This Mitacs Accelerate represents the first year of the UBC Precast Design Studio, which is a multi-year partnership between the Canadian Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute (CPCI) and the University of British Columbia (UBC). The Studio will provide students with a hands-on learning experience for the seismic design, construction, and seismic response of precast shear walls. This […]

To ensure Canadians with SCI continue to receive peer support services organizations require methods to track the impact of their programming. The proposed research project will provide Canadian SCI organizations with an optimized tool that will enable them to critically evaluate the impact of the peer support services that they provide. Having access to an […]

Additive manufacturing (AM, also referred to as metal 3D printing) promises to revolutionize the manufacturing sector by allowing custom parts to be printed on demand. Despite manufacturing accounting for 10% of Canada’s GDP, less than 5% of Canadian companies use AM. Among the limiting factors to the adoption of this technology are a lack of […]

The mining sector is vital to the Canadian economy, contributing $71B towards the GDP and providing 392,000 jobs. Canada is the 4th and 8th largest global producer of refined zinc and lead, respectively, and as one of the world’s largest zinc and lead refining facilities, Teck Resources’ operation in Trail, BC, is an important part […]

Glass fiber reinforced concrete (GFRC) panels are a lightweight cladding panels primarily used as fascia panels in building structures. Concrete when reinforced with fibers is often presented as an environmental improvement on typical concrete. In the wake of the rapidly emerging climate change emergency and to help improve resiliency in our residential buildings, the National […]

Tens of thousands of Canadians living with a Spinal Cord Injury (SCI) suffer from debilitating neuropathic pain. This project, in partnership with Spinal Cord Injury Ontario (SCIO), will seek to understand and test the potential for mindfulness mediation, to decrease pain and increase quality of life. Over 36 months, Robert Buren (the intern), in collaboration […]

We are developing an automated monitoring system to optimize the frequency of septic tank pumps. Septic tanks are used in ~87% of rural communities across Canada; current best practice for maintenance pumping is neither effective nor efficient as it is based on time rather than use. A reliable monitoring system can reduce cost by minimizing […]

3D printing has become a cornerstone technology for prototyping products during product development. However, the process is too slow for even small production runs. Pantheon Design in Vancouver has set out to increase the speed of extrusion printing by a factor of 10. To date, they have achieved a five-fold increase in print speed compared […]

Transportation services, ranging from public buses to private logistics fleets, could benefit significant from the introduction of Rogers’ 5G wireless networks. This project has a primary objective to support UBC’s efforts to achieve its 2050 emissions reductions goals, with an emphasis on a reduction of GHG and air pollutant emissions from transportation services.

The research outlined in this project is intended to highlight the real world impact cryptocurrencies have on our climate, if there is any. It is meant to evaluate the carbon footprint released by crypto-mining as a whole, and against the benefit it provides to our economy. This evaluation will be used to determine whether any […]

Rapid of urban population and limited raw material and energy resources increase the demand for more sustainable structures. An initiative was taken by many governments, including Canada, to introduce more timber structures to the public buildings. This initiative can save a considerable amount of energy required to produce common construction materials such as concrete and […]

Hospitals use different warming techniques for surgery patients to prevent them from hypothermia, i.e., becoming cold during their operation. Many warming techniques are commonly available and used but studies on their holistic environmental impacts are lacking. The overall environmental impacts and economic costs of products or services can be assessed using life cycle assessment (LCA) […]