AZERTAC has published an article by the President of the Azerbaijani Engineering Academy, academician Arif Pashayev, dedicated to the anniversary of the institute
The Azerbaijani Engineering Academy, from the day of its foundation in 2005, has been encouraging scientific and technical progress and development of engineering activity, supporting the professional unification of scientists and engineers, as well as helping in providing analysis and implementing programs, projects and research. Being an independent scientific and technical organization, the Academy has turned into an attractive structure which has united leading engineers and experts of Azerbaijan in a short time.
The key directions of the Academy’s activity are: providing creative opportunities for scientists and engineers of the country; accumulation and effective use of the intellectual potential in the engineering sphere; development and encouragement of conducting the most important and promising research and innovative programs; the creation and implementation of new kinds of equipment, technologies and materials which are economically important and provide acceleration of scientific progress in key spheres of the Azerbaijani economy on the basis of the achievements of fundamental sciences.
At the moment the number of actual members and corresponding members of the Azerbaijani Engineering Academy is 40 people; 23 of them are academicians, 17 are corresponding members. Given the fact that members of the Academy work in various spheres of science and engineering, their research and experimental and constructive works are multifaceted.
The solemn ceremony of founding the Trans-Anatolian Pipeline took place in the Selim Region of the Turkish province of Kars in 2015. TANAP is a project which provides two important conditions: natural gas is transported to new exporters, using a new path; at the same time, it is a good example of diversification of energy sources. The Engineering Academy actively participated in the development and implementation of the megaproject. It will connect the advanced South Caucasus Pipeline which starts in Azerbaijan with several pipelines in the European Union. The project should be implemented in 5 years in several stages. The first stage will be completed in 2018. In 2020 the capacity of the pipeline will reach 16 billion, in 2023 – 23 billion, and in 2026 – 31 billion cubic meters of gas. At the initial stage 10 billion of 16 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas, which are transported through TANAP, will be sold to Europe, and 6 billion cubic meters sold to Turkey. Gas for Europe is planned to be transferred at the Turkish-Bulgarian or Turkish-Greek borders. This is a project of energy security.
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan has actually created an energy corridor. We are satisfied that today the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway is being built along the energy corridor. The Engineering Academy is actively participating in implementation of the project.
The Academy is closely cooperating with structural branches of the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijani Republic (SOCAR), PO AzNeft, in the sphere of innovative technologies and in the market of servicing both for exploration and exploitation and for transportation, recycling and marketing. In recent years the Academy has successfully implemented its scientific developments into production. Air and oil-field compressors which are used at the moment have lost their efficiency due to the long term of their exploitation and they need serviced.
Compressors for oil and gas collection, their components, and the ties which are used in Neft Daslari, are wearing down; as a result, the vibration of the compressors is increasing, the noise level is growing, and this negatively influences the environment, primarily the staff. A complex of measures based on the method of flicker-noise spectroscopy on finding and preventing possible accidents, as well as implementation of new technologies, including services, was developed. We have developed a new construction of the driving part of the oil-field compressor, we also improved serviceability of air compressors which are used in internal oil-field works. We are implementing nanotechnologies to intensify oil production. Due to the active implementation of innovative methods and technologies, economic indices have grown.
To provide normal exploitation of oil and gas mines, scientists and engineers developed equipment for heating and maintaining the temperature of liquids and gases to prevent the appearance of hydrates and paraffin deposits in communications which are used by PO AzNeft on sea platforms. The equipment has a reliable security system which reacts to a stop of the gas supply, to falling and increasing pressure, as well as to short circuits. The construction of heating blocks enables us to produce them in various capacities and sizes.
In the sphere of petrochemical technologies, scientists and engineers of the Academy developed corrosion inhibitors to protect metal in layer waters of oil wells which contain stink damp and carbon dioxide. Natural and synthetic unlimited organic acids were used as sources for petrochemical synthesis for the inhibitors. High-effective and multifunctional corrosion inhibitors were created.
The Engineering Academy relies on human resources in its work. The Technopark-Education Complex is almost constructed. It is initiated by the president of the Academy. The goal of Technopark-Education is the industrial and innovative development of the country’s economy, which is based on knowledge. Its main resource is talented and well-trained people. The personnel potential is provided on the basis of the National Academy of Aviation, as well as other leading universities of Azerbaijan. Members of the Academy carry out work on management of education quality in Azerbaijani universities and training of high-professional specialists, including engineers. Problems of a shift to the new economy, regions as leading technological parks of innovative development, and the role and participation of universities in settling the task are being considered as a special mission.
As you know, the state program on the creation and development of the space industry is being carried out in Azerbaijan. A telecommunications satellite was launched into orbit on February 8th 2013. This satellite currently broadcasts around 154 TV channels and over 30 radio stations. The launch of the next low-orbit telecommunication satellite is scheduled for 2016. The Engineering Academy is actively involved in this program and leads the Space Council. Our work will be focused on the achievements of Azerkosmos in the fast reception of satellite data, solving management tasks and natural resource exploitation, during the photogrammetric and GIS projects, the development of thematic geoportals and geographic information systems, development of innovative technologies for implementation on the basis of the customer's algorithms and processing techniques for aerospace information, as well as consulting and training. The parameters of oil spills in the waters of the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea have been identified, based on the high-resolution space radar RADARSAT-2 to estimate the parameters of oil pollution. An analysis of the dynamics and the objects of oil pollution in the area of Oil Rocks was held and a map of their distribution was created with the help of radar images developed by the RADARSAT-2 satellite and the use of the geo-information approach. The map of the distribution of oil and petroleum products spills is a complete information product, which allows you to quickly measure the parameters and characteristics of the detected oil slicks, to analyze the distribution of oil in different parts of the surveyed area, to identify the link between pollution and its marine sources.
