Innovative Projects Realized

Proposing targets and limits to urban sprawl as an urban growth management strategy toward sustainability

Urban sprawl has become a major concern in scientific and political discussions because of its many detrimental environmental, economic, and social effects. The current trends in urban sprawl in many countries are in conflict with the spirit and the principles of sustainable development. How can this growing challenge be addressed by future urban growth management policies such as the implementation of greenbelts? Collectively agreed regulations for self-restraint are urgently needed, such as the establishment of targets and limits for urban sprawl, similar to reference values and limitations that have been established in other environmental areas, such as limits to noise and water pollution. Based on the development of urban sprawl in the last 30 years and on a number of potential scenarios of future urban sprawl in Germany, its 16 federal states and 111 planning regions, this project will determine targets and limits to urban sprawl using the Weighted Urban Proliferation (WUP) method. Once such values are established, the method is suitable as an instrument for monitoring compliance with sprawl targets and limits.

Analyzing the potential of hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles as distributed energy storage or generators to decarbonize transportation and power sectors

Decarbonizing the transportation sector and scaling up energy storage are critical for the transition to a net-zero economy. This project will study the potential of connecting fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) to the electrical grid as distributed energy storage and/or electricity generators to supply electricity to the grid when needed. This FCEVs-to-grid pathway can maximize the benefits of the hydrogen infrastructure expansion in Canada to decarbonize both the transportation and power sectors, while providing incentives to FCEV owners. We will use heavy-duty trucks and trains, the potential early adopters of FCEVs, as two examples to identify the potential operation and technical constraints and evaluate the overall economic and environmental benefits.

Comparing invariants of graph-theoretic ideals

In this project, we study a connection between graphs (also called networks) and algebraic objects known as ideals. Graph theory is a major branch of modern mathematics, with diverse applications to society and industry such as transportation system modelling and social media marketing. The simple yet fundamental algebraic structure of an ideal encodes important information about the structure of the corresponding graph. This encoding comes in the form of certain numbers, known as invariants, that are associated to the ideal. The regularity, projective dimension, and h-polynomial degree are three invariants that are widely studied in the literature. This project aims to investigate certain graph properties by computing and comparing these invariants. The regularity, in particular, is closely related to the existence of cycles in the corresponding graph, which is of great interest in both pure and applied graph theory. This project will leverage supercomputer resources to compute these invariants and develop new results for several classes of graphs and ideals. Such computations will prove invaluable to other researchers in this area as they formulate questions for further study.

Terahertz single shot up-conversion detection of pulse train

Terahertz (THz) waves are a type of radiation located between micro-waves and infrared light. This radiation possess both the qualities of micro-waves passing through walls and infrared which can be used to image an object.
In the current project of the student, electro-optic sampling (EOs) method is used to detect THz pulse’s phase in reflexion imaging. Another potential method could be with parametric detection with electro-optic crystals, which could be much more sensitive than the conventional method and solve multiple encountered issues. One of the world’s expert in parametric detection is the professor Kawase in Nagoya university. This internship will allow the student to learn every aspects of parametric detection and generation methods to link potential industrial application in Canada.

Superhydrophobic Hydrogel-Elastomer Hybrids

Hydrogels can hold many times their weight in water and consequentially find a diverse range of applications, ranging from biomedical applications to photonics and adhesion. However, their moisture content is not easily controlled; in wet environments, water easily enters the hydrogel, and in dry environments, water in the hydrogel quickly evaporates. This leads to swollen or dehydrated gels, destroying their structural integrity, thereby ruining their functions. The few methods in scientific literature which exist to moderate water content of hydrogels often do not modify just the surface, but rather the wettability of the entire bulk of the hydrogel—removing some of their useful properties enabled by high water content. We propose to fabricate a superhydrophobic hydrogel-elastomer hybrid material, in which the surface is very difficult to wet, but the interior maintains its water content. This will enable the use of hydrogels in a much greater range of environments.

The effect of annealing on the deformation and impurity segregation mechanisms in electrodeposited nanocrystalline NiCo alloy

Fully dense nanocrystalline alloys have high strength, hardness, and wear resistance due to their extremely fine (nano) crystals. This makes them of significant interest in different industrial applications which require excellent mechanical properties. A new nanocrystalline nickel-cobalt (NiCo) alloy, currently being developed with Integran Technologies Inc, Mississauga, Ontario, has a good combination of strength and wear resistance. We discovered that the strength of the alloy can further be improved by performing heat treatments at moderate temperatures after fabrication. On the other hand, the process related in the material sulfur impurities were found to make the alloy brittle if the heat treatment temperature is too high. However, the intrinsic mechanisms that lead to these changes in mechanical behavior remain not well understood. This project to be carried out at The University of Tokyo aims to examine these fundamental properties which will help in assessing the feasibility of accelerating the commercialization of the alloy for various applications.

