Qatar Foundation Annual Research Forum Volume 2013 Issue 1
- تاريخ المؤتمر: 24-25 Nov 2013
- الموقع: Qatar National Convention Center (QNCC), Doha, Qatar
- رقم المجلد: 2013
- المنشور: ٢٠ نوفمبر ٢٠١٣
241 - 260 of 541 نتائج
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Etiologic Studies On Equine Motor Neuron Disease: A Natural Model For Als
المؤلفون: Hussni MohammedEtiologic Studies on Equine Motor Neuron Disease: A natural model for ALS
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Associations Of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms(Rs2383207) On Chromosome 9P21 With Coronary Artery Diseases In Qatar
المؤلفون: Fadheela BakhshAssociations of single nucleotide polymorphisms(rs2383207) on chromosome 9p21 with coronary artery diseases in Qatar
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Mechanism Of Regulation Of Extracellular Matrix Upon Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress
المؤلفون: Nasrin MesaeliMechanism of regulation of extracellular matrix upon endoplasmic reticulum stress
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Assessment Of Parylene C Thin Films For Heart Valve Tissue Engineering
المؤلفون: Isra MareiAssessment of Parylene C Thin Films for Heart Valve Tissue Engineering
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Nanotechnology Approaches To The Treatment Of Pulmonary Hypertension: Gold Nanoparticles And No-Release
المؤلفون: Nura MohamedNanotechnology approaches to the treatment of pulmonary hypertension: Gold nanoparticles and NO-release
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Ultra-Wideband Mimo Channel Characterization For Healthcare Applications
المؤلفون: Marwa QaraqeThe idea of deploying multiple wireless sensors around the human body to enable ubiquitous healthcare by measuring continuously all the physiological data of interest has received considerable attention. Ultra-wideband (UWB) is a promising communication technology for short-range communication scenarios like body-centric wireless network (BCWN) (i.e, in the area of medical healthcare). UWB is characterized by low-power which makes it suitable for human body exposure and extends the life of the system. UWB is a high data rate technology that provides immunity to multipath interference, which facilitates the compatibility of such technology in body-centric applications. High data-rate wireless communications, nearing 1 Gb/s transmission rates, are of greater interest in emerging wireless technologies. The demand for higher data rate is increasing with the passage of time. To achieve higher data rates, greater than 50 Mb/s, multiple transmit and multiple receive antennas (MIMO) is recommended in IEEE 802.11n. To reach the target of 1 Gb/s, more advanced techniques like Ultra-wideband (UWB) technology combined with MIMO is an attractive research area now-a-days [1]. For BCWN, the use of multiple antennas at transmitter and receiver can simply be considered as a tool to further increase the signal to noise/interference ratio and additional diversity against fading. BCWN mainly experience fading due to relative movements of body parts, polarisation mismatch, shadowing, diffraction, and scattering from the body parts and surrounding environments. Multiple antennas can be used to combat fading and multipath effects. There has been an increasing interest in diversity and multiple-input, multiple output (MIMO) techniques for enhanced mobile and wireless communications in recent years. There are some studies presented in the open literature, where the benefits of multiple antenna techniques for body-centric communications in narrow-band systems have been investigated. The aim of this work is to investigate channel characterization (i.e having comprehensive radio channel knowledge and accurate channel model) and improve channel capacity provided by a UWB MIMO antenna system in body centric communication systems. The work will specifically investigate how UWB radio signals are affected by body shadowing and what kind for of improvement can be achieved in terms of channel capacity by using MIMO technology for BCWN. This is done by incorporating two different models on the measured data in an indoor environment (Fig. 1 shows the MIMO antenna position during measurements), and calculating various parameters like Rician factor, average received power, shadowing deviation, polarization loss for each spatial sub-channel. In addition, water filling is used in place of uniform distribution which provides higher capacity even at low SNR.
