October 17, 2008

BUILDING ONTARIO’S INNOVATION ECONOMY

Basic and Applied Research

Queen’s University

Dr. Ian Moore, Dr. Richard Brachman
Making our infrastructure safer
Provincial Funding: $236,809

Maintaining Ontario’s aging municipal and transportation infrastructure is expensive, creating a need for innovative, cost-effective repair and replacement solutions. At Queen’s University, Drs. Ian Moore and Richard Brachman are investigating pipe, sewer and culvert infrastructure with the goals of developing new damage assessment techniques, improved repair methods and guidelines on load capacity. Their work has important implications for aging infrastructure worldwide. 

Dr. Mark Boulay
Searching for the origins of the universe
Provincial Funding: $401,391

Identifying dark matter, which makes up 25 per cent of our universe, is one of the big mysteries – and challenges – in physics today. Dr. Mark Boulay is designing and constructing a large liquid argon dark matter particle detector to be located two kilometres underground in a large cavity at Ontario’s Sudbury SNOLAB. (Argon is used because it not only produces light if hit by dark matter particles but can also be made extremely pure since it is a noble gas.) The detector will be 1,000 times more sensitive than any current detectors, a sensitivity that can only be reached in the deep SNOLAB site. Dr. Boulay’s work may result in the identification of dark matter particles, solidifying Ontario’s pre-eminence in the field of particle astrophysics, and providing answers to how the universe came to be – and how it’s evolving. 

Dr. Mark Daymond, Dr. Keith Pilkey
Developing materials with new properties
Provincial Funding: $374,804

The key to understanding, predicting and altering the behaviour of any material is the ability to identify and quantify its controlling structural features, which are often microscopic in size. The critical role of these features is often only evident when the material is undergoing deformation (in situ). At a facility that’s the first of its kind in North America, Drs. Mark Daymond and Keith Pilkey are studying a wide variety of engineering and biological materials in situ. Their research will lead to development of materials with new and improved properties that can be used in industries as diverse as power generation, automotive and clinical medicine.

Dr. Ugo Piomelli
Furthering our understanding of turbulence
Provincial Funding: $125,000

Smoke rising from a cigarette, air flowing over airplanes and effluent coming out of smoke stacks are all examples of turbulent flows. Understanding turbulence is essential for activities as varied as predicting weather, studying pollution disbursement in the environment and understanding the flow in blood vessels. At the Turbulence Simulation and Modeling Laboratory at Queen’s University Dr. Ugo Piomelli is modeling turbulent flows for a variety of applications, including engineering, environmental and earth sciences and meteorology.

Dr. Tucker Carrington
Uncovering the secrets of molecular particles
Provincial Funding: $75,000

Using large-memory computers, Dr. Tucker Carrington at Queen’s University is developing and testing new methods for studying the movement of atoms. His goal is to understand how molecules interact with light and how reactions occur. While fundamental in nature, his research has implications for understanding areas as diverse as global warming, pollution, engineering, alternative energy sources and drug discovery.

Dr. Timothy McKenna
Creating the next generation of plastics and synthetic materials
Provincial Funding: $250,000

Polymers are chemical compounds made of smaller, identical molecules (monomers) linked together. Some polymers, like cellulose, occur naturally, while others, like nylon, are man-made. Integrated into every type of product imaginable, they are indispensable in the modern world. Their structure and properties are determined by both their chemistry and the process used to make them. Dr. Timothy McKenna at Queen’s University is focused on developing innovative technologies for manufacturing next-generation polymers with characteristics we can only imagine. His work has implications for virtually every industry from transportation to electronics to medicine.

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See also:

• News Release: Ontario Turning Ideas Into Stronger Economy
• Backgrounder: Supporting Basic and Applied Research
• Backgrounder: Basic and Applied Research Projects
• Recipients