Abu Dhabi: Shouq Obaid Al Zahmi, 20, dreams that her efforts will one day contribute to the UAE’s ambitious space exploration programmes.
Her research at iEnergy Centre at the Masdar Institute is about converting concentrated solar energy directly into electricity, using a solid-state heat engine to bring about the thermoelectric effect.
“It has a great potential in both terrestrial applications and space exploration,” says Shouq, a student of Sustainable and Renewable Energy Engineering at the University of Sharjah.
“I believe that one day the world will look forward to the investments on the non-conventional sources of energy such as solar, wind, biomass and geothermal energies, and here comes our turn to achieve this goal,” she said.
Manar Saeed Al Mazroui, 20, is working on a project related to the generation of large-scale solar PV (photovoltaic) and wind power but her interests go beyond this area. “Like solar and wind, ocean energy [waves and tides] is a major source in the UAE and I would like to contribute to its development,” she says enthusiastically.
Manar’s project is focused on the voltage control of power systems employing large-scale PV and wind power units. Such renewable energy technologies can support the electric grid given reliable voltage control for steady state, dynamic and transient operation.
A student of sustainable and renewable energy at University of Sharjah, Manar believes that her project will help minimise the UAE’s per capita carbon footprint, which currently is among the highest in the world.
In 1998, the carbon emissions in the country were 11.5 metric tonnes per capita compared to 5.5 metric tonnes per capita in the United States. The energy sector contributes heavily to the UAE’s high carbon footprint. Energy-related emissions in the UAE were 31.3 million metric tonnes of carbon in 2008, which is around 0.5 per cent of the world’s carbon emissions. “There lies the role of clean energy and my project supporting this sector,” says Manar.