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Knowledge of Risk Factors for Spontaneous Abortion among Qatari Arab Women
المؤلفون: Nish PatelSpontaneous abortion affects one in four of all pregnancies (Crenin, 2001). The rate of spontaneous abortion among Qatari Arab women presenting to Women's Hospital, Doha, Qatar is 34% (Women's Hospital, 2012) compared to the next highest ethnic minority (Egyptian Arab women) at 18%. Understanding and modifying risk factors for spontaneous abortion may prevent future miscarriages. Purpose: To assess the level of knowledge of risk factors for spontaneous abortion among Qatari Arab women. Methods: A cross-sectional self-administered survey was completed by 290 Qatari Arab women. The questionnaire assessed knowledge of modifiable lifestyle risk factors of spontaneous abortion. Univariate and bivariate analysis of the data was conducted. Odds ratios were used as a measure of association between categorical variables; confidence intervals and the chi-square test were used to determine whether or not the association was statistically significant. All tests were 2-sided and findings considered significant at p < 0.05. Results: Only 2.6% of the participants were aware of all 11 modifiable lifestyle risk factors. Most women (56%) had knowledge of only 5 or fewer risk factors of spontaneous abortion. Women who had a high school education and were younger than 25 years were two times more likely to know 5 or fewer risk factors than college educated women over 26 years of age (OR=2; CI: 1.2 - 3.3, p<.05). Conclusion: There is a significant lack of knowledge of the risk factors of spontaneous abortion among Qatari Arab women who attended the Antenatal Clinic at Women's Hospital, Doha, Qatar. Targeted and repeated health education during regular clinic visits may increase awareness. This may lead to a behavioral change preventing future spontaneous abortions.
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Analysis Of Whole Genome Sequencing Data Of The Arabian, Percheron And Miniature Horse
المؤلفون: Mohammed Al AbriWhole genome sequencing provides a rich and unprecedented collection of the existing genetic variation in a genome. The development of next generation sequencing (NGS) technologies has enabled a rapid and relatively inexpensive method for whole genome sequencing. The current archive of genetic variations in the horse is mostly based on the Thoroughbred mare used to generate the reference sequence (EquCab2.0). Therefore, we have used Illumina paired-end NGS technology to sequence three horse genomes from diverse breeds; an Arabian, a Percheron and an American Miniature Horse. Our objective is to catalog newly identified variations within these three individuals and in comparison to the reference. After filtering the reads, we used BWA to align them to the reference and the Genome Analysis Tool Kit (GATK) HaplotypeCaller to call Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) and insertion/deletion polymorphisms (In/Dels). We also used ControlFreec to obtain regions predicted to contain copy number variations on each of the three genomes. Finally, we used BreakDancer to detect structural variations like inversions and translocations. These newly detected variations will enrich the database of genetic variations in the horse and could potentially have a phenotypic impact related to the biology of each of the three horse breeds. Here we will be presenting preliminary findings on our analysis and highlight the important steps in our pipeline.
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Design And Synthesis Of New Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors As Potential Neuroprotective Agents
المؤلفون: Ashraf KhalilBackground and Objectives: Monoamine oxidase (MAO) catalyzes the biodegradation of biogenic amine neurotransmitters and a variety of xenobiotic amines. Selective MAO B inhibitors are used in the treatment of Parkinson's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases while selective MAO A inhibitors are known antidepressants. Piperazine and pyrazole rings are common moieties in several MAO inhibitors. The chronic nature of these diseases raises a compelling need for new MAO inhibitors with improved pharmacokinetics and safety profiles. Therefore, the aim of this project is to design, synthesize, purify and elucidate the structure of a series of new piperazine and pyrazole derivatives with potential MAO inhibitory activity. Methods: Based on the literature review, a series of compounds was proposed for their potential MAO inhibitory activity. Different piperazine and pyrazole derivatives were chemically synthesized by conventional method or by the use of microwave initiator. The reactions were monitored with TLC and purified by liquid-liquid extraction and column chromatography. The structures were confirmed by FTIR and GC/MS. Results: The microwave-assisted synthesis gave a better yield comparing to the conventional synthesis. The structures of the new compounds were confirmed by FTIR and GCMS. All the data will be presented. Conclusions: Microwave assisted synthesis of the proposed compounds improved the obtained yield. FTIR confirmed the formation of new products and the disappearance of the starting materials while the GCMS confirmed the molecular weight of the obtained products. More compounds will be prepared and evaluated for their MAO inhibitory activity.
