Qatar Foundation Annual Research Conference Proceedings Volume 2016 Issue 1

Recently, a new group of 2D material showed a great promise in supercapacitors and batteries application due to their good conductivity as well as hydrophilic nature [1]. It has general formula Mn+1Xn, where n = 1, 2 or 3, M is an early transitional metal and X is C and/or N [2]. According to X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and energy dispersive x-ray spectrometry (EDS) studies, MXenes can be terminated with a mixtur Read More

Background & Objectives: Power converters have become over the last decades an enabling technology for PV applications. As demonstrated by scientific literature on the subject, current research efforts are directed toward the use of intermediate solutions between fully centralized and totally distributed (one inverter for each panel or strings of panels) PV grid connection architectures, for cost, reliability and maintenanc Read More

Microalgal bioassays are currently used worldwide to help assess the impacts of contaminants on aquatic ecosystems. Algae are particularly important to such assessments because they represent the basic trophic level of the aquatic food web and contribute to ecosystem biodiversity. Toxicological impacts to these species may have follow-on effects (e.g., depletion of food source) on higher trophic levels and subsequen Read More

The major threats to community health were recognized as coming from poor housing, poor management of sewage and drainage, foul air in industrialized towns, unsafe drinking water, and inadequate control of pests. Increasing pest infestation in urban areas is now a reality. The reliance on the use of chemical pesticides leads to negative results. Use of clean ecological methods must be the strategy of the future. Pests ar Read More

Microbial communities in the date palm rhizoshere can play a vital role in the development of the palm and its health. Using the metagenomic as a tool can help in exploring these microbial communities in searching for microorganisms with potential for agricultural practices. Samples (roots and soil) were collected for metagenomic analysis from 12 date palms (khalas cv) growing at Roudat Alfars Research Farm of the Ministry of Read More

One of the most toxic heavy metals in the environment is mercury (Hg). However, it still has major uses in various industrial and agricultural applications; leading to localized mercury pollution. There has been an increase in the number of used fluorescent lamps compared to incandescent bulbs. Mercury is being used in fluorescent lamps in the elemental form where it can be vaporized under high pressure. Th Read More

An important objective of aquatic toxicological assessments is to evaluate the effects of water-borne toxic compounds on organisms which play a crucial role in aquatic communities. In marine ecosystems, copepods have a major impact on essential ecological processes: they exert grazing pressure on phytoplankton, and are a significant food source for several fish and macro crustaceans. Euterpina acutifrons, a harpacticoi Read More

Drill string models are of two major types- Conventional and Periodic. Conventional drill string models are widely used due to their simplicity in manufacturing and dynamics analysis. Drill strings are affected mainly by torsional, lateral and axial vibrations. The dispersive or propagative nature of these vibrations can only be analyzed by using periodic drill string models. Drill pipe makes up the majority of the drill string. In Read More

The marine species Pinctada radiata is the most abundant pearl oyster found in Qatari waters; however, little is known about its reproductive biology, ecological importance and life cycle. This species has been harvested for many centuries primarily for natural pearls but also for edible flesh and lustrous shell. Wild stocks of P. radiata are now significantly threatened in the Arabian Gulf region as a result of both natural (e. Read More

Direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) has been attracting lots of attention as a power source for transportation, stationary and portable electronic devices due to the high energy density of methanol and ease of handling compared to gaseous fuels such as hydrogen and natural gas. However, the commercialization of DMFC is still limited due to some technical challenges such as methanol crossover and low methanol electro-ox Read More

Photovoltaics (PVs) are the solar harvesting devices currently envisioned to anchor the will of increasing Renewable Energy in Qatar. These devices are planned to be deployed within the next few years to achieve the GW scale. Less oil and gas dependence is important on the very long timescale, as per the perspective of the energy security grand challenge of the state of Qatar. Within Qatar Environment and Energy Re Read More

Energy efficiency is growing in importance as governments move to decrease their dependence on fossil based fuels. There are many industries with waste heat streams that need to be cooled down to lower temperatures. The excess heat from these hot streams can be used for generating power using a thermodynamic cycle (such as an Organic Rankine Cycle). A natural first step for assessing such power generation option Read More

