Sourojeet Chakraborty, a PhD candidate at the Laboratory of Complex Fluids, will be presenting his research on a new theory to successfully predict the design of emulsions with targeted shelf-lives, that he developed along with his doctoral advisor, Professor Arun Ramachandran, at the upcoming 2022 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) Annual Meeting in Arizona… Read more »
Professor Nicole Weckman (ISTEP, ChemE) has been appointed the Paul Cadario Chair in Global Engineering at the University of Toronto. The research chair is the first of its kind in Canada and will advance engineering solutions for vulnerable communities all over the world. The chair was made possible by a $1.5-million donation from alumnus, adjunct… Read more »
Over the last two weeks, ChemE kicked-off the 2022-23 academic year with a series of orientation activities. Events on September 7, introduced new undergrad and grad students to our community of leaders who make ChemE the best chemical engineering program in Canada and among the top in the world. Second-year and third-year students were welcomed… Read more »
Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries are a popular energy storage format for both the portable electronics and electric vehicle markets, putting them at the heart of billions of devices people rely on every day. However, the rising demand for rechargeable energy storage systems, and market-driven increases in raw critical materials including lithium, cobalt, and nickel result in… Read more »
Grad students juggle many roles and responsibilities, which have been amplified during the pandemic. In her role as Associate Chair, Graduate Studies, University Professor Molly Shoichet has been there every step of the way assisting our grad students in their challenges and celebrating their achievements with them. On July 1, 2022, Professor Charles Jia was… Read more »
Over the summer, the Department of Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry appointed Professor Will Cluett as the inaugural Associate Chair, Undergraduate Curriculum Development and Professor Jennifer Farmer as the inaugural Associate Chair, Undergraduate Student Experience. During their three-year terms from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2025, Professor Cluett will focus on supporting the department’s… Read more »
Dear ChemE students, faculty and staff: I’m pleased to welcome you to the start of the 2022-23 academic year at the Department of Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry. I hope your semester is off to a great start. To our new students, I congratulate you on your decision to pursue a degree with us. Advances… Read more »
The Department of Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry (ChemE) has a long-standing tradition of celebrating the achievements of our former Chairs through portraits. On September 1, the department honoured Professor Grant Allen, ChemE Chair from 2011-2021. Over 60 guests consisting of family, friends, professors, staff, and students attended Allen’s portrait unveiling. ChemE Chair Ramin Farnood… Read more »
Professors Daniela Galatro and Ning Yan, along with adjunct lecturer Marko Saban and Sourojeet Chakraborty (ChemE PhD student), successfully incorporated industry standards, codes, and engineering practices into the CHE430 – Plant Design curriculum. The changes were tracked over an entire semester, and revealed that such integrative measures should be performed for other courses too. Professor… Read more »
A U of T Engineering research team has created a new platform that delivers multiple therapeutic proteins to the body, each at its own independently controlled rate. The innovation could help treat degenerative diseases such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), the leading cause of vision loss for people over 50. Unlike traditional drugs made of… Read more »
Alumnus Albert Huynh (ChemE 1T2 + PEY) enrolled in TrackOne because he loves to collect input and information before making big decisions. “Having the option to delay the choice to pick a program while I learned more about the discipline was very much in line with my personality style,” he says. During that first year, Huynh was… Read more »
On August 24, BioZone – in partnership with Visions of Science – will be hosting over 20 students between the ages of 10-13 at its inaugural Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) Summer Camp. “We wanted to organize a way for BioZone to come together and engage with the broader community. Our hope is to… Read more »
ChemE Professor Brad Saville recently provided insight into the use of cooking oil as a sustainable fuel source for aircrafts. Read the full Corporate Knights story.
