Innovative Projects Realized

Scholarship application: Three-month internship in the Multi-Scale Additive Manufacturing laboratory. Study of iron content in Al6061 alloy deposited by AFSD.

Actuellement, en alternance (école d’ingénieurs “filière matériaux”) dans une entreprise spécialisée dans la fabrication additive métallique “le CETIM”. Dans cette entreprise, je suis en charge de développer deux nuances: Al6061 et le TA6V par AFSD (Additive Friction Stir Deposition). Après discussion avec Michael Benoit, l’objectif est de faire une collaboration avec mon entreprise où je fais mon alternance. Le sujet porterait sur l’étude du taux de fer sur l’alliage Al6061 déposé avec le procédé AFSD. Le taux de fer est une problématique commune dans le recyclage de l’aluminium car il a tendance à réduire la ductilité de l’alliage. L’objectif serait d’étudier l’influence de différents taux de fer, le matériau d’apport (type barres Al 6061) serait fabriqué par le laboratoire “MSAM”. Les barres seront envoyées à mon entreprise pour effectuer la fabrication des murs avec le procédé et la préparation des échantillons avant le stage. L’objectif de ce stage est de réaliser la caractérisation des échantillons dans le laboratoire “Multi Scale Additive Manufacturing” par l’intermédiaire de M.Benoit.

Advancing the Oldman River State of the Watershed Assessment’s Socio-Economic Pillar

The Oldman Watershed Council is launching a State of the Watershed assessment to understand the current health of the Oldman watershed across three pillars: Environmental, Indigenous, and Socio-Economic. The State of the Watershed assessment will use collaborative, science-based methods to summarize current conditions and identify where future land and water management efforts are needed. The Prentice Institute at the University of Lethbridge, a social and political science research institute, is overseeing the Socio-Economic Pillar and serving as the academic supervisor for the internship. To develop the foundational Socio-Economic Pillar, a Mitacs Business Strategy Internship will deliver a roadmap for selecting relevant socio-economic indicators and conduct preparatory work for stakeholder and rightsholder engagement in the Oldman watershed.

Product updation

The gut microbiota refers to all the microorganisms (microbes) living in a person’s gut. More and more research is showing that gut microbiota impacts the host’s health and well-being. Commonly the gut microbiota composition is characterized using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing, which indicates what types of bacteria are present, but misses all other types of microbes such as fungi, viruses and protists that are also present in the gut environment. These other microorganisms also play critical roles in affecting their host health. An alternative to 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing is shotgun metagenomics which can identify the various types of microbes present in the gut environment. However, bioinformatic pipelines to analyze shotgun metagenomics are complex and have several parameters that need to be adjusted to maximize the number of correctly identified microbes present in a given gut environment. Having a suitable bioinformatics pipeline is crucial for finding reliable associations between the gut microbiota composition and health conditions. In this project, we will develop and optimize a bioinformatic pipeline for shotgun metagenomics, and assess its feasibility to be part of a potential new commercial kit for profiling the gut microbiota.

Qualité de vie et attachement au territoire des personnes LGBTQ+ vivant en Gaspésie–Îles-de-la-Madeleine

Ce projet vise à documenter des réalités encore très peu étudiées au Québec : Comment les aspirations des personnes LGBTQ+ vivant en milieu rural et périphérique et les capabilités offertes par leur milieu de vie construisent-elles leur attachement au lieu? Des thématiques telles que la qualité de vie, les antécédents et les pratiques de mobilité sont également abordées. L’originalité de cette recherche se trouve particulièrement au niveau du croisement entre l’identité LGBTQ+ et l’attachement au lieu. En milieux ruraux et périphériques, étudier l’attachement au lieu permet de mettre en lumière les expériences de bien-être, d’affirmation et de valorisation que ces territoires rendent possibles, ce qui nuance une vision du rural comme un espace déficitaire. C’est également une opportunité de sortir d’un cadrage orienté sur les problématiques (discrimination, marginalisation, invisibilisation). Cette recherche est aussi l’occasion de cerner les défis des milieux de vie afin d’améliorer les conditions de vie et l’inclusion des personnes LGBTQ+.

Degrading plastic additives through the use of laccase enzymes

Plastic materials are essential to modern life because they are inexpensive, durable, and versatile, but these same properties make plastic waste extremely difficult to recycle. This project focuses on polyethylene terephthalate (PET), a plastic widely used in textiles and clothing, which often contains dyes and chemical additives that limit current recycling technologies. The proposed research aims to develop a new environmentally friendly recycling approach using engineered enzymes: one enzyme to break down the plastic polymer and another to remove or transform dyes and additives at the same time. By designing these enzymes to work together in close proximity, the project seeks to improve plastic degradation efficiency without harsh chemical treatments. The research will be carried out using biotechnology tools already established in the host Canadian laboratory, strengthening Canada’s expertise in sustainable materials and green biotechnology. The project will contribute to training highly qualified personnel, support innovation in enzymatic recycling technologies, and align with Canada’s priorities in plastic waste reduction and circular economy development. In the long term, this work may help enable cleaner recycling solutions for plastic textiles, reducing environmental pollution and supporting sustainable industrial practices.

Does biology enhance low-temperature carbonate precipitation for climate mitigation?

Carbonate minerals are a major natural sink for carbon dioxide from volcanic and anthropogenic sources, closing Earth’s carbon cycle. Recent low-temperature (0 to 35°C) studies suggest microbial processes influence carbonate mineral growth, but the role of biology remains unclear: Are the microbes calling the shots or just along for the ride? This project will analyze a unique suite of Argentinian samples via geochemical and mineralogical approaches to determine biotic and abiotic contributions to carbonate precipitation processes. Understanding these pathways may reveal strategies for enhanced carbon mineralization, offering potential climate mitigation solutions. Results will advance fundamental knowledge of microbe-mineral interactions and their application in carbon sequestration.

