Innovative Projects Realized

Production de masse de pièces unitaires en composites thermoplastiques soudées par induction (MANU 1709)

La présence de très nombreuses pièces différentes dans les avions implique la fabrication de petites séries de nombreuses pièces. La majorité des pièces en composites, fabriqués en composites thermodurcissables, sont lourdes et leur fabrication très longue et manuelle. Dans le but d’alléger les masses structurelles des avions et de ramener des emplois au Québec, Génik, Hutchinson, le CRVI et l’ÉTS développent une ligne de fabrication automatisée de pièces unitaires en composites thermoplastiques, plus légères, et au cycle de fabrication plus rapide. Ce projet intègre le développement d’une technologie de soudure de composites thermoplastiques par induction, un système intelligent de vision industriel, comprenant le contrôle dimensionnel, la détection de formes, et la génération automatique de trajectoire d’outil. La particularité de cette ligne de production s’inscrit aussi dans le fait qu’elle doit être capable de fabriquer en masse des pièces unitaires, nécessitant ainsi une capacité de changement d’outil et une manutention des pièces très rapide.
En plus de la soudure par induction, l’automatisation d’une part de la détection de pièce par la vision industrielle, d’autre part de la manutention des pièces et outillages font de ce projet un axe de recherche particulièrement innovant.

Investigation of Power System Performance with integration of Inverter based Generation

The electric power industry is undergoing considerable changes with respect to structure, operation, regulation and modernization. One of the significant changes is the increased utilization of distribured energy sources (DES) such as wind and solar and other immerging technologies particularly in electric distribution systems. It is envisioned that DES will bcome the main source of energy in the industry in the future due to the environmental friendliness, improving capabilities and lowering cost of these resources. Transition from traditional centralized power to DES would definitely create new challenges in planning of power systems and requires new assessment techniques and methodologies. It is, therefore, both necessary and important to develop a consistent and useful approach for the evaluation and examination of the performance of power systems containing distributed energy sources, energy store, and other new technologies.

Éducation 4.0 : Jeux sérieux et technologies adaptatives

En cette ère du numérique et de l’intelligence, une nouvelle vision de l’éducation – Éducation 4.0 – vise à développer une approche pédagogique novatrice et centrée sur le développement des compétences du 21e siècles telles la pensée complexe, la résolution de problèmes de façon créative et la capacité d’adaptation. Ces compétences – non-techniques, transversales et cognitives – sont essentielles au développement académique et personnel des élèves afin de les préparer à être des agents de changements. Dans ce projet, nous analysons le jeu sérieux comme outil de développement des compétences du 21e siècle.

Sobeys Supply Chain Sustainability

S0b~ys has made sIgnificant progress in reducing the environmental Impacts of its direct operations

thrQugh reductions in GHG emissions and waste productIon. The corporatIon Is now ready to expand

Its efforts to the supply chain, where it has determined the vast majority of environmental Impacts

origInate. This research project will examine ways that Sobeys can furthers its progress in

sustainabllity measures by shifting the focus from direct retail operations to the product supply chain,

in order to Increase environmental and social sustainablllty of Sobeys product sourcing, The research

question to be addressed Is: As a large conventional food retailer concerned with the global impacts

of its operatIons, what are the areas of the Sobeys product supply chains with the greatest

environmental impacts and where is there potential for improved sustalnabJllty measures within the

supply chain?

Identifying Questions for Game-Based Learning through Deep Learning

Game-based learning tools often make use of questions to measure and encourage learning, but generating questions can be challenging, especially at the scale that companies like Axonify are required to do. In this project, the intern will design, implement, and evaluate a system that can apply machine-learning on a corpus of text (e.g., a textbook) to automatically generate questions that can be used in game-based learning tools. This system will allow Axonify to scale their products to larger corpora of source material, larger sets of questions, and ultimately have a much larger market as a result.

Numerical modeling and optimization of the coagulation-flocculation process for seawater pre-treatment

The result of this project can be used by engineers to design a multivariable control system that will optimize the dosing of chemicals in seawater pretreatment. Besides, the plant operators and technicians will be able to perform ‘what if’ scenarios based on computer modeling results to ensure that the outlet water quality is not decreased. The model will also provide an understanding of the effective parameters that determine the optimum coagulant/ flocculant dosage required for an effective water treatment process. This project is a part of a bigger project which is desalination of sea water, which can positively affect the Canadian community in case of water quality and availability. The results of the modeling can be directly used in that main project at Pani-energy.

Graphics Processing Unit Solutions for Power Systems Computer Aided Design: Advanced Development with the University of Winnipeg

Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) are usually employed to quickly render images on everyday computer screens, and do so quickly and efficiently for relatively little cost compared to the use of Central Processing Units (CPUs) that make up the “brain” of the computer. Modern GPUs are able to do hundreds or thousands of simultaneous calculations; rewriting conventional computer problems in the language of GPUs offers the po-tential to dramatically decrease the computation time for complex problems such as Electromagnetic Trans-mission (EMT) simulations. EMTs are used to model large electrical systems — such as city power grids — and are fundamental to power engineering software. This project will focus on how to integrate the power of GPUs into established software for EMTs, with the aim of providing power engineers around the globe with a cutting-edge tool to help design ever greater electrical systems.

