Innovative Projects Realized

Densification of Heat-Sensitive Protein/Fibre Biomass II

The proposed project with will explore the feasibility of pelletizing heat-sensitive protein and fibre-rich biomass. This animal feed additive is used to improve the digestibility of the diet and improve the performance of poultry and swine. Since densification process involves heat, it is important to investigate whether lowering temperature of the process (pelleting) and reducing the biomass moisture content will form durable pellets by tests using a pilot-scale pelleting unit. After pelleting, the materials will be crumbled to produce coarse particles that are easier to mix with other feed ingredients in a feed ration. Physico-chemical quality of pellets and crumbles will be determined. The optimized variables are identified which will form the recommendation for manufacturing.

Aboriginal economic development of forest resources

An increasing number of Aboriginal communities are seeking a fair share of benefits from the economic development of forest lands and resources. Yet participation remains low, and initiatives to increase the participation of Aboriginals in the forest sector have had limited contributions to improving the economic and social well-being of Aboriginal peoples and communities. This situation reflects a general lack of knowledge about what Aboriginal economic development of forest resources really means.
This research project will allow for a better understanding of Aboriginal economic development in the forest resources. Using interviews and focus groups, I will implement a strategic planning process to generate questioning at a community level about what Essipit First Nation wants to accomplish with the economic development of forest resources, what capacity strengths and needs they have, and what steps are required to successfully take advantage of the opportunities this communities faces.

Optimization of Actiflo system for Portage La Prairie water treatment plant

Water treatment plants in Manitoba use surface water with high organic content as their source of water supply. Organic carbon reacts with disinfecting chlorine forming potentially carcinogenic disinfection byproducts. Portage la Prairie water treatment plant is an example of typical Manitoba lime/soda water treatment plants facing the challenge of removal of organic carbon. Coagulation and Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) are used in this plant for removal of Dissolved Organic Carbon (DOC).

Our previous studies showed that DOC cannot be efficiently removed by these two processes.

In this research we propose to study removal of DOC at the Portage la Prairie water treatment plant. Another goal of this research is to optimize the removal of DOC in the laboratory study by applying different coagulants and ozonation.

Seamless video wall display software

Poster Digital Networks is a startup Ontario company seeking to install an architectural video-wall display having a large and continuous viewing area. Ruben Barbosa of Poster Digital Networks has extensive display experience in installing and maintaining displays in professional commercial venues. Requirements of a suitable display include high resolution, ease and convenience of calibration, and size of about 100 inches diagonal.

Experimental and numerical analysis of heat transfer in CVD Coated Carbide Tools

Quantitative assessment of the thermal role and wear characteristics of multi-layer coatings in cutting tools is approached through the analysis of mechanical contact problem at the tool-chip interface and the constriction resistance phenomenon. The micro-contact configuration on the surface asperity level and the macro-contact configuration (contact pressure distribution and the size of the adhesion and sliding zones) are to be analyzed. The dependence of the workpiece rotational speed and size on the convective-radiant coefficient of heat transfer is to be determined. Using FE simulation, the correlation between the contact pressure and the thermal contact resistance of uncoated and multi-layer coated tools are to be established and validated. The effects of the composition of the coating material (α-Al₂O₃, Ti(C,N)), as well as its thickness, texture, crystal orientation and coating architecture are to be investigated. The thermal interaction and heat redistribution in the workpiece-chip-tool system is also to be examined.

Climate change adaptation planning for the Greater Peterborough Area

The proposed research project will result in the development of a background and scoping document to inform and assist climate change adaptation planning for the City of Peterborough and Peterborough County. It will be directed with the involvement and guidance of a municipal working group. The project will involve a literature review of relevant articles and papers, a summary of key threats and impacts of climate change specific to the regional area and the identification of key built, natural or human systems under the management of the municipalities that may be directly or indirectly affected by climate change (sensitivity analysis). The project will also address the scope of adaptation planning and the parameters that should be addressed as well as review approaches to the assessment of adaptive capacity and vulnerability of these parameters. Some analysis of select case study program(s) or project(s) may be undertaken to assist in the identification of key barriers and challenges to adaptation planning. Finally adaptation options and strategies specific to the Peterborough area will be discussed and recommendations made regarding future adaptation planning.

Gamifying Shakespeare: game-based digital media for Stratford festival

The post-doctoral fellow will act as an academic liaison between the Stratford Festival and the University of Waterloo’s Games Institute’s joint project on a series of Shakespeare-themed video games and apps. The Festival will benefit from a development of new games.  This project also offers numerous scholarly products as output, including a growing partnership between the Stratford Festival and the University of Waterloo, a collection of research articles, transferable tagging protocols and ongoing interface design. 

