A. Elkamel

• PhD
• Professor (Full) at University of Waterloo

SUMMARY This paper presents a simulation model for an energy hub consisting of natural gas (NG) turbines as the main sources of energy (including both electricity and heat) and two renewable energy sources—wind turbines (WTs) and photovoltaic (PV) solar cells. The hub also includes water electrolyzers for hydrogen production. The hydrogen serves as...

Although distributed model predictive control (DMPC) has received significant attention in the literature, the robustness of DMPC with respect to model errors has not been explicitly addressed. In this paper, a novel online algorithm that deals explicitly with model errors for DMPC is proposed. The algorithm requires decomposing the entire system i...

This study presents a review of distributed model predictive control (DMPC) strategies followed by recent studies conducted by the authors on the robustness of these strategies to model errors and a summary of future challenges in this area. The review identifies three key challenges for the successful application of DMPC: (i) the selection of opti...

It is well accepted that the pervaporation (PV) permeation was affected by the physicochemical properties of permeant-membrane materials and process conditions. Given many experimental data of PV, a predictive model on PV permeation based on their physicochemical properties and process conditions can be constructed. This study proposes a machine le...

The emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) and, more particularly, machine learning (ML), has had a significant impact on engineering and the fundamental sciences, resulting in advances in various fields. The use of ML has significantly enhanced data processing and analysis, eliciting the development of new and improved technologies. Specificall...

To effectively remove Diazinon (DZ), Amoxicillin (AMX), and Crystal Violet (CV) from aquatic environments, a novel granular activated carbon (GAC) modified with Polyethylene glycol 600 (PEG) was created and manufactured. The chemical properties were investigated using a variety of characteristic analyses, including FT-IR, XRD, FESEM, and N2 adsorpt...

Recent advancements in metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) underscore their significant potential in chemical and materials research, owing to their remarkable properties and diverse structures. Despite challenges like intrinsic brittleness, powdered crystalline nature, and limited stability impeding direct applications, MOF‐based aerogels have shown s...

This chapter reviews the concept of Power-to-X technologies and the electrification of the chemical industry. After defining the main concept and presenting a few examples of current projects on this topic, the state-of-art of each Power-to-X technology is presented to give a better comprehension. A literature classification based on different crit...

Cities have a significant impact on climate governance. Although urban areas comprise just 2% of the earth’s surface, they account for more than 70% of worldwide carbon emissions [1]. This ratio is growing as urbanization and energy use both increase [1]. For a better understanding of carbon emissions on a global scale and their influence on climat...

The future of tidal power has yet to be fully understood globally. Currently, only the potential energy of the oceans has been harnessed. However, there is great opportunity to extract the ocean’s kinetic energy as well. This study examines the feasibility and optimization of a potential tidal turbine design in the Minas Passage in the Bay of Fundy...

This chapter presents a systematic framework to integrate renewable energy technologies for the oil and gas industry focusing on solar energy use to meet hydrogen requirements of the crude oil upgrading process for bitumen feedstock in tar sands processing. Several alternative solar-based hydrogen production technologies are considered involving st...

Carbon dioxide has been identified as one of the leading causes of global climate change. For this reason, it is important to reduce carbon emissions associated with industrial activities. One method of achieving this goal is to replace older industrial processes with newer equivalent practices that produce less greenhouse gases. However, this is c...

According to recent studies, it has been proven that reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is imperative to prevent global warming and protect the environment [1, 2]. One of the viable options of GHG reduction is carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies [3] in which CO2 is captured from different sources (such as power plants), then it is tr...

The transition from batch to continuous production in the catalytic hydrogenation of nitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) into hydrogenated NBR (HNBR) marks a significant advance for applications under demanding conditions. This study introduces a continuous process utilizing a static mixer (SM) reactor, which notably achieves a hydrogenation conversion...

Graphene oxide (GO)-based membranes hold significant promise for applications ranging from energy storage to protective coatings, to saline water and produced water treatment, owing to their chemical stability and unique barrier properties achieving a high selectivity for water permeation. However, unmodified GO membranes are not stable when submer...

The insecticide known as neonicotinoid has negative impacts on the ecosystem, human health, and the environment; specifically, its effects on the relationship between crop yields and the death rate of natural pollinators, such as bees, affect food security. The active ingredients in neonicotinoids include imidacloprid, clothianidin, thiamethoxam, a...

Recent advancements in supervised machine learning tools have demonstrated their ability to achieve accurate and efficient prediction results. In this paper, we leverage these tools as alternative approaches to model a specific application in the gas industry, based on operating data. The chosen application is a natural gas condensate stabilization...

Methacrylate-based polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) is one of the new composites used as a dental resin. Both monofunctional methacryl isobutyl POSS (MIPOSS) and multifunctional methacryl POSS (MAPOSS) are reported to be possible resins that possess the desired properties for using them as dental resins. Our group's previous comparative...

