Completed and On-going Projects

Mayyada El-Sayed
Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Tarek Madkour
Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

The Egyptian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development has just announced that Egypt has officially hit the zone of ​​water poverty. By 2050, the allocated amount of water per capita will be less than 400 cubic meters. In his remarks, he stressed strongly the importance of new water treatment projects to face such challenges. The present work thus aims at developing a facile and efficient sorption process for the removal of Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs) from wastewater using tailor-designed functional materials. This will entail the design of materials using computational tools, synthesis via grafting and cross-linking of eco-friendly polymeric systems that host specific functional groups, and loading of some of these systems with catalytic nanoparticles, then finally examining their characteristics and sorption performance. This tailored-design approach will potentially address one or more of the challenges of the currently used materials by targeting eco-friendly, selective, high surface-area nanoporous sorbents that can be employed within a low-energy process that does not require high-pressure demands as encountered with the regular sorption polymeric systems.

Tamer Shoeib (PI)
Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Mayyada El-Sayed (Co-PI)
Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Anwar Abdel Nasser (Co-PI)
Assistant Professor, The Institute of Global Health and Human Ecology, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs) are synthetic or natural chemicals or microorganisms that are found in the environment but are commonly not monitored or properly detected. They may be either newly identified compounds or compounds that have been found for a long time but have still not been recognized as harmful to the environment or compounds that are individually innocuous but may affect health and the environment upon interaction with others. CECs are classified into several categories, including pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, disinfectants, plasticizers, flame retardants, and pesticides. Despite their alarming impact, the regulatory methods of their analysis and detection have not been fully developed. The purpose of the research is to investigate selected Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs), specifically antibiotics and antiviral drugs, as well as some of their metabolites, to determine their levels and distribution in Egyptian and Chinese water and biota. This proposal will also focus on several strategies for the removal of CECs found. The antibiotics that will be investigated are fluoroquinolones (FQs), which are commonly used to treat a variety of illnesses, such as respiratory and urinary tract infections.

E. A. Darwish
Assistant Professor, Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.

Ayah Eldeeb
Faculty of Fine Arts, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt

Mohamad Midani
Wilson College of Textiles, NC State University, Raleigh, USA.
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

Housing retrofit is a global trend that aims to enhance the energy efficiency of existing buildings. Upgrading the building fabric by installing thermal insulators is one of the basic housing retrofit strategies, which improves indoor thermal quality, decreases annual HVAC loads, and subsequently enhances energy efficiency. This paper develops a novel local modular thermal-cladding panel as a low-cost option by which users can retrofit their houses to enhance thermal comfort while complimenting the interior context. Date palm midribs, a major agricultural waste produced annually in Egypt, are chosen as the main raw material of the cladding panel in order to maintain the cost efficiency required to introduce the panel to the Egyptian market. The panel consists of a cladding surface made from midrib strip boards and a core of non-woven midrib fiber mats. Firstly, specimens of different densities of both components are tested to determine the thermo-physical properties separately. Thermal conductivity, thermal resistance, and specific heat capacity values are measured in order to define these properties into Design Builder to optimize the design of the developed thermal-cladding panel to achieve the desired thermal insulating performance.

Shaimaa Abdelhamid
Research Assistant, Department of chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Ehab El-Sawy
Assistant Professor, Department of chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

The nanostructured Stainless Steel (SS) can be used in different applications such as electrochemical interface, biomaterial and bioelectrochemical interface. To improve the resistance to corrosion and electrode stability, the effect of covering the as-received and electrochemically roughened electrodes with a layer of electropolymerized conductive polymer will be tested. Several polymers will be investigated, such as polythiophene (PTh), poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), polypyrrole (PPy), and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxypyrrole) (PEDOP) due to their high conductivity and biocompatibility. For the cathode, it is essential to modify the surface with hydrogen evolution catalytically active materials. N, S, O-doped carbon, derived from conductive polymers deposited layers through graphitization. The surface modification will be performed on the as-received and electrochemically roughened electrodes.

E. A. Darwish
Assistant Professor, Faculty of Engineering, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt.

Ayah Eldeeb
Faculty of Fine Arts, Alexandria University, Alexandria, Egypt

Project Overview

Wood-like products industries are thriving nowadays in Egypt, specially those dependent on local agricultural residues. Local particleboards and fiberboards made from sugarcane bagasse, flax shives and sorghum stalks are highly in demand in the Egyptian market as cheaper alternatives to imported wood-like products that have already proved their economic feasibility and practical efficiency. However, their production design is mostly concerned with achieving the highest possible density, sturdiness, and strength, regardless of their thermal insulating performance. This project aims to develop their potential to be used in thermal insulation by incorporating them within multi-layered sandwich panel assemblies that can be used in building fabric retrofitting. These assemblies, through tweaking the densities and thicknesses of their layers, must be able to provide adequate thermal insulation to enhance the energy efficiency of the building and facilitate reaching indoor thermal comfort while being adaptive to the existing interior design of the retrofitted spaces. The results of this project can be used to expand the utilization spectrum of local agricultural residues-based wood-like products to be adopted by architects and interior designers as valid internal cladding options.

