Graphene, a material made up of a single layer of carbon atoms in a hexagonal lattice, was first observed under the electron microscope more than half a century ago.
It is little more than a decade, however, since this substance was properly isolated and described scientifically, an achievement that led, in 2010, to the awarding of the Nobel Prize in Physics to the two researchers responsible.
Properly characterising graphene was considered such a major step forward because of the remarkable properties this material displays: it conducts heat and electricity well and is about 200 times stronger than steel. That opens up a raft of potential applications that could transform many fields of technology, from telecommunications to lighting.
Among those fascinated by graphene and its uses is Ibrahim Ahmad, a 32-year-old Emirati. His interest in the subject took him from the UAE to the United Kingdom and the University of Manchester, the institution where that Nobel Prize-winning work took place. There the Dubai native completed a master’s degree.
Then he transferred to the world-renowned university city of Cambridge where, in a PhD programme sponsored by Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, he is looking at how graphene could be used in the composites produced by the Adnoc joint venture Borouge, for which he works. Often supplied in the form of pellets, materials produced by Borouge are used in the car industry and other sectors.
The focus of Mr Ahmad’s work is on producing substances that happen to have an especially long name: multimodal hydrophobic polymer-graphene nanocomposites. However, the name is not as intimidating as it sounds: the key point is that these substances contain both polymers (large molecules made up of many smaller molecules joined together) and graphene. And the word nano is used because the composite’s grain size is counted in nanometres.
Mr Ahmad wants to understand how the polymer and graphene can be mixed together to produce substances useful for industry.
“My project is to find a solution for that … to try to mix them without changing the properties of both of them,” he said.
Graphene could be used in place of other carbon-based substances and, because of its impressive capabilities, it might be needed in much smaller quantities as an additive. Whereas some carbon substances might need to be used as 40 per cent of the final mixture, with graphene the figure might be only 5 to 10 per cent.
It is about two years since Mr Ahmad moved to Cambridge, where he carries out laboratory work in a number of departments scattered across a spacious modern district to the west of the old colleges for which the city is famous.
Abu Dhabi plays a vital role in his research, much of which is about characterising composite materials produced at an industrial-scale facility at the Borouge Innovation Centre in Abu Dhabi’s Sas Al Nakhl area. Graphene is sent over from Cambridge and used to produce the composites, which in turn go to Cambridge for analysis.
“We try to … use the polymer already engineered for composites. We don’t want to integrate any new system in the plant,” said Mr Ahmad.
The mechanical and thermal performance of the composites are among the parameters that are important to industry. For those composites used to produce pipes, ultraviolet radiation absorption is key, as UV can degrade outdoor pipes over time.
One reason why Mr Ahmad has been particularly keen to work on graphene is that it is the starting point for many of the other interesting forms of carbon that have also captured the interest of scientists - and the media - in recent years. Among these other types are carbon nanotubes, which are single layers of carbon formed, as their name suggests, into tubes, and fullerenes, which are ball-shaped structures also made up of single layers of carbon atoms hexagonally joined to one another.
“If I work on graphene, I will know other carbon nanocomposites, such as carbon nanotubes and fullerenes, because everything is based on graphene. They’re all graphene, but in a different shape. It’s like an open gate for the others,” he said.
Mr Ahmad’s path to Cambridge began with an undergraduate degree at UAE University in Al Ain, from which he graduated in 2008. He then spent a year involved with laboratory work for Dubai Police before switching to Borouge, which is a joint venture between Adnoc and Borealis, an Austrian company. With Borouge, he carried out work that was mainly technical and he also held a position that mixed his scientific expertise with marketing functions.
In 2014 he began work for a master’s degree at the University of Manchester, and earned a distinction for his dissertation. The plan had been to then return to Borouge but, instead, and with the support of his employer, he is continuing to study.
It seems as though this decision is likely to pay off. Results so far have been promising and Mr Ahmad says a paper is close to being ready to submit for publication. He predicts that the scientific community will be surprised at the results, given the difficulties experienced by some other research groups with similar ambitions. Some of these other research groups, he suggests, may not have been careful enough about which polymer they used.
His work could represent a step towards using graphene on a truly industrial scale, something Mr Ahmad would like to see happen in the UAE.
“There’s no large-scale plant for graphene but we’re preparing for that. I’ve seen a lot of patents for that. They’re waiting for an investor to open a large-scale plant,” he said.
“If you look at any innovation centre like MIT [the Massachusetts Institute of Technology], Stanford, Oxford - every university has a centre for graphene. Imagine how many people are working [on it] but we don’t have a factory for graphene. In Cambridge there’s one on a small scale. It’s my dream, to be honest, to have it in our country."
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The years Ramadan fell in May
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
RESULTS
6.30pm: Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (Dirt) 1.600m
Winner: Miller’s House, Richard Mullen (jockey), Satish Seemar (trainer).
7.05pm: Maiden (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Kanood, Adrie de Vries, Fawzi Nass.
7.50pm: Handicap (TB) Dh 82,500 (D) 1,600m
Winner: Gervais, Sandro Paiva, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
8.15pm: The Garhoud Sprint Listed (TB) Dh 132,500 (D) 1,200m
Winner: Important Mission, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer.
8.50pm: The Entisar Listed (TB) Dh 132,500 (D) 2,000m
Winner: Firnas, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer.
9.25pm: Conditions (TB) Dh 120,000 (D) 1,400m
Winner: Zhou Storm, Connor Beasley, Ali Rashid Al Raihe.
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
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Profile of Bitex UAE
Date of launch: November 2018
Founder: Monark Modi
Based: Business Bay, Dubai
Sector: Financial services
Size: Eight employees
Investors: Self-funded to date with $1m of personal savings
If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.
MATCH INFO
Chelsea 1
Alonso (62')
Huddersfield Town 1
Depoitre (50')
The specs: 2018 Chevrolet Trailblazer
Price, base / as tested Dh99,000 / Dh132,000
Engine 3.6L V6
Transmission: Six-speed automatic
Power 275hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 350Nm @ 3,700rpm
Fuel economy combined 12.2L / 100km
Results
STAGE
1 . Filippo Ganna (Ineos) - 0:13:56
2. Stefan Bissegger (Education-Nippo) - 0:00:14
3. Mikkel Bjerg (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:21
4. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 0:00:24
5. Luis Leon Sanchez (Astana) - 0:00:30
GENERAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Tadej Pogacar (UAE Team Emirates) - 4:00:05
2. Joao Almeida (QuickStep) - 0:00:05
3. Mattia Cattaneo (QuickStep) - 0:00:18
4. Chris Harper (Jumbo-Visma) - 0:00:33
5. Adam Yates (Ineos) - 0:00:39
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INDIA SQUADS
India squad for third Test against Sri Lanka
Virat Kohli (capt), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Vijay Shankar
India squad for ODI series against Sri Lanka
Rohit Sharma (capt), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul
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THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
The%20specs
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DIVINE%20INTERVENTOIN
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