BPI Connect 2024 - Showcase Competition

C-1 Athanasios Kritharis (Postdoc) :Waste to Wealth: A Bio-Manufacturing Platform for Conversion of Crustacean Waste to Value-Added Products

Introducing Tydra Labs: We are a circular manufacturer of sustainable performance materials. Our process utilizes genetically engineered marine organisms to convert crustacean waste in a seawater media into purified chitin and high-performance protein polymers. Our protein polymer product is a 100% bio-derived replacement for spandex. Compared to existing chemical and biological manufacturing processes we have a significantly lower environmental footprint with less demand on fresh water, chemicals and energy while also reducing overall CO2 emissions. This translates to better economic without compromising on sustainability. 

 

C-2 Diana Yumeng Liang (Master's Student) :Chia Mucilage-based Fat Replacer

The demand for healthy food alternatives has driven the development of novel fat replacers in food formulations, as excessive dietary fat intake contributes to chronic diseases, such as obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases. Dietary fibers are promising choices for developing fat replacers with little or no caloric content. They also have beneficial health effects on regulating postprandial blood glucose levels and lowering cholesterol levels. 

The current project used spray drying technology to produce dietary fiber microparticles containing chia mucilage, konjac glucomannan, and psyllium husk. The particle sizes of the microparticles were maintained below 10 Œºm to mimic the fatty sensation. Chia mucilage was extracted from chia seeds by separating the mucilaginous gel, which was firmly attached to the seed shell when submerged in water. The other commercially available dietary fibers were selected to increase the viscosity of chia mucilage through a synergistic effect. The selected dietary fibers demonstrated important water-holding capacity and good thickening properties. They stabilized a large amount of water in the aqueous system, forming viscous material that provided texture, mouthfeel, and rheological properties similar to fat. Moreover, the dietary fiber microparticles were applied to hazelnut spread as a fat replacer, which successfully mimicked the functional and sensory properties of palm oil. Participants in the study reported a rich, creamy texture and a well-balanced flavor profile. The demonstrated technique could promote the development of novel fat replacers to produce healthier foods with reduced fat and enhanced fiber content. 

 

C-3 Kevin Kung (Postdoc) :Decentralized Biochar Production to Profitably Scale Carbon Removal and Rural Climate Justice

While biochar is a promising nature-based carbon removal process, most existing biochar projects have not scaled cost-effectively because many are large-scale/capital-intensive: while they work well co-located with large biomass point sources (e.g. mills), distributing this biochar to farmers is cost-prohibitive. We have been working on scaling a new class of low-cost and portable reactors supports a decentralized reactor network to profitably scale biochar deployment in remote communities without being dependent on carbon offset credits. Our work enables placed-based production of customizable biochar-based fertilizers using locally available crop residues and labour, and has been demonstrated successfully amongst three First Nations in British Columbia. The resultant standalone, government-certified fertilizer blend helps farmers improve their yields on average by up to 30% and net income by 50%. Based on an actual field pilot involving 15,000 farmers, the pilot projects' unit economics is scalable without reliance on subsidies or carbon credits. By enabling rural smallholder farmers access to carbon removal credits, our solution overwhelmingly benefits traditionally underserved communities, thereby also advancing climate justice.

C-4 Lukas Bauman (Postdoc) :From Waste to Wells

Water contamination by heavy metals and organic pollutants, including estrogen and antibiotic residues, presents significant environmental challenges. Conventional water filtration, relying on resource-intensive methods like ion exchange resins and reverse osmosis, requires synthetic polymers (e.g., polyethyleneimine) or ceramic membranes (e.g., alumina) and consumes substantial energy. Emerging filtration technologies, including graphene oxide membranes, MOFs, and electrochemical techniques, improve contaminant removal rates and reduce energy use but depend on unsustainably produced synthetic chemicals and costly manufacturing, limiting accessibility for small communities.

As a promising alternative, tannin-based filtration methods have demonstrated effectiveness in chelating metals, aggregating suspended particles, and inhibiting microbial growth. Dr. Rojas' group previously employed ferric-tannic acid complexes on sawdust for microplastic removal, though results were limited for other pollutants due to reduced reactivity of polyphenols bound to iron. By utilizing regenerated partially deacetylated chitin beads sourced from the invasive green crab, tannins extracted from western hemlock bark can be bound to the surface through shiff base chemistry resulting in a filtration material rich in hydroxyl, carboxyl, and amino groups. Furthermore, the tannins can be further modified with sulphate, phosphate, or thiol groups through well-defined chemistry to enhance filtration efficacy.

This project aims to create a novel, sustainable filtration system using tannins from Western Hemlock bark and chitin from invasive green crabs, providing an eco-friendly solution that can cultivate an industry within the Uchecklsaht tribe. By leveraging sustainably harvested bark and utilizing invasive crab species, this research offers a dual benefit: a sustainable industry for Indigenous communities and an environmentally responsible approach to water filtration.