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Investigating The Function And Substrate Specificity Of Histone Deacetylase Enzymes:New Synthetic Tools To Investigate The Role Of Hdacs In Cancer
المؤلفون: Ameera AljabiryInvestigating the Function and Substrate Specificity of Histone Deacetylase Enzymes:New Synthetic Tools to Investigate the Role of HDACs in Cancer
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Factors Influencing Breast Cancer Screening Practices Among Arabic Women Living in the State of Qatar: The Health Care Providers' Perspective
المؤلفون: Jasmine HwangBACKGROUND: Breast cancer is the most common cancer contributing to morbidity and mortality among Arabic women in Qatar. Arabic women are at risk primarily due to their low participation rates in breast cancer screening practices and subsequent delayed diagnosis of the disease. Therefore, there must be a strong emphasis on the health care providers and the health care system to increase efforts in early detection of breast cancer. METHODS: This Master's thesis study is a part of a larger, mixed methods study entitled "Factors Influence Breast Cancer Screening Practices Amongst Arabic Women Living in the State of Qatar" conducted by Dr. Tam Truong Donnelly, the lead principal investigator, and funded by the Qatar National Research Fund under the National Priorities Research Program. Following the theoretical frameworks of the main research study, this qualitative research based its theoretical foundation on an ecological perspective and Kleinman's explanatory model to explore, understand, and describe factors influencing Arabic women's breast cancer screening practices from the health care providers' perspective. Using Carspecken's critical ethnography, fifteen health care providers from three health care sites who work at various levels of the health care system in Qatar were interviewed individually and face to face. RESULTS: An analysis of the data revealed factors that either hinder or facilitate women's breast health and health care practices in Qatar. The influences of the factors are coalesced into four major themes: influences of (a) knowledge and awareness, pain associated with mammogram, and perception of 'no pain, no illness', (b) cultural beliefs, attitudes, and practices with regard to female breasts, body, illness, and unhealthy women and religious beliefs regarding modesty, health, and illness (c) unequal gender relations of power, female roles and responsibilities, and spousal support, and (d) systemic (health care and social resource) factors on women's breast cancer screening practices. CONCLUSIONS: As with many women worldwide, the study findings suggest that Arabic women's health cannot be understood in isolation from the environment in which they live. Rather, the health of Arabic women in Qatar is both constrained and fostered by health care and social systems that are embedded in culture. Addressing problems on a personal level isolated from the context will not be adequate and effective. Therefore, what seems immediately personal must be examined within its context; solutions need to address the context and not be limited to the individual. Authors offer implications for the health care, health care professionals, education, and research.
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Combining neonatal stress with schizophrenia susceptibility gene, dysbindin-1, is required for phenotypic changes in adulthood.
المؤلفون: Abeer Al-ShammariAdult neurogenesis exists in two brain regions: the subventricular zone (SVZ) and the hippocampal dentate gyrus. In schizophrenia, hippocampal neurogenesis has been widely characterized, however no evidence exists for whether SVZ neurogenesis might be involved in the disease. This is particularly interesting since antipsychotic drugs were already shown to increase SVZ neurogenesis in rats [1, 2]. Here, I have investigated adult neurogenesis in three mouse models of schizophrenia: transgenic mice overexpressing neuregulin-1 type 1 (NRG1type1-tg); Snap-25 mutant (SNAP25+/-) mice and dysbindin-1 mutant or Sandy (Sdy-/-) mice. Using immunohistochemistry, I found no quantitative change in the number of proliferative cells that were positive for phosophohistone (PHi3) in the SVZ, rostral migratory stream (RMS) and hippocampus in both the NRG1type1-tg and SNAP25+/- mice. Similarly, I found no significant change in the surface area of migrating neuroblasts (doublecortin, Dcx+ cells) in the RMS of NRG1type1-tg and SNAP25+/- mice. The third model, Sdy-/- mice, were systemically injected with either saline or a viral mimic, polyI:C, from postnatal day 5 (P5) to P9 and this model represents gene vs. environment interactions in schizophrenia. Interestingly, I found a significant reduction in the number of proliferative (PHi3+) cells in the medial and subcallosal SVZ of Sdy-/- mice after inflammation. Also, I have found a decrease in the surface area