The Collaborative Masters Program in Applied Sustainability (CMAS) is an innovative program. Building on the applied sustainability strategic theme of Smith Engineering at Queen's, the objective of the CMAS program is to expose students to the implementation of sustainable engineering solutions within the context of broader sustainability theory. To do this properly, engineering students must not only advance their technical education, but must gain insights into how public policy impacts on the success of engineering solutions to multidisciplinary sustainability problems.

The program is a collaborative effort with faculty members from six programs within the Faculty: Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Geological Sciences and Geological Engineering, Mechanical and Materials Engineering and Mining Engineering. A unique aspect of the CMAS program is that it includes a component on the importance of Government Policy in the successful implementation of sustainable technology solutions. The School of Policy studies provides a module in the core course (CMAS 801) that discusses various policy strategies that drive the reduction in carbon emissions and the preservation of the environment. CMAS students also are required to take one course related to how policy encourages sustainable practices, for example Environmental Planning in municipal governance. Other key features of the program are:

 

Graduate Student Support

Full-time students are encouraged to seek external financial support and are encouraged to apply for NSERC and OGS graduate scholarships. Fellowships and teaching assistantships are available through the University and are automatically considered upon admission.

Application Procedure

The program is offered only at the Masters level. Applications must be submitted directly to the Queen's School of Graduate Studies, which can be done online.

In that application, students must identify which of the participating departments they wish to identify as their home department. Usually, this is the department aligned with the applicant's undergraduate engineering degree.

The on-line SGS Application Form asks "Describe (in a sentence or two) your Research Interest(s)". This is where students should enter "Collaborative Masters in Applied Sustainability" to indicate their interest in the CMAS program. Later in the form, students are asked to provide a "Statement of Interest". Students can use this section to expand on the nature of their interest in CMAS.

If applicants are unsure as to which department they wish to identify as "home", they are encouraged to contact the Department Representative that is best aligned with their research interests to answer this and any other questions that they may have about the nature of the MAS program:

See Grad Map

Curriculum

The following tables summarize the curriculum for the Collaborative Masters in Applied Sustainability. MASc students take four courses (CMAS 801 plus three electives) plus the seminar series (CMAS 897) plus a thesis (CMAS 899), nominally two years to complete. MEng students take eight courses (CMAS 801 plus seven electives), one of which may be a project (CMAS 898), plus the seminar series (CMAS 897) , nominally one year to complete.

Number Title
Topics in Applied Sustainability
1 elective from List A (excluding CMAS 898)
1 elective from list B
1 elective from list A (excluding CMAS 898), list B, list C or any eligible course in the Queen's Graduate Calendar, or relevant course offered at RMC, with appropriate permissions
CMAS 897 Applied Sustainability Seminar (pass/fail)
CMAS 899 Thesis

CMAS MASc Program Sheet (To use fillable PDF, save file to your computer and open directly)
Number Title
CMAS 801 Topics in Applied Sustainability
2 electives from List A (excluding CMAS 898)
1 elective from List B
4 electives From list A, list B, list C (no more than 2 from C), or any eligible course in the Graduate Calendar, or relevant course offered at RMC, with appropriate permissions (can include CMAS 898)
CMAS 897 Applied Sustainability Seminar (pass/fail)

PLEASE NOTE: at least two electives must be taken from the home department.