 

C-5 Sarah Lin (Undergrad Student) :Sustainable Crosslinked Hemp Aerogel with Hydrophobicity, Flexibility, and Thermal Insulation Performance  

Aerogels with high elastic strain, rapid shape recovery, and low thermal conductivity hold immense potential for applications in thermal insulation, absorbents, and lightweight materials. Herein, we report a simple and scalable approach to produce hemp microfibers via a top-down method, which are subsequently assembled into aerogels with interconnected porous structures using the ice-templating technique. To enhance their properties, methyltrimethoxysilane (MTMS) is incorporated, imparting superelasticity and hydrophobicity to the aerogels. The resulting materials exhibit ultralow density, exceptional isotropic, and high porosity, contributing to their low thermal conductivity and excellent insulating performance. The hydrophobic modification using MTMS further reduces water affinity, making the aerogels suitable for diverse environmental conditions. These enhanced properties position the aerogels as promising sustainable alternatives to down filling and synthetic insulators. This work provides a scalable pathway for designing multifunctional bio-based aerogels with significant value-added applications.

C-6 Shiva Zargar (PhD Student) :Play to Learn: Board Games for Sustainable Decision Making and Life Cycle Thinking

As we navigate the complex challenges of climate change, sustainable bio-based solutions are increasingly essential. Understanding Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and its application in biorefinery systems, biomaterials, and other renewable solutions can help researchers and the general public make informed, sustainable decisions. To foster this understanding in an engaging and memorable way, I propose the use of educational board games as an interactive tool at BPI Connect 2024.

My showcase, Play to Learn: Board Games for Life Cycle Thinking, invites attendees to experience LCA concepts and climate change impacts through game-based learning. Featuring games like Sugoroku, KEEP COOL, and the Climate Action Board Game, this demo offers hands-on activities that illustrate the impact of individual and collective decisions on environmental outcomes. Each game is structured to teach critical elements of system thinking and LCA.

By engaging in these games, players learn through scenarios that mirror real-world sustainability challenges, promoting insights into bio-based materials' impacts and trade-offs. Research supports that game-based learning can deepen understanding, enhance critical thinking, and improve retention of complex concepts. We aim to demonstrate this by allowing participants to “play for impact,” experiencing firsthand how LCA shapes sustainable design and decision-making.

C-7 Soroush Aghamohamadi Bosjin (PhD Student) :From Wood Waste into Energy: An Integrated Logistics System

There has been great interest in using renewable energy sources to reduce dependency on fossil fuels. Wood waste, including residues from harvesting and sawmilling, is an available source for energy production, particularly in forest-rich regions like British Columbia. However, the process of collecting wood waste from supply sources, transporting, pre-processing, storing, and converting it into energy involves interdependent and costly logistics activities. This research focuses on optimizing the wood waste logistics for the UBC Biomass and Bioenergy Research and Demonstration Facility (UBC BRDF) where the collected and pre-processed feedstock is fed into gasifiers and converted into energy, by developing an integrated decision support system aimed at reducing the delivered costs. 

A mathematical programming model will be developed to address important decisions, including the quantity of biomass to collect from each supply source, transport ,preprocess, and deliver to the UBC BRDF, as well as the amount of biomass to combust for energy production in order to minimize the total logistics costs and GHG emissions, while meeting the heat demand.  

 

C-8 Srishty Maggo (PhD Student) & Amir Amiri (PhD Student) :No-Fat and Low-Fat Fat Replacers: Advancing Healthier Meat Products

Starting 2026, Canada is mandating front-of-package nutrition symbol for foods high in sodium, sugars or saturated fat. This has prompted food companies, including meat companies, to seek avenues for reducing saturated fats, sugar and salt in their formulations. This study aims to develop a protein-based fat replacers for the production of reduced-fat meat products, using myofibrillar proteins (MPs) extracted from chicken wastes and cold-plasma-activated cellulose nanofibrils to create healthier alternatives. The first part of the study shall develop a cold plasma activated cellulose nanofibrils (cpaCNFs) complex with MPs gel as a no-fat fat replacer, partially replacing animal fats in sausage formulation. At the last part of the study, a "pea protein isolate-cold plasma activated cellulose nanofibrils" complex will be developed to stabilize emulsions, which will be incorporated into MPs gels. These emulsion-filled gels, as low-fat fat replacer, will be optimized to replicate the mechanical and functional properties of animal fats in chicken sausage formulations.

The anticipated outcomes of this research include the creation of healthier, low-fat meat products that closely mimic the functional, mechanical, and sensory properties of traditional meat products. The cold plasma modification of cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) shall introduce functional groups that enhance its’ emulsifying and stabilizing capacity. This modification is expected to achieve two main outcomes: first, it shall maintain the physical and oxidative stability of the emulsion within the emulsion-filled gel, and second, it shall improve the functional and textural properties of the non-fat cellulose nanofibrils-MP complex. This could be a significant breakthrough in creating low-fat meat products, with applications not only in chicken sausages but also in other meats like beef and pork.

