Qatar Foundation Annual Research Conference Proceedings Volume 2016 Issue 1

Industrial revolution, a consequence of the rapid economic growth, has contributed to ever increasing demand for energy and has resulted in about 40% rise in the atmospheric concentration of carbon dioxide, from 280 ppm in 1750 to 400 ppm in 2015. Abundant use of fossil fuels has become a cause of concern due to their adverse effects on the environment, particularly related to the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2), a major Read More

Characterizing the content and understanding the distribution of organic carbon in sediments is a key element for the exploration and the production of new or revisited petroleum prospects. Developed by Total, the LIPS has a set of unique features: ∘ it is poorly destructive: indeed, the laser impact affects only 1 mm3 of material, ∘ it generates very large datasets / big data (typically 10,000 data points and more fo Read More

Aquatic ecosystems across the globe are under significant threat, suffering from various forms of anthropogenic disturbances, which is greatly impacting global biodiversity, economy and human health. Reliable monitoring of species is crucial for data-driven management actions in this context, but remains a challenge owing to non-standardized and selective methods relaying on physical identification of species by visua Read More

In the present work we examine how recent progress at our collaborating laboratories, over various solar thermochemical technologies, can be brought to bear on the advancement of renewable resource utilization in Qatar. Specific examples of such technologies include solar water splitting for H2 production, solar CO2 splitting thermochemical energy storage in reduced metal oxides, solar cracking of CH4 for production of c Read More

Petroleum refining, not only consumes large quantities of water but also generates large quantities of wastewater. Large quantities of petroleum refinery wastewater are generated worldwide, approximately 3.5–5 m3 of wastewater generated per ton of crude oil processed. This wastewater is considered as a major source of environmental pollution. Various chemical and biologically based technologies have been developed for Read More

The availability of fresh water and energy is the key factor of the development of many countries particularly those of over-populated arid areas. Potable water supply shortage and recent technological development have led to wider application of conventional, and yet advanced saline/brackish water desalination plants. Today, desalination methods require large amounts of energy, which is costly both in environm Read More

The catalytic decomposition of methane (CDM) on suitable surfaces offers the prospect for lower or zero-carbon routes to energy using natural gas or methane derived via biomass options. The carbon from the decomposition could be stored (buried), used for specific applications or perhaps converted to electricity using carbon fuel cells, according to which the overall process is near-zero or low carbon dioxide producing in ch Read More

The ability of date palm tree to survive under adverse abiotic conditions renders it as an important fruit tree growing in hot and dry regions. Nevertheless, the optimal conditions for date palm growth and production are also suitable for fungal growth leading to major diseases such as black scorch. The aim of this work was to develop a genetic control of date palm to Thielaviopsis punctulata, the causal agent of black s Read More

Air pollution, global greenhouse gases (GHG), water pollution and water resources degradation are among the most serious environmental concerns that encounter the Qatar country. In nowadays, it is commonly known that the effects of environment degradation exceed its direct negative impacts on climate changes to cover its impacts on Human health, nation livelihood and cultural integrity. So, we advocate that Read More

In this study a decentralized combined cooling-heating-and-power (CCHP) plant fueled with liquefied natural gas (LNG) is integrated with photovoltaic (PV) technology to reduce fuel consumption and improve the economics of the CCHP plant. In their previous publications the authors have investigated the potential of an LNG-fueled CCHP at different configurations and system capacities, where the inclusion of PV techn Read More

Background & Objective: Air pollution is a major problem that has been recognised throughout the world for hundreds of years. In the middle ages, the burning of coal in cities released increasing amounts of smoke and sulphur dioxide to the atmosphere. In the late 18th century, the Industrial Revolution, beginning in the UK, led to escalation in pollutant emissions based around the use of coal by both homes and industry.Polluta Read More

Fresh fruit and vegetables are an important part of a healthy diet as they are a significant source of vitamins and minerals. However, fresh fruits and vegetables can also be a source of toxic substances such as pesticides. Pesticides are a several and diverse group of chemical compounds, which applied to crops at various stages of cultivation and during production and post-harvest treatment of agricultural commodities. Re Read More