Most adsorbents used in reactors of adsorption refrigeration and heat pump systems are often initially manufactured for different applications namely drinking water treatment, waste water treatment, gas storage, gas and liquid filtration or separation in industrial processes, dehumidification process. Furthermore there will be a requirement of mapping of refrigerant specific uptake against operating condition Read More

In recent years, novel two-dimensional (2D) materials have attracted much attention due to their unique properties and numerous possible applications [1]. In particular, one of the key domains that can be addressed with the 2D materials refers to the energy conversion and storage [2]. In this context, the novel monolayer group-VI B transition metal dichalcogenides (MX2, where M = Mo, W and X = S, Se, Te) are of speci Read More

The issue of hydrate formation during gas processing is a challenging problem for the oil and gas industries. Billions of dollars spent annually to get rid of the blockage of pipelines due to hydrate clogging by applying various methodologies [1]. Among them injecting chemical inhibitors is the most widely accepted solution; however, choosing a chemical is a difficult task which depends a lot on the gravity of the situation. Generally m Read More

Crude oil and natural gas are usually transmitted in metallic pipelines. These pipelines, in some cases extending for hundreds of kilometers, are inevitably exposed to harsh environment such as extreme temperature, internal pressure, corrosive chemicals, etc. Thus, at some point in their lifetime, metallic pipelines are highly expected to develop serious metal-loss defects such as corrosions, which, if left undetected and im Read More

The use of Reclaimed Asphalt Pavement (RAP) material is widespread although the overall amount in the mix and the plant technology vary for each country. Reusing RAP allows for potential benefits due to less material consumption and possible energy savings although the benefit greatly varies depending upon the technology adopted for recycling (hot, warm, or cold asphalt recycled mixes) and material performance duri Read More

Reliable knowledge of wave climate in a large water body such as in the Arabian Gulf for navigation, recreational, maintenance and installation of offshore-infrastructure (e.g. oil platforms) etc. is an important pre-requisite. Predicting waves in a region like Arabian Gulf, which is approximately 1000 km in length (north to south) and 550 km in width and shallower (average water depth is ∼35 m) requires a well-developed wave Read More

With the unexpectedly fluctuating price of oil and the increasing threat of global climate change, Electric Vehicles (EVs) and renewable energy, particularly photovoltaic (PV) generation are becoming a viable option since they are not directly affected by the unstable oil price and yet are environmentally friendly. The PV generation has attracted attention in the “Solar Belt” countries, especially in Qatar where annual mean Read More

Availability of clean water is one of the most urgent challenges for our societies. Practically, all water sources around the world are polluted to some degree due to a heavy influx of industrial effluents and domestic and agricultural wastes discharged into water sources. Membrane technology has gained significant attention in the water treatment, because of its advantages such as cost effective, no phase change, e Read More

We report on a number of climate and air quality anomalies during 2015 and their potential impacts on human health, solar power generation and water security in Qatar and the wider region. The anomalies include a strong cut-off low pressure system and accompanying sand-storm in early April, elevated Sea Surface Temperatures (SST) from early summer through October in the Arabian Gulf, substantially higher year-on-ye Read More

This paper is aiming at raising awareness, informing decision makers and informing the transportation community of the implications of road accidents and high accident rates and severities in Qatar and similar Gulf countries. The paper is also recommending to adopt an integrated approach with a set of measures and actions to policy makers in Doha, including environmental measures which can aim at improving p Read More

Middle East (ME) supplies more than 47% oil exported in the world (IEA 2013) and has highest energy self-sufficiency in the world. It includes 12 countries and has a population of 205 million in 2010, which increased by about 61.4% from 1990 (IEA 2010). Its energy demand has increased astronomically at the rate of 7% per year, since 1971–2013, faster than in any other region in the world. Buildings majorly contribute to Read More

Introduction: To date, a variety of studies have been published on the topic of long term energy system transition. Most studies on future energy systems, however, have a shorter time frame or adopt a supranational focus (e.g. the Energy Roadmap, 2011 or the World Energy Outlook, 2015). It then constitutes a sincere challenge to perform a national energy system transition study with as time horizon 2050 and covering a fa Read More

The concept of electromagnetic energy harvesting and wireless power transfer had been proposed more than half a century ago. In all published works related to electromagnetic energy collection, classical antennas have been used while the focus shifted to the rectification circuitry. Recent works showed that the weakest link in the traditional energy harvesting chain is the antenna itself. Here, we show that metasurfaces pro Read More