The Arab Science and Technology Foundation (ASTF) launched the Iraq research and development initiative on April 2008 to encourage the technological research and development in Iraq (these was in the second round for the initiative), as the first initiative stress on presenting the economical projects.
ASTF’s Baghdad office manageed the IRDI with cooperation with Sandia National Laboratories, and Civil Research and Development Foundation (CRDF).
Iraq Research and development initiative’s goals:
IRDI aims to call the Iraqi scientists and engineers –who resident in Iraq- to submit their projects that assist in reconstructing their country and to develop the science and technology fields in Iraq.
Iraq Research and Development Initiative (IRDI-1)
The first session for IRDI was held in Iraq at June 2006, and a lot of economical projects were discussed in this session. About 90 projects and researches were Submitted in IRDI's first round; A 672.700 Us Dollar was the fund reward for the winner projects.
The most important projects that were discussed in IRDI-1:
- The algae usage in contaminated water with heavy metals treatment.
- Bricks’ new design to increase insulation and reduce weight.
- The protection ways for Shirqat’s salt lakes.
- Bacteria’s usage for treatment of contaminated water with oil and gas.
- Invent a new way to manage solid waste materials in Mosul.
- Ways to protect the reinforcing steel corrosion in concrete.
- Evaluate the health impact due to uranium contamination exposure in Ishtar village.
- Designing and building a pilot factory for activated carbon’s production from raw materials in Iraq.
- Cancer treatment using viruses.
- Evaluate the health risks that associated with Radon exposure in Iraq western region.
- Drinking water’s Purification from the salmonella bacteria and pathogens.
- The healthy standards provision for the safe ground water to drink.
- Management of irrigated agriculture and other projects.
Iraq Research and Development Initiative (IRDI-2)
About 125 projects were submitted in IRDI-2 that held at April 2008.
During IRDI-2, The Civil Research and Development Foundation (CRDF) funded about 10 winner projects with 274.443 US Dollar, The projects funded by CRDF were:
- Microbial and chemical quality development for the drinking water that packaged in bottles.
- Genetic diversity’s Assessment and conservation of animal resources in the Iraqi Buffalo through using recovery techniques.
- Climate change Assessment in the Middle East and its biological effects.
- Reinforced concrete’s evaluation and protection from corrosion in Iraq.
- Wastewater treatment from the chemical industry.
- The medical applied to the gases intensification.
- Skin diseases treatment.
Also Sandia National Laboratories fund the following projects with 289,050 US Dollar:
- The preparation of resistant sawdust to fire and water.
- Bioremediation of oil, oily sludge and Bio remediated products to produce fertilizers in agriculture.
- Design and construction pilot factory to bleach the earth using the Iraqi mud the produce from the raw materials.
- Assemble and study the properties of anti-bacteria and anti-coagulation of some derivatives of polyvinyl alcohol.
- Plastics and polystyrene sulfonated oil recycle waste.
- Alpolemari cooling’s effect to resist aluminum melting and silicon alloy.
- The vital description of magnetic polymer for medical applications.
- The environmental impact assessment of radioactive contamination in the region.
It worth to mention that, about 6 winners projects on the IRDI-2 were published in the international scientific journals.
Iraq Research and Development Initiative (IRDI-3)
The third session from the Iraq search and development initiative launched at October 2009 and about 107 applicants participated in it. The civil Research and Development Foundation presented 600,000 US Dollar to fund the winners’ projects in this session.
Also Sandia National Laboratories allocated 430,000 US Dollar to fund the wining projects, as every project financed by 15,000-50,000 US Dollar.