C-9 Lucy Binfield (PhD Student) :The Economic Feasibility of Planting Bamboo for Livelihood Generation and Land Restoration in the Upper Nagaritza River Basin, Zamora-Chinchipe, Ecuador

Planting bamboo has been suggested by many as a potential tool for livelihood generation and the provision of ecosystem services for vulnerable communities in the Amazon Basin. Trials are underway to plant native bamboo species such as Guadua angustifolia on severely degraded land to facilitate natural land recovery. However, the long-term economic feasibility of such projects is often neglected. This research presents the 20-year economic feasibility of planting bamboo for land restoration or livelihood generation using commonly used economic measures: net present value, equivalent annual annuity, return on investment, and benefit-cost ratio. Total costs and revenues are ascertained using the results of a pilot study carried out on degraded mining lands in Zamora-Chinchipe Province. The results are compared with literature values for other land use options in the area. Planting bamboo is found to be profitable over a 20-year period for all measures used. Planting bamboo is cheaper than similar projects involving native tree planting, but more expensive than natural regeneration methods. In terms of commercial plantations, harvesting bamboo is found to be comparable to sustainably managed timber plantations, but significantly less profitable than timber extraction from native forests.

C-10 Sawyer d’Entremont (PhD Student) :Clean Energy and Carbon Fiber Growth Using Molten Metal Alloys

Hydrogen demand is expected to increase significantly as the market for low-emissions fuels grows. High value carbon is a vital part of the economics of methane pyrolysis for hydrogen production [1]. It has been found that a binary molten metal alloy of copper and indium yields carbon fibers as the solid carbon product during methane pyrolysis [2][3]. New developments reveal a whole new class of molten alloy catalysts which are capable of carbon fiber growth, each with their own distinct benefits. Renewable biogas can be used as the reactant which produces valuable syngas and the same valuable carbon product, making this breakthrough technology a highly promising avenue for negative-emissions energy production. Molten droplets supported on quartz in a fixed bed configuration allows for observations of how the carbon fibers grow in a simplified catalytic system. The effects of catalyst loading, reaction time, and catalyst composition are explored in the fixed bed reactor. Many other reactor configurations are considered as the molten catalyst allows for mobility of catalyst droplets, in turn facilitating the growth of carbon fibers. The ability to use liquid phase catalysts to generate carbon fibers has distinct advantages in catalyst stability, coking resistance, reactor design, and catalyst recovery from the carbon fiber product in comparison to traditional solid catalysts.

C-11 Cameron Zheng (PhD Student) :Tantalum Catalysis for the Efficient Amination of Terpenes

Carbon-carbon double bonds (alkenes) are found abundantly in naturally occurring compounds and can be leveraged directly for derivatization to create bio-based products. The incorporation of nitrogen (amination) onto natural products, for example, has furnished aminated bioproducts with enhanced bioactivity. As such, there is high motivation to explore amination methods suitable for utilizing naturally found alkenes. Hydroaminoalkylation is a chemical reaction involving the addition of of a carbon-hydrogen bond from an amine across an alkene to furnish a new carbon-carbon bond between amine and alkene. This transformation forms no side- or by-products, thus hydroaminoalkylation is a synthetically efficient reaction. Notably, the Schafer group has been at the forefront of developing catalysts for hydroaminoalkylation using early transition metals. Early transition metals are relatively earth abundant and less expensive when compared to late metals. Therefore, the use of early metal-catalyzed hydroaminoalkylation offers a sustainability focused approach to amination. This talk will highlight opportunities afforded by hydroaminoalkylation in the amination of terpenes, including select terpene functionalization from terpenes mixtures, to create unique aminated bioproducts. These structurally diverse products have promise as a next generation drug candidate/anti-microbial agents as dictated by our computational studies. 

C-12 Cecilia Cancellara (Master's Student) :Canopy: Plant-Powered Sun Protection

Sunscreens are essential for protecting the skin from the harmful effects of sun exposure, yet many conventional formulations contain ingredients associated with skin irritation and environmental concerns. Plant-based alternatives present a promising alternative for addressing these issues by taking advantage of renewable sources. In this study, we developed plant-based sunscreens by harnessing the UV-absorbing capabilities of polyphenols, naturally occurring in plants. These compounds are known for their broad-spectrum photoprotective properties. Our formulations incorporate both hydrophilic and hydrophobic polyphenols, such as tannic acid and curcumin. The components can be added in the water or oil phases and combined in an emulsion to overcome the solubility challenges. The formulations showed UV-protection, evaluated by UV-Vis analysis and performance under simulated sunlight conditions. Beyond UV protection, the polyphenol-based components imparted additional functional benefits to the formulations, including antioxidant activity and moisturizing properties. These formulations underscore the potential of plant-based sunscreens, by combining efficacy with sustainability while meeting the increasing demand for safer and more environmentally friendly personal care products.