of migratory (Dcx+) cells in the RMS of Sdy-/- (+polyI:C). Furthermore, I sought to find whether neonatal stress causes morphological changes in astroyctosis (i.e. GFAP) and microglia activation (i.e. Iba1) in the SVZ of Sdy-/- mice but found no apparent differences in comparison to wild-type (WT) littermates. Our collaborators from Prof. Lalit Srivastava's laboratory (McGill University) have shown that these observations in Sdy-/- mice (+polyI:C) were correlated with behavioural abnormalities, such as prepulse inhibition (PPI), reduced locomotor activity and object-recognition deficit although the latter was not statistically significant. In conclusion, I have shown here that a combination of both neonatal inflammation and mutation in a gene relevant to schizophrenia was important for triggering long-term effects in SVZ neurogenesis that was also correlated with behavioural deficits. Future studies will further examine SVZ neurogenesis in postnatal Sandy mice and will also look at brain integrity and cytokine infiltration in both postnatal and adult Sandy mice following neonatal inflammation. Functional studies will determine whether knocking-down toll-like receptor-3 (TLR3), which is the receptor for polyI:C, might rescue SVZ neurogenesis in postnatal Sandy mice after inflammation. 1. Kippin, T.E., S. Kapur, and D. van der Kooy, Dopamine specifically inhibits forebrain neural stem cell proliferation, suggesting a novel effect of antipsychotic drugs. J Neurosci, 2005. 25(24): p. 5815-23. 2. Wakade, C.G., et al., Atypical neuroleptics stimulate neurogenesis in adult rat brain. J Neurosci Res, 2002. 69(1): p. 72-9.
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The Development Of Athlete-Specific Hematological Reference Intervals And The Effect Of Ethnicity On Key Hematological Markers
المؤلفون: Louisa LobigsBackground and Objectives: The development of athlete-specific hematological reference ranges are essential for sports physicians in the diagnosis of pathologies. Due to unique genetics and training modalities, athletes are known to have atypical hematologic profiles in comparison to the general population and between ethnic groups. The aims of this study were 1) to develop athlete-specific reference ranges and 2) to demonstrate the effect of ethnicity on key hematological variables, in order to improve athlete care. Methods: From a reference population of 2082 healthy male (M) (23.28 ± 4.89 years of age) and 140 healthy female (F) (21.16 ± 4.61 years of age) athletes screened at Aspetar hospital, the reference intervals (2.5 and 97.5 percentiles) were established for the following hematological parameters: mean cell volume (MCV, fL), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH, pg), mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC, g/dL), hemoglobin concentration ([Hb], g/dL), hematocrit (HCT, L/L), red blood cell count (RBC, x1012/L), red blood cell distribution width (RDW, %), reticulocyte percentage (RET, %), ferritin (FRT, µg/L), iron (FE, µmol/L), transferrin (TF, g/L), total iron binding capacity (TIBC, µmol/L) and soluble transferrin receptor (STFR, g/L). Additionally, differences in the mean value of each hematological variable between five major ethnic groups were investigated. Results: The calculated overall reference intervals for the majority of the hematological parameters appear to trend lower in comparison to those currently in use, only STFR and RDW yielded slightly higher reference values (Table 1). The athlete population comprised of 104 different nationalities, which were subsequently characterized into five major ethnic groups: Arabic (1145 M, 89 F), Asian (43 M, 4 F), Black (519 M, 43 F), Caucasian (302 M, 4 F) and Mixed (73 M, 0 F). Significant between group differences was found for the male Arabic population (p<0.005). Arabic athletes were found to have lower mean MCV (83.0 ± 6.9), MCH (28.3 ± 2.4), [Hb] (14.6 ± 1.1), HCT (0.43 ± 0.03) and FRT (78.3 ± 57.1) counts and higher RBC (5.2 ± 0.5), RDW (14.9 ± 1.0), TIBC (57.8 ± 9.1) and STFR (2.1 ± 1.6) counts (mean ± standard deviation) in comparison to Black, Caucasian or Mixed males, suggesting a higher prevalence of hematologic disorders, iron deficiency, anemia and/or hemoglobinopathy in this population. In addition, male Black athletes presented with lower mean values for MCV (84.7 ± 5.0), MCH (28.6 ± 2.0) and [Hb] (14.5 ± 1.0) and higher RET (0.99 ± 0.42) and STFR (2.3 ± 3.3) values when compared to male Caucasians. Conclusions: The developments of population-specific athlete hematological indices are important for the sports medicine community, in order to not only improve athlete health and performance, but also to assist in the diagnosis of hemopathologies and other blood related disorders. Additionally, an athlete's ethnicity has a significant impact upon their hematological profile and consequently, published reference ranges are not applicable to certain ethnicities.
