Qatar Foundation Annual Research Conference Proceedings Volume 2014 Issue 1

Few topics are more relevant in current times than energy management. Fast depleting reserves and record-high prices of fossil fuels and global climatic change are forcing a strategic rethink towards the way we deal with our energy needs, across the globe. Better energy management and energy consumption reduction could help Qatar's economy better achieve its sustainability targets. With buildings consuming over 40% of national energy consumption, reducing in-building energy consumption represent a huge opportunity to achieve energy and corresponding Green House Gas (GHG) emissions reduction. Buildings consume massive amount of Energy, resulting from heavy electrical loads from lighting, cooling and appliance usage. Thus, reducing the consumption of energy in residential and commercial buildings will have a huge impact on total energy savings. The majority of buildings which will be standing in 2050 have already been built, so building owners need to retrofit their buildings in such a way as to optimize greenhouse gases emissions and energy consumption reduction. This research presents a framework to yield optimal energy reduction, to help decided spending of energy retrofit budget in most cost-effective and result oriented manner, by identifying existing building stock with a potential of maximum energy reduction. Existing approaches for building energy performance analysis are either prohibitively expensive (e.g. detailed energy audits by certified experts) or inadequately granular (not providing enough energy feedback; e.g. carbon calculators, energy benchmarks, ROI curves). Also, existing energy modelling processes require weeks or months to construct, before useful information can be provided to guide retrofit decisions. Thus, there is need to complement existing approaches with innovative approaches to building energy modelling. The presented research aims to address technical and cost challenges associated with energy consumption feedback and retrofit decision making. Research aim is to develop a technology driven framework to provide a quick and cost-effective method of undertaking building energy audits using Building Information Modelling (BIM) and Energy Simulation technologies. Implementation of such an framework will provide a relatively accurate and inexpensive decision support tool to provide useful energy consumption related information to building users and decision makers. Presented research builds on previous pilot conducted by authors, which demonstrated that BIM/IFC based approaches provide a feasible alternative to conduct energy analysis of existing buildings, provided various correlations are built into the model. The approach does not require specialist energy assessor, auditor or a software expert. After initial calibration, results were obtained within a 5% margin of accuracy. The results could be used for preliminary energy analysis, for exploring different what-if scenarios, providing interactive feedback to building users and for exploring various alternatives to enhance building performance using renewable energy.

Problem Statement The soils of the Arabian Peninsula in general and the GCC countries in specific are coarse textured. These soils have low water and nutrient holding capacity and high leaching. There is a need for innovative technology that enhances water and nutrient use efficiency and increase crop production. A number of organic and inorganic amendments have been used by various researchers in this regards. However, little has been done in this respect on UAE soils, and hence forms the focus of this study. Objectives To assess the performance of organic and inorganic amendments to enhanced crop production (maize). Methodology A green house experiment (pot) was conducted (June-September 2013) on maize crop using different amendments and rates (0, 1.5%, 3.0% and 6.0%). Four inorganic and one organic amendment were used. The pots were irrigated with fresh water (EC = 2.07 dSm-1) at 100% ET0, 75% ET0 and 50% ET0. The treatments were triplicated in split plot design. Nitrogen was applied at 115 kg/ha in three dozes (50%, 25% and 25%); while potash (30 kg/ha K2O) and phosphorus (60 kg/ha P2O5) were applied at sowing. Five seeds (variety Sahiwal from Pakistan) were sown in the pots and when geminated thinning was done to three plants. Data on plant height, biomass (fresh and dry), root length and weight, germination was collected. Results Two inorganic amendments (Zeoplant and Zeoplant pellets) have shown promising results in terms of plant height and biomass. At 75% ETo the performance of both amendments was comparable to 100% ET0; however, the biomass was increased more than double and even triple compared to the control treatment by Zeoplant. These are the preliminary results which needs further confirmation under field conditions. Follow up to this study we have conducted green house (pot experiment) and field trials (barley crop) to further test these amendments before solid conclusions can be drawn and recommendation formulated. Based on the preliminary pot experiments following conclusions are drawn. Conclusions The organic and inorganic amendments in general improved the water use efficiency as well as enhanced the biomass production to a significant extent compared to the treatment where amendments were not used. Recommendations These are preliminary results from sandy soil representing the main soil type in UAE. These amendments may behave differently in other types of soils hence further test are needed. Key words Agriculture production, Sandy soils, Soil amendments, Soil properties improvement, UAE