Photogrammetry and water monitoring for Hyper-K

The next generation neutrino experiments like Hyper-Kamiokande will have statistical power, but the presence of detector systematics will limit the discovery potential of the experiments.
The uncertainties due to construction tolerances, support frame shift from PMT buoyancy, and the source deployment system, combined with uncertainties in PMT angular response, and position-dependent water quality, can limit the precision of our final measurements. Through the application of photogrammetry, position, and potentially direction, of each PMT and deployed calibration sources can be calibrated, independently from all other degenerate detector parameters including those mentioned above. Furthermore, mitigating the water-related uncertainties requires R&D of water purification systems, water quality measurement apparatuses, and ultra-pure and gadolinium (Gd) loaded water compatibility soak testing for future detector components. Through this internship at Kavli IPMU, I plan to contribute to the development of these novel techniques for controlling the detector systematics that are crucial for the high significance discoveries of Hyper-Kamiokande.

The Freeze Tolerance of the Terrestrial Slug, Ambigolimax valentianus

Land-dwelling slugs are routinely exposed to cold or freezing temperature during the winter. Some species of slugs can even survive partial ice formation within their bodies. How they survive low temperatures is largely a mystery as ice formation is damaging, and they lack external protection like shells. This project aims to determine the lower temperature tolerance of Ambigolimax valentianus, a species of invasive slug that has established damaging populations in Japan, Canada, and Europe. To do this, we will expose A. valentianus to sub-zero temperatures under different environmental conditions (day lengths and cold temperature acclimations) and measure their freezing points and overall survival. Then, we will attempt to determine if small molecules, called cryoprotectants, play a role in their freezing tolerance as they do in other species of molluscs. With this information, we can determine the factors that influence the lower temperature tolerances of A. valentianus, which if remarkable, would be a property that could allow them to outcompete native species.

Bright Minds & Bushy Tails: How education impacts animal-related attitudes in Japanese graduate students Japanese graduate students

“Iyashi” (i.e., well-being) can stem from human-animal interactions (HAI), like those developed through companionship, animal-assisted therapies, or animal cafes. Research suggests that prolonged exposure to, or education about, non-human animals may lead to a greater understanding of non-human animal sentience. What could be the impact of a short-term educational program on attitudinal change? This study will investigate the impact of two separate 2-week courses taught through the Hokkaido Summer Institute (one HAI-related and one non-HAI related) on graduate students’ perceptions of, and empathy towards, non-human animals. Students that participate in the HAI-related, but not the non-HAI-related, course are expected to show significant changes in attitudes toward the use of, and empathy for, animals. An ethical tendency towards idealism, but not relativism, is expected to positively correlate with scores on the above measures in the HAI course group. An ethnographic/qualitative examination of teaching practices in a Japanese graduate classroom will also be conducted. Results from this study will contribute to the Canadian public’s understanding, and appreciation, of the roles of non-human animals in the everyday lives of humans as well as the diversity of teaching strategies in Japan.

Intégration de la gestion des idées dans le processus de gestion de l’innovation technologique de l’IRÉQ

Ce projet comprend l’animation/observation de communauté de pratique pour modéliser et prototyper une amélioration du système de gestion des idées existant et à l’intégrer parfaitement à la gestion de l’innovation technologique de l’IRÉQ. Ce nouveau système permettra la valorisation des idées produites dans un contexte scientifique pour les amener vers un processus d’innovation technologique. Ainsi, ce projet se déroulera sur un an à travers 5 périodes/blocs et s’attachera 1 – à animer et observer les communautés de pratique afin de modéliser une amélioration du système de gestion des idées existant, 2 – à concrétiser cette modélisation par un prototype opérationnel visant l’intégration au sein du processus d’innovation technologique, 3 – à classer les idées au moyen d’une taxonomie organisationnelle, 4 – à valider la pertinence du prototype auprès des experts et la mettre en place de manière pérenne et/ou à la diffuser plus largement et 5 – à consolider le lien direct entre gestion des idées et innovation pour tendre vers l’innovation technologique et proposer un guide pour les communautés de pratique.

The Relative Importance of Recirculated Seawater on Submarine Groundwater Discharge

While rivers are an important and highly visible pathway for freshwater to reach the ocean, another less noticeable, but also important, pathway is the discharge of groundwater from the sea floor. This phenomenon, known as Submarine Groundwater Discharge (SGD), is significant to the coastal ocean because it can carry water-based nutrients and pollutants into the sea, which then mix with the water and affect the surrounding sea life. The extent and mechanisms of this mixing depends heavily on how much of the discharge is fresh groundwater, and how much is recirculated seawater. This project aims to get a better understanding of this balance by combining groundwater theory with numerical models of the ocean, as well as by taking measurements using a novel technique. It is expected that the resulting tool will provide valuable insights into the drivers of this balance, as well as improve understanding of it under different conditions.

Combinatorial aspects of persistent homology

Topological data analysis is a tool used to analyze the shape of a given dataset. It allows one to find topological or geometrical features of even large collections of data. Persistent homology is one of the main approaches to topological data analysis in recent times. The strategy is to set some rule to build geometrical objects from data using a parameter given by a real number. As this parameter varies, the geometrical object varies, and persistence homology is the study of the evolution of these objects as the parameter increases.

Recent work aim to expend this strategy to using multiple parameter simultaneously. However, the mathematical models are more complex and further abstract theories need to be developed. This aims to lay foundations that will eventually allow the development of algorithms that can use these ideas in an efficient manner. Our goal is to contribute to this effort, with an approach that is combinatorial and algebraic.