Fadwa El Mellouhi1, Akinlolu Akande2, Sergey Rashkeev1, Mohamed El-Amine Madjet1, Golib Berdiyorov2, Carlo Motta2, Stefano Sanvito2 and Sabre Kais1, Fahhad Alharbi1 1Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute, Hamad Bin Khalifa University, Qatar Foundation, Doha, Qatar 2School of Physics and CRANN, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland In the past four years, the solar cell field has experienced an unprecedente Read More

Karst is ubiquitous on the peninsula of Qatar, including depressions, sinkholes, and caves. Faulting and fractures play a major role in the development of karst, where fluids find pathways through limestone and dissolve the host rock. The resulting fissures may grow larger as more surface water is funneled through to form cavities or karst. Sinkholes may also form, when cavern roofs collapse, and it is this last chara Read More

Bimetallic catalyst shows distinct physical and chemical properties differ from its monometallic catalyst due to the high synergy between the monometals. Bimetals of transition metals shows different applications in the field of catalysis, batteries and solar energy conversion etc. CuCo bimetallic catalysts are excellent candidate for the applications in the field of heterogeneous catalysis, solid state sensor, energy storag Read More

Energy-related activities are a major contributor of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. A growing body of knowledge clearly depicts the links between human activities and climate change. Over the last century the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil and other human activities has released carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and other heat-trapping GHG emissions into the atmosphere and thus increased the concentra Read More

In the present architecture of the electric power grids, energy is generated in large-scale that is remotely located from consumers and transmitted using passive high-voltage transmission networks to substations. The electric power is then delivered to consumers via medium and low-voltage distribution systems. Line frequency transformers (LFTs) enable high-efficiency and long-distance power transmission by stepping up the Read More

Qatar peninsula is an arid country with limited water resources. With little rainfall of approximately 80 mm per year and no surface water, aquifers are the only source of natural water in Qatar. The groundwater aquifer receives around 50 million m3 per year as natural recharge, whereas annual groundwater abstraction is more than 220 million m3, mainly used for agriculture. Groundwater occurs in a form of fresh lenses Read More

Qatar seeks to generate 2% of its electricity from solar power by 2020 (Bryden et al., 2013, REN 2015), and 20% by either 2024 (PV Insider, 2014) or 2030 (REN, 2015). Since electricity is produced almost entirely from natural gas in Qatar, these renewable energy targets introduce the prospect of natural gas savings that can be made use to increase trade and/or reduce carbon emissions. Electricity production in Qatar has been Read More

Among the diverse catalytic processes, the heterogeneous catalytic CO oxidation is an important reaction for removal of small amounts of poisoning CO in fuel cell applications and environmental remediation. Therefore, there is a great need to develop highly active and stable nanocatalysts for catalytic CO oxidation at low temperature. Plasmonic nanocatalysts supported on reducible metal oxide such as CeO2 Read More

The current study is a laboratory investigation to estimate the levels of activity concentrations of Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials (NORM) in groundwater in the Dukhan area in the State of Qatar. The primary radionuclide associated with clear gamma-ray decay signatures of concern in NORM wastes is 226Ra (from the 238U decay series) and its decay progenies 214Pb and 214Bi. Previous studies which were conducted Read More

Abstract Background: The plant growth and production rely on the supporting favorable environmental conditions throughout its growing stages. In harsh environmental conditions such as in Qatar, agricultural growth is limited by water availability, salinity and drought, leading to low yield. In soil, there are different kinds of microbiota including fungi, bacteria, actinomycetes, algae as well as various types of plant species. Fungi are Read More

Municipal solid waste management is one of the major challenges facing Qatar with more than 2.5 million tons of municipal solid waste each year, a very high waste generation rate in a country with small land mass. Solid waste in Qatar consists mostly of organic materials (60%) with the remaining made up of recyclables, such as glass, metals and plastics. Qatar's ambitious development strategy targets environmental su Read More

The Northeastern Qatari coast is comprised of diverse and sensitive flora and fauna such as seagrass meadows, turtles, algae, and coral reefs/patches that tolerate harsh environmental conditions. In the near future, this area may see a rise in anthropogenic activity in the form of coastal development projects, which will add to the existing natural stresses, such as high temperature, high salinity and low rates of pre Read More

Organic electronic devices based on polymers received significant attention in the last decade, especially for organic photovoltaics (OPVs) and field-effect transistors (OFETs) despite their performances and stability clearly falling short of today's state-of-the-art crystalline silicon or copper indium germanium selenide (CIGS)-based devices. Flexibility in the manufacturing, light weight, lower fabrication cost, ease of integration into v Read More