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Hybrid Nanocomposite Polymers For Tissue Engineering
المؤلفون: Ali MohammedThe purpose of this project was to further investigate the characteristic properties of an inorganic-organic hybrid material with respect to its potential application in the field of tissue engineering. The organic component chosen for this project was a co-polymer 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) and 3-trimethoxysilyl propylmethacrylate (TMSPMA), able to crosslink the polymer to the silica network via hydrolysis and condensation of the alkoxysilane functional group. Copolymers of HEMA-TMSPMA were made by the process of free radical polymerization (FRP), using azobisisobutyronitrile (AIBN) as a thermal initiator. Hybrid monoliths were then produced by the sol-gel process with hydrolysed tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) and HCL solution as the inorganic precursor. The HEMA:TMSPMA ratios used for this study were 200:1, 100:1, 50:1, 20:1 and pure HEMA, at a concentration of 60wt% organic, to allow for comparison on the effect of crosslinking on the hybrids properties. Characterization of the copolymer and hybrid monoliths determined their chemical and physical properties. Characterisation techniques included Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (HNMR), Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC), Fourier Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), dissolution study in TRIS solution and which was analysed using Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP), Thermo-Gravimetric Analysis (TGA), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), compressive strength testing and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). These methods were used to determine the molecular composition, mechanical properties and characteristic degradation of the copolymers and monoliths. HNMR showed that the FRP process produced highly polymerised copolymers. The sol-gel process produced successful crack-free monoliths with an average gelation/drying period of 3weeks and average of 4 crack free monoliths from samples of 10 for the optimised sol-gel process. The 3 week dissolution study showed a reduction in silica ions release rate and plateaued at a lower concentration with increasing TMSPMA content and hence a higher degree of cross-linking, with a plateau of Si release between week 2 and 3. XRD shows that no crystalline structures formed on the surface of the hybrids, which is expected as TRIS doesn't contain phosphorus or calcium meaning that no precipitates are expected. Mechanical testing shows that the 200:1 HEMA-TMSPMA monoliths have the highest compressive strength, and Pure HEMA monoliths are the most brittle as expected by the materials natural character, with values of 134.6 ± 19.80 MPa and 42.6 ± 17.39 MPa respectively.
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Mutation Analysis Of Kras And Braf Hotspots In Moroccan Patients With Colorectal Cancer
المؤلفون: Hajar JaddaBackground: Oncogenic activation of the RAS/RAF signaling pathway induces resistance to anti-epidermal growth factor receptor targeted therapies in patients with colorectal cancer. We investigated the occurrence of BRAF exon 15 and KRAS codons 12 and 13 mutations in patients with colorectal cancer. Patients and Methods: Forty-seven samples from patients with metastasic colorectal adenocarcinomas were studied for BRAF exon 15 and KRAS codons 12 and 13 mutations. From formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue specimens, macrodissection was used to remove specifically the tumor tissue. After DNA extraction, conventional PCR was performed and the DNA was analyzed by direct sequencing. Results: KRAS codon 12 or 13 mutations were present in 51% of patients. Gly12Val mutation was present in 21% of all patients, Gly12Asp in 15%, Gly13Asp in 6%, Gly12Arg in 4%, Gly12Cys in 2% and Gly12Ala in 2%. No BRAF mutation was highlighted. Conclusion: Our data suggest that KRAS mutations are more frequently than BRAF mutations in Moroccan patients with colorectal carcinomas. To our knowledge, we are the first to report such a high proportion (more than 50%) of potentially non responsive patients for the anti-EGFR treatment in Morocco. These results show that, without doubt, the method we used was accurate, cost-effective and time-efficient.
