The Department of Chemical Engineering continues to collaborate with local, regional and international institutions and agencies for alignment of our research to fit industry needs. This is done via requests for research scholarships for our MPhil/PhD students, internships and research projects with Joint Academic and Industry Supervision, and through technical and short courses training to Industry. The Department has well established research collaborations with the University of Guadeloupe, the University of Pennsylvania State (Penn State), the University of Calgary, and the University of Texas at Austin, Texas.

 

Research

 

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING GROUP

In the Chemical & Process Engineering Unit some of the major areas of research are in hydrocarbon processes, waste water treatment, supercritical CO2 extractions, flow in pipelines, process control and optimization, algal generation to produce valuable raw materials, membrane technology, PET recycling, and biomass utilisation, biofuels and fuel cells.
 
Our Chemical & Process Engineering lecturers are able to facilitate research under the following areas:
  • Energy Studies
  • Corrosion Studies
  • Membrane Technology
  • Flow Assurance and Computational Fluid Dynamics
  • Bio-fluid mechanics and Cardiovascular Technology
  • Supercritical Fluid and Solvent Extraction
  • Carbon Dioxide Utilisation
  • Process Control and Optimisation
  • Life Cycle Sustainability Assessments
  • Waste Valorisation and Resource Circular Process Systems
     
Current postgraduate research areas:
 
Dr. Sharad Maharaj
  • Development of a mass transfer model which incorporates component solubility for supercritical extraction of bay oil. (MPhil candidate: Khadir Manwah)
     
Dr. Dhurjati Chakrabarti
  • Modelling Three-phase Flow in a Horizontal Cylindrical Pipe. (PhD candidate: Laura Edwards)

 

FOOD SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY UNIT

In the Food Science and Technology Unit research collaboration with the Ministry of Food Production, the Ministry of Trade Industry Investment and Communication, Cocoa Research Centre, VEMCO and the FAO is ongoing. The major areas of research are on value-added products from cassava, sweet potato, cocoa, breadfruit, ackee, jamun fruit analyses, microwave and hot air drying.
 
Our Food Science & Technology lecturers are able to facilitate research under the following areas:
  • Food Preservation, Processing and Packaging
  • Food Microbiology, Sanitation and Quality Assurance
  • Food Product Development
  • Nutrition, Health and Wellness
  • Postharvest Technology
  • Good Agricultural Practices to facilitate Agro-processing
  • Good Manufacturing Practices and HACCP
  • Food Regulations and Compliance
  • Culinary Development and Innovation for the Food Service Industry
  • Techno-economic Studies for the Food and Beverage Industry
     
Current postgraduate research areas:
 
Professor Rohanie Maharaj
  • Food Safety and Biogenic Amines content of Carite (Scomberomorus brasiliensis) in Trinidad, West Indies. (PhD candidate: Wayne Joseph)

 

PETROLEUM STUDIES UNIT

In the Petroleum Studies Unit, collaboration with the Ministry of Energy and Energy Industries, University of Texas at Austin, Penn State University, and BHP is ongoing. The major areas of research are on PVT, phase behavior, reservoir characterization, heavy oil recovery and oil recovery from Trinidad tar sands, reservoir characterization with nano-particle technology application, natural gas hydrates, enhanced oil recovery, wellbore stability during drilling operations, carbon dioxide capture and transmission for EOR and sequestration, artificial lift methods, waterflood-MEOR combo, rock mechanical properties, sedimentology, seismic and subsurface risk analysis, paleontology, micropaleontology, foraminifera, miocene clays, rock fractures and deformation.
 
Our Petroleum Studies lecturers are able to facilitate research under the following areas:
  • Geochemistry, Mineralogy and Petrology
  • Rock Mechanics, Rock Preparation and Thin-Sections
  • Unconventional Reservoirs: Heavy Oil, Shale Oil, Tar Sands and Gas Hydrates
  • Sedimentology, Stratigraphy and Sequence Stratigraphy
  • Seismic Studies
  • Biostratigraphy and Environmental Paleontology
  • Oil and Gas PVT and Phase Behaviour Studies
  • Carbon Dioxide Sequestration, EOR and CERM
  • Reservoir Characterisation with Nano-Particle Technology Application
  • Drilling Technology and Wellbore Stability
     
Current postgraduate research areas:
 
Professor Raffie Hosein
  • Development of a corrosion inhibitor from the extract of Pimenta racemosa for the protection of carbon steel pipelines. (PhD candidate: Rajiv Budhooram)
  • Reservoir Characterization assisted by Nanoparticle Technology. (PhD candidate: Elmus Jaikaran)
  • Heavy Oil Recovery and Oil Recovery from Trinidad Tar sands by Radio-frequency heating. (PhD candidate: Tamitha Ramcharan) Co-supervisor: Prof. Andrew Jupiter
  • Investigating the Gas Hydrate Potential of Offshore Trinidad. (PhD candidate: Julia Gift) Co-supervisor: Prof. Andrew Jupiter
  • Mineralogical and Physiochemical Characterization of Trinidad Mudrocks: Implications for palaeoenvironment and drilling through shaly zones. (PhD candidate: Krystella Rattan)
     