In order to ensure long-term sustainability of the reservoir, the gas industry in Qatar is faced with the challenge of reducing the volume of produced and process water (PPW) sent to disposal wells by 50% [1-3]. Recently, Qatargas initiated a project to recycle process water and thus, reduce disposal volumes using commercial advanced water treatment technologies [4]. One emerging technology, “osmotic concentrati Read More

The Khor Al-Adaid “Inland sea” in Qatar is a unique desert lagoon, located in the South east of Qatar and is characterized by a distinct salinity gradient (ca. 4% halite salt to saturated conditions). In the framework of the QNRF funded NPRP project, researchers from Qatar, Germany and Austria have succeeded to isolate and cultivate a new unicellular eukaryote (protist) from Qatar's unique Inland Sea (Khor Al-Adaid). Initi Read More

GCC's climate has a high ambient temperatures throughout most of the year, therefore, the air conditioning is not optional or luxury, it is a necessity. Residential sector in those countries represents the largest portion of electricity consumption. According to Qatar National Development Strategy (QNDS) 2011-2016, two-thirds (67 percent) of total residential power consumption in Qatar is due to air conditioning units (AC), Read More

The coalescence of a water drop in a dieletric oil phase at a water layer interface in the presence of an electric field is simulated by solving the Navier-Stokes and charge conservation equations with the finite element method. The proprietary software Comsol Multiphysics is used for this purpose. The interface between the oil and water phases is tracked by implementing a level-set approach. Preliminary simulations to as Read More

Background & Objectives Drilling systems are used to identify geological reservoirs and carry out extraction of oil or natural gas from these reservoirs. Deep wells are drilled by using rock-cutting tools driven from the surface by a slender structure of pipes called a drill string. These slender rotating structures can experience undesired dynamics, which can be detrimental to the drilling system. As an example, it is me Read More

The wide spread application of boron in various industries such as glass and fiberglass, ceramics, abrasives, detergents and soaps, fertilizer, enamels, insecticides, semiconductors, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals has left many surface and waste water streams polluted. Thus, there is a growing global demand for new chelating materials and efficient separation systems for removal of boron from different water streams. Read More

The Arabian Gulf surrounding Qatar is a unique marine environment with high insolation and salinity. Over 2000 strains of yeasts and filamentous fungi were isolated during 4 samplings in the context of a QNRF funded NPRP project. Approximately 1200 of the isolates were yeasts and over 800 were molds. All isolates were identified by molecular barcodes based on the ribosomal DNA. In addition the yeast isolates were also iden Read More

In 2009, the average energy consumption was about 16.1 TW. 81 % of it was supplied by non-renewable fossil fuels with emission of 29 × 1012tons of the carbon dioxide (CO2) into the atmosphere.1 Predicting the rise of energy consumption, the world is facing an urgent need for environmentally friendly and renewable energy technologies. As the direct exploitation of the ultimate energy source of the earth surfac Read More

One-dimensional nanoscale materials continue to attract much attention, not only for a better understanding of the physical properties at low dimensionality, but also for their potential in nanodevice applications. Carbon nanotubes (CNT) are of particular interest because of their unique molecular geometry and of their excellent electronic, thermal, and mechanical properties. Various carbon nanostructures have been su Read More

Qatar is firmly committed to conserving its biodiversity and is party to the Convention on Biological Diversity and within this the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation (GSPC), and has developed its own National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP). Based on an assessment of the status of biodiversity in the country, Qatar's NBSAP identified a total of 11 strategic goals that identify the most pressing biodiversity issu Read More

Arid and semi-arid areas where desertification mainly occurs cover up to 40? of the world's land area. Mongolia is one of the arid and semi-arid areas, which 90? of the land is in effect of desertification. The government of Mongolia recognizes the need of afforestation for combating desertification, however, there are very limited practical afforestation techniques in Mongolia. Nitrogen fertilization, a major technique f Read More

Pre-combustion flue gas capture has been emerged as an efficient alternative to circumvent the costly procedures of materials regeneration utilized by the energy industry for CO2 capture and separation. Stability of the porous structure and repeated use at high pressure and high temperature are among the essential requirements for the efficient materials to be used for industrial level CO2 separation. Herein we r Read More