Représentation dynamique de l’empreinte carbone de l’hydroélectricité au Québec

La production d’électricité à faible empreinte carbone est un levier majeur dans la lutte contre les changements climatiques. L’hydroélectricité, qui représente 99% de l’électricité produite au Québec, possède une faible empreinte carbone comparativement à l’électricité provenant de ressources fossiles, soit un avantage majeur pour la province. Les émissions de CO2 et de CH4 provenant de la dégradation de la biomasse dans les réservoirs ont une grande influence sur l’empreinte carbone de l’hydroélectricité. Il est primordial de bien quantifier ces émissions afin d’être en mesure de prendre des décisions éclairées dans le contexte actuel de transition énergétique. Or, les émissions des réservoirs varient fortement dans temps, étant beaucoup plus élevés dans les 10 à 15 années suivant la création des réservoirs. L’objectif de ce projet est de développer une représentation dynamique de l’empreinte carbone de l’hydroélectricité au Québec afin d’avoir un portrait plus juste de l’impact climatique de l’électricité produite actuellement dans la province, ainsi que dans les années à venir.

Étude du comportement hydrodynamique, et diphasique d’un classificateur à lit fluidisé – Phase 2

Le projet a pour but d’analyser le comportement d’un fluide diphasique, mélange de bauxite et d’eau, dans un classificateur à fond plat soumis à l’effet de plusieurs paramètres.
Une étude expérimentale utilisant un classificateur à échelle réduite permet d’effectuer les mesures de fraction solide (pourcentage de solide dans l’échantillon) aux sorties du classificateur, ainsi que d’observer le comportement du fluide diphasique et particulièrement du lit fluidisé présent dans le bas du classificateur.
Une étude numérique consiste à développer un modèle CFD (computer fluid dynamics) qui représente l’écoulement d’un fluide diphasique (solide-liquide) composé d’une plage granulométrique (répartition des particules selon leur taille) variée afin d’en observer le comportement et de calculer les paramètres de sortie.
En incorporant les résultats expérimentaux au modèle CFD, l’étude de comportement de la bauxite dans les équipements de séparation solide-liquide à fond plat permettra d’optimiser leur conception et leur fonctionnement en usine.

Insight into killer whale habitat quality

British Columbia’s (BC) resident killer whales are listed under the Species At Risk Act as ‘threatened’ and ‘endangered’ for the northern and southern residents, respectively. Contaminants have been recognized as one of the main threats affecting the survival and recovery of these populations. This project will look at the levels of contaminants of concern in sediment samples collected from killer whale habitat. Sediment has been used around the world to evaluate pollutant inputs and distribution in aquatic environments as it can be both a contaminant ‘sink’ and a ‘source’ for adjacent food webs. As part of Ocean Wise’s PollutionTracker program, sediment samples have been collected at over 50 sites along the BC coast. This project is a great opportunity for Ocean Wise to compile and use the data that has been collected since 2015 and provide invaluable information on the source, transport and fate of contaminants of priority concern for the endangered southern resident killer whales.

Landfill Odour Management Strategies

Golder Associates Inc. is the Technical Lead Consultant on the Environmental Assessment for the expansion of the W12A landfill of the City of London. One key aspect of this project is landfill design alternatives and the impact on air quality and, specifically, odour issues. The proposed project aims at providing critically valuable information regarding local air and odour monitoring at the W12A landfill site, regional air and odour monitoring in the South London area, as well as an assessment of the industry best practices not currently employed that may be applicable. Experimental and modelling work, combining data gathered with appropriate sampling and monitoring technologies, dispersion modelling and meteorological data will allow to better understand the air quality and odour issues surrounding the landfill and to recommend the most effective odour management strategies by either enhancing or implementing new operational activities or employing additional engineering controls and/or monitoring devices/programs.

The interplay between mental health, mental illness, sport culture, and athletic performance in Olympic and Paralympic sport

Mental health is increasingly being recognized as a key component of elite athletes’ overall functioning and sport performance. Globally, research on antecedents (e.g., sport culture) and consequences (e.g., athletic performance) of mental health and illness in elite athlete populations is growing. However, little is known about the relationship between mental health, mental illness, sport culture, and athletic performance in the Canadian high-performance sport context. The purpose of this research project is to better understand the interplay between these variables in Canadian Olympic and Paralympic athletes using a longitudinal mixed-methods design. The results and deliverables associated with this project will help the partner organization, Own The Podium, develop evidence-based and culturally appropriate resources, policies, and programming to support Olympic and Paralympic athletes in their training and competition environments.