Sherif Fakher
Associate Professor of Petroleum Engineering, School of Science and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

Recognized as the most promising option for storing carbon dioxide are depleted gas reservoirs. To recover and store secondary gas, primary gas production is followed by the injection of carbon dioxide following depletion. However, the injection approach, reservoir features, and operational parameters all affect this strategy. The impact of residual gas has received relatively little attention compared to other essential elements that affect storage performance in depleted gas reservoirs, which have been the subject of several research to date. Using numerical modeling, an effort was made in this article to emphasize the significance of residual gas on the capacity, injectivity, reservoir pressurization, and trapping processes of storage sites. The findings showed that storage performance is proportionally correlated with residual amount. For storage, gas in the medium and reservoirs with little residual fluid is preferable. Therefore, to have the least quantity of residual gas in the medium, it would be wise to execute the secondary recovery before storage. More research is needed to corroborate the findings reported in this work, even if the study's findings can be used to screen depleted gas reservoirs for storage purposes.

Anwar Abd ElNaser
Assistant Professor, The Institute of Global Health and Human Ecology, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Tamer Shoeib
Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Mayyada El-Sayed
Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

We propose to determine the levels of selected agrochemicals in Egyptian water resources and their possible health effects on the surrounding population, in addition to investigating top-notch strategies for their removal. These agrochemicals can enter the aquatic environment via runoff after being sprayed in agricultural fields and can potentially penetrate aquifers to reach groundwater. Likewise, they can enter the human body via inhalation, through dermal contact when they are sprayed, or indirectly through ingestion of contaminated food or water. The proposed work aims to focus on two of the most commonly used agrochemicals in Egypt, lambda-cyhalothrin and malathion, as well as three selected legacy compounds of concern: DDT, HCH, and HCB. Water samples will be obtained from agricultural drainage canals. Human samples will be obtained from farmers and populations that are close to these drainage canals. The proposed work will also investigate the potential use of biopolymer-coated nanoparticles as adsorbents for the removal of these agrochemicals from collected drainage canal waters. The implementation of this project will aid in providing a better understanding of the current environmental levels of these agrochemicals in Egyptian water resources, as well as propose potential efficient and sustainable methods for their removal. Furthermore, it will provide a better understanding of the possible correlation between exposure to these agrochemicals and the different metabolic disorders in the Egyptian population. Last but not least, the implementation of this project will provide some theoretical and technical support for the improvement of water quality in Egypt.

Sherif Fakher (PI)
Assistant Professor, Department of Petroleum and Energy Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Gehad Saad (Co-PI)
Assistant Professor, Department of Petroleum and Energy Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

Fly ash is a byproduct of combustion that can be used as a filler for cement to reduce its cost and improve some of its properties. Currently, many researchers are investigating the use of fly ash cement as a cementing material for oil and gas wells. Results have shown that fly ash cement still has several stability and durability issues. This research studies the addition of fly ash to conventional cement along with other unconventional additives for the purpose of increasing the overall cement durability and performance in high-temperature, high-pressure wells. The fly ash is added in different concentrations, along with other stabilizing chemicals, to enhance the performance of the cement while reducing its overall cost. Tests included in this research focus primarily on cement durability under high temperature and high-pressure conditions for long-term applications.

Hebatullah Farghal

Mayyada El-Sayed
Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Marianne Nebsen 

Project Overview

Contaminants of emerging concern are a group of pollutants that are not commonly monitored in the environment. They are either newly identified or recently recognized for the potential health hazards they pose to all living organisms. Their danger stems from the fact that they pass untreated from wastewater treatment plants and, hence, possibly accumulate in the body, causing health issues. In our research, we are preparing biopolymer-coated nanoparticles to remove psychotic pharmaceutical contaminants from wastewater. The coated nanoparticles will be applied on selected drugs dissolved in model, simulated and real wastewater systems. Thus, this work will entail the synthesis and characterization of new materials, as well as testing their adsorption behavior by means of equilibrium, kinetics, selectivity, and regeneration studies. The proposed project has implications in the areas of developing functional nanomaterials and eco-friendly separation processes for wastewater treatment.