Due to the continued growth in hydrocarbon demand, operators in the oil and gas industry are always looking to drill deeper wells in order to access previously unattainable hydrocarbons. High-Pressure High-Temperature (HPHT) wells are now broadly present in places like the Gulf of Mexico, the North Sea, and the Middle East. At such conditions, the effect of salts on the properties and performance of water-based dril Read More

1. Abstract: Silica nanoparticles functionalized with three different active functional groups (C-8, cyano-propyl, and methacrylate (MA)) were synthesized, characterized and applied for the removal of ten carbamate pesticides from aqueous solution. Two methods were used for the synthesis of functionalized silica (grafting and sol-gel method). SEM, FTIR, and HCN were used for the characterization of the particles, w Read More

Introduction: Industrial pipelines for multiphase transportation can result in unstable flows which often cause major operational problems. Due to liquid wave growth and phase interactions (hydrodynamic slugs), liquid arriving in larger, intermittent chunks may cause flow instabilities in pipelines. At an increased air volumetric flow rate, the surface wave amplitudes become larger to the pipe/conduit and wave forms frot Read More

Photovoltaic distributed generation (PV-DG) systems are one of the fastest-growing types of renewable energy resources being integrated worldwide onto distribution networks. As the price of solar cells continues to decrease, residential and utility-scale PV installations are becoming popular energy options in the United States and other Western countries. Similarly, in line with the National Vision 2030, Qatar is aiming Read More

I. Introduction Gas to Liquids (GTL) is one of clean alternative fuels which loosely defined terms that is generally used to describe the chemical conversion of natural gas to some type of liquid products. As such, it excludes the production of liquefied natural gas (LNG), but includes the conversion of gas to methanol, liquid fuels, and petrochemicals, being the most common applications. In other words, Gas to liquids (GT Read More

The need of transporting petroleum products has resulted in increased erosion of pipeline steel components. For decades, pipeline systems have been used for transporting petroleum products. Carbon steel is commonly used for constructing long-distance pipeline projects due to its mechanical durability and economic aspect. However, the erosion of oil and gas transmission pipeline continues to be a great concern t Read More

Qatar is undergoing rapid economic growth fueled by its ambitious national vision 2030 which specifically aims to achieve sustainable development. To achieve the latter, durable and sustainable alternatives for municipal solid waste management are needed, especially since Qatar tops most nations in terms of per capita solid waste generation with nearly 2.5 million tons/year of which 60% consists of organic waste. Current di Read More

This study to identify the best pre-treatments to improve seed germination of Capparis spinosa according to standard seeds germination protocols and seeds viability test methods. Capparis spinosa L. (Capparidaceae) Native to the Mediterranean region and Arabian Peninsula. Locally known ‘Shafallah’ and also known as ‘Caper’ both names used throughout the Arab countries for various Capparis species. The plant is very co Read More

Although PV has made remarkable progress in reducing costs, the absolute cost is highly related to the reliability of system components, which is determined by the life span in which PV remains fully functioning. Longer life is especially required for the solar panels when their initial cost is relatively high and therefore longer life guarantees their pay back and increases their profit. Indeed great efforts have been spent by m Read More

Dugongs (“bugarah al bahr” or “cow of the sea”) in Qatar and the wider Arabian Gulf, are animals of both historic and cultural significance to the people in the region. Historically hunted in Qatar, today they are seen as a symbol for conservation in a country that is trying to balance rapid modernization and coastal development with protection of marine biodiversity, as outlined in the Qatar National Vision 2030. Qatar and Read More

Nowadays, new trends have made possible to reconfigure the traditional power systems in a more efficient way while world energy consumption is being continuously increased. To meet future energy demands, a more flexible, smart and configurable power system is required. To create such systems, microgrids are emerging and becoming a more attractive solution. The microgrid is a weak grid formed with different energy s Read More

The solar photovoltaic industry is dominated by crystalline silicon with a global PV market share of 90%. The global PV module production has reached about 40 GW in 2013. Competing with Si PV, thin film photovoltaic modules have reached a market share just below 10%, with dominance by two companies: First Solar for CdTe and Solar Frontier for Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2. Derived by the technological learning and economies of s Read More