C-13 Daniel Barker-Rothschild (PhD Student) :Tiny Particles, Enormous Opportunities: Colloidal Lignin Particles for Advancing Sustainable Materials

Lignin, a phenolic copolymer found in terrestrial plants, is the most abundant source of renewable aromatic compounds in nature and is most commonly available as a major by-product of the pulp and paper industry. Despite its widespread availability, there are limited examples of successful lignin-based commercial products to date. This is mainly due to the complexity of lignin‚Äôs chemical structure as well as high degree of compositional variability and heterogeneity compared to refined synthetic polymers. 

In recent years, colloidal lignin particles have emerged as one of the most promising routes for lignin valorization. Taking advantage of lignin‚Äôs inherent propensity for supramolecular aggregation, uniform and spherical solid particles in the size range of 50 nm ‚Äì 1 um can be routinely synthesized from almost any lignin source with simple techniques. These bio-based solid particles are highly attractive for replacing synthetic particles or for producing new materials for advanced applications. 

In this presentation, we showcase some of the ongoing state-of-the-art research on colloidal lignin particles taking place at the UBC Bioproducts Institute. From using machine learning to facilitate fundamental understandings of particle formation from diverse lignin sources to harnessing the fluorescent properties of lignin to produce coatings and films, this work highlights the tremendous potential and countless opportunities of colloidal lignin particles.   
 

C-14 Elaheh Ghasemi (Postdoc) :Nature-Based Decarbonization Decision Support System

This report explores how a major global gold producer could use forest management to support its goal of becoming carbon neutral by 2050. With mining sites around the world, the company has pledged to cut its carbon emissions by 32% by 2030 as a first step. However, traditional strategies—like increasing energy efficiency, switching to renewable energy, and adopting zero-emission vehicles—are expected to address only about 70% of the reductions needed. To bridge the remaining gap and manage rising offset costs, the company is considering nature-based solutions.

To support this, we developed a Decision Support System (DSS) that models and optimizes forest management strategies around mining sites in Canada. Using publicly available geospatial data and forest inventory models, the DSS allows us to test various scenarios, like maximizing timber harvests, limiting the area harvested, or boosting carbon storage. We tracked key outcomes such as carbon levels, emissions, revenue, job creation, preservation of old-growth forests, and biodiversity. Three Canadian mining sites were used as case studies, showing how different approaches balance economic, social, and environmental goals.

Our findings show that forest management goals have a big impact on these outcomes. For instance, scenarios allowing more timber harvesting increased economic and social benefits, but often at a cost to biodiversity and carbon storage. On the other hand, stricter harvesting limits helped preserve carbon stocks and old-growth forests. Interestingly, moderate harvesting levels could improve species diversity, highlighting complex connections between forest practices and biodiversity.

This analysis highlights the need for balanced forest management strategies that can deliver multiple benefits, showing both the challenges and potential of using nature-based solutions to help reach carbon neutrality.

 

C-15 Emilie Payment (Master's Student) :Investigating the Ice Nucleating Activity of Lignin from Wildfire Smoke Using Lignin Nanoparticles as Atmospheric Proxies

Lignin is a naturally occurring and abundant biopolymer found in terrestrial plants. It is a conventional tracer of biomass combustion in aerosol particles, and thus is very useful to track wildfire smoke in the atmosphere. Once emitted into the atmosphere through biomass burning organic aerosols (BBOA), lignin can experience long-range transport with minimal degradation because of its recalcitrance (Bogler & Borduas, ACP, 2020). In the upper troposphere, such particles can act as ice nucleating particles. Under homogeneous ice nucleation, a 1 pL droplet of water freezes at -38¬∞C, while in the presence of ice nucleating particles, ice clouds can form at higher temperatures. However, the mechanism of heterogeneous ice nucleation of organic matter, including BBOA, remains difficult to predict. The purpose of this research is to use well defined and characterized lignin nanoparticles (LNPs) to understand how lignin, and by extension BBOA, from wildfire smoke can nucleate ice in the atmosphere. The LNPs can be optimized for size, monodispersity and even pore size, enabling access to a breadth of parameters important for ice nucleation. Recently, our group showed (Zeleny et al., ACS EST Air, 2024, revisions requested) that the mass of LNPs best predicted the ice nucleating ability.  Building on this work, we are synthesizing LNPs with a wider range of sizes and masses to investigate. Furthermore, our group also recently found that there may be a correlation between the mean hydrodynamic diameter and median freezing temperature of certain biopolymers, such as xylan, laminarin, cellulose and soluble lignin (Bieber et al., JPC, 2024). This correlation could be used to predict the temperature at which water droplets will freeze depending on the size of the ice nucleating particles. The anticipated results could be an important tool for predicting ice nucleation and thus cloud formation, especially during wildfire events.