In the context of global advancements, the imperative of a sustainable energy supply looms large. Biomass, an adaptable and renewable resource, has garnered attention for its potential contributions, although economic uncertainties persist due to the intricate web of processing pathways. In response, the biorefinery concept emerges as a structured...

Recently, carbon capture has gained increased attention as a sustainable way for mitigating global warming. One of the promising technologies for carbon capture is the adsorption-based process. Accordingly, many researchers are focusing on the development of novel adsorbents with desired characteristics, such as high capacities and selectivities, t...

To address the deficiency and predict the adsorption performance in different adsorbents, this study proposes a new optimizer linked to the machine learning (ML) model considering the performance of the adsorption process. The main goal is to predict adsorption under different process conditions with different adsorbents and provide a unified frame...

Green ammonia, produced at ambient conditions, has received significant attention as a carrier of hydrogen for energy storage and transport. Reduction and oxidation catalytic decomposition of ammonia at atmospheric pressure and low temperatures suggests remarkable achievements over thermochemical processes requiring elevated pressures and temperatu...

Pyrolysis, as a thermochemical conversion of biomass, is a superior biofuel production procedure. The deter- mining procedure for the optimal operational parameters, biomass characteristics, and types is outstandingly complex. Machine learning (ML) models were applied to enhance the predictive performance of three biofuel yields (bio-char, bio-oi...

A high pH, low solubility of bound plant nutrients, and negative impacts on microbial communities are common drawbacks of biomass ash (BA) vermicomposting. In this study, nutrient-rich BA mixed with cow manure was tested at three different application rates to obtain final nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) contents of 3.5%, 7.0%, and...

The Egyptian grass (Dactyloctenium aegyptium) is a common low-cost coarse grass which is adapted to poor soils. The biomass of the Egyptian grass may be used to produce cleaner and sustainable fuels through pyrolysis without causing any contradictory impact on the land for food. It is profound to understand the thermochemical character of the Egypt...

The management of the supply chain for enterprise-wide operations generally consists of strategic, tactical, and operational decision stages dependent on one another and affecting various time scales. Their integration usually leads to multiscale models that are computationally intractable. The design and operation of energy hubs faces similar chal...

The suitability of recycled poly(ethylene terephthalate) (R-PET) for 3D-printing applications was evaluated by studying the melt flow characteristics of the polymer. R-PET is known to experience significant deterioration in its mechanical properties when recycled due to molecular weight loss that results from reprocessing. Lower molecular weight hi...

In this paper, we propose an optimization model that considers two pathways for injecting renewable content into natural gas pipeline networks. The pathways include (1) power-to-hydrogen or PtH, where off-peak electricity is converted to hydrogen via electrolysis, and (2) power-to-methane, or PtM, where carbon dioxide from different source location...

Nanomaterials have gained huge attention with their wide range of applications. This is mainly driven by their unique properties. Nanomaterials include nanoparticles, nanotubes, nanofibers, and many other nanoscale structures have been widely assessed for improving the performance of different applications. However, with the wide implementation and...

Porous carbons as solid adsorbent materials possess effective porosity characteristics that are the most important factors for gas storage. The chemical activating routes facilitate hydrogen storage by adsorbing on the high surface area and microporous features of porous carbon-based adsorbents. The present research proposed to predict H2 storage u...

The perception of sewage sludge has increasingly changed from being a waste, which is a burden to the environment and society, to a useful resource of materials and renewable energy. There are several available technologies at different stages of maturity that aim to convert sludge to energy in the form of electricity and/or fuels. In this paper, a...

Recently, renewable energy resources (RESs) and electric vehicles (EVs), in addition to other distributed energy resources (DERs), have gained high popularity in power systems applications. These resources bring quite a few advantages for power systems—reducing carbon emission, increasing efficiency, and reducing power loss. However, they also brin...

Nanocomposites of methacrylate-based polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) are used as resins in dentistry to fill dental cavities. In this article, molecular dynamics simulations (MDS) are used to study and understand the interactions of monofunctional and multifunctional methacrylate groups on hybrid resins containing POSS additives for den...

This work presents recent developments of algal bioreactors used for CO2 removal and the factors affecting the reactor performance. The main focus of the study is on light intensity and photoperiods. The role of algae in CO2 removal, types of algal species used in bioreactors and conventional types of bioreactors including tubular bioreactor, verti...

Electric vehicles (EV) have the potential to significantly reduce carbon emissions. Yet, the current electric vehicle charging infrastructure utilizes electricity generated from non-renewable sources. In this study, the rooftop area of structures is analyzed to assess electricity that can be generated through solar- and wind-based technologies. Con...

