News

Eric Croiset, a professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering, aims to turn CO2 into sustainable aviation fuel to achieve net-zero emissions. The study proposes to upend the perception of CO2 as a harmful greenhouse gas and instead view it as a valuable new feedstock for producing green fuels.

 Croiset’s research group, including PhD student Mohammadali Emadi, is exploring an innovative idea to capture CO2 gas directly from the air and turn it into sustainable aviation fuel. This idea has the potential to create a financial incentive to treat CO2 as a resource, bringing a circular carbon economy a step closer to becoming a reality.

The study combined two emerging technologies, Direct Air Capture (DAC), taking CO2 from the air and using Solid Oxide Electrolysis Cells (SOEC) to change CO2 and steam into syngas, a mixture of primarily CO and H2. Syngas can then be processed into synthetic chemicals or fuels, such as sustainable aviation fuel.

Congratulations to Trevor Van Den Heuvel, a third-year student in the Department of Chemical Engineering, along with his teammates Jeff Qiao Wang (Math) and Denis Goubkine (Math), who achieved first place and a $500 prize in the 2025 Wharton Undergraduate Consulting Club Case Competition.

This competition took place virtually and challenged undergraduate student teams to provide strategic advisory for a legacy department store experiencing challenges with customer loyalty, inflation, and margin pressures.

Van Den Heuvel and his team developed a strategy to increase the revenue and profitability of the department store by leveraging AI price matching and Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) tactics to appeal to a younger generation that is sensitive to prices.

Their innovative solution took first place. By participating in the contest, they gained valuable insights into deal execution, stakeholder management, and data analysis.

These are uncertain times for industry, as it navigates survival with geopolitical changes looming, inflation, and supply chain issues.

Chemical Engineering researchers are developing innovative methods to harness machine learning (ML) for industrial applications, helping industries plan production more effectively in the face of unpredictable conditions.

A research group led by Professor Luis Ricardez-Sandoval is using ML methods to train “smart agents” to make production scheduling decisions in chemical and manufacturing systems where there is uncertainty.

The agents are trained through simulations of plant processes that include unexpected events, for example, equipment failure or a sudden change in production demands.

Mohamed Wanas is a technical leader for Nuclear Island Hydraulic Systems at GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy- a role that caps an interesting career path. His journey brought him to Canada, where a pivotal decision to pursue an MEng degree in the Department of Chemical Engineering helped lay the foundation for his current role in clean energy production.

Wanas completed his undergraduate degree in chemical engineering at the University of Alexandria in Egypt.  He worked on design, commissioning and normal operation phases in the oil and gas industry for eight years while he completed a Master of Applied Science (MASc) degree in Egypt.

Wanas had family in Canada and often travelled to Canada as a child and always hoped to return as an adult. In 2017 he returned with plans to pursue a PhD, however he had a strong desire to return to work in industry and began considering doing an MEng degree to return to work sooner.

Wanas initially considered applying to several Canadian universities; however, he was ultimately drawn to the University of Waterloo—not only because of its renowned engineering program, but also due to a connection he established with Chemical Engineering Graduate Studies Manager Judy Caron.

The 2025 Capstone projects were ambitious and innovative! Aiming to solve problems, running the gamut from converting plastic waste into hydrogen to creating a modular water treatment plant for Six Nations of the Grand River.

This graduating class pushed themselves to their limits, persevering through their first two years, which took place during the pandemic, and finishing their undergraduate degrees with innovation and tenacity.

The excitement was palpable at the Capstone Symposium as fourth-year students explained their projects to instructors, industrial partners, parents and eventgoers.

This year, there were six winning Capstone Projects in the Department of Chemical Engineering:

A research group led by Chemical Engineering Professor Milad Kamkar has developed a method to make it possible to have stable liquid droplets filled with different nanomaterials in another liquid.  

 This breakthrough research has created completely new categories of “programmable" droplet-based soft materials containing a range of nanomaterials. These droplets can be dried and turned into aerogel beads (highly porous materials) that can be deployed in many applications, such as carbon capture and wastewater treatment. 

 In complex environments, like wastewater streams with multiple contaminants, the aerogel beads can be layered or mixed to target specific pollutants.  

“Each bead can absorb a specific type of pollution,” says Kamkar. “Making the material not just multifunctional, but strategically programmable.” 

David Liñán Romero has won the Chemical Engineering Medal for Proficiency in Research Park and Veva Reilly Medal. The award recognizes skill in solving a research problem and efficiency in finding solutions. The award consists of a silver medal and a cash award.

"Winning this award makes me feel gratitude towards those who have encouraged and supported my research and academic development—not only my advisor and colleagues, but also my family and friends,”says Liñán Romero. "My PhD research was in numerical optimization, so I feel this award also recognizes the relevance of computational tools in aiding chemical engineering to shape a more efficient and sustainable future.”

Liñán Romero was a PhD student in the Department of Chemical Engineering supervised by Professor Luis Ricardez-Sandoval. He completed his doctoral studies in September 2024.

Liñán Romero’s main takeaways from studying with Ricardez-Sandoval were the importance of critical thinking and reasoning, as well as effective oral and written communication.

Professor Michael Tam has been named the 2025 recipient of the R.S. Jane Memorial Award by the Canadian Society of Chemical Engineering (CSChE). The award is presented to a person who has made exceptional achievements in the field of chemical engineering or chemistry.

“I am deeply honoured to receive this award, which reflects the hard work and contributions of the many talented students and researchers who have been part of my group since I began my academic journey in 1992,” Tam says.

Tam, a University Research Chair, is regarded as a pioneer and international leader in the fields of polymer colloids, surfactant-polymer interactions, nanomaterials, nanocellulose applications, and functional material science.

His research advances the development of sustainable nanomaterials for engineering applications in sectors such as cosmetics, personal & home care, agriculture, environmental remediation, and more.

In May, the Canadian Academy of Engineering (CAE) announced that Professor Aiping Yu has been elected as a Fellow.

CAE fellows are nominated and elected by their peers in recognition of their outstanding achievements and lifelong contributions to the field of Engineering.

“I’m honoured to join the esteemed Fellowship,” Yu said. “I’m excited and grateful to have been elected as a Fellow by the Canadian Academy of Engineering.”

Yu is a University Research Chair and is widely recognized for her disruptive research. Yu’s current research focuses on developing nanomaterials for energy storage, such as Na-ion, Zn-ion and Li-ion batteries, as well as battery recycling.

As the director of the Applied Carbon Nanotechnology Laboratory, Yu is engineering graphene and other 2D materials to increase the power density and performance of batteries.

Yu has expertise in using nanomaterials such as nanotubes for the design of high-energy storage supercapacitors.

MASc student, CT Murphy’s start-up CELLECT is a finalist in the Odlum Brown Forum Pitch, a Canadian program for women entrepreneurs. Murphy’s partner and COO, Ibukun Elebute presented at the event and secured $44K in winnings for CELLECT.

The product is being designed by Murphy with the guidance of her supervisor, Professor Marc Aucoin. They are developing a menstrual pad infused with nanomaterials that will be able to collect bacterial and cervical cells. The pad would then be sent to a lab for processing.