C-16 Isobel McLean (BioProduct Designer) :MycoFoundry 

MycoFoundry exists to lower the building industry‚Äôs environmental impact - who uses 40% of global resources - by creating climate-adaptive biomaterials. 

We are a biomaterials company on a mission to do 2 things: 1) develop new materials using mycelium optimized via advanced biotechnology; and 2) demonstrate the value of these new materials via strategic partnerships with companies that value design. In this way, we intend to be a vertically integrated company. 

Our go-to-market strategy is to partner with early adopter architecture firms that have a demand for sustainable and functionally designed products, such as an acoustic panel installation for the lobby of one of their buildings. 

We are able to do this because of our team. Our research focus for the past two years has been to develop know-how and IP for real-world applications and we are now in a good position to commercialize. We are currently in discussions with UBC’s Tech Transfer Office to protect four UBC-based inventions. These include things like a new formulation which allows us to 3D print mycelium-infused sawdust and a workflow to produce mycelium-based foams.

Supported by BPI's Accelerating Technology Readiness program, we are excited for the opportunity to present our company's progress at BPI Connect!

 

C-17 Jason Yu (PhD Student) :3D Printing Elastomeric Polyurethane Aided by Cellulose Nanofibrils

3D printing of a flexible polyurethane elastomer is highly demandable for its potential to revolutionize industries ranging from footwear to soft robotics thanks to its exceptional design flexibility and elasticity performance. Nevertheless, conventional methods like fused deposition modeling (FDM) and vat photopolymerization (VPP) polyurethane 3D printing typically limit material options to thermoplastic or photocurable polyurethanes. In this research, a water-borne polyurethane ink was synthesized for direct ink writing (DIW) 3D printing through the incorporation of cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs), enabling direct printing of complex, monolithic elastomeric structures at room temperature that can maintain the designed structure. Additionally, a solvent-induced fast solidification (SIFS) method was introduced to facilitate room-temperature curing and enhance mechanical properties. The 3D-printed WPU structures demonstrated strong interfacial adhesion, exhibiting high ultimate tensile strength of up to 22 MPa and an elongation at break of 951%. The 3D-printed WPU structures also demonstrated outstanding resilience and durability, capable of enduring more than 100 cycles of compression and tension as well as withstanding vehicle crushing and heavy lifting. This method also shows suitability for 3D printing complex structures such as a vase and an octopus.

C-18 Kimiya Rahmani Mokarrari (PhD Student) :Optimizing the Slash Supply Chain for Bioproduct Production

Forests cover two-thirds of BC‚Äôs land. Harvesting in these vast forested areas, along with mountain pine beetle infestation and forest fires, generates large amounts of forest residues, known as slash. The common practice for managing these residues is to pile and burn them, a method known as slash-pile burning. This practice, however, prevents the slash from entering the bioeconomy and significantly contributes to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, with harmful effects on the environment and public health. A more sustainable alternative to slash-pile burning is to use this slash as a valuable biomass source for producing high-value bioproducts. However, using biomass as a feedstock source has high delivered costs and is not economically competitive with fossil-based resources. Furthermore, the quantity and quality of biomass is not consistent, and pre-processing is usually needed to meet the feedstock requirements. These challenges are addressed by managing and planning biomass supply chains using mathematical programming approach. In our research, we optimize the slash supply chain, considering all the interconnected supply chain activities: collection, transportation, storage, and pre-processing.   An optimization model is developed to minimize the total costs, and maximize the GHG emission savings and created number of jobs of converting slash into bioproducts. This model is used to address important questions related to the design of the supply chain, such as: 1) what type and capacity of bioconversion facilities to install in each of the potential locations, 2) what pre-processing activities are needed, 3) how much slash to pre-process and transport to each conversion facility, 3) what type of bioproducts to produce, and 4) how much of each bioproduct to send to each market. The results offer the optimum supply chain plan to generate high value bio-products from slash, while creating the maximum environmental and social benefits. 

C-19 Xanyar Mohammadi (PhD Student) :Cold Plasma for Fabricating Bilayer Chitosan/Zein Packaging Films

Plastics are commonly used in food packaging, but their negative impact on the environment, society, economy, and health has prompted the search for alternatives. Biodegradable packaging materials made from natural biopolymers are being explored, but their low mechanical and barrier properties hinder their commercial use. Cold plasma (CP) technology can enhance the performance of biopolymers by increasing surface roughness and surface energy and forming hydrophilic active groups on their surface. This project aimed to develop a bilayer zein chitosan film using a plasma-assisted layer-by-layer assembly method.