Yousra Atia

Mahmoud Farag
Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Mohamed Fawzi
Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

Silicone elastomers have multiple uses in different life and industrial fields. Moreover, they are among the main categories of bio-medical elastic and soft materials that are used inside the human body, in medical care, and in medical procedures. However, like any currently used plastics(polymers), silicone use is associated with more complications in global environmental pollution because of its residuals and during its manufacturing, disposal, and even recycling. Moreover, silicones, like all synthetic in-body devices and biomaterials, are associated with complications and infections that cause severe health problems that sometimes might lead to death. Accordingly, this work aims to develop silicone-like visco-elastic material, with antimicrobial properties from 100 % natural components, to be used safely inside the human body, with the least pollution effect on the environment and the least side effects on patients. A natural polymer matrix reinforced with cellulose components is to be prepared. Rice straw as a cellulosic source is added by different percentages to the formulated matrix. The matrix is cured under different temperature conditions. The developed material is to be optimized and studied to be fabricated by using additive manufacturing technology. Mechanical and physical characterization is performed, in addition to some chemical and biological examination.

Abdelkadr Salih

Mayyada El-Sayed
Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

Contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) are getting much attention due to their potential health and environmental risks. The aim of this project is the simultaneous removal of pharmaceuticals and dyes from water. These include the antibiotics of Levofloxacin, Chlortetracycline, and the red dye of Rhodamine B. In due process, a green approach will be adopted to synthesize a nanocomposite adsorbent from industrial and agricultural wastes in order to achieve a more environmentally and economically sustainable approach than the conventional chemical one. Thus, a nanocomposite of biochar/hydroxyapatite will be synthesized from cement kiln dust and sugar cane bagasse. The nanocomposite will then be characterized, and its adsorption performance will be examined. The equilibrium and kinetics of the adsorption process will be studied, and the optimum conditions for operation will be determined.

Dalia Kanaa

Tamer Shoeib
Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Mayyada El-Sayed
Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

This project aims to identify and efficiently remove selected antibiotics from agricultural water sources by employing nano-technology-based processes. The project will allow us to satisfy a currently unmet need in obtaining survey data on key classes of antibiotics and the identification of major contaminants in various agricultural water sources and effluents. The work will result in the development and testing of a sustainable and eco-friendly process for the removal of such contaminants. Data obtained from this project may be used to correlate the concentration of the selected antibiotics to their potential health risk through relevant existing models.

Hania Guirguis

Mayyada El-Sayed
Associate Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

Recently, contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) have garnered much attention due to their accumulation in treated wastewater and freshwater sources and the health hazards associated with this. Of these contaminants is the antibiotic Ciprofloxacin, which is used to treat urinary tract, bone, and joint infections. Another antibiotic considered is Tetracycline, which is used to treat infectious diseases and promote animal growth. Adsorption is an established method of removing CECs from water. The use of metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs) for adsorption has been widely used to remove heavy metals from water. This project aims at developing an eco-friendly and facile method to adsorb antibiotics in wastewater by synthesizing green ZnO NPs using Stevia rebaudiana plant polysaccharide extract, then utilizing the NPs to adsorb Ciprofloxacin and Tetracycline in water. The use of a plant polysaccharide extract to synthesize NPs is a green synthesis method that produces NPs of potentially less toxicity than their chemically synthesized equivalents.

Hashim Nameer

Abdelaziz Khlaifat
Professor and Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies, Department of Petroleum and Energy Engineering

Project Overview

Artificial lift methods are used to enhance the production rate during the primary oil recovery phase when the reservoir pressure is depleted. Subsurface oil production is done using many methods, for example, sucker rods and electrical submersible pumps, which work on mechanical and electrical principles, respectively. The use of such pumps is costly and difficult in terms of installation, dead time, and maintenance. This research looks for an alternative pump that minimizes and overcomes currently used pump’ problems. The first phase of this research resulted in finding a replacement for the conventional practices in the area, namely by changing the driving mechanism in the sucker rod pump from mechanical to electromagnetic. The research tested the concept of having the downhole sucker rod pump component oscillate up and down by an electromagnetic force instead of a mechanical force transferred from the surface to the downhole. The main advantage of this new technique is that it will minimize or eliminate most of the problems encountered these days such as high installation and maintenance costs, as well as shortening dead-time during maintenance. During the last year of this research, the magnetic drive concept was generated, selected, and tested. In addition, a detailed design of the prototype and construction of the virtual prototype were carried out. The expected outcome of the second phase is to test the final virtual prototype, scale up the tested working concept to a physical prototype, and test it against requirements. The research then aims to attempt this new concept in a pilot field study.

