News

Alberta Bio Future’s Research and Innovation Program –Deadline: October 28, 2015 Funding call opens for research and innovation projects to develop new bioindustrial products or technologies     Bioindustrial products from Alberta – derived from sustainable agricultural or forest biomass – are used in several sectors, including the personal care, chemical and energy industries, as well as construction and manufacturing. These bioproducts …Read More »

Network Strategic Lead – Dr. Lauren Mercier Lauren received her PhD in synthetic chemistry from the University of Calgary in 2011. During her doctoral studies, she was awarded a JSPS-NSERC Summer Program Fellowship and worked at the University of Nagoya, Japan. Lauren then accepted a one year postdoctoral position at the Université Laval studying polymers for solar cells. In 2013, …Read More »

The BCN has officially crossed the 5-year mark! To commemorate this special occasion, we have designed an infographic (click here for a PDF version or click on the image on the right to enlarge) to illustrate the many tangible and intangible benefits that the network has brought to researchers at the University of Alberta, the agricultural/forestry and energy sectors of the province, …Read More »

We are pleased to announce the following  research projects for the 2013-14 period: For more information see Current Research  Project List Forestry Program – Value Applications for Alberta’s Forest Sector   Opportunities to integrate forest-based by-products with conventional industries     Amit Kumar, Chemical & Materials Engineering, U of A Optimization and adaptation of a lipids-to-hydrocarbons (LTH) technology to convert Alberta-based …Read More »

After careful consultation the workshop proceedings from “Building Alberta’s Bioindustrial Talent Pool: Engaging Industry To Develop The Ideal Workforce” are ready to be shared with all of the participants. Please follow this link to access the document.Read More »

“Milestones=Momentum” BIOALBERTA MEMBERS RECOGNIZED AT 2012 AGM & Awards Gala ~ Art Froehlich inducted into Alberta Bioindustry Hall of Fame ~ Edmonton, Alberta – November 22, 2012 – Acknowledging that achieving milestones provides companies with the momentum they require to move their products and services to the next stage, BioAlberta hosted its 13th Annual AGM and Awards Gala in Calgary, to an audience of more than 130 representatives …Read More »

If there are aspects to UAlberta that you don’t understand, chances are you’re not alone. The university can be a complicated entity with many moving parts. University 101 was created to assist the campus community in better understanding who does what and how things get done at the university. In a concerted effort to become the nexus where traditional resource …Read More »

This video was filmed during a one-day seminar series and tour of the Alberta Biomaterials Development Center (ABDC) Fibre Processing Facility at the Alberta Innovates Technology Futures building in Vegreville, AB. The BCN participated in this event and attended seminars by Dr. Hamdy Khalil of Woodbridge Foam Corporation, Stefan Declerck of Van Dommele Engineering, Dr. Amar Mohanty of the University of Guelph Plan Agriculture & …Read More »

Dr. Amit Kumar, Lead of the Biomass Pre-Processing Theme and Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, is being honored with the 2011 Young Engineer of the Year Award by the Canadian Society for Bioengineering (CSBE).  The award recognizes outstanding engineering contributions to Canadian agricultural, food, or biological engineering made by a CSBE member under 40 years of age. Kumar …Read More »

The BCN is participating in the 2011 World Congress on Biotechnology & Bioprocessing in Toronto, ON (May 8-11). As an integral part of Bioeconomy Alberta, the BCN will actively support the mission to develop Alberta’s bioindustrial sector by attracting new companies to the province and continuing to augment the growth of a strong research community to enhance the sustainability and competitive edge of Alberta’s bioeconomy. Look for …Read More »

The BCN is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Greg Dechaine as Thermal Conversions Theme Lead. This role was previously held by Dr. Murray Gray, who will remain involved with the BCN but has resigned as Theme Lead in order to pursue sabbatical activities during 2011-12. Dr. Dechaine is an Assistant Professor in the department of Chemical & Materials …Read More »

The Science Alberta Foundation recently produced a series of videos on “A Career in Chemical Engineering”. The videos feature two Tech Futures chemical engineers, who support Alberta in leading in the growing market for sustainable and renewable materials. While the Wonderville.ca videos are aimed at making science relevant for grade-school children, Albertans of all ages will find these informative. The …Read More »

Mr. Tizazu Mekonnen was recently asked to contribute an article to PrioNews, PrioNet Canada’s Quarterly Newsletter. Mr. Mekonnen is a graduate student in Dr. Bressler’s lab in the Dept. of AFNS at the University of Alberta. He is working on a technology to convert co-products of the rendering industry such as Specified Risk Material, to value-added protein-based products.  Click here to …Read More »

The BCN is pleased to congratulate graduate student, Mr. Sabaratnam Naguleswaran, for winning first place in the Carbohydrate Division Best Paper Competition at the 2010 Annual Meeting of the American Association of Cereal Chemists (AACC). Mr. Naguleswaran’s presentation, entitled “Distribution of granule channels, protein and phospholipid in triticale and corn starches as revealed by confocal laser scanning” described the graduate research he is conducting under …Read More »

Under the bold theme “Refining Technology for Biomass Conversion: Conventional Products through Unconventional Approaches”, the Biorefining Conversions Network (BCN) recently held their 2nd Annual Strategic Retreat at the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise. The event, which began with an informal networking reception on Sunday November 7th, was attended by 125 delegates including senior industry representatives and government officials as well as expert …Read More »