A 1.5% solution of chitosan was prepared by dissolving it in 2% acetic acid. The solution was poured into Petri dishes and left to dry overnight at 40°C. The resulting films were then treated with oxygen CP for 2, 4, and 8 minutes. Next, a 6% w/v zein solution was prepared by dissolving zein in 95% ethanol through constant mixing for 30 minutes. The zein solution was then poured over the CP-treated chitosan samples to create a bilayer film.

The CP treatment of the chitosan layer enhanced surface roughness and reduced the water contact angle. The FT-IR analysis of the samples demonstrated that the hydrophilic oxygen functional group, deposited on the surface by the oxygen CP treatment, contributed to the increase in the water contact angle. Results from the tensile test revealed that the bilayer structure remarkably increased the tensile strength and elongation at break. Furthermore, the bilayer films demonstrated a significant reduction in oxygen and water vapor permeability. Also, the thermal analysis showed that chitosan/zein bilayer films had higher thermal stability than the individual layers, with a higher onset and degradation temperature.

The combination of chitosan and zein with the surface modification achieved by cold plasma treatment has the potential to improve the barrier properties and extend the shelf life of food products.

C-20 Alexandre Babin (PhD Student) :Biochar production by microwave-assisted pyrolysis in a pilot fluidized bed reactor

In light of climate change and the non-renewable nature of fossil fuels, biomass is gaining growing interest as a renewable carbon-neutral alternative to fossil fuels as an energy source. 

Pyrolysis is an emerging technology for the production of biofuels from biomass, known for its simplicity and versatility. It is also gaining interest for the production of biochar which has the potential to improve soil fertility and quality while sequestering carbon.

With upscaling being a major challenge for the implementation of pyrolysis for energy production, microwave-assisted pyrolysis is an emerging method to improve product quality all while providing efficient heating.

This current project thus aims to develop a pilot scale microwave-assisted pyrolysis process to produce bio-oil and biochar from woody biomass. Pyrolysis is performed in a horizontal fluidized bed reactor, allowing to continuously process large quantities of feedstock (around 20 kg/h) while ensuring uniform mixing and heat distribution.

This Showcase demo will focus on the biochar produced during the pilot pyrolysis trials.
 

N-1 Jiaying Zhu (PhD Student) :Recyclable Chitosan-Modified Cellulose Fiber Porous Structure for Sensitive and Robust Moisture-Driven Actuators and Automatic Cooling Textiles

Moisture-driven actuators featuring programmable stimuli-responsiveness and rapid response have garnered substantial research attention. Cellulose-based actuators face challenges including prolonged and unstable responsiveness, along with inadequate interfacial bonding. Herein, we developed a bilayer structured moisture actuator by integrating multiscale cellulose fibers with chitosan. The protonated chitosan forms strong electrostatic attractions with negatively charged cellulose nanofibrils (CNF), achieving a robust interfacial interaction. Leveraging the hierarchically porous structure and varying hygroscopicity of microfibrillated cellulose (MFC) and CNF, the film establishes an effective wettability gradient, enabling stable and rapid moisture actuation performance. The bilayer film exhibits large deformation towards moisture with a bending angle of 60°, a short response time of 12 s, good stability over 50 wetting and drying cycles, and promising recyclability. Harnessing these advantageous properties, the bilayer film was demonstrated for its applications in automatic cooling textile, contactless electrical switch, and artificial moisture activated muscle, showing great potential for practical use.

N-2 Jinsheng Gou (Visiting Associate Professor) :Sustainable Wastepaper Cushion Foam and its Commercialization

This work introduces an innovative wastepaper-based cushioning foam developed under BPI ATR’s Program, focusing on sustainability and commercial viability. The foam leverages recycled fibers and a microwave-assisted foaming process, achieving competitive mechanical properties, biodegradability, and superior performance in impact cushioning and thermal insulation. Designed as a sustainable alternative to traditional plastics, such as EPE and EPS, this technology supports eco-friendly packaging solutions. The study further outlines pathways for scaling and commercialization, aligning with global efforts to reduce waste and advance sustainable materials for industrial applications.

N-3 Kaia Nielsen-Roine (PhD Student) :Options and Opportunities for Using CRD Wood Waste as Feedstock for Wood Fibre Insulation

Construction, renovation, and demolition (CRD wood waste represents a significant portion of Canadian waste. Nationally, wood accounts for 10% of all residual municipal solid waste and 40% of all CRD waste—amounting to approximately 3.6 million tonnes of landfilled wood per year. , Landfilled wood presents several problems as it is a bulky waste

material which consumes valuable landfill space, and it poses an environmental concern due to the release of greenhouse gases during decomposition.

