Culture & Education | Tuesday 24 March, 2015 12:00 am |

Masdar Institute Progresses the Field of ‘Engineering and Physical Sciences’ through Student Research

The Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, an independent, research-driven graduate-level university focused on advanced energy and sustainable technologies, today announced its graduate students are among the strongest contributors in terms of accepted papers in the ‘engineering and physical sciences’ track for the UAE Graduate Students Research Conference (GSRC) 2015 taking place in Abu Dhabi.

Masdar Institute’s share in ‘engineering and physical sciences’ works out to 36% - that is 79 out of the 221 of all accepted papers in this category. A total of 302 papers have been accepted in the conference’s four total tracks – ‘arts humanities and social sciences,’ ‘clinical pre-clinical and health,’ ‘engineering and physical sciences,’ and ‘life sciences.’ Masdar Institute’s share in the total accepted papers is 26% - representing a total number of 80 across all tracks.

“The number of papers from Masdar Institute and their scope of research topics illustrate our interdisciplinary nature and the depth of our academic programs in clean energy and advanced technologies,” said Dr. Mohamed Sassi, Dean of Faculty, and Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Masdar Institute. “We have witnessed remarkable enthusiasm and motivation amongst our Master’s and PhD researchers and commitment among our faculty advisors in achieving this high number of submissions,” he added.

Masdar Institute researchers submitted papers on a wide range of locally-relevant topics,The papers on some of the locally-relevant projects includinge the developmenting of smart sensors for detecting and monitoring impurities inside oil pipelines, recycling of industrial waste-based innovative materials in the UAE for high-temperature thermal energy storage applications, and dust mapping and monitoring of dust in the UAE through the use of ground and satellite data.

Held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, the UAE GSRC is an interdisciplinary academic event that aims to share graduate-level research being conducted at universities across the UAE, as well as internationally.

The event is organized from 22-24 March 2015 by the Khalifa University of Science Technology and Research and is sponsored by the Abu Dhabi Education Council (ADEC). The conference seeks to provide opportunities for UAE graduate students to share their research work, receive scholarly feedback and network professionally.

Of the total 79 papers in the ‘engineering and physical sciences’ track that are from Masdar Institute, 11 papers focus on ‘materials science,’ while topics such as ’computer and information science’ and ‘mechanical engineering’ have attracted nine papers each. Eight papers focus on ‘electrical and electronic engineering’ and ‘chemistry and chemical engineering,’ while seven relate to ‘water.’

Masdar Institute submitted six papers in the topics of ‘earth and environmental engineering’ and ‘micro/nano-systems,’ four papers on ‘energy and fuels;’ three on ‘civil engineering,’ and two on the topics of ‘petroleum’ and ‘other topics in engineering and physical sciences.’ The topics such of ‘transportation and logistics,’ ‘operations research and management science,’ ‘bioinformatics,’ and ‘information security’ received one paper each.

The UAE GSRC 2015 looks to enable graduate students to showcase their innovative scholarship to various sectors of industry and government, and get feedback on practical aspects that may enhance the value of their research. Prospective graduate students will be able to learn about the various research opportunities available at the participating academic institutions.

Since its inception in 2007, Masdar Institute has published over 450 papers in peer-reviewed journals, as well as 340 conference proceedings, 19 book chapters, and two full books. Its students and faculty continue to participate in local and international events, presenting their scientific papers and posters. More recently in December 2014, a paper titled ‘Racing With and Against the Machine: Changes in Occupational Skill Composition in an Era of Rapid Technological Advance,’ co-authored by a Masdar Institute UAE national faculty with Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) faculty, won the prestigious International Conference on Information Systems (ICIS) Award for ‘Best Conference Paper’ at the ICIS 2014 held in Auckland, New Zealand.


About Masdar Institute

The Masdar Institute of Science and Technology (Masdar Institute) was established by the government of Abu Dhabi as a not-for-profit, private graduate university to develop indigenous R&D capacity in Abu Dhabi addressing issues of importance to the region.

In collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Masdar Institute has developed an academic and research platform that articulates its mission and vision according to critical energy and sustainability challenges.
An important characteristic of Masdar Institute is its focus on complex real-world problems that require a multidisciplinary approach for the development of solutions from an integrated technology, systems and policy perspective. This multi-interdisciplinary and integrated approach is supported by the structure of its academic programs and by the emphasis placed on engaging external partners from industry, government, and other academic institutions in collaborative activities.

Serving as a key pillar of innovation and human capital, Masdar Institute remains fundamental to Masdar’s core objectives of developing Abu Dhabi’s knowledge economy and finding solutions to humanity’s toughest challenges such as climate change.

Masdar Institute integrates theory and practice to incubate a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship, working to develop the critical thinkers and leaders of tomorrow. With its world-class faculty and top-tier students, the Institute is committed to finding solutions to the challenges of clean energy and climate change through education and research.

Masdar Institute offers degrees in:
• MSc Engineering Systems and Management
• MSc Computing and Information Science
• MSc Materials Science and Engineering
• MSc Mechanical Engineering
• MSc Water and Environmental Engineering
• MSc Microsystems Engineering
• MSc Electrical Power Engineering
• MSc Chemical Engineering
• MSc Sustainable Critical Infrastructure
• PhD in Interdisciplinary Engineering

Please visit our website http://www.masdar.ac.ae/