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Ability of Qatar’s native plant species to phytoremediate industrial wastewater in an engineered wetland treatment system for beneficial water re-use
Engineered wetland (EWL) is a land treatment system that utilizes natural processes to improve water quality. The EWL system consists of vegetation, aquatic organisms, soils and the associated microbes designed to assist in improving water quality through phytoremediation. Engineered wetlands are commonly utilized to improve municipal wastewater quality however, such technology is not common in treating industrial wastewater (IWW) from oil and gas operations and further, EWL technology has not been tested or implemented in Qatar. EWL technology is promising for Qatar due to land availability, hardy native plant species and suitable climate. The efficiency and sustainability of EWL is highly influenced by its treatment media. A joint project between ExxonMobil Research Qatar (EMRQ) and the Environmental Studies Center of Qatar University (ESC) is carried out to investigate the abilities of native and/or cultivated plant species to improve IWW quality through phytoremediation. Experiments using selected plants were conducted using soil cultures and sand cultures in the first stage of the project, while the second stage will be expanded to include water cultures. The change in the microbial flora in sand cultures and soil cultures at the rhizosphere was also monitored during the course of the growth of plants. This presentation will report results for the effectiveness of the the native plants potential in removing, degrading and eliminating constituents from IWW. Results indicate that IWW had detrimental impact on all plants studied in the sand culture. On the other hand, the results of soil culture indicate that only barley was negatively affected by IWW. The results also showed that common reed (Phragmites Australis) could be a promising aquatic native plant in any phytoremediation project in the future.
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Matrix acid stimulation: What are the gaps to bridge from lab to field?
Acidizing core flooding experiments in carbonates are typically performed in the laboratory in order to observe different physical phenomena and to design acid stimulation jobs in the field. The experiments are usually well defined in terms of mineralogy, permeability, porosity, pressure, temperature and salinity. During the tests, key parameters are analyzed such as the pore volume of acid needed to create wormholes and breakthrough as well as pressure and permeability time-evolution. In reality, the result of an acid stimulation in the field is difficult to predict because of the heterogeneous nature of carbonate formations, complexity of such reactive transport phenomenon, and more importantly the uncertainties related to subsurface well conditions. Stimulation models and numerical tools can help bridge the gap between the laboratory observations and real field applications. We utilize selected core flooding results obtained from the QP - TOTAL collaboration on acid stimulation and use these measurements as input for different acid stimulation software. Subsequently, a benchmarking of commercial and academic acid stimulation software at the well scale is performed. The main criteria for this comparison are the capacity of modeling improved acid stimulation under constant or varying pumping rates, the capability of modeling complex fluids such as chemical diverters and relative permeability modifiers and the ability to simulate different well configurations. Then, a sensitivity analysis on selected key parameters such as the dissolution model, pore volume to breakthrough and solute velocities is conducted. Finally, predictions from numerical models are compared to acid stimulation field results from literature, for Middle Eastern carbonate. We try to history match the results and we identify main areas of improvement for future development of acid stimulation software.
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Environmentally-friendly smart coatings for materials protection: State of the art and future perspectives
المؤلفون: Abdel Salam Hamdy MakhloufThe huge economic impact of the corrosion of metallic structures is a very important issue for all modern societies. Reports on the corrosion failures of bridges, buildings, aircrafts, automobiles, and gas and oil pipelines are not unusual. It is estimated that corrosion and its consequences cost developed nations between 3% and 5% of their gross domestic product. The process involving hexavalent chromates is the most effective and most widely used conversion coatings for corrosion protection for many metals and alloys. However, the carcinogenic effect and environmental waste due to chromates are well documented. The concept of 'self-healing', 'self-repairing' or 'smart' materials has in recent years been developed experimentally in new types of manufactured materials creating a new class of multifunctional materials of self healing properties. Such properties add functionality to the materials to heal themselves automatically after mechanical, physical or chemical damages caused, for example, by scratch, impact, abrasion, erosion, friction, corrosion, wear, fire, ice, etc. The development of active corrosion protection systems for steels, Al and Mg substrates is an issue of prime importance in key industries, including petroleum, chemicals, transportation. The present work provides new insights towards the development of new protective systems with self-healing functionality. The proposed coatings characterize with the self-healing ability, ease of application at low cost and safety. When the new chromate-free surface treatments are applied prior to Fluoropolymer top coating, the coatings exceed 2000-hour salt spray tests. The approach described herein can be used in many industrial applications where active corrosion protection of materials is required.
