Haroun Mahgerefteh's Webpage
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Professor in Chemical Engineering MSc Admission Tutor |
Address: Prof Haroun Mahgerefteh Department of Chemical Engineering University College London Torrington Place London WC1E 7JE United Kingdom |
Haroun Mahgerefteh obtained his PhD in Chemical Engineering from Imperial
College. This was followed by a 2-year postdoctoral fellowship funded by the
Royal Society Paul Instrument Fund at the same institution. Haroun Mahgerefteh
is currently Professor of Chemical Engineering at University College London.
His main research expertise is in Safety and Loss Prevention in the oil and gas industries, particularly pipeline rupture safety assessment.
Professor Mahgerefteh has significant interest in the hazard and materials assessment for the next generation CO2 pipelines used as part of the Carbon Capture and Sequestration chain. He is the coordinator of FP7 projects, CO2PipeHaz and CO2QUEST, co-investigator in EPSRC MATTRAN and National Grid COOLTRANS projects.
Professor Mahgerefteh is the Graduate Admissions Tutor for MSc in
Chemical Process Engineering at UCL. He is a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of the
Institution of Chemical Engineers, and member of the IChemE Subject Group in
Safety and Loss Prevention.
Research Interests
Safety and Loss Prevention
Safety and loss prevention in the process industries, particularly in oil and gas, is of paramount importance. Accidents in such sectors can lead to catastrophic consequences involving loss of life, damage to the environment and significant financial penalties. In 2010 for example, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico killed 11 men working on the platform and injured 17 others. Over 185 million gallons of crude oil was released into the Gulf of Mexico contaminating an area of several thousand square kilometres.
Our research in safety and loss prevention is focused on the development of mathematical models and computer simulations for predicting the consequences of accidental releases in the oil and gas industries. Such knowledge is essential in determining the minimum safe distances to populated areas, accident mitigation and emergency response planning. Recently our work has extended to the safety assessment of CO2 pipelines to be used for transporting captured CO2 from fossil fuel power plants for subsequent storage. This process is being developed as the primary means for reducing the impact of global warming.
The
following are examples of some of the current and recently completed projects:
- CO2 pipelines safety assessment
- Blowdown simulation
- Thermal response of pressurised vessels during blowdown under fire attack
- Fast numerical simulation for predicting outflow following pipeline rupture
- Modelling of dynamic response of ESDV following pipeline rupture
Instrumentation
Our research in instrumentation is mainly concerned with the design and development of novel techniques for applications in environmental pollution monitoring and particle technology. The work is highly industrially oriented thus enjoying close links with industry, having resulted in several awards and prizes. Students with interest in experimental work and theoretical modelling are welcome to apply to carry out research work in this area.
Teaching Interests
Professor Mahgerefteh's teaching activities are
mainly in the areas of thermodynamics and process safety and loss prevention. Below are the modules he is currently involved in
teaching. (Note that each link is restricted to access only by students currently registered on the module.)
Page last modified on 10 jan 13 16:45
