News

Chemical Engineering Professor Tizazu Mekonnen has been named Inaugural Director of the Indigenous and Black Engineering and Technology (IBET) PhD Project. This new partnership, which includes the University of Waterloo and five other Ontario universities, aims to diversify academia and Canadian technology industries by increasing the number of Indigenous and Black Canadians pursuing engineering and technology degrees at universities across Ontario.

With deep sadness, we announce the death of second-year Chemical Engineering student Mihir Rodrigues, who passed away from a heart-related issue on December 29th, 2020, while he was at home in India.

When faced with a new challenge, it never hurts to call a friend for advice. But, as many first-year students discover, it can be difficult to find someone who can relate. Fortunately, this year’s new chemical engineering students have exactly that – an experienced buddy to steer them in the right direction.

The University of Waterloo’s Department of Chemical Engineering ranks first in Canada in the latest National Taiwan University Ranking, which measures universities’ research output and impact.

This is the eighth consecutive year in which our department has been ranked first among all of the chemical engineering departments in Canada, an honour it has held for 9 of the 11 years that NTU has ranked the top 300 universities in 10 subjects.

The Department of Chemical Engineering’s Aiping Yu has been awarded a prestigious 2020 E.W.R. Steacie Memorial Fellowship.

Each year, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) recognizes six highly promising early-stage researchers in the natural sciences and engineering with an E.W.R. Steacie Memorial Fellowship, in recognition of their efforts and to enhance their research capacity so that they can become leaders in their field and inspire others.

Professor Michael Tam has been awarded $800,000 in federal funding to develop compostable personal protective equipment (PPE) and antimicrobial coatings to help fight COVID-19.

He hopes to produce face masks and other PPE from natural rather than synthetic materials, and develop coatings and sprays to protect PPE and high-touch surfaces from contamination by the virus.

Professor Emeritus Ken O’Driscoll passed away on August 4, 2020, at the age of 89.

O’Driscoll was an internationally respected polymer science researcher, a talented teacher, and a kind and inspirational mentor who worked in the Department of Chemical Engineering between 1970 and 1992. His research in polymerization kinetics and polymer synthesis and characterization influenced many products we know and still use today, including hydrophilic contact lenses (also known as ‘soft contact lenses’), which he developed in 1971.

Chemical Engineering graduate Khristen Lowe (BASc ‘20) played an integral role in the Faculty of Engineering’s Fall 2020 virtual convocation celebration on Saturday. He joined Kelsey Malott (BArch ’19, MArch ’20) as co-host of the event and he delivered an inspiring valedictorian address for graduates of the faculty.

The Department of Chemical Engineering placed 87^th in worldwide university rankings for 2021, joining three other Waterloo Engineering subjects in the top 100.

After joining chemical engineering professor David Simakov’s research group last month, postdoctoral researcher Edris Madadian is applying advanced thermochemical and biochemical technologies to remove contaminants from sewage sludge, the main by-product of wastewater treatment plants.