Congratulations to Chemical Engineering Researchers who have been awarded over $900,000 in new Research Funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Discovery Grant (DG) and Research Tools and Instruments (RTI) Programs.
Ehssan Koupaie (PI) and Mariya Marinova from the Royal Military College of Canada have received $150,000 from NSERC Research Tools and Instruments grant program to purchase a bench-scale hydrothermal system for organic waste and biomass valorization. The acquisition of this equipment will allow for the Koupaie and Marinova research groups to conduct several research projects toward their visionary goal of making organic waste valorization more appealing for large-scale industrial applications. It is anticipated that more than 20 HQP will be trained through this program over the next five years, providing HQP with the knowledge and experience related to green chemical engineering, circular economy, and sustainability, which will enable them to have rewarding careers in government sector, private industry, and academia.
New Assistant Professor, Rachel Baker received her first NSERC Discovery of $145,000 and $12,500 as a Discovery Launch Supplement for her research program on the study of paired electrochemical reactions of renewable building blocks, with the goal of improving process sustainability in the chemical industry. She will investigate the conversion of oxygen-rich building blocks found in biomass into value-added chemicals such as fuels and pharmaceutical intermediates. This project also aims to develop methods for building up the carbon skeleton electrochemically, using major greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, as a starting material in the production of food additives and polymer precursors. An iterative design approach will be used, that ties together mechanistic understanding with guided reaction optimization and reactor design. Ultimately, the carbon-negative and carbon-neutral methods developed through this research will shift focus away from oil and gas towards greener alternatives, while maintaining production of valuable chemical goods.
Lindsay Fitzpatrick has received $195,000 for her NSERC Discovery on Human Biomaterial Host Response Models: From Protein Adsorption to Fibrosis. Her research program will create physiologically relevant 2D and 3D multicellular human foreign body reaction (FBR) models that can be adapted for wide use throughout the biomaterials field, and used to advance our understanding of how sex and age impact molecular mechanisms that influence human host responses. This research will lay the foundation for her long-term goal of developing human biomaterial testing platforms that using patient-specific cells for personalized biomaterial selection and design, advance our understanding of critical factors that influence the human FBR, and improve the performance and safety of the implanted biomedical devices for everyone.
Aris Docoslis has received $195,000 for his NSERC Discovery on microscale electric fields as performance enhancing tools for biosensors. His research program aims to develop a new generation of diagnostic assays for the early detection of viruses and proteins (e.g., cancer biomarkers) by utilizing microscale electric field effects for achieving high detection sensitivity, efficiency, and multiplexing. This will be accomplished through the investigation, design and implementation of novel electric field-based strategies for achieving accelerated sampling, concentration amplification, and sensitive detection of biological agents. His group will design and evaluate novel electric field-based micron scale processes that accomplish the aforementioned goals through the propulsion, focusing, differential sorting, selective accumulation, etc. of molecules or viruses to be detected. Subsequent integration of these electric field assisted manipulation techniques into a complete portable sensing device will be sought. Surface-based biosensors present a solution for time-efficient and cost-effective discovery of diseases, potentially leading to lower health care costs, faster diagnosis and in some cases even prevention of fatalities.
To learn more about these awards, please see the news release from NSERC: Government of Canada invests in discovery and applied research to keep the country at the forefront of scientific advancements