A two-year, multi-disciplinary research project requiring MSc, PhD and PDF researchers across Computer Science, Earth and Ocean Science, and Mining Engineering is proposed, working with an industrial sponsor MineSense, focused on the development of new sensors for advanced sensor sorting and so-called ‘non-grade’ applications in previously unaddressed high capacity, low grade mining situations.

Foamy oil is commonly observed phenomenon during cold primary production of heavy oil reservoirs. Along with the pressure depletion, a type of anomalous flow of oil and gas phases appears when pressure is lower than the thermodynamic saturation pressure. Foamy oil is believed to bring positive effects to heavy oil recovery and well productivity by promoting favored fluid properties and oil swelling. The proposed study focuses on the description of the complex phase behavior of foamy oil systems to examine equilibrium versus non-equilibrium behaviour at different depressurization rates.

Minerals industry has a considerable responsibility to implement effective dust management plans, thereby controlling the mine dust emissions. In dust management plans, the monitoring of dust emissions is an indispensable part in both mine sites and process plants. However, mine sites cover a wide range of locations where conventional monitoring instruments cannot be all installed. These locations are still under interests, but there is a lack of technology to monitor their dust emissions to the environment.

The ubiquity of pipeline incidences have resulted in undesirable economic, environmental and social consequences. However, pipelines are a critical element of the transportation system of most countries, and are needed to convey goods and resources from one place to the other. In this research project, a technology that can be used to monitor operating pipelines is developed and extensively tested. This technology is projected to be able to identify the onset of pipeline failure earlier than existing technologies, and contribute towards improving the integrity of operating pipelines.

Composting is a method of waste management using biological degradation at aerobic condition. Although the process is one of the efficient and least expensive waste management options, nuisance odors emanating from waste processing facilities degrade the air quality of neighborhood. Odor compounds vary significantly depending on the type of wastes, process conditions and include bioaerosols, biomolecules, volatile organics, ammonia, and organic sulphur compounds.

The oil & gas industry is vital to the economy of British Columbia (BC) and Canada. The BC Oil and Gas Commission (BCOGC) regulates more than 40 thousand km of pipelines that transport a variety of refined and unrefined products. The reliability of the pipelines is often compromised due to natural ageing and deterioration processes, coupled with exposure to natural hazards (e.g. earthquake, geotechnical failure, climate change) and human induced hazards (e.g. accidental hits, vandalism). Metal loss (e.g.

This project will investigate how to add waterproof, oil-proof, and contaminant-proof properties to soldier protective clothing (ballistic armour vests). Four interns will develop methods for attaching a repellent coating to the fabrics that the Canadian Armed Forces wears. The interns will work with PRE Labs Inc., an armour company in Kelowna, BC. Together, the interns and PRE Labs will figure out to bond the coating to the fabrics, and just how effective the coating is when placed on a fabric. This will involve characterizing the treated fabric for its liquid and contaminant repellency.

The aim of this collaboration is to produce a novel design of percutaneous mitral valve that utilizes the synthetic cryogel material developed at the Heart Valve Performance Laboratory, UBC Okanagan campus for the valve leaflets, along with different anchoring mechanisms to develop an optimized option for testing. The proposed design will be made for either the transseptal, that being a puncture between the right atrium and left atrium to give access to the native mitral valve, or the transapical approach, that being entering through the apex of the heart into the left ventricle. TO BE CONT'D

Drug-impaired driving represents a significant and increasing threat to the safety of Canadians and there is an urgent need for a convenient, instantaneous and accurate road-side evaluation technology for impaired driving. Current solution for roadside drug testing includes a device that is still just a qualitative indicator. Quantitative detection of drugs currently require expensive equipment, dedicated infrastructure and specialized laboratory personnel. To address this problem, eye3concepts inc.

Soil health and fertility has important long-term implications on farming practices. However, farmers and agronomists have difficulties to integrate soil assessment into farming decisions, mainly due to the tedious and long soil sampling process. This project aims at providing an innovative tool for agronomists and farmers to determine instantaneously and accurately several soil characteristics such as the soil acidity and temperature, as well as the content of nutrient and organic matter in the soil.