In the Composite Biomaterial Systems Laboratory, we conduct research and development in two general areas:
We can summarize our efforts as interdisciplinary investigation and innovation for improved bone health and repair. A great deal of what we do concerns structure-function-property relationships, how these change with aging and disease in bone, and how they can be optimized in the development of superior structural biomaterials.
What are Composite Biomaterial Systems?
Composite:
Made up of multiple parts/phases.
Biomaterial:
- A naturally-derived material, such as human tissue (e.g. bone, cartilage, tendon, etc.).
- A material developed for biomedical applications (e.g. implantable biomaterials for the reconstruction of bone).
Systems:
Representative of our holistic, interdisciplinary approach to research and development.
News
Congratulations to Mr. Daniel Dapaah for his paper accepted to the 1st annual BioMM conference
Congratulations to Mr. Daniel Dapaah, MASc candidate in the WCBSL, for his recent paper (A CONTINUUM DAMAGE MECHANICS MODEL OF THE MICRODAMAGE PROCESS ZONE DURING CORTICAL BONE FRACTURE) accepted to The 1st International Conference on Materials, Mimicking, Manufacturing from and for Bio Application (www.biomm.org; Milan, Italy, June 2018).
Graduate Student Openings in the WCBSL
The Composite Biomaterial Systems Laboratory seeks highly motivated, proactive, and enthusiastic individuals to work on two-year (MASc) or four-year (PhD) projects under the supervision of Prof. Thomas Willett, PhD, PEng, Assistant Professor, Biomedical Enginering Program, Systems Design Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
Congratulations to Dr. Patricia Comeau for recent successes!
Congratulations to NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow and member of the WCBSL Dr. Patricia Comeau for recently being awarded a WBC2016 Legacy Travel Award from the Canadian Biomaterials Society. Way to go!
Dr. Comeau also presented two papers at the Society for Biomaterials meeting in Altanta, Georgia, USA this week.
An anatomically accurate skull model printed on our vat polymerization 3D printer using our biomaterials composite resin ink.
A crack growing in cortical bone during fracture toughness testing.
A vertebra model printed using our novel nanocomposite inks and digital light projection.