An initial generic framework for steel industry supply chain sustainability is proposed and enhanced later to reflect the reality of supply chain operations. The Green Supply Chain (GL-SC) framework is based on a simultaneous implementation of environmental and green practices across the supply chain. It also involves methods to recover the product from customer or scrap and to re-use it or re-use part of it through recycling, repair, remanufacturing, or refurbishment. Recovered items can be sent to customer or to another customer (second grade) or even returned to supplier. The framework covers the key supply chain components and operations, specifies their environmental impacts, and assigns potential green practices. The Framework specifies green SC practices that can mainly contribute to the sustainability of the steel supply chain. This is expected to result in a green focus across the supply chain and establishes for a green assessment of various SC functions. A set of green supply chain (G-SC) metrics will be developed to assess the sustainability of steel supply chain. These metrics will be used to assess the effectiveness of current and proposed green practices within the supply chain while revealing the effects of these initiatives and their potential opportunities. The proposed framework includes both qualitative and quantitative performance measurements. As green initiatives are evaluated for adoption and a set of sustainable supply chain performance measures (KPIs) will be developed then a DES simulation model of steel supply chain will be built, validated, and verified. Conflict amongst the multiple objectives and KPIs is often expected. The assessment of such initiatives/alternatives translates into a multi-objective optimization problem that could be modeled and potentially solved using heuristics and simulation models, and randomized search engines (e.g., Genetic Algorithms, Tabu Search, and Simulated Annealing). Practically, it is difficult and in some cases impossible to include all aspects of SC green practices in the solution achieved with such methods. The proposed framework recommends managerial decision support tools, namely Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), for selecting an applicable strategy for attaining a green and lean supply chain. To this end, AHP is utilized to determine an overall score of combined green proposals based on the ratings and relative importance of the selected green KPIs. This is essential in order to arrive at realistic and comprehensive assessment of the proposed strategies.

Dates constitute the primary exportable agricultural product in Qatar and current efforts are being made to improve its production. Varieties with desirable morphological traits are usually maintained using clonal propagation leading to the establishment of uniform palm plantations. This practice reduces the genetic diversity among palm orchards and makes them more vulnerable to pests and diseases. The biggest limitation in date palm propagation from seeds is that half of the planted offspring are expected to be male individuals with no agricultural value. Previous cytological studies indicated the presence of heteromorphic sex chromosomes in date palm, but enzymatic approaches intended to anticipate gender determination have been unsuccessful. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis of female and male individuals from the commercial varieties Khalas, Deglet Noor and Medjool, allowed the identification of a sex-linked region that segregates with gender, and extends to 24 scaffolds. This sex locus was genetically mapped to the lower arm of linkage group 12, and was estimated to extend up to 13 Mb, or 2% of the genome. Our objective was to physically map the male/female determination region in date palm using a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) library. This library represents 12x genome coverage and clones have an average insert size of 125 kb. A first round of PCR screening of this library was developed using the sequence information from the 24 SNP-enriched scaffolds to generate PCR-based primers around gender segregating markers. Plasmid DNA from multiple BACs was barcoded, pooled and sequenced using Illumina MiSeq and 150 paired-end reads were then assembled and compared to the existing date palm reference genomes from Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Next generation sequencing of eighty-two BACs has allowed the mapping of nineteen markers to six large assembled contigs with an estimated average size of 496.4 kb spanning approximately 2.9 Mb. Preliminary analysis of the assembled sequences indicated that we have positively identified a genomic region highly enriched in gender-linked SNPs, with male and female alleles segregating in a 1:1 ratio. This is what we would have expected from an XY sex chromosome system. Multiple sequence gaps still exist within and between the sequenced region, and further analysis has indicated that many BAC end sequences correspond to repetitive elements that likely constitute a big portion of the unassembled DNA sequences. During the second phase of this study, we have designed and tested twenty-one new PCR markers that we expect will help to close the gaps, determine the minimum tilling path and obtain a complete sequence and physical map of the sex-determination region. Our ultimate goal is to detect the critical mutation that gave rise to male and female separation. This is the first time such level of detail in a dioecious plant will be achieved. Furthermore, standardization of a reliable sequencing and screening procedure will allow us to characterize other genomic regions associated with desirable commercial properties in date fruits. This in turn will provide a valuable tool for the development of marker-assisted selection programs and ultimately for the improvement of date palm production.

