Consult information sheets about our professors and details about their research work by consulting the directory of expertise at Polytechnique Montréal.
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University research laboratories lead in the design of the most innovative materials of the 21st century. Polytechnique Montréal researchers work to create lighter, stronger, more efficient, and more socially responsible materials.
These new materials serve to protect the environment, introduce new communication tools, build efficient vehicles and aircraft, increase the safety of human beings or provide them with better medical care. They can be used in areas as diverse as chemical and biochemical processes, the biomedical sector, transportation, aerospace and power electronics.
The design of innovative materials interests Polytechnique researchers who see it as a bold technological challenge. Among their research projects are making materials smart, enabling them to capture and store energy more efficiently, to absorb CO2, to repair themselves, to biodegrade, and much more. Our research infrastructure is up to the task of supporting all these ambitious projects.
IN RELATION TO THIS SPHERE OF EXCELLENCE |
Consult information sheets about our professors and details about their research work by consulting the directory of expertise at Polytechnique Montréal.
Since 1999, Polytechnique has invested $110,547,854 in its Innovative Materials Sphere of Excellence thanks to support from the Canada Foundation for Innovation, the Government of Quebec and other partners.
*Inter-university research units
EXAMPLES OF MASTER'S AND PHD PROJECTS OFFERED |
Every year, Polytechnique Montréal offers hundreds of project opportunities for graduate students. To give you an idea of the wide range of topics our researchers are working on, here are a few examples of the projects being carried out at the university in connection with the Innovative Materials Sphere of Excellence. Keep in mind that this list isn't exhaustive.
Click here to see all the projects currently offered by and find the one(s) that align with your interests.
Lead Professor: Jean-Philippe Harvey
Department: Chemical Engineering
The raw material used in metal production contains an increasing number of impurities. Companies must therefore adjust their processes to find new approaches to ensure the quality and sustainability of end products. In this context, Professor Jean-Philippe Harvey is conducting research aimed at developing new methods to treat lower-quality raw material and to remove impurities to produce metals, and ultimately, alloys that are more efficient and recyclable.
Among the projects Professor Harvey's team is working on is the development of software that allows companies to predict the behaviour of materials more effectively by simulating various alloy compositions, for example, using computers. His research team also carries out projects on the security of thermal processes and the corrosion of materials used in electrified transport.
Lead Professor: Nick Virgilio
Department: Chemical Engineering
Studying the behaviour of materials is essential for the development of more efficient and sustainable processes and materials. Professor Nick Virgilio is working to design materials with very precise and detailed properties that can be used in fields as diverse as (bio)chemical processes, the biomedical sector, transportation, aerospace and power electronics.
For example, Professor Virgilio's team is working on the development of a gelling material to treat brain cancer, as well as light, resistant polymer materials for the manufacture of a lunar vehicle. At the same time, he is also working on innovative materials containing tiny metal particles, or nanoparticles, to develop greener chemical processes, and on new cooling techniques for power electronics systems based on micro-structured liquids.
Lead Professor: Frédéric Sirois
Department: Electrical Engineering
The electrical and magnetic properties of materials are used in a wide range of applications, including industrial processes, the production and transmission of electricity, electric propulsion, and the biomedical sector. An issue common to these areas of application is the lack of knowledge about the behaviour of the materials themselves, as well as a lack of computational tools to predict the behaviour of a device to optimize its performance.
Professor Frédéric Sirois conducts several dynamic and innovative research projects to address the challenges presented by this lack of knowledge and adequate tools in the behaviour of materials. For example, in the area of electrification of air transport, he is working with manufacturers of aeronautical equipment to develop advanced material characterization and digital simulation tools to help certify new products more quickly.
Lead Professor: Louis Laberge Lebel
Department: Mechanical Engineering
Producing sustainable, plant-based materials for the manufacture of cars, aircraft, sports equipment, and other consumer goods is one of the objectives of research being conducted by Professor Louis Laberge Lebel. He is working with several companies to develop new manufacturing processes by incorporating lighter, more resistant and environmentally responsible materials.
Through his research, Professor Laberge Lebel can propose to his industrial partners low-cost, high-performance manufacturing methods that incorporate bio-composites. The use of these methods in the automotive industry, for example, would allow manufacturers to design lighter cars that consume less fuel with less harmful emissions for the environment. The production of more sustainable, efficient and solid textile products is another area of Professor Laberge Lebel’s research interests.
Lead Professor: Abdellah Ajji
Department: Chemical Engineering
Packaging is part of our daily lives and presents many challenges in terms of its impact on the environment and on consumer safety. In this context, Professor Abdellah Ajji is conducting research aimed at designing packaging that is more efficient and less harmful to the environment.
For example, some of his projects focus on antibacterial and antioxidant properties of packaging to ensure the quality and sustainability of packaged products, as well as the reduction of waste by reducing the amount of material used and recyclability.
Professor Ajji's team is also working on the design of fibre and nanofibre structures for biomedical applications, including cancer treatment, as well as the development of gas and water filtration applications to prevent the spread of pathogens.