This paper describes the development of a boundary model for the off-gas water vapor in an industrial steelmaking electric arc furnace (EAF). The solution addresses the mechanistic components of a complete EAF water detection framework. The boundary model has been implemented on an industrial AC EAF. The model specifies upper and lower limits in re...

Jet fires and their repercussions play a significant role in catastrophic incidents that typically have a cascading impact in the process industries. Several hydrocarbon experiments from 19 papers were incorporated into the current endeavor to develop simulations of jet flames using machine learning (ML) models. Dimensionless characteristics have b...

The direct reduction process has been developed and investigated in recent years due to less pollution than other methods. In this work, the first direct reduction iron oxide (DRI) modeling has been developed using artificial neural networks (ANN) algorithms such as the multilayer perceptron (MLP) and radial basis function (RBF) models. A DRI opera...

A hierarchical structure based on a Deep LSTM Supervised Autoencoder Neural Network (Deep LSTM-SAE NN) is presented for the detection and classification of faults in industrial plants. The proposed methodology has the ability to classify incipient faults that are difficult to detect and diagnose with traditional and many recent methods. Faults are...

This chapter illustrates product selection using the Bosting Consulting Group (BCG) matrix. The chapter starts first by quantifying sustainability through the triple bottom line that consists of environmental, economic, and a social components. The social component is represented by a health index of the chemicals, while the economic component focu...

The study focuses on the utilization of multi‐way principal component analysis (MPCA) and multi‐way partial least square method (MPLS) to facilitate modeling, optimization, process control, and product development in toner processes. Previously collected process measurements and values of product qualities from satisfactory batches were consumed in...

Polyetherimide‐graphene (PEI/G) composite coatings are synthesized and evaluated as corrosion protective coatings on copper metal substrates. The composite coatings are prepared with various loadings of graphene following in situ polymerization approach, while thermal imidization is utilized to cure the composites on metal substrates. The study aim...

Product and process design methodologies have been successful in delivering products which are driven by market needs. In this chapter, we present a product design approach and mixture design methodologies for wheat straw polypropylene (WS‐PP) composites for the automotive industry. The approach follows hierarchical steps starting from costumer nee...

In this study, a systematic approach was established in order to define and optimize the required amino acids in a defined minimal medium for the synthesis of human interleukin 3 (rHuIL‐3) in Streptomyces lividans . Initially, the number of probable required amino acids was narrowed down from 20 to 8 using starvation trials. Starvation trials were...

This chapter illustrates a case study about optimization of a disinfection formulation. All data presented here are real‐life information. In this case study, three main attributes of a disinfectant formulation namely antimicrobial efficacy, active ingredient stability (in this case, hydrogen peroxide), and corrosion were studied. First, prior data...

Product life span is the first step in development of a new product before manufacturing, marketing and distribution. In the case of conventional product design, there are two steps must be identified which are, product specification and price. These two features may have significant influences satisfactions of both stakeholders and customers. Howe...

This chapter focuses on obtaining optimal mechanical properties of polypropylene‐organically modified montmorillonite (PP‐OMMT) nanocomposite for different objectives. The primary objective was to minimize the cost of the PP‐OMMT nanocomposite. The other objective was to obtain specific desired properties of the nanocomposite (irrespective of the n...

The prelims comprise: Half‐Title Page Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents Preface About the Authors

This chapter provides an overview of the mathematical principles and statistical techniques commonly used to accelerate the process of product design and formulation. The chapter starts by providing a summary of factorial and fractional factorial design. The one‐factor‐at‐a‐time approach to optimize product design is first described and then the co...

This chapter presents several applications based on recent efforts made to fabricate chemically designed products with specific needs. The applications cover various topics including manufacturing of natural fiber composites, polymer composites, and experimental design. For natural fiber composites, several examples are given including thermoplasti...

The study illustrates the conducted process–mixture design of experiment to evaluate various properties of wheat straw polypropylene. It was observed that the mechanical properties of the fiber can be significantly influenced by the length and the aspect ratio. Experimental work was carried out by converting the wheat straw to powder in order to ge...

This paper proposes a simple and environmentally friendly method for the green synthesis of SnO2–ZnO/bentonite nanocomposite in the presence of Acroptilon repens flower extract as a reducing and stabilizing agent. The synthesized nanocomposite was characterized using various techniques to investigate their structural properties and morphology. The...

The separation of solid particles from gas-solid process streams is an important unit operation in many chemical processes. Out of the many different types of separation equipment that are used for gas-solid separation, cyclone separators are widely used for their operational flexibility, efficiency and capital cost. This study focused on the desig...

One of the main reasons for air pollution is industrial plants releasing huge amounts of air pollutants in the form of gas emissions. The different chemical pollutants and their corresponding levels present in these emissions, and their proximity to the industrial source, have serious effects on the nearby ecosystems. Some of the industrial nuisanc...

