properties is one of the biggest scientific issues of all the times. When it becomes impossible to further manipulate the raw material, one feasible way to push its properties beyond the theoretical limits is to modify the properties of the surface. That is where advanced surface coatings come in. From a manufacturing point of view, tools for machining are of particular interest. Th Read More

The development of artificial photosynthesis is one of the greatest scientific challenges of our times, not only to protect the environment but also to ensure global economic security. To mimic the natural photosynthesis process, a complete understanding of the natural photosynthesis process at the molecular level is essential to enable the production of inexpensive, lightweight, and high-energy-density fuels. Artificial photosynthe Read More

Disinfection of drinking water is one of the extreme public health activities in Qatar. Chlorination, ozonation, ultra-violet, chloramination, and others are the most important treatment processes used and they can cause the formation of toxic by-products. The existence of bromide (Br-), for example, in water sources might cause in formation of brominated toxic by-products. Up-to-date drinking water treatment methodologi Read More

Many hydrocarbon reservoirs - in Qatar and worldwide - are constituted of dolomite. For this reason, the origin of this Ca-Mg carbonate mineral has been extensively studied by generations of geologists, with the goal of exploiting gas and oil from rock reservoirs in the most efficient way. However, despite more than two centuries of research, several fundamental questions regarding the origin of sedimentary dolomite re Read More

Management of production from gas reservoirs can be a challenging process. The challenge gets bigger when the reservoir is characterized by having a small pore size, such as the tight carbonate reservoirs which are prominent in this part of the world. In such conditions, condensate blockage becomes a real threat to productivity. Carbon dioxide can be injected into the reservoir to combat this threat. We built a reserv Read More

Qatar and the region are experiencing transformative growth over relatively very short periods of time, due primarily to hydrocarbon based energy resources. As the country pushes to meet growing global demand for its finite fossil fuel reserves, it is looking also to capitalize on renewable energy sources including solar power generation. However, the high ambient humidity, high annual average surface temperature, high Read More

Power monitoring is needed in most electrical systems, and is crucial for ensuring reliability in everything from industrial and telecom applications, to automotive and consumer electronics. Power monitoring of integrated circuits (ICs) is also essential, as today ICs exist in most electrical and electronic systems, in a vast range of applications. Many ICs have functional blocks across the chip that are used for different purposes. Read More

Solution combustion synthesis (SCS) is a widely used technique for synthesizing variety of high purity oxide nanoparticles. Two basic modes for combustion synthesis are the self-propagating high temperature synthesis (SHS) and Volume Combustion Synthesis (VCS). The first method is based on the reaction that is locally ignited by an external source (laser, tungsten coil etc) which ends up with an exothermic redox reaction in Read More

Spent Pot Lining (SPL) is produced in thousands of tons annually as a waste from the aluminum industry. SPL is classified into two types, 1st and 2nd Cut SPL. The 1st cut, which is the material under investigation in this study, is a contaminated graphite/ceramics material (50 - 60% of graphite) that is used in lining the electrolytic cell within which aluminum is produced by the reduction of molten Al2O3. 1st Cut SPL is considered Read More