Tahir M., Alkaabi A., Ketbi M. al, 2024, Empowering Women in Engineering Education Through Undergraduate Research Projects, Chemical Engineering Transactions, 113, 577-582.
Engineering students are frequently in the front of technological advancement and they can create innovative technology and approaches to tackle several challenges. Introducing undergraduate research projects (URP) in engineering programs can benefit students by empowering their knowledge and skills. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations (UN) can be implemented successfully through the involvement of undergraduate research projects. The engagement of female students in undergraduate research projects can strengthen their knowledge and skills to excel in the industry and society. This project is associated with the UAEU-African Women Empowering Program related to sustainability and climate action. In this work, two undergraduate engineering women students were engaged to work on a URP on the topic of climate action to implement SDG 13. The students work on photocatalytic CO2 conversion into useful products with the use of solid-waste-derived composite materials. The students were trained to learn basic understanding related to the project and the use of various equipment. The photocatalysts were derived from carbon fibre-reinforced polymers (CFRPs) to produce carbon fibers (CFs)/TiO2 composites. Photocatalytic CO2 reduction with H2O over CFs/TiO2 experiments were conducted to get knowledge and skills about the topic related to solid waste management and climate action. The CFs loaded TiO2 was promising due to efficient charge carrier separation and higher visible light absorbance. The students were able to get a real knowledge of reaction engineering, photocatalysis and materials synthesis and their applications for CO2 conversion to mitigate global warming. Thus, undergraduate engineering research projects can help students improve their problem-solving skills and active learning. Due to the involvement of multidisciplinary students, their skills were further enhanced and students were able to improve their problem-solving and communication skills.