Dr. Oshaine Blake
  • 3D Geomechanical Wellbore Stability Modelling using well log and laboratory measurements for the Starfish and Dolphin Fields of the East Coast Marine Area (ECMA), Trinidad and Tobago. (PhD candidate: Adele Harrypersad) Co-supervisor: Mr. Hamid Hassanali, The UWI
     
Professor Emeritus Brent Wilson
  • High Resolution benthic foraminferal ecostratigraphy of the Cipero Formation, Trinidad, West Indies. (PhD Candidate: Sadie Samsoondar)
  • Sedimentological analysis of modern marginal-marine depositional environments in Trinidad. (PhD Candidate: Saeed Khan) Primary Supervisor: Dr. Hasley Vincent, Heritage Petroleum Company
     

 

Refereed Publications
 

Professor Raffie Hosein
  • Tamitha, R. and Hosein, R. 2019. Radio Frequency Heating combined with Solvent Extraction - A Method for Oil Recovery from Surface Tar Sands. Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering. Vol. 179, August 2019, pp. 328-336. Science Direct (Elsevier, Impact Factor 2.4)
  • Persad N., Hosein R. and Jupiter A. 2019. A Comparative Analysis of Two Methods of Wax Treatment for a Waxy Oil Well in Southwest Trinidad. Petroleum Science and Technology. Taylor and Francis Group. DOI: 10.1080/10916466.2018.1552966. Vol. 37, Issue 4, pp. 452-460. (Ulrichs Springer, Impact Factor 1)
  • Tamitha R.; Hosein R. and Jupiter A. 2018. The viability of oil extraction from Trinidad tar sands by radio frequency heating  A stimulation approach, Journal of Petroleum Science & Technology, Vol. 18, Issue 1, pp. 45-68
  • Hosein R., Serrattan S. and Jupiter A. 2018. The Viability of Slim-Hole Drilling Onshore Trinidad. Journal of Petroleum Exploration and Production Technology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13202-018-0543-3. September 2018
     
Professor Andrew Jupiter
  • Tamitha R.; Hosein R. and Jupiter A. 2018. The viability of oil extraction from Trinidad tar sands by radio frequency heating:  A stimulation approach, Journal of Petroleum Science & Technology, Vol. 18, Issue 1, pp. 45-68
  • Hosein, R.; Serattan, S. and Jupiter, A. 2018. The Viability of Slim Hole Drilling Onshore Trinidad. Journal of Petroleum Exploration and Technology. https://doi.org/10.10007/s 13202-04-0543-3, September 2018
  • Persad, N.; Hosein, R. and Jupiter, A. 2019. A comparative analysis of two methods of wax treatment for a waxy oil well in Southwest Trinidad, Journal of Petroleum Science and Technology, January 2019
     
Dr. Anastasia Baboolal
  • Wilson, B., Farfan, P., Hayek, L., Kaminiski, M., Hughes, C., Samsoondar, S., Ali, S., and A. Baboolal. 2019. Agglutinated and Planktonic Foraminifera of the Nariva Formation, Central Trinidad, as indicators of its Age and Paleoenvironment, 65 (1)
     
Dr. Dhurjati Chakarbarti
  • Celeste Jaggai, Zaeem Imkaraaz, Kirsten Samm, Andrew Pounder, Natalia Koylass, Dhurjati Prasad Chakrabarti, Miao Guo, Keeran Ward, (2020). Towards Greater Sustainable Development within Current Mega-Methanol (MM) Production, Green Chemistry, issue 13,  https://doi.org/10.1039/D0GC01185A.
  • Laura Edwards, Keeran Ward & Dhurjati Prasad Chakrabarti, (2020). Harvey Arellano-Garcia (Reviewing Editor) Phase inversion in liquid phase for air-liquid horizontal flow, Cogent Engineering, 7:1, DOI: 10.1080/23311916.2020.1782622
  • Robin Gooljar, Narad Ramcharan, Darryan Dhanpat, Dhurjati Prasad Chakrabarti, (2019). Movement of Taylor bubble in various fluids through vertical and inclined tube. Nigerian Journal of Technological Research; Vol. 14, pp. 1-10
     