With the development of practices towards green pavements, many agencies are shifting from the use of the conventional hot mix asphalt (HMA) towards new technologies of warm mix asphalt (WMA). The different techniques of WMA are recently developed to improve many aspects of asphalt works of which to reduce the mixing and compaction temperature, reduce the required energy for production, lessen the emissions and fumes, and extend the construction seasons. Thus, WMA is becoming commonly used in critical paving projects at cold weather or projects with short time-windows where the roadway cannot be closed from traffic for a long period of time. Based on this, it is important to know the cooling characteristics of freshly paved asphalt mats for these projects. The cooling time is a critical factor affecting the completion time of the paving operations where enough time needs to be given for the asphalt layer to cool down and gain the required stiffness to carry the traffic load. Lowering the cooling time will reduce user delays and interruption of services which decreases the accompanied financial and environmental costs. This requires the accurate estimation of the cooling time prior to construction to set more efficient rehabilitation paving operations. To achieve this, a predictive finite element model (FEM) using the ADINA (Automated Dynamic Incremental Nonlinear Analysis) package, is developed to simulate the actual cooling of newly paved asphalt layers. The model is founded on principles of thermodynamics and heat transfer to simulate the effects of conduction, convection, and radiation to predict the cooling rates of pavements. This study provides an accurate and mechanistic prediction tool for asphalt cooling that incorporates the various factors influencing the cooling rate such as layer thickness, air temperature, solar flux, wind speed, time of the day, time of the year, and properties of the paving material. The model is validated using measured data and used to assess the effect of certain critical parameters on cooling rates and impact on paving operations. This tool allows its user to simulate cooling of different types of asphalt concrete of which HMA and WMA are two options. Also, WMA has a time-dependent curing at a relatively short period of time after construction where the asphalt binder regains its original viscosity and/or a certain amount of entrapped moisture is evaporated from the WMA where insufficient curing time can lead to the deterioration of WMA at early stages. So, this tool will be used to predict the cooling time of WMA at different conditions where it will be compared with WMA curing time and thus decide whether the cooling or curing time determines the time to open to traffic for WMA projects.

Qataris are increasingly becoming interested in sport shooting at indoor and outdoor areas where lead (Pb) contamination can become an environmental health hazard, especially since high salinity and low organic matter content in the desert environment limit natural Pb weathering. Up to date, no information is available as to the impacts of Pb pellets on the environment in Qatar. Therefore, there is a need to determine Pb contamination levels at shooting ranges in Qatar. In this study, the concentrations of Pb in soils and dust collected from indoor, semi-outdoor, and outdoor ranges were assessed. Lead was extracted from soil and dust samples using the open acid digestion method, then its concentrations were determined by an ICP-MS. A baseline data on the health status of shooters was carried out using a 12-questions survey questionnaire. Results showed that indoor ranges were the most contaminated, having the highest Pb levels (619,309 ppb) at 25 m indoor firing ranges. The Pb levels in outdoor shooting ranges were also found to be relatively high, especially at 76 m site (148,557 ppb). Overall, the concentrations of Pb were determined to be significantly (p˂0.05) higher in indoor ranges than those of outdoor and semi-outdoor ranges. The results of the survey data indicated that 25% and 15% of participants suffer from anemia and reduction in their mental capacity, respectively, based on self-report. This might be associated with their recreational exposure to Pb; however, the cause and effect can only be established through controlled clinical studies. Overall, these results indicate that there is a clear need for improving the situation in especially indoor shooting ranges by using lead-free ammunition, wearing personal protective equipment or installing better ventilation in indoor facilities.

Solar cells based on the hybrid halide perovskite, CH3NH3PbI3, have now reached a confirmed efficiency of 18%, demonstrating a pace for improvements with no precedents in the solar energy arena. Despite such explosive progress, the microscopic origin behind the success of such material is still debated and in particular it is not clear what role the organic component play in the light-harvesting process. We will show using electronic structure calculations that the organic molecules do contribute to the band structure close to the bandgap and they play a fundamental role in determining the crystal geometry. The high-temperature cubic phase of CH3NH3PbI3 allows the molecules CH3NH3 to rotate, thus causing the octahedral PbI6 cage to distort. Such distortion is the direct result of van der Waals interactions that once we include in our calculation reveal drastic consequences on the electronic structure. Charge transport properties of hybrid halide perovskites are also investigated with a combination of density functional theory including van der Waals interaction and the Boltzmann theory for diffusive transport in the relaxation time approximation. Our analysis suggests that the mobility is probably not a key factor in determining the high solar-harvesting efficiency of this class of materials.