One promising technology for diverting large volumes of wood waste back into the built environment is wood fibre insulation. Wood fibre insulation can be produced in several different formats including loose fibre, batt-type insulation, and rigid exterior insulation. This insulation performs similarly to non-biobased counterparts such as foam plastics and mineral wools but has the advantage of carbon storage, recyclability, better fire resistance compared to foam plastic insulations.

The interest of this directed study is to examine the opportunities for integrating waste wood into a wood fibre insulation production process either with traditional fibre/furnish production methods or with alternative insulating furnish production. This study will look at both the standard method for producing wood fibre insulation and other methods of recycling wood waste using techniques derived from insulation production as well as other non-insulative fractionated composite wood products such as MDF, particleboard, and Masonite. The purpose of the review is to identify the most likely methods for producing wood fibre insulation from CRD waste wood as well as compare those production methods based on simplicity, energy consumption, and insulative performance

N-4 Matthew  Cao (Master's Student) :Utilization of Betulin as a Bark-Based Organogel

Betulin, a naturally abundant lupane-type triterpenoid extracted from the outer bark of birch trees, exhibits notable anti-inflammatory, antiviral, and antitumor properties, making it a promising candidate for therapeutic applications. This study explores betulin's self-assembly behavior in organic systems for the development of organogels. By mediating the solvent type, the self-assembly pathways are directed to yield distinct gel morphologies, each with unique rheological properties, providing insight into the tunability of organogel characteristics for potential biomedical use.

N-5 Ricky Hua (Postdoc) :A Novel 3D-Printing Material with Antioxidation and UV-Resistance: Thermo-Blended Composites of Small-Molecule Aspen Enzyme-Hydrolyzed Lignin and PLA

Polylactic Acid (PLA), a widely available and biodegradable polymer, is one of the most commonly used materials in Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) 3D printing due to its environmental advantages and ease of use. However, its application scope is limited by inherent weaknesses, including low heat resistance, poor mechanical strength, and lack of UV stability. Lignin has shown potential in addressing these limitations, though industrial lignin generally demonstrates poor compatibility with PLA. This study presents a novel method for extracting low-molecular-weight, high-purity lignin from hydrolysis residue of steam-pretreated aspen, a waste product from the biorefinery process. The resulting lignin, when incorporated into PLA at a 10% weight ratio, achieves good compatibility with the polymer matrix, as well as improving the mechanical properties, thermal stability, and UV resistance of the PLA blend. This high-performance PLA-lignin composite expands the functional applications of PLA in 3D printing, offering a more robust, sustainable alternative for various industrial uses.

N-6 Samantha Mung (Undergrad Student) :Kombucha Leather

WasteNauts is an engineering design team that encompasses many sub-teams that focus on sustainable innovations and circular economy. BioTextiles is a sub-team that aims to minimize textile waste in the textiles industry. Particularly, the team is focusing on fabricating a vegan leather made from the by-product of kombucha as an alternative to animal and synthetic leather. Kombucha, a known drink that is commonly consumed for its nutritional benefits, houses a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY). Our team utilizes the by-product known as the pellicle, which is a cellulose layer created by the bacteria. We harvest the pellicle that was 'grown', dry, and treat the material to create a leather for textiles. The team has experimented with parameters that affect the growth rate of the pellicle, conducted material tensile testing to compare the strength of the leather with conventional leathers, and experimented with treatment methods of dyeing and waterproofing. The goal of BioTextiles is to developed a well characterized material and create a wearable prototype. 

N-7 Sana Bayrami (Master's Student) :Using Seaweed Fermentation to Produce Vitamin B12 and Extract Beneficial Compounds

Seaweeds, found abundantly in oceans, are vital resources for sustainable food production and bioactive compounds. Rich in essential nutrients, seaweeds are excellent sources of vitamins, minerals, polysaccharides, proteins, and antioxidants. Their bioactive compounds have applications in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and functional foods due to their antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties.

Among their notable nutrients, seaweeds naturally contain precursors for vitamin B12, crucial for human health as it supports nerve function, DNA synthesis, and red blood cell formation. However, seaweeds themselves do not synthesize B12. Instead, symbiotic bacteria, such as Propionibacterium, in their environment play a role in producing this vitamin. Leveraging this natural interaction, fermenting seaweeds with Propionibacterium offers a promising avenue for biofortification of B12. This process harnesses the nutrient-dense substrate of seaweeds as a growth medium for the bacteria, leading to an environmentally friendly and sustainable method of B12 production.

This innovative approach not only contributes to addressing global B12 deficiencies but also aligns with the increasing demand for plant-based, sustainable nutrition solutions. Thus, fermenting seaweed with bacterial cultures is a potent combination of traditional and modern biotechnology. 

In this project, we aim to produce vitamin B12 by fermenting seaweed and using biomass to extract beneficial minerals, polysaccharides, proteins, and antioxidants.
 