Dr. Oshaine Blake
  • Blake, O.O., Ramsook, R., Iyare, U.C, and Osman A. 2024. Petrographic, petrophysical, and mechanical characterization of the ultra-tight Casa Cruz sandstone, Moruga Formation, Southern Basin, Trinidad. West Indian Journal of Engineering, Vol.46, No.2, January, pp.79-90. https://doi.org/10.47412/HZWE3939.
  • Adele Harrypersad-Daniel, Blake, O.O., and Ramsook, R. 2023. Compressive and Tensile Strength Anisotropy of Friable Sandstone and Thin-bed Shale of the Pleistocene Erin Formation: Insights for safe operating mud weight windows for vertical and horizontal wells. Pure and Applied Geophysics. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00024-023-03384-x.
  • Iyare U.C., Blake O.O., Frash L.P., Carey J.W., Jones D., and Ramjarrie K.  Water-weakening Effects on the Failure behaviour of Mudstones. 2023. Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00603-023-03544-4.
  • Iyare U.C, Blake O.O., Frash L.P., Carey J.W., and Ramsook R. 2023. Effect of water saturation on failure behaviour of mudstones under high pressures. 57th U.S. Rock Mechanics/Geomechanics Symposium, American Rock Mechanics Association, Atlanta, Geogia, USA. DOI: https://doi.org/10.56952/ARMA-2023-0311
  • Blake O.O., Faulkner D.R., and Tatham D. (2019). The role of fractures, effective pressure and loading on the difference between the static and dynamic Poisson’s ratio and Young’s modulus of Westerly granite. International Journal of Rock Mechanics and Mining Science. Vol. 116, pp 87-98. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijrmms. 2019.03.001. Journal impact factor (2018): 1.268. Cited by: 0
  • Blake O.O., and Faulkner D.R. (2016). The effect of fracture density and stress state on the static and dynamic bulk moduli of Westerly granite. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth 121(4): 2382-2399. Journal impact factor (2015): 3.318. Cited by: 12
  • Frédéric Cappa, Daniel R Faulkner, Olivier Fabbri, Peter Armitage, Oshaine Blake, (2015). Development and maintenance of fluid overpressures in crustal fault zones by elastic compaction and implications for earthquake swarms. Journal of Geophysical Research. Vol. 120, Issue 6, pp 4450–4473. DOI: 10.1002/2014JB011759.   Journal impact factor (2015): 3.318.  Cited by: 7
  • Place Joachim, Blake O.O., Rietbrock A., Faulkner D.R. (2014), Wet fault or dry fault? A laboratory approach to remotely monitor the hydro-mechanical state of a discontinuity using controlled-source seismics. Pure and Applied Geophysics. Vol. 171, Issue 11, pp 2887-2897. DOI: 10.1007/s00024-014-0805-z.  Journal impact factor (2017): 1.652.  Cited by: 5
  • Blake O.O., Faulkner D.R., and Rietbrock A. (2012). The effect of varying damage history in crystalline rocks on the P and S wave velocities and elastic properties under hydrostatic confining pressure, Pure and Applied Geophysics. Vol. 170, Issue 4, pp 493-505. DOI: 10.1007/s00024-012-0550-0. Journal impact factor (2017): 1.652.  Cited by: 21
  • Behnsen, J., O. Blake, R. Cernik, and P. Withers (2014), Identifying microcracks in multi-phase crystalline rocks by x-ray CT, in Industrial Computed Tomography edited, Wels, Austria. Journal impact factor: Not available. Cited by: 0
     
Dr. Shaheeda Mujaffar

 

Non-Refereed Publications and Related Works
 

A. Book Chapters
 
Ms. Ariana Osman
  • Osman, A., Steel, R. J., Moonan, X., and Ramsook, R. (2018). A Review of the Tectonic Evolution and Sedimentary Fill of the Southern Basin, Trinidad. AAPG Books, Special Publication
     
B. Conference/Workshop Proceedings
 
Dr. Saheeda Mujaffar
  • Mujaffar, S. and S. Bynoe. Investigations into hot air and microwave drying of the West Indian bay leaf (Pimenta racemosa) – Full Paper subjected to peer review and accepted for Proceedings, Eurodrying 2019, Torino, Italy, July, 10-12th, 2019
     
Dr. Jeffrey Smith
  • Andrews, C.R., R. Pantin, R. Ranguin, C. Yacou, J.V. Smith (presenter), and S. Gaspard, "Chemical Structure Investigation of Nutmeg (Myristica Fragrans) Shells and its Derived Carbon Sorbents and the Process Conditions for Producing Such Sorbents", The Caribbean Academy of Sciences, Biennial Conference 2018, The UWI, Mona, Jamaica (November 2018)
     
Dr. Lorraine Sobers
  • Sobers, L. 2018. The Carbon Dioxide Enhanced Oil Recovery Road Map (CERM) Project: Maximising value through collaboration among Government Institutions and Government-funded Academic Institutions
  • SPE Annual Technical Conference and Exhibition, Dallas, Texas, September 22-25th, 2018
  • Institutional Visit, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas September 25-28th, 2018
  • Energy Chamber: Energy Efficiency and Renewables Conference, Port of Spain, Trinidad, June 10-11th, 2019

 

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