Dr Saud Abdul Aziz Abdul Ghani, Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Qatar University (QU)
Doha: Thousands of football fans from all over the world are witnessing the month-long FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 which will run until December 18, the day of the final World Cup match. As the first Arab country to host the World Cup, innovation and sustainability is at the heart of the tournament.
Qatar Research Development and Innovation Council (QRDI) organised a webinar entitled ‘Innovation in Action: What technological innovations can fans expect at the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022?’.
The event focused on the use of innovative technologies in improving the football experience for fans and players, and cooling Qatar’s World Cup stadiums and explored how research supported by Qatar National Research Fund (QNRF) led to the design, testing and development of cooling technology in FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 stadiums, which are the perfect example of striking architecture and Qatar’s commitment to sustainable development.
Dr Saud Abdul Aziz Abdul Ghani (pictured), Professor of Mechanical Engineering at Qatar University (QU) discussed the QNRF funded research which led to the designing and testing of cooling technologies in FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 stadiums that are hosting the tournament which was done based on ensuring a positive relationship between venue design and the climate.
The revolutionary system was first showcased during the inauguration of Khalifa International Stadium in 2017 and since then has been adapted to benefit six more tournament venues, as well as other facilities across the country. Energy-efficient cooling systems were developed following Qatar’s successful bid for the World Cup, with the technology delivered by the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy in collaboration with QU.
Speaking about principles of stadium cooling, Dr Saud said, “The design strategy for assuring that the targets could be achieved and maintained for the duration of event relied on providing shade to avoid direct sun exposure on the field of play during match times and prominent cover to maximise shading to spectator seating areas so that for match times all spectators would be in the shade.”
"Also providing cool air to the pitch area, the spectators seating bowl and terraces. A microclimate bubble is created above the Field of Play (FoP) and spectators’ tiers by supplying cool air across the pitch (suing swivel plastic jet nozzles and plastic under seat diffusers). For energy efficiency and to reduce the stadium tool cooling load of a 100 percent fresh air utilisation, recirculation of the bowl and tiers cool air is recommended from the service tunnels boundaries, above the spectator’s tiers, above sky boxes and from the FoP moat boundaries,” he added.
Dr. Saud further explained that the design tools used were computational fluid dynamics, wind tunnel model testing and 3D thermal printing, and benchmarking. Since it was announced that Qatar will host the 2022 FIFA World Cup on December 2, 2010, Qatar has started to build the first air cooled stadiums in the world.
Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium at Al Sadd Club, with a capacity of 13,000 spectators, was introduced as the first air-conditioned stadium in Qatar bid in September 2010.
Speaking about challenges before the design he noted that the available thermal comfort models were made to evaluate thermal comfort of indoor spaces. It was requested to reassess the thermal comfort of people in outdoor air-conditioned areas. In order to achieve this, fanzone were built in Aspire to host fans who will watch FIFA World Cup, Brazil 2014 matches.
Every stadiums cooling technology is different as they all feature unique design. For seven stadiums we built from scratch, cooling was integrated at the design phase which made it much easier to implement. Our technology uses a combination of insulation and spot cooling and this means we only cool the areas where people need it. This helps to make our systems more environmentally friendly. The form of each stadium acts as a barrier which contains a cold bubble inside and our air circulation technique cools the air, filters it and pushes it out towards the players and fans.
With Qatar’s World Cup taking place in November and December, the pressure on cooling systems will be limited, with outside temperatures estimated to be 18-24°C. The technology allows sporting events to be held all-year-round, in addition to other activities, like shopping and farming.
It is expected that more people will come with the kick-off of the World Cup. Fans can watch the matches live on mega screens. Within the zone, fans can enjoy so much more: match screenings and endless entertainment, food offers with unique global culinary experiences, and fun football activities in a family-friendly environment.
