King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals

Key Areas: Life Cycle Assessment, Energy Policy, Combustion Modeling, Solar PV Modeling, and CFD for Additive Manufacturing

Details of selected projects:
1.	Life Cycle Energy Use and Emissions of a Fuel Cell Bus compared with Diesel and Electric Bus in Saudi Arabia (Co-Investigator)
•	High recovery efficiency of Saudi crude oil and the relatively small distance between its extraction and end-use resulted in life cycle energy use and emissions for Diesel fueled bus being comparable to a Battery electric bus in 2023. The fuel cell bus powered by blue hydrogen had the lowest life cycle emissions among the three transportation options.
•	The results were presented at the 44th IAEE (International Association for Energy Economics) conference in Feb 2023.

2.	Pathways to Improve the Energy Efficiency of Residential Air-Conditioning Systems in Pakistan (Co-Investigator) and Saudi Arabia (Principal Investigator): 
•	Results indicate that gradual but frequent increase in the minimum energy efficiency of air conditioners sold in Pakistan can help in removing more than 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 by 2030. The research findings were published in an international journal . 

3.	Spatter removal in additive manufacturing build chamber (Principal Investigator): 
•	Spatter particles ejected during metal 3D Printing can get redeposited within the build chamber causing various manufacturing defects. 
•	Developed a numerical study using ANSYS Fluent to explore the effect of particle diameters, ejection angles and material to pinpoint their influence on spatter trajectories inside the build chamber. 
•	Relatively larger spatter diameters of dense materials are more susceptible to getting deposited on the build plate and operational parameters need to be adjusted to minimize their formation. 
•	Research findings were presented in an invited talk in Baker Hughes Additive Manufacturing Symposium 2021, an international conference and published in an international journal.

Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering

Institute for Combustion Technology, RWTH Aachen University

Key Areas: Combustion Modeling, Flow Reactor, and e-fuels.

1.	Screening of e-fuels (“Reuse” aspect of Circular Carbon Economy Framework): 
•	e-fuels produced synthetically by combining hydrogen with captured CO2 provides a viable pathway towards decarbonization of transport sector. 
•	Developed an improved test method to measure fuel reactivity in a flow reactor that led to contributions in collaborative projects on fuel feasibility studies. 
•	Experimentally measured ignition location was modeled using an in-house 1D combustion code to convert it into a more usable quantity i.e. ignition delay time which is a global marker of fuel reactivity. 
•	Refined the existing codes for data acquisition and developed new codes in MATLAB to improve the robustness and uncertainty analysis of measurements. The research findings were published in multiple international journals

2.	Lab Safety Experience: 
•	Worked with the Institute Safety Officer to perform a detailed hazard and operability (HAZOP) study of the flow reactor setup consisting of mass flow controllers, heated tubes, flammable liquids, oven, quartz flow reactor and a heated transfer line to GC-MS. 
•	Successfully implemented all the recommendations of the Safety Officer to receive permission for continued operation of the flow reactor setup.

Fuel Scientist ►  Simulation | e-Fuels | Flow Reactor

King Abdullah University of Science and Technology

Key Areas: Combustion, Laser sensors, and Mass spectrometer.

1.	Improved reaction rates & emission monitoring sensors (“Reduce” aspect of Circular Carbon Economy Framework): 
•	Accurate reaction rates are needed to improve the prediction of criterion pollutants in engines/gas turbines combustion models. 
•	Developed & characterized two laser sensors that improved the detection limit by two orders of magnitude and enabled ppm/ppb level measurements of alkenes (ethylene, propene, and 1-butene).   
•	The sensor can be used for tracking ethylene and propene emissions from industries, waste incineration plants, and vehicle exhaust and was demonstrated for its use in air quality monitoring. The research findings resulted in 3 international journal publications and a US Patent.

2.	New combustion technologies (“Reduce” aspect of Circular Carbon Economy Framework): 
•	External electric fields can reduce emissions and improve combustion efficiency by active control of combustion processes. 
•	Characterized and optimized two mass spectrometers (QMS and TOF-MS) for performing sensitive measurements of charged species and combustion gases in various flames. 
•	The data obtained from various flames was used by researchers to validate and constrain their numerical models. The updated numerical models provide more realistic picture of possible improvements in practical combustors. 

3.	Lab development experience: 
•	Coordinated with multiple departments within the experimental setup supply chain to facilitate the installation of 3 experimental facilities. 
•	Analyzed data, and developed strategies to systematically resolve numerous problems faced during the development of sensitive laser sensors and characterization of mass spectrometers. 
•	Developed post-processing codes in MATLAB, authored SOPs for 3 facilities, and provided on-the-job training on the use of laser sensors and mass spectrometers to 5 junior researchers.

Research Engineer ► Combustion | Laser Sensors | Mass Spectrometer 

Key Areas: Heat Transfer Modeling, and Thermal Energy Storage

Thermal Energy Storage (“Reduce” aspect of Circular Carbon Economy Framework): 
•	Energy storage devices are key enablers in increasing the contribution of renewable energy sources to the electricity grid. 
•	Collaborated on the research project with Prof. Evelyn Wang's group at MIT to investigate the effectiveness of lauric acid phase-change material (PCM) particles in enhancing the heat storage capacity of the heat transfer fluid. 
•	Designed a numerical study to map the parameter space and obtain optimum operating conditions for a given energy storage system using Fluent. 
•	Analyzed the data from the parametric study and provided optimization guidelines to perform targeted experiments. The research findings were presented at an ASME conference and resulted in 3 international journal publications.

CFD Engineer ► Simulation | Thermal Energy Storage

Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals

Dr. Awad Alquaity is an Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering at KFUPM and an executive board member of the Saudi Arabian Section of the Combustion Institute (SAS-CI). His research is dedicated to advancing the energy transition, decarbonization strategies, and sustainable fuel technologies.

Since joining KFUPM in 2019, Dr. Alquaity has secured over $400,000 in research funding for projects focused on hydrogen production and utilization, life cycle assessment (LCA), and the development of a small-scale industrial burner facility. He actively collaborates with industry leaders—including Baker Hughes, Almajdouie, and Alfanar—on initiatives related to life cycle assessment, carbon footprint reduction, hydrogen production, and renewable energy modeling.

With 37 journal publications and two U.S. patents, Dr. Alquaity is at the forefront of sustainable energy research, driving innovation in low-carbon technologies, decarbonization strategies, and industrial decarbonization.

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