A team of researchers from the Southern Ontario Centre for Atmospheric Aerosol Research (SOCAAR), Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, and Environment and Climate Change Canada, have published a new paper entitled, Characterization of winter air pollutant gradients near a major highway. The group investigated air quality beside a major highway under Canadian winter… Read more »
During the global COVID-19 pandemic, the sudden and overwhelming demand for protective masks exceeded the supply. As cases of COVID-19 have been rising again, wearing a mask continues to be one of the most effective ways to reduce the risk of viral transmission in crowded indoor spaces with poor ventilation. But do masks come with… Read more »
A team of U of T Engineering researchers, led by Professor Molly Shoichet (ChemE, BME, Donnelly), has designed a new way to grow cells in a laboratory that enables them to better emulate cancerous tumours. The platform — based on a type of material known as a hydrogel, a soft jelly-like substance — opens new ways to… Read more »
Professor Jeff Brook has launched a new tool under the HealthyDesign.city initiative, which locates vulnerable populations exposed to environments that exacerbate heat waves in cities across Canada. The launch coincidently coincides with extreme heat conditions across Canada. This week, University of Toronto Communications interviewed Professor Brook about the heat waves and how we should respond. Read… Read more »
Tailpipe emissions are often the focus of air quality studies, as they contribute to climate change and a myriad of heath problems, but are non-tailpipe emissions just as concerning? Researchers from the Southern Ontario Centre for Atmospheric Aerosol Research (SOCAAR) are proving that they are. For over 15 years, scientists, graduate and undergraduate students from… Read more »
The final cohort of Mastercard Foundation Scholars graduated from the University of Toronto this spring – the culmination of their journey from Sub-Saharan Africa to Canada. Nearly a decade ago, U of T was among the first Canadian universities to partner with the Mastercard Foundation to offer talented students from the region an opportunity to study in… Read more »
U of T Engineering researchers have grown a small-scale model of a human left heart ventricle in the lab. The bioartificial tissue construct is made with living heart cells and beats strongly enough to pump fluid inside a bioreactor. In the human heart, the left ventricle is the one that pumps freshly oxygenated blood into… Read more »
While exhaust from vehicles and industrial processes are among the most recognized sources of air pollutants, another activity specific to humans also contributes to this issue – cooking. Cooking protein-rich food with oil and heat initiates a complex series of chemical processes that result in the creation of nitrogen-containing chemical compounds, releasing pollutants to both… Read more »
Rare earths are a critical resource that are used in a wide range of applications like computers, electric car batteries, windmill turbines, and other green-energy technologies. In spite of the name, they’re not actually that rare. However, they are found at low concentrations and are difficult to separate from one another. To deal with this,… Read more »
On June 7, Wood Biochar Monolith-Based Approach to Increasing the Volumetric Energy Density of Supercapacitor, an article by Professors Charles Jia and Don Kirk, was published in ACS Publications – a high-impact interdisciplinary journal reporting on energy research. Energy storage technologies are central to the economy’s electrification and renewable energy utilization and crucial to tackle… Read more »
Five U of T Engineering projects have received support from the Global Engineering Seed (GESeed) program in its first round. Among this group are Professor Jeff Brook (Dalla Lana School of Public Health, ChemE), along with Professors Greg Evans (ChemE, ISTEP), Arthur Chan (ChemE) and Jeffrey Siegel (CivMin) who are working with Fort McKay First Nation Sustainability Department, AUG Signals Ltd., on… Read more »
Hamed Ghazisaidi (ChemE PhD student) and Vincent Wang (ChemE 2T1 + PEY Co-op, incoming MASc), supervised by Professors Grant Allen and Honghi Tran, as well as Senior Research Associate Dr. Torsten Meyer, are looking for alternative chemicals or additives that can replace petroleum-derived products in wastewater treatment systems with more sustainable and environmentally friendly chemicals.… Read more »
Professor Jeff Brook has studied traffic-related air pollution for over 20 years and is now the principal investigator on a team developing interactive tools that allow users to combine air pollution modelled on a map with socioeconomic data from the census. This story is part of Toronto’s Climate Right Now, a collaboration with The Local about vulnerability and… Read more »
With curbside patios out in full force along Toronto city streets, Professor Greg Evans says that the air quality pros outweigh the cons when it comes to outdoor dining. Read the full story by The Toronto Star titled ‘How unhealthy is it to eat in a curbside patio next to traffic? Most CaféTO diners can… Read more »
The mining industry in northern Ontario, particularly in Sudbury, has been the economic backbone of this region. As the mining operations generate profits, they also produce large amounts of waste in the form of pyrrhotite tailings, which has become an environmental burden. Under the supervision of Professor Vlad Papangelakis, Heping (Leonardo) Shen (ChemE PhD student)… Read more »
With the University’s Convocation ceremony on June 16, 2022 U of T Engineering students mark the end of one journey and the beginning of another. Having enriched the U of T Engineering community as undergraduate and graduate students, they will join our vibrant, global network of Skule™ alumni, where they will continue to address pressing… Read more »
The very first issue of Interfaces* back in Spring 2003, ran a story about the “two Bills,” Bill Graydon (ChemE 4T2, MASc 4T5) and Bill Burgess (ChemE 3T9). The story highlighted their love for teaching. Snippets are presented here: The two Bills first met in 1954 in the basement of Wallberg. They felt an instant… Read more »
