Cleantech

Yanwen Zhang

kvd1 — Wed, 13 Mar 2024 14:52:19 +0000

Pushing the boundaries of materials science

Crystallization Pattern of a Common Salt Mixture

kvd1 — Wed, 12 Apr 2023 19:17:10 +0000

Rachel Korchinsky

Lithium-ion batteries (LIBs) are rechargeable energy carriers that power electronic devices such as phones, cars, and hybrid/electric vehicles. The demand for lithium used to manufacture LIBs is expected to grow 30-fold by 2040. Industry primarily extracts lithium from rock ore and brine; however, the methods used are time-intensive and costly. Therefore, we are investigating alternative extraction methods that would reduce the energy consumption, waste production, and time intensity. The image, obtained by microscopy, is of salts that crystallized after evaporation of a lithium-containing brine.

Location of photograph:

Electron Microscopy Facility, Queen's University

Submission Year:

2023

Lithium Below, Stars Above

kvd1 — Wed, 12 Apr 2023 18:51:52 +0000

Dr. Christopher Spencer

Lithium is an element that is key to our energy transition away from fossil fuels and plays an important role in the battery technologies for space exploration. This photo was taken during an expedition to Western Australia exploring for lithium deposits that have the potential to reshape the global economy and resolve the global climate crisis.

Location of photograph:

Western Australia

Submission Year:

2023

Crystalline Acid

kvd1 — Thu, 09 Jun 2022 19:07:03 +0000

Dan Reddy

This photo taken with scanning electron microscopy depicts an extremely small yet precise volume (i.e., nanolitre-sized) of crystallized decanoic acid. We are using these spots of crystalline acid to extract and preconcentrate, or soak-up, chemicals of concern like opioids from wastewater samples. This preconcentration step improves our ability to monitor these chemicals. By doing so, we can improve how we detect these harmful compounds and protect local watersheds.

Location of photograph:

Chernoff Hall, Queen's University

Submission Year:

2022

Fixing financial fairy tales – The rise of sustainable finance in Canada

kvd1 — Mon, 14 Sep 2020 19:33:12 +0000

The Institute for Sustainable Finance based at ��˴�Ƭ Smith School of Business is dedicated to exploring how the many different ways in which we spend money might be adapted to reflect the principles of sustainability.

Canada has the financial expertise to make sustainable finance a reality as we shape the future post COVID-19 | #QueensuResearch

Capturing the Art of Research: Celebrating the 2020 prize recipients

MLR7 — Mon, 06 Jul 2020 13:52:42 +0000

The Queen’s Art of Research photo contest celebrates its fifth year, with the selection of ten stunning winning images.

Explore photos from ��˴�Ƭ researchers with the Art of Research as they take you behind-the-scenes of their #QueensuResearch

Shattered Planet

kvd1 — Fri, 12 Jun 2020 13:59:21 +0000

Allen Tian

The impact of human activity on our planet is often difficult to see in the moment, and requires a long-term, overlooking, view. This photo is a drone panorama of my field site on the Rideau Canal System, where I investigate the impact of human activity on aquatic ecosystems, particularly the development of toxic algal blooms. Activities such as fishing, property development and farming have fragmented and altered this ecosystem, and we need a holistic, broader view to piece together how we can protect our delicate, beautiful, world.

Location of photograph:

Milburn Bay, Dog Lake, South Frontenac County, Ontario, Canada

Prize name:

Graduate Studies Prize

Submission Year:

2019-20

Nature’s van Gogh

kvd1 — Thu, 11 Jun 2020 17:45:19 +0000

Hayden Wainwright

Algal blooms appear as smears of green slime from the ground, but are beautiful pieces of abstract art from an aerial view, painted by wind and sunlight. My research takes me to lakes on the Canadian Shield affected by blooms, where I photograph them with a drone while assistants help me collect water samples. By uncovering when, where, and why they appear, we hope to restore some of Canada’s most beautiful lakes to their pristine states.

