Faculty at QF partner Texas A&M at Qatar ranked top minds in their fields

Nine faculty members from Texas A&M University at Qatar, a Qatar Foundation partner university, were included on a list recently published by Stanford University researchers whose study identified the top 2 percent of most-cited scientists worldwide in all fields.

Making the list were Dr. Tingwen Huang, mathematics; Dr. Eyad Masad, mechanical engineering and civil engineering; Dr. Ioannis Economou and Dr. Marcelo Castier, chemical engineering; Dr. Milivoj Belic, physics; Dr. Haitham Abu-Rub, Dr. Joseph Boutros, Dr. Ali Ghrayeb and Dr. Hussein Alnuweiri, electrical and computer engineering.

Dr. César Octavio Malavé, dean of Texas A&M at Qatar, said that it was impressive for such a small campus to have 15 percent of its faculty named among the top scholars worldwide in their individual fields.

“Being highly cited means that researchers have demonstrated significant influence in their fields and care counted among the world’s top scientific minds,” Malavé said. “Through their research, our faculty are solving real-world challenges, thereby creating new understanding that is shared with researchers in academia, industry and governments in Qatar and around the world.”

Academic citations reflect an exchange of ideas that expand human knowledge, Malavé said, noting that Texas A&M at Qatar faculty are making an impact locally and globally by making leading contributions to academic discourse on cutting-edge topics and technologies.

“We are proud of their accomplishments and the role all of our faculty members play in making our university the essential partner it is to the State of Qatar and in improving the world around us,” Malavé said.

Huang, one Texas A&M at Qatar researcher on the list, applies mathematics to solve engineering problems, especially those originating in artificial computational intelligence, neural networks and computer science. As part of his work, Huang has developed a framework of the smart grid system management via neural network-based approaches, which play a significant role in improving the energy efficiency.

Masad’s research has focused on the development of innovative methods for characterization of material microstructure and computational modeling of road performance. This work has improved the design of long-lasting and sustainable road infrastructure, and the results of his research have been adopted and are increasing the longevity and sustainability of roads in Qatar. In fact, Masad has been at the forefront of several Texas A&M at Qatar initiatives that are advancing safety and sustainability, and are integral to standards for world-class infrastructure in Qatar.

Other faculty researchers on the list are experts in fields ranging from optics and photonics to molecular thermodynamics to networking and telecommunications.