Youssef Helmy

Sherif Fakher
Assistant Professor, Department of Petroleum and Energy Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Gehad Saad
Assistant Professor, Department of Petroleum and Energy Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

Fly ash is a byproduct of combustion that can be used as a filler for cement to reduce its cost and improve some of its properties. Currently, many researchers are investigating the use of fly ash cement as a cementing material for oil and gas wells. Results have shown that fly ash cement still has several stability and durability issues. This research studies the addition of fly ash to conventional cement along with other unconventional additives for the purpose of increasing the overall cement durability and performance in high-temperature, high-pressure wells. The fly ash is added in different concentrations, along with other stabilizing chemicals, to enhance the performance of the cement while reducing its overall cost. Tests included in this research focus primarily on cement durability under high temperature and high-pressure conditions for long-term applications.

Victor James Oghenekohwo

Sonia Zulfiqar
Professor, Department of Chemistry, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

The carbon dioxide capture technology has been established as an invaluable player in the current global efforts to allay the warming of the planet and climate change. In this connection, this project centers on the valorization of waste organic materials for the intended application. The material, synthesized from a combination of by-products of food processing, inedible biomass, and industrial waste products, is envisaged to exhibit comparable characteristics to most other physical adsorbents that have been reported to date at a relatively low cost and ease of scalability. Typically, the various materials would be homogenized into a composite and the capture capacity and selectivity are demonstrated through carbon dioxide adsorption studies. The predicted outcome of the study suggests further validation and enhancement of adsorbent-based carbon dioxide capture technology on a large scale.

Ibrahim Badawy

Abdelrahman Abdelaziz

Abdullah Akar

Nageh Allam
Professor, Department of Physics, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

The reduction of CO2 into value-added fuels is yet another solution to the growing concerns of climate change. This is a well-established field in energy research where the aim is to close the carbon cycle. CO2RR takes electricity produced from renewable energy sources (solar power, wind power, etc.) and converts CO2 either from the atmosphere or effluent produced in plants back into hydrocarbons and chemicals. The benefit of this is two-fold: it is a reliable method of storing energy into chemical bonds, and it is a means of reducing the CO2 levels in the atmosphere. The most important parameter in this reaction is the electrocatalyst. Nanomaterials are the most efficient in producing a variety of products for CO2RR at a high rate, and thus, they are the most researched. This project aims to synthesize transition metal-based nanomaterials as highly-performing electrocatalysts for CO2RR.

Aseel Shawqi

Mennatallah Gehad

Sherif Fakher
Assistant Professor, Department of Petroleum and Energy Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Gehad Saad
Assistant Professor, Department of Petroleum and Energy Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

Conventional cement has been used for many years. However, it suffers from several drawbacks. It is prone to fail under extreme conditions unless high-cost additives are used. Also, it is considered environmentally damaging due to its raw material, limestone, and the processes that it passes through to reach the final cement product. This research proposes the use of an alternative material for cementing. This material is based on epoxy resin. The newly developed material has superior properties compared to conventional cement. Since epoxy resin is more expensive, low-cost additives will be used to reduce the overall cost of the developed cement significantly. The newly developed cement will target high-temperature wells such as geothermal wells and hydrocarbon wells. Also, it will be tested for chemical resistance to acids and other corrosive fluids. A cost-benefit analysis for the newly developed cement will also be conducted to verify the cost of this cement is low compared to conventional cement.

Mahmoud Ali

Karim Mourad

Sherif Fakher
Assistant Professor, Department of Petroleum and Energy Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Gehad Saad
Assistant Professor, Department of Petroleum and Energy Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

This project aims to improve the ability of conventional cement to endure harsh conditions such as acid contamination. In oil and gas wells, cement is usually under high pressure and also may be in contact with damaging fluids, including carbon dioxide and acids such as hydrochloric acid. These conditions can impact the durability of the cement and its ability to perform its functions properly. The objective of this project is to enhance the durability of conventional cement through the addition of additives that can increase the resistance of cement to acid attacks under different conditions for long durations. The research involves experimental analysis of the cement properties, including, but not limited to, compressive strength, fluid loss, free water, sedimentation, and thermal stability under different pressure and temperature conditions.

Mohamed Sadek Elfar

Omar Magdy Eldaly

Ibrahim Lotfi

Amir Adel Haleem

Mazen Abdelaal

Mohamed Serry
Associate Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Hanadi Salem
Professor and MENG Chairperson, Department of Mechanical Engineering, School of Sciences and Engineering, The American University in Cairo, Egypt.

Project Overview

The project aims to develop a 3D printed smart electromechanical wearable healthcare device that can monitor blood pressure due to its capability of detecting a wide range of pressures. These changes in pressure are captured by a piezoresistive pressure sensor that transfers the mechanical stimuli into resistance signals. The design of the sensor is based on optimizing the microstructure geometries to enhance the force sensitivity and mechanical stability of the sensor. The intended fabrication method will be 3D printing due to its ability to manufacture the sensor in a single step. The filament needed for 3D printing will be a composite material made of a polymer as the matrix material and MWCNT as the filler material.