Recently, the Ontario government announced $92 million in support of 201 research projects through the Ontario Research Fund (ORF), which helps institutions cover research operations and facilities costs. Nine research programs at Queen’s have secured a total of $2,062,084 in funds.

“When we invest in research, we invest in our province’s future,” said Nolan Quinn, Minister of Colleges and Universities. "These critical investments will ensure Ontario’s researchers can continue making discoveries that drive key sectors, create good-paying jobs, and improve the lives of all Ontarians.”

By supporting research operations and infrastructure (including building, renovating, and supplying facilities with state-of-the-art equipment), the ORF fosters groundbreaking research that advances knowledge and fuels economic growth through the development of new products and technologies.

“This provincial support will enable our teams to advance research in disciplines from immunology to chemistry and civil engineering,” says Nancy Ross, Vice-Principal (Research). “These projects will inform climate action and the development of new medical therapies and robotics technologies, contributing to talent development and providing solutions to challenges faced by Ontario, Canada, and the world.”

The ORF Small Infrastructure Fund provides matching dollars or builds on projects also funded by the Canada Foundation for Innovation John R. Evans Leaders Fund (CFI-JELF).

Learn more about the funded Queen’s research programs:

•    Paul Kubes (Biomedical and Molecular Sciences), Canada Excellence Research Chair in Immunophysiology and Immunotherapy, was awarded $800,000 to acquire equipment such as potent real-time microscopes for imaging of the immune cells within different organs and systems in the human body. The funds will allow the Kubes Lab to take a close look at lymph nodes, spleen, brain, and other organs and follow rapid events like the seeding of cancer metastasis and the dissemination of bacteria. This research will allow the team to visualize what immune cells are doing in the body and in tumors and enable translational and precision medicine research to improve the health outcomes of Ontarians.

•    Eva Kaufmann (Biomedical and Molecular Sciences), Canada Research Chair in Immunology and Inflammation, received $517,084 to support the use of sophisticated model systems in investigating the links between early childhood respiratory infections and the development of asthma. Ultimately, the research aims to enable the development of new targeted immunotherapies for asthma.

•    Melissa Greeff (Electrical and Computer Engineering) secured $125,000 to develop aerial robot technology for public safety applications. In alignment with the Emergency Management Strategy for Canada released by the federal government in 2022, her team will work on intelligent multi-robot systems able to navigate changing environments and safety-critical interactions, such as search-and-rescue missions, disaster-relief scenarios, or remote monitoring, with greater autonomy and precision.

•    Rachel Baker (Chemical Engineering) was awarded $125,000.00 to build infrastructure to run electrochemical experiments and characterize correspondent reaction products. The research program aims to reduce the reliance of industries across Ontario – such as those in pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, fuels, materials, and others – on fossil fuels. Currently, these industries are major contributors to climate change, particularly because of their reliance on fossil fuels. The design of chemical processes for the conversion of renewable materials into value-added products with electricity-sourced energy can lead to environmental, economic, and societal benefits for Ontarians.

•    Lucia Lee (Chemistry) secured $125,000 to support the creation of novel molecules and materials for a variety of applications related to preventing and controlling greenhouse gas emissions and infectious diseases in the context of climate change. Specifically, the lab will focus on noncovalent σ-hole interactions, which occur between the most abundant chemical elements on Earth and electron-rich molecules. The strength of these bonds are tunable and are an important component of the chemistry toolbox used to design new molecules with varying properties, spanning the fields of organic and inorganic chemistry and chemical biology.

•    Stephanie Wright (Civil Engineering) received $100,000 to create the Fractured Rock and Cryo-hydrogeology Lab. The new laboratory will investigate groundwater flow and contaminant transport in cold locations in Canada, from seasonally frozen bedrock in the South to permafrost regions in the North. The team will develop new tools and techniques to advance our understanding of cryo-hydrogeologic processes, the impact of climate change, and potential implications for drinking water supply, agriculture, and industry in Ontario. The lab will be equipped with a portable rock drilling and testing system for remote groundwater monitoring, a rainfall simulator, and state-of-the art computing resources.

•    Xiaying Xin (Civil Engineering) was awarded $100,000 to establish a unique facility focused on removing emerging microbial and chemical contaminants from the water supply. The lab will use nanobubble technology to alleviate the negative effects of climate change on water quality, providing effective, sustainable, and cost-efficient solutions to ensure safe water supply to Ontarians, including small, rural, and remote communities.

•    Elise Devoie (Civil Engineering) secured $90,000 to support permafrost hydrogeology research. Her research program investigates how climate change-driven warming impacts the freeze and thaw processes in Northern Canada to better understand and more precisely predict the potential risks they encompass, including groundwater contamination, changes in streamflow, and frost action. The purchase of field equipment will enable the mapping and monitoring of permafrost areas, in collaboration with Northern and Indigenous communities directly impacted by climate change.

•    Jackson Crane (Mechanical and Materials Engineering) received $80,000 to purchase equipment and enable the development of next-generation propulsion and electricity generation engines. In comparison to engines currently used in aviation and power generation, detonation engines offer much higher efficiency and simpler design, with the potential to drive down carbon emissions and provide a pathway to use hydrogen and biofuels in these sectors.

Read more on the press release.