Members of our Academy have developed and implemented technology for creating high-performance LED phosphors for street lighting, residential areas, industrial sites, bus stations and other uses. As a result of the work, the prepared technical product has been applied to the lighting of the main train station and the adjacent territory, which allows for significant energy savings.
The Ministry of Transport of the country has ordered to design and produce the device, which automatically declares public transport stations, using a satellite navigation system. The device determines the coordinates of public transport every second using GPS – when the coordinates of the station matches the coordinates of public transport, the device automatically declares the name of the station.
According to the agreement, the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources has developed and established a meteorological station for automatic measuring of the six meteorological parameters (wind speed, wind direction, air pressure, rainfall, temperature, air humidity) and wireless transfer of them via the GSM channel. All these developments were patented.
In the field of the introduction of industrial innovations, pilot engineering structures were implemented in the regions to provide citizens with drinking water. This project is one of the most important projects for implementation of our country's industrial innovative technologies in rural areas. In the future, this project will be implemented on a large scale – it will consist of about 600 buildings.
The Academy, together with AZAL, is actively working on the problem of decreasing safety during flights, associated with the risk of the spread of infectious diseases during air travel. The Academy is currently conducting a special scientific and technical policy with the purpose of a comprehensive study and use of ozone in aircraft, according to a special program designed and provided by ICAO and the World Health Organization.
The programs of the development of drought-tolerant crops, erosion control and water management on the plains, in the arid foothill areas and on the sloping lands of Azerbaijan must be specifically outlined in the agricultural sector with the purpose of ensuring the food security of the country in the agricultural development. The specialists of our academy introduced ozone disinfection systems for grain storage and seedbed preparation. As a result, the environmental conditions for the preservation of crops as a food and genetic fund have been provided. The effectiveness of ozone disinfection of the seeds was evaluated by comparison with chemical disinfectants. The seed treatment showed that the seeds treated with oxygen mixed with ozone were quite productive. In this regard, Azerbaijan together with the Russian Federation is preparing an interstate program for the development of agriculture.
The Azerbaijani Engineering Academy jointly with of the International Engineering Academy is conducting active work in the sphere of international cooperation on the tripartite contract with engineering academies of Slovenia and Kazakhstan. Our academy is tirelessly striving to establish contacts and fruitful cooperation with many national and international academies and engineering communities. The organization of an annual scientific forum by the International Engineering Academy in foreign countries, where very important decisions aimed at increasing the prestige of engineering specialties are taken together with foreign colleagues, has become a tradition.
We continue to closely cooperate with the engineering academies of many countries, especially with the International Engineering Academy, and the engineering academies of Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Slovenia. After joining the Federation of Engineering Institutions of Islamic Countries, we are deepening the cooperation between the Azerbaijani Engineering Academy and the FEIIC and between its members. The work on securing the legal status of the Azerbaijani-Slovenian European Engineering Center with the headquarters in Ljubljana is being carried out.
Our international scientific and technical journal 'Bulletin of the Azerbaijan Academy of Engineering' has been actively involved in the scientific life of Azerbaijan and foreign countries for six years already. The national scientific community attaches great importance to the problems which bother scientists from around the world. Topical and usable news are the living source of their serious research.
'The Bulletin' publishes summaries of articles in English separately in electronic format, using the latest world standards, distributing materials with the help of one of the commercial databases, as well as carrying out indexing and citation using the foreign analytical database SCOPUS. The magazine is published in three languages – Azerbaijani, English and Russian – with a circulation of 1400 copies.
Throughout the year the members of our academy participated in many congresses, international and regional scientific forums, symposia and conferences, they have organized and carried out dozens of international and regional conferences.
Competitions for the election of members and corresponding members of the academy have been repeatedly held since the creation of the academy.
The members of the Academy were awarded the highest state orders, Istiglal and Shohrat, and public orders and medals. 16 members of the Academy and foreign scientists who have distinguished themselves in their work were awarded the newly established gold medal 'Engineering Valor'. The Academy became the laureate of the 2nd Republican contest in the field of innovation.
4 people from Azerbaijan have been elected members of the Russian Academy of Engineering and 2 people became members of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences. Two people were awarded the P. L. Kapitsa Gold Medal.
The 'Engineer of the Year' contest with categories, diplomas and medals is held annually, as well as a competition for the best invention in conjunction with AzPATENT.
The Academy successfully develops and deepens relations with the International Academy of Engineering and the Federation of Engineering Institutions of Islamic Countries.
There is an information and telecommunications conference room with 3G technology of European standard in the Academy. A Mechanical Testing Laboratory was created to conduct tests on meso and micro levels.
The Academy's website has been updated. The attributes of the Academy – the flag, emblem, logo and lapel pin – were designed and manufactured, and the 'Guide to the Academy' was published.
Now, when international cooperation between different countries is developing, we can hope that the boundaries of the relations between our academy and other academies will be expanded, and the results of this integration will become available to the world engineering community.
