The Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering at Western University has a long history of excellence and achievement in the areas of particle technology dating back to the 1960s when Professor Maurice Bergougnou conducted his pioneering research in the fields of fluidization and ultra-fast pyrolysis reactions. Later on with the addition of Professors Cedric Briens, Jesse Zhu, Anand Prakash and Franco Berruti, the fluidization group grew in size and fame, both nationally and internationally. Since 1999, the Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering has expanded particle research to the areas of particle synthesis, industrial crystallization, nano-ceramics, nano-biomaterials, and pharmaceuticals. The Department of Chemical Engineer at Western continues to be a world leader in the area of particle technology, powder handling, fluidization, crystallization and multi-phase flow systems, and the formation of the Particle Technology Research Centre (PTRC) is the next step in the evolution of particle research at Western.
The PTRC was formed to provide a platform for Western researchers to collaborate among themselves and to provide the best service to the research community. PTRC is dedicated to the advancement of research, innovation, and technological development in the particle technology area and aims to establish and enhance research collaboration with other university research groups, research institutions and the industry. The Centre which is comprised of 15 UWO Professors continues to be a leader in innovation, carrying out numerous research projects and developing technologies that are of highest priority and relevance to emerging technologies shaping the future of particle related industries.
The Centre and its fifteen members have secured significant financial support from industrial collaborators and other funding sources. In particular, a large $4.8M grant was awarded to Prof. Zhu and Rohani on ultra-fine powder technology by Ontario Research and Development Challenge Fund (ORDCF) in 2000 and two Infrastructure grants ($1.7M + 5.2M) were given to Prof Rohani (2001) and Prof Zhu (2003) by Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) to provide important infrastructure support for particle research at Western. In 2004, a Tier-1 Canada Research Chair was also established with Prof. Zhu as the chair holder for powder technology applications within the PTRC. The financial support received for infrastructure has translated into the Centre having more than 10,000 sq ft of lab space and over $4 Million worth of instrumentation, plus another $1 Million of experimental apparatus. With this infrastructure in place the Particle Research Facility (PRF) was established in 2005. The facility has been providing analytical services and processing to various companies, developing particle related research projects and industrial collaborations with various members of the Centre.
PTRC aims to develop a multidisciplinary research program contributing to the Ontario and Canada's growing needs for particle research. THe research program deals with diverse issues of particle formation, characterization and processing.
PTRC excels as a centre for cutting edge research at national and international levels, and strives to be a leader in Ontario and Canada in enhancing particle related research through partnership with industry and providing comprehensive and cost effective services through its affiliated Particle Research Facility (PRF). The PTRC was the first Centre with the above mandate in Canada and was established with the following objectives in mind:
PTRC excels as a centre for cutting edge research at national and international levels, and strives to be a leader in Ontario in providing comprehensive and cost effective analytical services and enhancing particle related research through partnership with industry.
Currently There is no news.
Currently There is no open position.
Currently There is no open position.
Currently There is no open position.
Currently There is no open position.
