As a graduate in Chemistry from the University of Balamand (2006), Dr. Marianne Saba continued her postgraduate studies and obtained an MSc in Chemistry and a minor in Environmental Engineering (2008). She obtained her PhD in Civil Engineering (2014), in the field of hydrochemistry, hydrology, hydrogeology and hydraulics between the University of Balamand and Polytech Lille, France.

Dr. Saba began her career in the academic field by teaching between several universities up till joining the University of Balamand (UOB) in the fall 2016. As a researcher in the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department, she has been focusing her research development activities in the materials and environmental engineering fields.

Through her research work in the water sector, she has been focusing her interest in groundwater modelling with a concentration in hydraulics, hydrochemistry, and hydrophysics behavior of water, and more specifically groundwater hydrology. Dr Saba has been working in the water resources area following two main tracks: one with an international partenariat in which an elaborated real reed bed prototype near the wastewater treatment plant of the University of Balamand is done. The second major research interest focuses on the hydraulic basin of the Nahr el Kalb River; the work obtained the ALMA MAALOUF award in summer 2019.

Despite the enormous amount of work in the water track, Dr. Saba has been working on a new and challenging research field for the past three years where she has managed to obtain a two year CNRS grant (2018-2020). With the chemistry background, Dr. Saba has managed to elaborate a new material: “Geopolymer” (GP) from Lebanese raw materials. This environmental friendly material has started to grasp the attention of researchers, academics, and industrials all over the world. The research has aimed to characterize and work on Geopolymer (GP) made out of Lebanese raw materials. This was quite a challenging switch in her professional career since she had a necessity to develop some expertise in a diverse field (material and civil engineering). The work in this research field is being developed and has been expanding, as international relations with highly ranked laboratories related to ceramic materials are elaborated to characterize the material (chemically, microstructural and thermally).

Furthermore, Dr. Saba has been representing the University of Balamand as an active member in the scientific committee of the “Ibrahim Abdel Aal Foundation” (IAAL) for sustainable development and was recently nominated as the vice-president of the youth committee. The task involves the preparation of seminars and conferences that highlight the major problems related to the water sector in Lebanon and the Middle East.

ALMA MAALOUF award: Hydraulic basin of the Nahr el Kalb River