CMAS MEng Program Sheet (To use fillable PDF, save file to your computer and open directly).
Number Title Term Instructor
CHEE 801 Strategies for Process Investigations Fall McLellan
CHEE 905 Advanced Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics and Applications (0.5 course module) Fall Hudon
CHEE 909 Colloid and Surface Science (I) (0.5 course module) Fall Docoslis
CHEE 990 Structure-Property Relationships of Polymeric Materials (0.5 course module) Fall Kontopoulou
CHEE 803 Transport Phenomena Winter Giacomin
CHEE 827 System Optimization Winter Li, Xiang
CHEE 884/CIVL 889 Bioremediation Winter Meunier
CIVL 835 Advance Infrastructure Materials Fall Hoult
CIVL 839 Approximate Structural Analysis Fall MacDougall
CIVL 857 River Engineering Fall da Silva, Ana
CIVL 892 Structural Dynamics Fall Woods
CIVL 837 Prestressed Concrete Winter Fam
CIVL 848 Landfill Design Winter Rowe
CIVL 852 Environmental Fluid Dynamics Winter Boegman
CIVL 883 Gases in Groundwater Winter Mumford
ELEC 832 Modelling and High Control of Power Converters Fall Liu
ELEC 831 Power Electronics Fall Jain, Praveen
ELEC 834 Micro-Grid Technology Winter Eren
ELEC 837 High Power Electronics Winter Bakhshai, Alireza
ELEC 845 Autonomous Vehicles Winter Marshall
GEOL 809 Mine Waste Geochemistry Winter Jamieson, Heather
GEOL 822 Metallogeny in Mineral Exploration Winter Olivo
GEOL 835 Environmental Impact of Mining Winter Jamieson, Heather
MECH 830 Experimental Fluid Dynamics Fall Rival
MECH 831 Convective Heat Transfer Fall Oosthuizen, Patrick
MECH 835 Computational Fluid Dynamics Fall Piomelli
MECH 836 Radiative Heat Transfer Fall Birk
MECH 817 Systematic Review Methodology for Product Evaluation Winter Davies
MECH 847 Energy & Society Winter Pharoah, Jon
MECH 883 Nuclear Materials Winter Various
MINE 801 Community Aspects of Mineral Resource Development Fall Johnson
MINE 832 Flotation Technology and Science Fall Kelebek, Sadan
MINE 881 Mining Systems Fall Hope
MINE 882 Mineral Economics Fall Macaulay
MINE 803 Community Engagement Winter Johnson
MINE 804 Mining Projects and Indigenous People Winter Johnson
MINE 832 Flotation Technology and Science Winter Kelebek, Sadan
MINE 836 Mineral Processing and the Environment Winter Kelebek, Sadan

Note: Courses not listed can be taken with permission of CMAS Co-ordinator Dr. Peppley (peppley@queensu.ca)
Number Title Term Instructor
MPA 847 Environmental Policy Winter Merchant, Jamshed
GPHY 880 The Geography of Energy Winter Mabee, Warren
SURP 853 Environmental Services Winter DeLoyde, Carolyn
SURP 855 Environmental Planning and Management Winter Whitelaw, Graham
COMM 408 Sustainability Strategies & Practices Fall Moore, Steven

Note: Courses not listed can be taken with permission of CMAS Co-ordinator Dr. Peppley (peppley@queensu.ca)
Number Title Term Instructor
CHEE 463 Electrochemical Energy Systems Winter Peppley, Brant
CIVL 443 Geoenvironmental Design Winter TBD
CIVL 473 Water Resources Winter TBD
ELEC 433 Energy and Power Systems Winter Bakhshai, Alireza
ENCH 415 Electrochemistry and Electrocatalysis Winter TBD
GEOE 475 Exploration and Envirogeochemistry Fall TBD
MECH 437 Fuel Cell Technology Fall Pharoah, Jon
MINE 422 Mining and Sustainability Fall TBD
MINE 431 Lifecycle Analysis for Green Technology Fall TBD
MNTC 418 Sustainability and the Environment Online TBD

Note: Courses not listed can be taken with permission of CMAS Co-ordinator Dr. Peppley (peppley@queensu.ca)

Research Areas

Faculty members participating in the Masters in Applied Sustainability are organized into five groups:

Applied Sustainability and Energy Technology

The focus of this group is on the application of science and engineering innovation to move from a nuclear and fossil fuel based energy system to one that is based on sustainable energy technologies.