Ionic-electronic Properties of PEDOT-functionalized Peptoid Nanosheets

Next generation of electronics will seamlessly integrate with biological tissue. Some of these advancements are made possible due to conjugated polymers, materials that exhibit electronic conductivity and offer mechanical flexibility, biocompatibility, and aqueous solubility. To leverage these properties, efforts have also been devoted to improving device engineering in OECTs (organic electrochemical transistors), devices that transduce biological activities into electrical signals, and relies on the use of conjugated polymers. One ubiquitous conjugated polymer is PEDOT:PSS (poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene): polystyrene sulfonate). Although significant strides have been achieved with the use of PEDOT:PSS, its ordering and morphology is not well defined, thereby limiting overall OECT performance.
This project explores the use of peptoid 2D nanosheets as a scaffold to introduce ordering and morphological control to PEDOT. By leveraging peptoid 2D nanosheets assemblies, the effects of ordering and morphology of PEDOT can be systematically investigated to optimize OECT performance. This project represents a unique collaborative research opportunity between material chemists and device engineers between UofT and MIT to advance bioelectronics. We envision that this scaffolding strategy is readily applicable to other conjugated polymers and will offer invaluable insights to guide conjugated polymer designs and broadly impact the development of human-machine interfaces.

Understanding the use of information objects in collaborative design processes for mass personalised products

The proposed project examines how CAD models and related digital information objects can be structured and supported to improve collaboration in the development of mass-personalised products. Using an industry-based case context, the intern will identify what different stakeholders need to see and understand when reviewing and verifying a CAD model, then define practical supporting materials such as a structured information package, annotation guidance, and a minimal checklist of key context to accompany model exchange. The University of Toronto team will benefit from a concrete applied case that strengthens its research on CAD-mediated collaboration and provides transferable requirements and examples for future studies. The University of Zagreb will benefit from methodological guidance and refined research outputs that can be carried forward into the intern’s PhD work and into future joint publications and collaboration.

Applied Geospatial Research Group 2026 Research Internships: Soil-water Dynamics in a Peat Stockpile

Alberta’s boreal region is under increasing pressure from natural resource extraction. When areas are cleared for roads or well pad installations, the overlying peat material is typically stockpiled for future use. The Aspen oil sands lease includes a large (~8 ha) stockpile of organic (peat) soil. The stockpiled peat will be cored for soil hydrophysical properties and instrumented to measure soil-water dynamics and temperature. These findings will be evaluated with a parallel study assessing various planting treatments and carbon dynamics. Through this analysis, methods for managing stockpiled peat can be proposed.

La régulation des contrats publics – Étude de droit comparé français, burkinabè et québécois

Les contrats conclus par l’administration publique sont gangrenés par un manque de transparence et par des malversations financières, tant de la part des organismes publics que des entreprises qui souhaitent obtenir ces contrats. Face à ce phénomène, nous souhaitons proposer, par nos travaux de recherche, de nouveaux mécanismes par lesquels les organismes publics indépendants pourront mieux prévenir et lutter contre cette mauvaise gouvernance dans les contrats publics. Les mécanismes permettant de lutter contre ces phénomènes sont conceptualisés par la « régulation ». Nos travaux visent à rendre plus efficace la surveillance de l’administration publique et des entreprises dans les contrats publics.
Le stage nous permettra de terminer la rédaction de notre thèse, tout en ayant accès à des sources de droit français et burkinabè. Il s’agira également d’une occasion de collaborer avec d’autres chercheurs afin de bénéficier de leur expertise, puis de proposer de nouvelles approches au système canadien. En outre, ce stage nous permettra de renforcer notre profil international à travers le réseau que nous allons construire. Ainsi, il nous offrira davantage de perspectives d’emploi après la soutenance de la thèse, ainsi qu’une occasion de constituer un réseau de comparatistes pour de futurs projets de recherche.

Évaluation et optimisation de la durée de vie en fatigue d’une matrice d’extrusion d’aluminium

Ce projet vise à évaluer et optimiser la durée de vie en fatigue d’une matrice d’extrusion d’aluminium. Les objectifs incluent la prédiction de la durée de vie par simulation FEM, l’identification des zones critiques d’endommagement, et l’optimisation structurelle pour réduire les concentrations de contraintes tout en respectant les contraintes de conception. Une comparaison sera réalisée entre une approche basée sur la mécanique de la rupture et la méthode XFEM.

Mechanistic Insights into Gut Microbial Contributions to Celiac Disease Pathogenesis

Celiac disease (CeD) is a common autoimmune disorder triggered by gluten in genetically susceptible individuals. Although up to 40% of the population carries risk alleles (HLA-DQ2/DQ8) for the disease, only 1–2% develop CeD. This indicates that environmental factors play a critical role — one such factor being the gut microbiome. Currently, the sole treatment is strict adherence to a gluten-free diet, which can be challenging and sometimes fails to fully resolve symptoms. These limitations highlight the need to better understand environmental factors contributing to CeD and develop therapies beyond dietary management.

Recent research at UMC Groningen (home institute) used high-resolution metagenomic sequencing of faecal samples from two large Dutch cohorts (259 treated CeD (tCeD) patients and 765 healthy controls) and revealed significant strain-level differences in the common gut bacterium Eubacterium rectale in individuals with tCeD. The enriched strains harboured genetic repertoires potentially involved in CeD through altered substrate processing and flagellum-mediated epithelial priming. Following in-depth in-vitro strain characterisation, and supported by a Mitacs grant and the expertise of the host institute, we aim to perform functional testing of Eubacterium rectale strains in specialised CeD mouse models to gain further mechanistic insights into their potential role in CeD pathogenesis.