Dr Sharif Zein

Dr Sharif Zein

Senior Fellow HEA| Reader in Biorefinery Processes and Reaction Engineering| PI of Bioref Group

Faculty and Department

  • Faculty of Science and Engineering
  • School of Engineering

Qualifications

  • MEng
  • PhD / DPhil

Summary

Dr Sharif Zein is Reader in Chemical Engineering and MSc Coordinator. He has about two decades of experience and research expertise in the valorisation of the biomass and waste plastics which is the foremost global challenge towards the production of biofuel and biomaterials in deriving value from the waste. Sharif also scales up the basic lab works to processes and bio-based products used in the industry. He adapts techniques for use in a different purpose to produce several different types of materials and chemicals that could have applications as fuels or industrial chemicals. Hence, his research could hasten public awareness and improve market uptake of the above bio-based products. He has managed to get with his co-researchers about 40 grants and publish over 140 scientific articles, book chapters, and patents. Some of Dr Sharif’s papers are listed as one of the top 25 hottest articles. For many years, Dr Sharif has received over 50 awards, including special awards and Gold medals for his studies, research, excellence in teaching in and reaction engineering, reactor design, Petrochemicals, Oil and Gas and Bioenergy.

In terms of teaching, Dr Zein has taught several modules of the Chemical Engineering Curriculum such as Chemical Reaction Engineering, Reactor Design and Analysis, Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics, Organic Chemical Processes, Chemical Engineering Lab I, Chemical Engineering Lab II, Chemical Engineering Lab III, and Petroleum and Petrochemical Engineering. . For his teaching, he has received seven (7) Excellent Teaching Awards in the past.

Currently, Dr Zein contributes:

Petroleum and Petrochemical Engineering - Level 7 (Module Leader)

Undergraduate MEng final year individual projects - Level 7

MSc individual projects - Level 7

Chemical Reaction Engineering - Level 6 (Module Leader)

Chemical Engineering Design Project - Level 6 – (13 Students)

Undergraduate teaching Labs - Level 4 and 5

Recent outputs

View more outputs

Journal Article

Comparison of activated carbon and low-cost adsorbents for removal of 2,4-dichlorophenol from wastewater using Aspen Adsorption and response surface methodology

Yasir, H. A., Zein, S. H., Holliday, M. C., Jabbar, K. J., Ahmed, U., & Jalil, A. A. (2023). Comparison of activated carbon and low-cost adsorbents for removal of 2,4-dichlorophenol from wastewater using Aspen Adsorption and response surface methodology. Environmental Technology, https://doi.org/10.1080/09593330.2023.2202829

A short review on informetric analysis and recent progress on contribution of ceria in Ni-based catalysts for enhanced catalytic CO methanation

Hatta, A., Jalil, A., Hassan, N., Hamid, M., Nabgan, W., Alhassan, M., …Firmansyah, M. (2023). A short review on informetric analysis and recent progress on contribution of ceria in Ni-based catalysts for enhanced catalytic CO methanation. Powder Technology, 417, Article 118246. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.powtec.2023.118246

Process design, simulation, and techno-economic analysis of integrated production of furfural and glucose derived from palm oil empty fruit bunches

Mohammed, M. Z. R., Ng, Z. W., Putranto, A., Kong, Z. Y., Sunarso, J., Aziz, M., …Butar, I. (2023). Process design, simulation, and techno-economic analysis of integrated production of furfural and glucose derived from palm oil empty fruit bunches. Clean Technologies and Environmental Policy, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10098-022-02454-3

Process design Optimisation, heat integration, and techno-economic analysis of oil refinery: A case study

Jabbar, K. J., Zein, S. H., Hasan, A. H., Ahmed, U., & Jalil, A. A. (2023). Process design Optimisation, heat integration, and techno-economic analysis of oil refinery: A case study. Energy Sources, Part A, 45(2), 4931-4947. https://doi.org/10.1080/15567036.2023.2205365

Process design and techno-economic analysis of dual hydrogen and methanol production from plastics using energy integrated system

Al-Qadri, A. A., Ahmed, U., Jameel, A. G. A., Ahmad, N., Zahid, U., Zein, S. H., & Naqvi, S. R. (in press). Process design and techno-economic analysis of dual hydrogen and methanol production from plastics using energy integrated system. International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2022.11.266

Research interests

Biomass and Waste Plastics

Lead investigator

Project

Funder

Grant

Started

Status

Project

Advanced Microwave Pyrolysis Technique to Produce New Materials for CO2 Adsorption

Funder

Royal Society

Grant

£6,000.00

Started

1 February 2017

Status

Complete

Project

ECPE PPF: Plastics2Energy

Funder

EPSRC Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council

Grant

£30,000.00

Started

1 October 2019

Status

Complete

Project

Evaluation of the thermo-mechanical pulping of biomass to facilitate release of fermentable sugars for advanced biofuel production

Funder

BBSRC Biotechnology & Biological Sciences Research Council

Grant

£22,993.00

Started

1 August 2016

Status

Complete

Project

THYME: Production of Nano-celluloses and Nano-carbons of Spent Pea Biomass for Waste Water Treatment

Funder

University of York

Grant

£27,381.00

Started

1 June 2020

Status

Complete

Co-investigator

Project

Funder

Grant

Started

Status

Project

THYME: CCF BIO ECONOMY

Funder

HEFCE Higher Education Funding Council for England

Grant

£1,021,924.00

Started

1 April 2018

Status

Complete

Project

Evolving a Circular Plastics Economy

Funder

EPSRC Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council

Grant

£938,304.00

Started

1 January 2019

Status

Complete

Postgraduate supervision

Supervision

Dr Zein supervises PDRA, PhD and MSc by Research projects in areas related to biomass, plastic waste, petroleum refineries, reactor design and intensification processes

Current Postgraduate Supervision

• 3 PhD (First Supervisor)

• 1 PhD (Second Supervisor)

• 1 PhD (Second Supervisor - Malaysia)

Completed Supervision

• 2 PDRA

• 8 PhD

• 14 MSc by Research

Dr Zein welcomes PhD and Masters of Research applications and feel free to contact him directly to discuss options, topics and funding availability.

Awards and prizes

Gold Medal and The World Invention Award

2009

Development of New Synthetic Composite for Injectable Bone Replacement Material” at the British Inventors Society/ The 9th British Invention Show/ 13-16th October 2009 in Alexandra Palace, London.

Gold Medal

2005

Production of Carbon Nanotubes and Hydrogen” at the 33rd International Exhibition of Inventions, New Techniques and Products held in Geneva, Switzerland.

Special Prize

2005

In the field of carbon nanotubes from The Technical Culture-Croatia

Excellent Scientist

2005

Ministry of Higher Education, Malaysia

Gold Medal

2004

The Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation in Malaysia for the project entitled “Single Step Production of Carbon Nanotubes and Hydrogen from Natural Gas”.

Gold Medal

1999

The Industrial Art & Technology Exhibition (INATEX’99) for the project entitled “Modified HZSM-5 Zeolites Catalysts for The Single Step Conversion of Methane to Gasoline”.

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