N-8 Tina Raeisi Gahrooee (PhD Student) :Hybrid Chitosan-Chitin Composite in Water Treatment

British Columbia’s waters have been exposed to invasive European crabs, which endanger the habitats of various species, such as juvenile salmon. Crabs are a rich source of chitin, which is the second most abundant biomass on Earth after cellulose, and the first in aquatic environments. The disposal of these crabs has become a frequent problem for the government of British Columbia, and addressing this issue is now urgent.

To this end, the current project has been designed to facilitate and accelerate the environmentally friendly disposal of these crabs. Chitin itself has low solubility in water due to the presence of an acetyl group, which limits its applications. However, the deacetylated form of chitin (above 75% deacetylation, known as chitosan) is soluble in acidic conditions (pH 3-4) and has been used in various research applications. On the other hand, the waste produced during chitosan production releases harmful substances into the environment.

Therefore, a hybrid composite made from chitosan reinforced with partially deacetylated chitin nanofibers has been developed for water treatment purposes. Meanwhile, the rheological and functional properties of this composite have been significantly improved compared to chitosan solutions or deacetylated chitin nanofibers (DECNF) alone. Moreover, to enhance the adsorbent’s functionality for a wider range of contaminants—from heavy metals to pharmaceutical materials in wastewater—metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), specifically UiO-66-NH2, have been successfully integrated into the hybrid composite.

N-9 Zirui Tang (Master's Student) :Demo of Artificial Intelligence Applications in Industry Ecology

This demonstration highlights AI-driven techniques—such as machine learning and large language models (LLMs)—to improve data extraction, flow analysis, and environmental assessment in industrial ecology. For instance, AI automates data extraction from complex LCA publications, filling critical data gaps and enabling more accurate and efficient environmental impact analyses. Key applications include automating LCA calculations, forecasting environmental impacts, and detecting solar panels in satellite images to support recycling strategies. Additionally, we present a platform that allows diverse groups to share data and conduct LCA on emerging technologies. This demonstration showcases AI’s potential to advance industrial ecology by streamlining data handling, enhancing predictive modeling, and enabling real-time assessments, while also addressing challenges such as data quality and validity to promote responsible use. This session aims to inspire collaboration between AI and industrial ecology to drive innovation in this field.

N-10 Xia Sun (PhD Student) :Cellulose-Based Films for Plastic Substitution

Plastics derived from petroleum-based sources have transformed modern life due to their versatility, scalability, and cost-effectiveness. However, their non-biodegradability poses significant environmental concerns, as plastic waste accumulates and fossil fuel resources deplete, contributing to climate change. Bioplastics, sourced from renewable materials like cellulose, have emerged as potential alternatives, promising biodegradability and a reduced reliance on fossil fuels. Yet, these materials often struggle to match the toughness, stretchability, and durability of traditional plastics, limiting their widespread adoption. Addressing this gap, we introduce a bioplastic based on cellulose. Our approach offers a sustainable pathway to high-performance bioplastics, positioning cellulose-based plastic as a viable solution for substituting conventional plastics and advancing environmental sustainability.

N-11 Yeedo Chun (PhD Student) :Liquid Foam Templating of Precision Filters

Liquid foam templating is a method for preparing porous materials by i) prefiguring the intended pores as bubbles in a liquid foam precursor and ii) solidifying the liquid foam to retain the bubble structure in the solid material's pore structure. By using microfluidics to prepare bubbles of monodisperse size, precision filters with a narrow pore distribution and optimized pore volume fraction can be produced for high-end applications

N-12 Huanrong Liu (Faculty) :Turning a Giant Bamboo into Natural Drinking Straws

Environmental problems caused by disposable plastic products have driven the need for biodegradable eco-friendly alternatives. This study explored a new type of winding bamboo straw products. Natural arc bamboo culm was first softened and flattened. Then the rectangular bamboo flats were sliced longitudinally into micro-thin bamboo sheets with a thickness of 0.2mm. An innovative micro-thin bamboo coiling technology is proposed to prepare small-diameter bamboo drinking straws. The thin bamboo sheets were helically wound into bamboo straws using a continuous alternating winding and gluing method. Key processing parameters such as sheet width, rotation direction, spiral angle, and gluing method are investigated and optimized. Bamboo drinking straws contribute to solutions to plastic reduction and limitation.

N-13 Abul Hossain (Application Scientist): FuturePack Innovations Research Cluster

N-14 Nicholas Lin (Postdoc) :Microbial Cell Systems for Sustainable Living Research Cluster

Microbial cell systems are complex communities of microorganisms that co-exist and thrive in a shared environment. Funded by UBC VPRI’s GCRC program, the MCELLS research cluster represents 13 Principal Investigators across campus who work together to harness and design microbial cell systems to develop functional products and sustainable processes relevant to industries in British Columbia.

N-15 Bioeconomy Sciences and Technology (BEST) Program