major contributor to smog formation is the release of volatile chemicals which are emitted from many sources including automobile exhaust and consumer products. To combat the adverse effects smog has on air quality in North America, agencies such as Environment and Climate Change (Canada) and the Environmental Protection Agency (United States) enforce limits on the types and amounts of chemicals used in industrial applications and consumer products.

Micro-tunneling technique is considered a feasible means to construct pipelines and tunnels in different types of ground including Queenston shale. However, this shale exhibits time-dependent deformation behavior, generally known as the rock swelling which produces additional stresses on underground structures. These stresses may exceed the allowable tensile or compressive strength of concrete of the pipeline or the tunnel liner, which in-turn may result in
cracks in these structures.

Increases in gasoline price and greenhouse gas emissions have spurred the growth of hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) and pure electric vehicles (EVs). Rechargeable Li-ion batteries are the leading candidate for powering these vehicles due to their high energy and power density properties relative to other batteries. However, their energy and power capabilities are substantially reduced at low temperatures, posing a technical barrier for market penetration of HEVs and EVs.

Nowadays, the sustainable supply of energy is challenging due to growing concerns over climate change and increasing global demands. This leads to an urgent need for developing sustainable and renewable biofuels and bioenergy. Biomass gasification is a very promising route for bioenergy production. However, syngas from this process normally contains unacceptable level of tar. Tar can cause operational issues in syngas downstream applications. Hence, the elimination of tar has been the biggest obstacle in the successful commercialisation of the biomass gasification technology.

Unpaved gravel roads throughout rural and northern Manitoba and across Canada are made from poorly bound aggregate materials. Consequently they quickly deteriorate to loose, rough and dangerous road conditions. They generate choking and noxious dust clouds when dry, and quickly lose strength and degrade to mucky and rutted conditions when wet. The goal of this project is to provide a low cost and sustainable solution by mixing the aggregate with high amounts of reactive clays and environmentally safe organic catalysts.

This research will help Innovation Building Group to optomize design details for proposed net-zero energy buildings in Golden, BC. The focus of the research is on comparing the costs of envelope design details with the expected energy savings. This will allow the most economical decisions to be made, which will mean that the best building can be built for the budget. We will accomplish this by creating an energy model of the base building. Details will be changed one by one, and the resulting change in total energy use can be attributed to the design detail.

The Nuclear Reactor Group at McMaster University, in collaboration with the Department of Engineering Physics, propose a project to investigate and analyze software systems for use at nuclear research reactors for core-follow and prediction calculations. This project involves research of nuclear fuel burnup calculations, and the creation of a methodology to couple simulation-based core-follow calculations to operational measurements for nuclear research reactors. This work will include implementation of the advanced core-follow and prediction system at the McMaster Nuclear Reactor.

Domestic demand for wood pellets in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia has dramatically increased in recent years. Consumer angst resulted in one retailer trucking three tractor trailer loads of bagged pellets last winter (2014-2015) from British Columbia, which sold out in a few days.

Data centres generate a large amount of heat, from operating computers 24/7. This heat is normally wasted and released outside the data centre building. This research will determine the best way to capture the waste heat from a data centre and distribute it to other buildings in the area that require heating. The vessel for this distribution of heat will be a network of water pipes, just like an electrical grid distributes power to multiple buildings. The intern will provide insight on the equipment and system design required to capture the waste heat in an energy and cost efficient manner.

Tannins, natural renewable molecules, have exhibited excellent corrosion inhibition properties, comparable to those of non-renewable counterparts. TGWT Clean Technologies Inc. has a portfolio of tannin-based corrosion inhibitors, which are being used in industry to protect mild steel (MS) steam boilers, high efficiency condensing aluminium boilers, as well as multi-metal heating and cooling closed-loop systems. Copper equipment is ubiquitous in industry, e.g. heat exchangers.