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Constructing a green Qatar: A case study
المؤلفون: Khaled El-Gamil HassanThe rapidly developing infrastructure in Qatar requires an increasing supply of quality construction materials. Qatar has limited resources of quality natural aggregate and has to import coarse aggregate for use in asphalt and concrete applications. At the same time, vast quantities of alternative and recycled aggregates are available with limited use in the construction industry. The innovative use of recycled aggregate in construction is to be demonstrated to further support the construction of a sustainable and green Qatar. This leading building trial demonstrates the use of new aggregate materials in three one-story buildings. Alternative materials are sourced from recycled aggregate such as excavation waste (EW), construction & demolition waste (CDW), secondary aggregate of incinerator bottom ash (IBA) from municipal waste, and crushed rock fines (CRF) as crushed limestone rock for use in structural concrete and concrete blocks. Construction specifications need to consider locally available materials and exposure conditions in the Middle East. This leading trial is to provide practical evidence on the performance of local materials when exposed to actual weather conditions in Qatar. The performance of the newly developed concrete products made with alternative aggregates will be monitored for one year. The findings will be used for updating the Qatar Construction Specifications (QCS 2010).
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Techno-economic assessment of CO2 Quality Effect on its Storage and Transport (CO2QUEST)
المؤلفون: Haroun Mahgerefteh, Solomon Brown, Sergey Martynov, Michael Fairweather, Robert Woolley, Mohamed Pourkashanian, Richard Porter, Nilay Shah, Niall Mac Dowell, Heike Ruetters, Susanne Stadler, Thomas Novak, Regis Farret, Christophe Proust, Jerome Hebrard, Philippe Gombert, Celine Dupuis, Dimitrios Tsangaris, Ioannis Economou, Jeroen Van Wittenberghe, Martin Liebeherr, Dennis Van Hoecke, Joachim Antonissen, Muhammad Arafin, Jacob Bensabat, Auli Niemi, Yu Jianliang and Shaoyun ChenThe ultimate composition of the CO2 stream captured from fossil fuel power plants or other CO2 intensive industries and transported to a storage site using high pressure pipelines will be governed by safety, environmental and economic considerations. So far, most of the studies performed on this topic have been limited in scope, primarily focusing on investigating the impact of the CO2 stream impurities on each part of the Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) chain in isolation. This is a significant drawback given the markedly different sensitivities of the pipeline, well bore materials and storage sites to the various impurities. For example, given the risk of water table contamination, trace elements such as Lead, Mercury and Arsenic in the CO2 stream are of far greater concern in an aquifer storage site than compared to the pipeline. On the other hand, even small concentrations of water in the CO2 stream are detrimental to the pipeline due to corrosion, but of benefit even at high concentrations during storage given the immobilisation effect of water on CO2. 'What is good for the pipeline is not necessarily good for storage'. It is clear that the optimum composition and concentration of the impurities in the captured CO2 stream involves a delicate balance between the different requirements within the CCS chain, spanning capture, transportation and storage, with cost and safety implications being the over-arching factor. Pivotal to these considerations is an understanding of the impact of the impurities on the physico-chemical properties of CO2 and its hazard profile. This paper presents and overview of the current FP7 European Commission CO2QUEST project involving the collaboration of 12 industry and academic partners in Europe, China and Canada aimed at addressing fundamentally important and urgent issues regarding the impact of the typical CO2 streams impurities captured from fossil fuel power plants on its safe and economic transportation and storage. The work programme, spanning 36 months, focuses on the development of state-of-the-art mathematical models, backed, by laboratory and industrial-scale experimentation using unique EC-funded test facilities to perform a comprehensive techno-economic, risk-based assessment of the impact of the CO2 stream impurities on the phase behaviour and the physico-chemical reactions governing the pipeline and storage site integrities. The above involves the determination of the important CO2 mixtures that have the most profound impact upon the pipeline pressure drop, compressor power requirements, pipeline propensity to ductile and brittle facture propagation, corrosion of the pipeline and well bore materials, geochemical interactions within the well bore and storage site, and the ensuing health and environmental hazards. Based on a cost/benefit analysis and whole system approach, the results will in turn be used to provide recommendations for tolerance levels, mixing protocols and control measures for pipeline networks and storage infrastructure thus contributing to the development of relevant standards for the safe design and operation of CCS. Acknowledgement: The CO2QUEST project has received funding from the European Union 7th Framework Programme FP7-ENERGY-2012-1-2STAGE under grant agreement number 309102.
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