In the 1970s, Hourani pioneered the use of prestressed concrete for the enforcement of slabs on grade and retaining walls. In 2002 Hourani patented window braces designed to resist Category 4 and 5 hurricanes; he also conceived proprietary technology for an oil skimmer inspired by the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill disaster in Alaska, and the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.