Validation of Giatec corrosion detection device on a small-scale reinforced concrete bridge deck

The project is designed to verify the performance of Giatec iCORTM hand-held device for non-destructive assessment of deteriorations in concrete structures caused by corrosion. Various laboratory experiments will be conducted using iCORTM at the University of Ottawa on a corroded concrete testing slab. The results will be validates against those obtained by accurate corrosion assessment methods which are destructive, time-consuming and expensive. The successful completion of this project with result in the final development of an accurate non-destructive device for corrosion assessment of concrete structures such as bridges, pipelines, and parking garages. This will position Giatec as a leading-edge company in area of advanced concrete testing technologies in the world.

Green Sustainable Telco Cloud part II

Bringing cloud computing from the Internet domain to Next Generation Networks (NGN) in order to provide Telco cloud services will leverage the use of NGN, reduce costs and create many value-added services. It is therefore becoming critical for world-class carriers, like Bell and Telus, to adopt a cloud-based communications model. However, unlike public Internet clouds, a Telco cloud has specific requirements, such as performance, scalability, security and isolation. The CANARIE GreenStar Network (GSN), led by Mohamed Cheriet, recently became the first network in the world to be powered entirely by renewable energy. The proposed project will evolve the GSN platform and will address challenges in building interoperable elastic cloud services that are green and sustainable, by designing open and scalable clouds with environmental control features that optimize workload, energy consumption and GHG emissions. Unlike most of the server-centric public Internet cloud solutions, the proposed model will be network-centric and target the telecommunications industry. The partnership with Ericsson will help to systematically investigate the Telco cloud architecture, with a view to developing optimal and reliable designs for next generation green and sustainable clouds.

Customer intelligence data mining for financial institutions

For banks and financial institutions data is one of the most important assets, providing the key to true differentiation and competitive advantage. Insight Business Intelligence, solutions offered by Banking Software Company Temenos, turn figures into meaningful information for business decision making. However the existing business rules based models could be improved by using novel statistical techniques to capture the stochastic dependence in the data. In order to allow financial institutions obtaining much more valuable information we aim to implement data-mining approaches and to develop advanced statistical models for this kind of data.

The focus of our project is on the Customer Intelligence module, which incorporates the information about bank clients, accounts they have, products and services they use. This detailed data set will be employed to analyze the behavior of the customers, e.g. to identify those who are likely to buy a new particular product, or in the opposite way, who are likely to leave the bank. Moreover, built models will be used to estimate customer profitability, based on the products the client is likely to buy. Integrating of these data-driven results into the standard reports let the financial institution to take proactive actions, determine selling opportunities within the existing customer base and put more efforts into the purchase and serving of the most profitable customers.

AWE technology development project – the virtual history of Fort York

Divani’s AWE Augmented Reality product is expected to assist Fort York to create a more engaging experience for the attraction’s 100,000 annual visitors. By combining the historical value of Fort York with the immersive experience of AR, the organization will be able to increase revenue to assist with its financial goals. Divani Films is expected to benefit from a successful rollout by generating new revenue streams from the licensing of AWE technology and/or forming additional partnerships within the tourism industry as well as other industries (gaming, sports, etc.).
The intern will provide research services to measure user experience (UX) and visitor experience (VX) with the AWE AR product on the Fort York site. Insights will be used to provide usability enhancements to the AR product, and to refine the overall value proposition of what is intended to be a unique cinematic AR experience for purposes of pricing and marketing. The research and analysis conducted by the intern will draw on business methods and approaches that are commonly practiced in UX and VX stages of product innovation, notably focus groups, interviews, and observation.

Forest Stewardship Group Development: Part II

The internship will involve further research, development and the implementation of up to four of the recommendations provided in the previous internship term, as outlined a recently completed report to Ecotrust Canada, titled ‘Draft Summary Report, ‘Forest Stewardship Council Group Certification Program: Next Steps’ (December 2012). The first step will be to work on the development of a proposal of services that Ecotrust Canada could provide to FSC Canada. This will involve identifying what services are needed, and how EC could deliver them while maintaining alignment with their mission. The next step will be to present both the supply-chain clusters and marketing infrastructure options to relevant associations (Federation of BC Woodlots, BC Community Forests and BC Private Forest Landowners Association), gauge their interest in either of these and get feedback. Based on this feedback, one or both of these options may then move forward. Further research into the feasibility and appropriateness of these options within Ecotrust Canada’s program structure will need to be conducted, along with the identification of funding options and, eventually, the development of project proposals. Time permitting, and in collaboration with other EC staff working on carbon projects, a further research will be conducted to assess the benefits and feasibility of developing a joint FSC-carbon credit validation program. Interest in the project, potential funders and partners will also need to be identified. Based on the success of each these recommendations, initiatives can be implemented as early as the spring of 2013. The implementation of these new program activities will result in additional revenues, increased values to members, and will help to ensure the long term sustainability of the to the FSC program.