Location of photograph:

South Frontenac County, Ontario, Canada

Prize name:

Out in the Field

Submission Year:

2019-20

Engineering Solutions: Leachate, liners, landfills, and learning

MLR7 — Tue, 24 Sep 2019 17:24:46 +0000

Human beings have undoubtedly been throwing things away for as long as we have had things to throw. These ancient middens – the predecessors of our modern landfills – provide a treasure trove of artefacts for archaeologists, who sift through discarded items for clues to how people once lived.

For the past 40 years, Kerry Rowe's research has focused on natural environmental components along with engineering principles to improve our ability to safely discard materials with more confidence that they will not come back to haunt us.

Kerry Rowe: Engineering Solutions for Landfills

moonr — Tue, 30 Apr 2019 17:34:49 +0000

Kerry Rowe, Canada Research Chair in Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering and professor in the Department of Civil Engineering, explains his ongoing research on landfill management and how he is developing techniques that work with nature rather than fighting nature.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GceFmPcCCWs

Love to Eat Oil

kvd1 — Mon, 21 Jan 2019 17:04:56 +0000

Saeed Rismani Yazdi

Oil spills are a significant threat to marine wildlife and human health. Nature has evolved an effective way to rectify this problem using indigenous bacteria to clean up the oil contaminants. My research focuses on studying the microscale interaction of bacteria with oil droplets to better understand the mechanisms of oil degradation by the bacteria. The picture shows oil-degrading bacteria (gray) finding an oil droplet (orange), forming biofilms around it (green), and eventually breaking it down into harmless compounds.

Location of photograph:

Queen's University

Submission Year:

2017-18

Platinum Surface Electrochemistry

stratg — Tue, 02 Oct 2018 20:14:23 +0000

Derek Esau

The single crystal of platinum gently hangs atop an electrolyte surface. Electrochemistry is a surface-sensitive field of research, as the composition and atomic arrangement of the electrode drastically affect its properties. Atoms in a single crystal are highly ordered, and we are able to cut and polish a crystal in such a way that we only expose one of the many possible surface arrangements. The single crystal electrode is balanced on the surface of the electrolyte to ensure that only the polished surface is exposed. These experiments give us fundamental information about electrochemical reactions, which are integral to the field of clean energy.

Location of photograph:

Department of Chemistry, Queen's University

Prize name:

Winner, Invisible Discoveries

Submission Year:

2017-18

Guojun Liu

vandusen — Mon, 09 Jul 2018 20:35:05 +0000

The Wide-ranging Applications of Polymeric Materials

How can we reduce engine wear and improve fuel economy? How can surfaces be made that are highly resistant to contamination? Dr. Guojun Liu, Canada Research Chair in Materials Science, thinks the answers may come from the development of polymeric materials.

These materials comprise both natural and synthetic materials with a wide variety of properties.

Philip Jessop

vandusen — Mon, 09 Jul 2018 20:33:25 +0000

Helping Chemistry Go Green

Most people recycle used cans, bottles, and paper, but how many consider recycling carbon dioxide? Power plants, cement factories, and breweries rarely recycle the carbon dioxide they emit as waste gases.

Dr. Philip Jessop, Canada Research Chair in Green Chemistry, wants to make the chemical and energy industries greener by identifying ways of recycling waste carbon dioxide. Dr. Jessop believes reusing carbon dioxide can help the environment and make industrial processes more efficient and economical, using less energy and fewer raw materials.

Praveen Jain

vandusen — Mon, 09 Jul 2018 20:32:03 +0000

Generating and Harnessing Renewable Energy

Worldwide, electricity demands exceed 22,000 terawatt-hours (1 billion kilowatt-hours), and is growing continuously, putting tremendous pressure on governments to build new centralized power plants that rely on expensive transmission and distribution lines. Meanwhile, power generation is already responsible for more than 30,000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year.