Group Members

Dr. Yassir Makkawi is a professor of Chemical Engineering with over 30 years of academic and industrial experience. He earned a PhD in Chemical Engineering from Heriot-Watt University (UK). Before joining the American University of Sharjah (AUS), Dr. Makkawi held various academic positions at leading UK universities between 2003 and 2015, including Heriot-Watt, Edinburgh, Sheffield, and Aston Universities. He also spent around 8 years in the early part of his career serving the oil and gas industry in the Middle East. He founded BSCRG at AUS and is leading research on waste-to-energy, computational modeling of multiphase flow and reactive systems, waste recycling, hydrogen energy, solar thermal conversion, biofuels, and biochar. Dr. Makkawi is a Fellow of the UK Higher Education Academy (FHEA), a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (MRSC), a Chartered Engineer (CEng), and a Member of the Institute of Chemical Engineers (MIChemE).

Ms. Baraa completed her B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Chemical Engineering at the University of Khartoum (Sudan). Before joining the group, she held the position of a Graduate teaching assistant/ research assistant (Materials Research and Nanotechnology Centre) at the University of Khartoum (2016-2018). Ms. Baraa’s current research interests include computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling and the production of biofuels from algae.

Research projects: 

• Growth and harvesting of microalgae
• Computational modeling of biomass thermal conversion
• Analysis of biochar and biofuels

Mr. Omar completed a B.Sc (2018) and M.Sc (2021) in Chemical Engineering at the American University of Sharjah. His current research interests is focused on the conversion of sewage sludge into biofuel and biochar through gasification and pyrolysis processes. 

Research project:

• Thermal conversion of biosolids and algae.
• Green hydrogen
• Solar-thermal conversion reactors​

Mr. Waqas is a Doctoral student in the Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) program. He attained his master’s degree in project management (2018) and Thermal Energy Engineering (2020) at the National University of Science and Technology, Islamabad. His current research interests include renewable energy, municipal solid waste management, waste-to-energy, and biomass conversion. His current research interest is in biofuels and biochar for soil amendment.

Research project (PI: Samara, Co-I: Makkawi)

• Assessment of biochar for soil amendment in the UAE

Eman Basheir (PhD Student)

Eman Basheir is a doctoral student in the Materials Science and Engineering (MSE) program. She completed BS and MS in Chemical Engineering at the University of Khartoum (Sudan). Before joining AUS, she held the positions of Lecturer and Teaching Assistant at Sudan University of Science and Technology (2011-2013). Her current research interests include solar thermal conversion, biomass and bioenergy, and CO₂ capture technologies.

Research project (PI: Makkawi)

• CFD modeling of a novel concept for the utilization of desalination reject brine in bioenergy

Mohamed Omar earned his Chemical Engineering BSc (2023) at the American University of Ras al Khaimah-AURAK (UAE). Before attending AUS for Ms. (2024), he worked as a part-time Research Assistant at AURAK and RAK Research Center (RAKRIC) from 2023 to 2024, focusing on biological water-gas-shift reactions, carbon capture, bio-hydrogen production, biofuel cells, and the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis (FTS). Mohamed Omar’s current research interest is in biofuel production from algae.

Research project (PI: Makkawi)

• Modeling of microalgae growth and enhancing its growth for biofuel and chemical production

Ahmed Abdulla holds a BSc degree (2020) in Process Engineering from the German University of Technology in Oman. He served as a teaching assistant at the university before joining the AUS. Ahmed has also gained valuable experience as a lab technician at a wheat flour company for two years, focusing on food processing and quality control. His research interests are centered on the conversion of solid waste and biomass, particularly in hot climates, deserts, and high-saline environments.

Research project (PI: Makkawi)

• Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and its environmental impact in arid and semi-arid regions.