AUS hosts Seventh International Conference on Advances in Engineering Materials

Under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammad Al Qassimi, Supreme Council Member, Ruler of Sharjah and President of American University of Sharjah (AUS), the university held the opening of the Seventh International Conference on Advances in Engineering Materials (IMS/7), yesterday, March 18. The three-day conference is aimed at promoting a global collaboration among faculty, students, engineers and managers on the advances on engineering materials.

The conference provided a forum for distinguished guest speakers and practitioners from over 20 countries to address recent research results and to present and discuss related issues to composites and polymers, material properties, improvements in asphaltic materials, corrosion and material/structural behavior, advances in building materials, advances in materials properties, material processing, material performance and other materials-related topics.

Dr. Thomas Hochstettler, AUS Acting Chancellor, welcomed the participants to the event and wished them success. Dr. Leland Blank, Dean of the College of Engineering, also spoke on the occasion, stressing on the importance of the advances being made in engineering materials. "You can pick any dimension of human endeavor, from electronics, to space travel, to mobility, and you will see the importance of materials. The work that you do has an impact and I am pleased that this conference is helping advance an area that is sometimes missed," he said.

"On behalf of the organizing committee, we are very pleased to welcome you to the Seventh International Conference on Advances in Engineering Materials and would like to thank all the authors and delegates who contributed to the success of this conference by sharing their work and knowledge," said Dr. Taleb Ibrahim, Professor of Chemical Engineering at AUS and co-chair of the conference, addressing the guests. Providing an insight on what the delegates could expect from the various panels scheduled at the event, Dr. Tamimi said, "One important aspect that we will focus on is sustainability; we will look at recycling materials to see how we can make them available for years to come."

International conferences such as these are an integral part of the university's strategic mission to forge links between industry and academia and to play a significant role in promoting and encouraging research and development.

The three keynote speakers at the event included Dr. Charles J. Kibert, Professor in the ME Rinker, Sr. School of Construction Management, College of Design, Construction and Planning, University of Florida; Dr. Anna Luisa Costa, Senior Researcher at the Institute of Science and Technology for Ceramics (ISTEC-CNR, Faenza, Italy), a leading nanotechnology lab and nanotechnology and colloidal processing group; and Dr. Mariam Al-Maadeed, Director of the Center for Advanced Materials at Qatar University.

The conference is co-sponsored by Emal and Sharjah Research Academy and will conclude on Thursday, March 20.