"Whenever I talk about my research, I get super excited. I can talk about it for hours," says Mahmoud Alzoubi, Assistant Professor in the Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining. "I think there's a passion that professors feel about their research, and we're trying to share it with the students."
His research is a unique blend of mining and mechanical engineering that focuses on energy-efficient mining operations. With such interdisciplinary expertise, one of his research topics focuses on revolutionizing the artificial ground-freezing (AGF) methods. These techniques have been used for over a century and are common in the mining industry. They involve installing a temporary underground pipe system with cold fluid to freeze the ground and create a protective barrier for groundwater control in various mining operations.
"We're trying to improve the efficiency of artificial ground-freezing energy consumption,” says Alzoubi. “The contemporary AGF requires intensive energy input, which leads to immense operating and maintenance costs not to mention the large carbon footprint. My goal is to develop an innovative, passive renewable energy-based AGF that runs all year round with zero external energy contribution."
He further elaborates that the mining industry is under increasing pressure from various stakeholders to reduce emissions and address climate risk. The next generation of engineers are innovating energy-efficient mining techniques to alleviate the effects of climate change, and Alzoubi is helping to lead the charge.
"The future of mining is to be smart, autonomous, green, and reduced environmental footprint," says Alzoubi. "In fact, as we look toward the future, it becomes evident that economic and regulatory factors will necessitate the adoption of energy-efficient mining practices. My research is to attain big goals, which include mining with zero-carbon footprint."
Alzoubi's pursuit would not have come to fruition without him first taking a leap of faith. He began his engineering career in Jordan and worked his way up in engineering sales for eight years. Eventually, he became the area sales manager for one of the world's largest oil and gas companies, located in the United Arab Emirates. Although he enjoyed notable career success, he felt a solid push to follow a different course despite the risk.
"I was always excited about my work, but I felt something was missing," says Alzoubi. "I think of life as chapters, and at that time I strongly felt that my academic chapter is yet to be finished." With a young family to support, his aspirations to pursue postgraduate studies seemed out of reach. Yet, with the unwavering support of his family, he ultimately committed to attaining his goal.
His new journey began by pursuing a master’s degree from the Masdar Institute of Khalifa University in the United Arab Emirates, a collaborating university with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “The program was totally focusing on advancing renewable energy, and it fascinated me,” says Alzoubi. This experience set a strong foundation for his new path that eventually led him to Queen’s, which may have been in the cards all along.
In 2016, during his second year as a PhD student at McGill University, he was presenting at a poster competition at the CIM convention in Montreal, when he was impressed by the sharp knowledge of a fellow peer.
"I remember there was a student from Queen's who did an amazing presentation, and I thought to myself that this must be a great university. I told my professor, ‘You know what my dream is? It's that someday I'll be able to work there.’"
Fast forward eight years, the forgotten memory suddenly came back to him while at the same CIM conference in Vancouver earlier this summer. After joking about it with a colleague, the colleague laughed and said, "the engineer you're talking about is right over there." Alzoubi's friend knew her, and she has since been notably successful in her field while he is enjoying his first year of professorship at Queen's.
"The people at Queen's treat you like a family. When you first walk into the department, you feel like you've been there forever. The people are very warm and welcoming," he says. When it comes to his decision years ago to make a career shift, it seems like his gamble has paid off. "I'm glad that I'm here. I think this [role at Queen's] is the reward that my family deserves. It was a crazy decision, but I don't regret it for a moment."
This article is relevant to the following Strategic Actions as defined in the Strategic Plan:
