Innovative Projects Realized

Explore thousands of successful projects resulting from collaboration between organizations and post-secondary talent.

13270 Completed Projects

1072
AB
2795
BC
430
MB
106
NF
348
SK
4184
ON
2671
QC
43
PE
209
NB
474
NS

Projects by Category

10%
Computer science
9%
Engineering
1%
Engineering - biomedical
4%
Engineering - chemical / biological

Encapsulation strategies for the enhanced performance of active ingredients in foods and non-food products

“Functional foods and cosmetics contain physiologically active compounds. However, many active ingredients are susceptible to degradation and/or are not efficiently absorbed by the body. It is increasingly recognized that the composition and physical structures of the products, and interactions between ingredients in the matrix can impact the stability and availability of active ingredients. Encapsulation is an important strategy for protecting and delivering active ingredients and it has a long history of use in food and cosmetic industries. Several encapsulation vehicles for active ingredients have been developed, however their efficacy in delivering active ingredients is not well characterized. This research proposal addresses the value-chain development and enhancement of active ingredients using different encapsulation vehicles for food and cosmetic applications. Results of this project will bring research from the academia to the industry, which will lead to potential commercialization of novel functional food and petroleum-free cosmetic products.”

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Faculty Supervisor:

Alejandro Marangoni

Student:

Fan Wang

Partner:

Avaria Health & Beauty Corp

Discipline:

Food science

Sector:

Environmental industry

University:

University of Guelph

Program:

Elevate

Development of fabrication, microstructure and performance relationships in inkjet printed polymer electrolyte fuel cell electrodes for automotive applications

Polymer electrolyte fuel cells (PEFCs) running on hydrogen are a preferred choice for on-board electricity generation in automobiles. A major challenge associated with this technology is its high cost due to the use of platinum as electrocatalyst. Implementation of inkjet printing as a fabrication tool has been investigated by the applicant and the academic supervisor to fabricate and test PEFC electrodes that are 5 times thinner and contain 15 times lower platinum than conventional electrodes resulting in an improved catalyst utilization. The present proposal aims at optimizing this fabrication process by analyzing the effect of the dispersion media, carbon type, binder, pore former and fabrication parameters on electrode microstructure and fuel cell performance. Since this type of fabrication process is also being actively used by AFCC (partner organization), resulting outcomes will translate into an economical advantage for our industrial partners by a new fabrication method that minimizes expensive catalyst usage.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Marc Secanell

Student:

Shantanu Taranath Shukla

Partner:

Automotive Fuel Cell Cooperation Corp.

Discipline:

Engineering - mechanical

Sector:

Nanotechnologies

University:

University of Alberta

Program:

Accelerate

Improving Process and Product Performance through Innovative and cost effective solutions

EHC Global – our industry partner, is a worldwide industry leader in design and manufacture of escalator handrails and many other products for the lift industry. They mainly deal with thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPUs), which are versatile engineering polymers with a wide range of applications, however processing of TPUs is a complicated and challenging task. The complications arise from the relatively high melting temperature of crystalline hard blocks and the degradation and crosslinking that take place at temperatures slightly above melting temperatures. EHC-Global therefore, consistently look at ways to improving product performance by investigating innovative material formulations and production methods. This project mainly focuses on innovative and cost effective solutions to material formulations, on-site viscosity measurement systems, and optimal processes and geometry considerations. This would benefit EHC-Global in terms of product quality, cost reduction, and maintaining a competitive edge over competitors, and to spread their business in the global market.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Ghaus Rizvi

Student:

Shahid Ahmed

Partner:

EHC Canada

Discipline:

Engineering - mechanical

Sector:

Alternative energy

University:

Ontario Tech University

Program:

Accelerate

A Novel Approach to the Design of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle for Humanitarian Initiatives

Development of an engineering model using data from a piloted aircraft to facilitate the creation of a flight controller for the aircraft, allowing automated flight.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Jeremy Laliberté

Student:

Prem Anand

Partner:

Romaeris Corporation

Discipline:

Aerospace studies

Sector:

Aerospace and defense

University:

Carleton University

Program:

Accelerate

New Generation of Precast Sandwich Walls Using Ultra-High Performance (UHPC) Concrete and Fibre Reinforced Polymer (FRP) Connectors

Precast concrete sandwich panels are commonly used as architectural or structural walls. A typical concrete panel is made of two normal strength concrete wythes and a layer of a rigid insulation sandwiched in between. The purpose of this research is to design and experimentally validate a new generation of precast sandwich panels that are much lighter in weight by using a special ultra-high strength concrete, leading to only 25 mm thick wythes. This will lead to significant savings in shipping, handling and installation costs. Also, a more structurally efficient wall will be developed by introducing a new system that connects the two concrete wythes, enabling them to work together more effectively. For this, noncorrosive basalt and glass fiber ties and studs will be used to connect the wythes together because of their very low thermal conductivity, leading to a more thermally-efficient wall.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Amir Fam

Student:

Valon Sylaj, Dan Le

Partner:

Canadian Precast Prestressed Concrete Institute

Discipline:

Engineering - civil

Sector:

Construction and infrastructure

University:

Queen's University

Program:

Accelerate

Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Emotional Intelligence Training in Mobile Applications

This project aims to use literature evidences and data analysis techniques to develop new mobile games that train people’s “emotional intelligence”. The company will build the product prototypes based on current literature evidences and theoretical models. Then the data generated from the games will be evaluated to inform product performance, efficacy, and future developments. This internship will enable the company to integrate research in the heart of the product development and implementation from the begging to the end. The intern will use critical literature review skills to inform prototype development, previous data analysis experience to design post-product launch analysis strategies, and software programming languages and statistical methods to analyze data generated by the first emotion training application developed by Fit Brains, Rosetta Stone Canada.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Catharine Rankin

Student:

Conny Lin

Partner:

Rosetta Stone Canada

Discipline:

Psychology

Sector:

Medical devices

University:

University of British Columbia

Program:

Accelerate

Improving Fishing Safety in Newfoundland and Labrador

Commercial fishing is an important part of Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) with approximately 8700 registered fish harvesters in 2014. Commercial fishing is one of the most dangerous occupations. The Newfoundland and Labrador Fishing Vessel Safety Association (NL-FVSA) has identified extreme weather events, noise and dynamic stability as three major hazards in the <65 foot fleets. MITACS interns will work with harvesters and the NL-FVSA to carry out research and design education and training tools designed to reduce exposures to each of these hazards. One intern, Ph.D. student James Shewmake, will answer the question: what are climate-related sources of risk in the occupation of fishing as informed by stakeholder and key informant observations and perceptions and what kinds of initiatives are needed to address these risks? A second intern will carry out research designed to provide NL harvesters with accurate, accessible, clear information regarding short-term and long-term noise exposures and strategies to eliminate the risk of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL) on-board small fishing vessels by carrying out a thorough review of the literature, measuring noise exposures on board a sample of vessels and develop methods and strategies for mitigation of noise.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Barb Neis

Student:

James Shewmake

Partner:

Newfoundland and Labrador Fish Harvesting Safety Association

Discipline:

Sociology

Sector:

Information and communications technologies

University:

Memorial University of Newfoundland

Program:

Accelerate

Novel Biomarker Identification for Human Cytomegalovirus Disease in Transplant Patients

Organ transplants save patients with severe end stage organ failure but the need for subsequent lifelong immunosuppression can lead to a number of undesired consequences including the reactivation of viruses of donor or recipient origin. Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection is the most common opportunistic infection in transplant patients and can lead to significant morbidity and mortality. Strategies to deal with HCMV infection include universal prophylaxis in which transplant recipients are given antiviral therapy post transplantation and pre-emptive therapy in which patients are monitored at regular intervals for evidence of HCMV infection and then treated if necessary. These strategies are imperfect and could be greatly improved if biomarkers of HCMV susceptibility were available to categorize patients into high risk and low risk groups. In this research the intern will look at cellular and nucleic acid biomarkers that have the potential to be indicative of patient susceptibility to HCMV infection.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Deepali Kumar

Student:

Victor Ferreira

Partner:

Industrial BioDevelopment Laboratory

Discipline:

Medicine

Sector:

Life sciences

University:

University of Toronto

Program:

Accelerate

Mucoadhesive nanoparticle eye drop drug delivery

Eye diseases, such as dry eye syndrome, affect about 15% of the population. Eye drop formulations are the most common way to treat eye diseases, but patients struggle with the multiple daily applications required and the resulting side effects. Our goal is to develop an eye drop formulation that requires less frequent application using nanoparticle drug carriers. Drugs are quickly cleared from the eye due to blinking and tear turnover, but these nanoparticles can attach to the corneal surface to prevent rapid clearance. The nanoparticles can also be designed to slowly release drugs over a prolonged period to further reduce the frequency of application. This technology has the potential to make eye drop use easier for patients and result in fewer side effects. By collaborating with AmorChem Holdings Inc., we plan to perform preclinical studies to advance the technology into clinical trials and beyond.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Frank Gu

Student:

Shengyan Liu

Partner:

AmorChem

Discipline:

Engineering - chemical / biological

Sector:

Medical devices

University:

University of Waterloo

Program:

Accelerate

Tailoring Mesenchymal Stromal Cell Therapy to Rescue Marginal DCD Livers for Transplantation

Today 25% of patients listed for liver transplantation die waiting for a liver to become available. The donor organ pool could be expanded by rescuing the 50% of livers donated after cardiac death (DCD) that are discarded due to the injury caused by prolonged periods of warm ischemia during organ retrieval. Mesenchymal Stromal Cells (MSC) reduce inflammation and promote tissue repair. The intern will establish conditions to generate MSC (pig and human) with the most potent anti-inflammatory profile and generate stocks of pig MSC for commercialization by the Industrial Biodevelopment Laboratory. The will use the optimally activated MSC to treat inflammation in pig DCD livers on perfusion unit and subsequently in a pig transplant model. The ultimate goal is to establish protocols to rescue marginal human DCD livers with MSC treatment in the clinic to expand the donor organ pool by an estimated 20% thereby saving the lives of patients awaiting transplantation.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Armand Keating

Student:

Agata Bartczak

Partner:

Industrial BioDevelopment Laboratory

Discipline:

Medicine

Sector:

Life sciences

University:

University of Toronto

Program:

Accelerate

Production of Healthy DAG-Enriched Oil from Canola Using Supercritical Carbon Dioxide Media in Par-Baked Frozen Dough Products

Structured lipids, specifically diacylglyceride (DAG) oils, have potential to replace trans fats and oils high in saturated fats such as palm and thus provide healthier oils with improved functionalities and sustainability. However, they are produced using costly and environmentally unfriendly “enzyme in solvent” systems, and have shortcomings when utilized in certain food applications. DAG oils are clinically claimed to help reduce fat accumulation and can have a major impact on obesity, which is currently identified as a global health risk by the United Nations World Health Organization. This research will investigate the feasibility of manufacturing DAG oil from canola oil based on enzymatic reaction (ER) using supercritical carbon dioxide (SC-CO2). Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) technique will be used to analyze the final product. The SC-CO2 and NMR are “green” solutions compared to current solvent systems and have to potential to be more cost effective. This study is exploring how to use new DAG oil structuring that will produce products with favorable processing and end-use properties, favorable public health and environmental outcomes.

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Faculty Supervisor:

Peter Jones

Student:

Nazanin Vafaei

Partner:

Canola Council of Canada

Discipline:

Food science

Sector:

Alternative energy

University:

University of Manitoba

Program:

Accelerate

Determining Aboriginal and Treaty Right Impacts in Regulatory Processes

This project will consider how impacts on Aboriginal and Treaty rights have been addressed in Environmental Impact Assessments and other regulatory processes in BC and Alberta. The impacts being assessed include destruction of areas important for hunting, fishing, trapping, or spiritual purposes, as well as prohibitions to accessing these and other types of important areas. This research will address a gap wherein the methods for determining such impacts are not always explicitly defined. The research objectives are to 1) discover how often these regulatory documents include statements regarding Aboriginal and Treaty rights; and, 2) in those documents wherein such statements are included, discover whether there was an explicit methodology used in their determination; and 3) record, compare, and contrast these methodologies in a formal report. The expected results are that the majority of regulatory documents do not include explicit methodologies, and in those that do, these will vary considerable in scale and scope. This will be relevant to Kwusen (partner organization) because it will provide detailed, comparative data on how potential impacts to Aboriginal and Treaty rights are being assessed in BC and Alberta. TO BE CONT’D

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Faculty Supervisor:

Michael Asch

Student:

Joshua Hazelbower

Partner:

Kwusen Research & Media

Discipline:

Sociology

Sector:

Natural resources

University:

University of Victoria

Program:

Accelerate

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