Applied Sustainability and Fresh Water Systems

The focus of this group is on the application of science and engineering innovation to move from unsustainable water use to long-term strategic fresh water systems throughout the world. The researchers identified below all participate in a new Queen's research group initiative in the area of Water, Environment and Health that involves almost 40 faculty members from across the campus and other local universities and institutions.

Applied Sustainability and Resource Management

The focus of this group is on the application of science and engineering innovation to move to environmentally benign research extraction and the preservation of existing resources through life cycle analysis of manufacturing processes.

Applied Sustainability and Policy Studies

The focus of this group is on the application of social science and innovation.

Applied Sustainability and Innovative Materials

The focus of this group is on the application of science and engineering innovation to move to environmentally friendly materials for the built environment, clean energy technologies and recyclable consumer products.

Coordinators

Although there are over twenty faculty members from six Departments and two Faculties participating in the Masters in Applied Sustainability program, the following faculty members have responsibility for coordination of the program and delivery of the two core courses: 1) Topics in Applied Sustainability and 2) Applied Sustainability Seminar Series.

Kent Novakowski

Dr. Novakowski and his graduate students conduct research in the areas of fluid flow and contaminant migration in fractured rock. Recent work has focused on the field measurement and numerical simulation of aqueous phase contaminant transport in large discrete fractures which pervade the dolostones and limestones common to the sedimentary basins of North America. Dr. Novakowski also develops semi-analytical and analytical-element models for the simulation of solute transport, the interpretation of hydraulic tests, and the design of capture zones in sparsely-fractured bedrock. Recently, Dr. Novakowski has become involved in collaborative research projects that are focused on understanding sustainable water supply and regional groundwater flow in complex fractured rock environments.

Alireza Bakhshai

Dr. Alireza Bakhshai is an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and is a member of the Interim Advisory Board for the Queen's Centre for Energy and Power Electronics Research (ePOWER). His areas of research interest include high power electronics and applications, renewable energy conversion, and control systems. In addition, he has demonstrated his ability to apply his knowledge in an industrial context, contributing to the application of FACTS Controllers and of New Motor Drive Technologies for a Cold Rolling Mill at the Mobarakeh Steel Company in Iran.

Sadan Kelebek

Dr. Sadan Kelebek is an Associate Professor in the Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining. He teaches courses related to methods of mineral separation, process plant design, flotation science and technology as well as mineral processing and the environment. His research focus in on the improved understanding and development of separation methods for minerals and metals in relation to recovery of value added products as well as minimization or elimination of environmental pollution.

Warren Mabee

Dr. Warren Mabee is an Assistant Professor in the School of Policy Studies and holds a joint appointment with the Department of Geography. He is the Director of the Queen's Institute for Energy and Environmental Policy (QIEEP) and is the Associate Director of the Sustainable Bioeconomy Centre (SBC). His research focuses on the interface between renewable energy policy and technologies, with particular emphasis on wood energy and biofuels. His interests also include environmental policy, international approaches to renewable energy development, and commercialization of new products and processes. In particular, he is interested in improving the uptake of new energy technologies, examining policy to support for renewable energy options, and the development of strategies to reduce our reliance upon fossil energy sources.

Gema Olivo

Dr. Gema Olivo is a Professor in the Department of Geological Science and Geological Engineering. As a mineral deposit geologist, her main research interest is to understand processes involved in the genesis of hydrothermal ore deposits, particularly precious metal deposits using a multidisciplinary approach. This involves integrating detailed mapping, petrographic, mineral chemistry, isotopic and fluid inclusion studies, whole-rock geochemistry, and ore and alteration mineral stability investigations. Understanding of these processes will allow for developing more refined genetic models, which will lead to better exploration strategies, improving the odds of success for global mineral exploration.

Cao Thang Dinh,Director

Dr. Cao Thang Dinh is an assistant professor of Chemical Engineering at Queen’s University. His research focuses on developing electrochemical processes for renewable fuel and chemical production from carbon dioxide, water and renewable electricity. Dr. Dinh’s research supports several of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, including Affordable and Clean Energy and Climate Action.

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