The increase of soil and water contamination, caused by oil leakages during transportation and storage of petroleum components, present serious threat to human health and the environment. Total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) is a commonly used gross parameter for quantifying environmental contamination that is originated by various petroleum hydrocarbons. The characterization of the petroleum contaminated soils will enable the selection of the most appropriate methods for bioremediation and rehabilitation of theses soils. Qatar's economic boom, based on the hydrocarbon industry, is putting a strain on other scarce resources. Due to the increase of industrial activates; several environmental issues arose in the recent years, putting at risk the natural and cultural resources of Qatar. Soil in Qatar is in general shallow sandy calcareous, overlying rocky bedrock. The available nutrition is poor with salty soil; they are adapted and tolerate different physical and chemical factors. In areas with long history of oil spells, it's important to conduct large-scale study in which oil weathering in the sediments is evaluated in terms of toxicity to the environment. Rehabilitation of lands should be further developed to preserve agricultural soils, and to prevent the spread of harmful molecules and their infiltration into the groundwater and in the food chain. Solvent extraction is a promising technology for degrading polluted soil. Consequently, several solvent has been researched; namely methanol, hexane, dichloromethane and acetone. The solvent mixture [hexane: dichloromethane (50:50)] efficiently extracts the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) compounds. The solvent extraction methods are useful to identify the composition of soil contamination which would assist in the treatment and remediation. Accelerated solvent extraction has been applied to extract of wide range of petroleum hydrocarbons, including aliphatic, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), phenols, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), while gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) is used to quantify the hydrocarbon compound in environmental samples. In this study, Total petroleum hydrocarbons was extracted and quantified in several samples collected from aged contaminated sites. The analytical results, indicated that the quantitative determination of the PAH was depended strongly on the sample preparation, and solvents The data collected in this baseline study should be further validated and incorporated with other studies that would guide the future remediation strategies.

Background & Objectives The anti-phase currents and the propagation of surface waves on the conventional metallic ground plane placed underneath a radio frequency (RF) coil for high field magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), represent the reasons for the reduction in RF magnetic flux density above this coil (inside the phantom). The objective of this paper is to overcome on the aforementioned problems by replacing this metallic reflector with a high impedance surface electromagnetic band gap (EBG) structure to improve the efficiency of a well-established meander dipole for 7Tesla MRI. A novel multilayer offset stacked polarization dependent EBG structure has been designed to work as an artificial ground plane (in particular as a soft surface) for 7Tesla MRI RF coils. The performance of a meander dipole element when it is backed by our proposed soft surface is compared in a fair manner to the performance of the design using the metallic ground plane by simulating the distribution of magnetic field, electric field, and the energy specific absorption rate (SAR) 1cm inside a homogeneous phantom. Materials and Methods A multilayer EBG structure is introduced, which consists of two arrays of metal patches diagonally offset from each other. The top layer consists of 4x3 patches each of 8% of λ300MHz in length and 3% of λ300MHz in width. These patches are connected to the metal backed dielectric substrate by vertical pins. The lower layer consists of solid patches and is floating. The HFSS full wave simulator (based on FEM) and the FDTD simulator EMPIRE XCcel were used to characterize and analyze the EBG structure. A homogeneous phantom is placed 2cm above the coil in order to emulate the human body at the MRI operating frequency of 300MHz. Results and Conclusions The FDTD results showed that the normalized total electric field for the meander dipole backed by a metallic reflector 1cm inside the phantom was 54 V/m/√W compared to 40 V/m/√W for the case when the RF coil backed by the proposed surface. Thereby, the peak localized specific absorption rate SAR values (hot spots), which is a dominant restriction for MRI of high field strengths, is also reduced. The 10g-SAR and 1g-SAR values for the conventional metallic and the proposed EBG ground planes are reduced from 2.612 W/kg to 1.478 W/kg and from 3.45 W/kg to 1.91 W/kg respectively, a significant reduction (by around 43%) in the local SAR is observed.

The use of alternative energy is becoming an environmentally friendly option for many countries to reduce the energy bill. Because of its huge generated waste amounts, waste tires are being a good source for alternative energy in some industries that provide safe operation conditions such as cement industry. The study took Jordan as an example to show the advantage of using the waste tires in cement industry. Results about Jordan showed that if 20, 40 or 60 % of waste tires are used as supplementary fuel; the savings could reach 6.29, 12.57 or 18.86 million dollars respectively. The impact of using waste tire depends strongly on the price of crude oil in each country. Also results showed that there is a positive correlation between the savings and the price of crude oil.