In this paper, a troubleshooting technique is developed to provide a sequence of necessary actions during deodoriser unit failure in a palm oil refinery. This paper introduces a fuzzy expert system that incorporates knowledge of experienced plant workers in dealing with the complex problems of the palm oil deodoriser. The presented methodology uses...

Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions contribute considerably towards increasing greenhouse effect. Carbon capture and storage can reduce CO2 emissions to a great extent but lacks economic feasibility. The economic feasibility of CO2 capture could be boosted by utilizing the captured gas to produce valuable end products. CO2 is a highly stable molecule; t...

Carbon capture and utilization is an attractive technique to mitigate the damage to the environment. The aim of this study was to techno-economically investigate the hydrogenation of CO2 to methanol and then conversion of methanol to dimethyl ether using Aspen Plus® (V.11, Aspen Technology, Inc., Bedford, Massachusetts 01730, USA). Hydrogen was obt...

Objective: The objective of this paper is to illustrate uses of Aspen Plus (Aspen) to pharmaceutical processes with a specific focus on the production of aspirin. Chemical process simulators such as Aspen have received little attention for pharmaceutical applications; this is due in part to prevalence of dynamic batch reactors, specialized raw mate...

Energy subsidies are granted by many governments to alleviate energy poverty, support domestic industries, promote economic development, and improve welfare levels. These energy subsidies can lead to overconsumption of energy and an increase in CO2 emissions. Hence, it is crucial to continuously investigate the overall benefits of subsidies compare...

Accurate, timely air quality index (AQI) forecasting helps industries in selecting the most suitable air pollution control measures and the public in reducing harmful exposure to pollution. This article proposes a comprehensive method to forecast AQIs. Initially, the work focused on predicting hourly ambient concentrations of PM2.5 and PM10 using a...

In Malaysia, palm oil industries have played significant roles in the economic sectors and the nation’s developments. One aspect of these industries that is gaining growing interest is oil palm residue management and bio-based product generations. EFB has been identified to be a feasible raw material for the production of bio-energy, bio-chemicals,...

The use of hazardous materials like plastic waste can be improved by adding value to viable biomass candidates. The current study is focused on lychee and plastic waste co-pyrolysis for the production of energy and chemicals. Based on this knowledge of the subject matter sample mixture was pyrolysed at four different heating rates: 10 °C min⁻¹, 20...

This study provides a unique risk-based hybrid two-stage operational model for a coordinated power and gas distribution system that enables it to engage optimally in the electricity, gas, and thermal markets in order to serve electricity, gas, and heat demands. The suggested hybrid model enables the integrated energy distribution system (IEDS) oper...

Many intrinsic uncertainties are part of natural gas downstream synthesis, design, and operation. This work extends the earlier developed deterministic model to account for new decision variables, unit operations, and uncertainty in the network. The uncertainty includes the feedstock composition and flowrate, utility requirements, by-products, and...

Background Early death after cancer surgery is higher in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) compared with in high-income countries, yet the impact of facility characteristics on early postoperative outcomes is unknown. The aim of this study was to examine the association between hospital infrastructure, resource availability, and proces...

Pseudomonas and micrococcus (Pseudomonas fluorescens and M. luteus)are an emerging opportunistic fish pathogens that results in considerable economic losses among the infected fish. In the present study, a total number of 150 cultured Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus were collected from concrete ponds farms in Alkharga oases, New Valley governor...

Currently, natural gas (NG) is an economically proven source of helium with up to 8 mol% concentration. Helium extraction at earlier stages in the natural gas liquefaction plant shows a motivating initiative to improve the economics and environmental aspects. Cryogenic fractionation is the most industrially used technology to recover helium from na...

The aim of this paper is to provide a mathematical programming model for sustainable end-of-life vehicle processing and recycling. Environmental benefits and resource efficiency are achieved through the incorporation of a processing and recycling network that is based on industrial symbiosis whereby waste materials are converted into positive envir...

The transformation of the electricity market structure from a monopoly model to a competitive market has caused electricity to be exchanged like a commercial commodity in the electricity market. The electricity price participants should forecast the price in different horizons to make an optimal offer as a buyer or a seller. Therefore, accurate ele...

Global climate change is one of the major concerns of today's world. Indeed, the carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) has a great potential to abate global climate changes but the economic infeasibility of this process has motivated the researchers to develop methods for direct utilization of captured carbon dioxide (CO2) to value-added end produ...

Chemical absorption of CO2 into aqueous amine‐based solvents is known as the most mature technology featuring high separation efficiencies and applicability of retrofitting. The high regeneration energy requirement of the process is a major drawback, and improvements in solvent design are required. This study investigated the CO2 absorption and des...