Lignin represents the largest reservoir of natural aromatic compounds available on earth. It is a potential substitute for a range of chemicals currently derived from petroleum, but product development and identification of market opportunities remain challenging. The objective of the research is to utilize industrial softwood kraft lignins from the black liquor of British Columbia […]

We propose to perform detailed studies that characterize chemically and biologically and the unaltered ancestral plant species of the Cannabis genus. Chemically, these studies will provide the chemotype profiles for each parental species for a spectrum of non-tetrahydrocannabinoid compounds. Biologically, these studies will provide the pharmacological profiles for each parental species in conjunction with the […]

Pulp and paper producers would profit enormously from an advanced knowledge of the physical and mechanical properties of a fibre product based upon a measure of the pulp while it is still in process. This project aims to develop such a tool. Using a laser backscattering technique called Raman spectroscopy, will calibrate the molecular bar […]

For over than thirty years, chemists have applied sulfur-based organic molecules to gold sheets to form coatings with a single molecule thickness. Although these coatings have potential applications in sensors and microelectronics, they gradually decompose under moderate heat and in air, limiting their applications. In 2014, the Crudden group demonstrated that N-heterocyclic carbenes (NHCs), which […]

Hydrogen fuel cells have potential as a sustainable, environmentally friendly, and highly efficient energy alternative. The proton conduction properties of fuel cells are important in improving existing fuel cells and developing new fuel cell technologies. Imidazole and its derivatives are promising for their proton conducting properties, especially when confined in a porous support framework. In […]

We propose to develop a structurally constrained analog to the electron transport molecule TPBi. If our new molecule shows superior device lifetimes compared to TPBi, it will have broad implications to the field of solid state lighting. TPBi is currently a “gold standard” electron-transport material for OLEDs fabricated industrially, and as such success in this […]

Ice surface chemistry plays a major role in determining the chemical composition over snow in the polar boundary layer, as well as in the presence of ice aerosols under tropospheric/stratospheric conditions. This project aims at elucidating heterogeneous atmospheric chemistry phenomena on ice surfaces using advanced microscopy and spectroscopy. The molecular adsorption at ice surfaces under […]

La radiochirurgie stéréotaxique sans cadre est une technique avancée de radiothérapie permettant de localiser très précisément une dose de radiation sans avoir recours à des technique d’immobilisation douloureuses pour le patient. Ses applications principales sont le traitement de tumeurs cancéreuses et la névralgie du nerf trijumeau. De par la recherche et le développement des deux […]

It is well known that fluids can be drawn along a small fibre with a conical shape. This strategy is used in nature, for example the beaks of some birds, the spines on cacti, and the needles on some carnivorous trees, are shaped so that water can be efficiently transported. Our hope is that the […]

Creping is a part of tissue paper production process in which a very thin layer of paper is adhered on a hot, big(6-8 m dia) rotating(~2000 m/min surface speed) metal cylinder and scraped off later using a sharp blade. This process permanently changes the mechanical properties of the paper layer making it very soft, stretchy, […]