Department of Chemical Engineering M.H. Wong Building 3610 University Street Montreal, QC H3A 2B2 Canada

Department of Chemical Engineering
M.H. Wong Building
3610 University Street
Montreal, QC H3A 2B2
Canada

13.1 Staff

P. Bisaillon, W.A. Brown, M. Davidovsky, A. De Miro, D. Dionne, D.J. McKeagan, M. Perrier, N.P. Peters, B. Sarkis, J. Simandl, R.C. Urquhart, ,P. Wood-Adams.

13.2 Programs Offered

The Department offers programs leading to the Master of Engineering, the Master of Science, and the Doctor of Philosophy degrees.

Two options are available for the M.Eng. degree: the thesis option and the project option. The M.Eng. (Thesis) is a research-oriented degree requiring a limited number of courses and a research thesis; the M.Eng. (Project) is a course-oriented degree which includes a project. A specialized version of the M.Eng. (Project) is offered: specialization in environmental engineering.

The M.Sc. degree is appropriate for science graduates wishing to complete a Master's thesis without acquiring a broad engineering background. The requirements for the M.Sc. are similar to those for the M.Eng. (Thesis).

The Ph.D. is a research degree requiring a thesis which makes a distinct contribution to knowledge.

The Department's offices and research laboratories are located in the M.H. Wong Building, which was completed in 1996. Members of the Department are active in a number of research areas, including transport phenomena, separation processes, thermodynamics, chemical reaction engineering and catalysis, colloidal phenomena, experimental and computational materials science, electrochemistry, plasma technology, polymer science and engineering, biochemical engineering, biotechnology, biomedical engineering, biomechanics, nanotechnology, sustainable energy development, gas hydrate systems, and environmental engineering. Most staff are members of one or more research groups.

Biotechnology research in the department includes the development of new processes/products, the environmental impact of biotransformation, the biodegradation of pharmaceuticals and biomedical applications. Strong collaborations in these research areas exist with other engineering departments, the Faculty of Medicine and the Montreal Heart Institute. Research in biomedical engineering also includes development and characterization of devices and biomaterials for human implants and biosensors, and the study of biofilm formation on biomaterials.

Research in Plasma Technology includes fundamental studies in transport phenomena, reaction kinetics, optical emission and laser-absorption spectroscopy, and reactor design, as well as applied studies in plasma processing for environmental and biomedical engineering applications, advanced materials synthesis, and coating generation. Close collaboration is maintained with other Quebec universities through Plasma-Québec, a FQRNT Regroupement Stratégique.

Research related to the Environment is pursued on many fronts; for example, the plasma treatment of lithium batteries
for recycling, the biodegradation of pesticides, and a number of projects considering the fate of plasticizers, chlorinated hydrocarbons and polymers in the environment. Other projects involve electrochemical treatment of wastewater, the transport and fate of microbial pathogens and other comtaminants in the environment, activated sludge treatment, development of envrionmentally-friendly corrosion inhibitors, degradation of pharmaceuticals in wastewater, etc.

Research in Computational Materials Science is a science-based program that seeks to design and control materials, products, and processes using molecular, mesoscopic, and macroscopic computational modeling. This work is in close collaboration with the National Science Foundation Center for Advanced Engineering Fibers and Films at Clemson University. The research in Computational Biomaterials Science seeks to understand the fundamental natural principles that lead to advanced materials such as superstrong spider silk fibers, natural foams, and biolubricants.

Research in colloids and interface science brings together a variety of theoretical, computational and experimental 'tools'. Current efforts are focused on the development of a novel optical-tweezer/micro-electrophoresis apparatus for probing the dynamics of "fuzzy" colloidal particles, and development of experiments and theory for studying the organization and dynamics of synthetic polymers grafted to lipid-bilayer membranes. The broader objectives are to understand in detail how macromolecules forming "soft" interfaces influence colloidal dynamics and equilibria.

13.3 Admissions Requirements

Admission to graduate study requires a minimum CGPA of 3.0/4.0 (or equivalent) for the complete Bachelor's program or a minimum GPA of 3.2/4.0 (or equivalent) in the last two years of full-time studies. Non-Canadian applicants whose mother tongue is not English must achieve a minimum TOEFL score of 577 on the paper-based test (233 on the computer-based test) prior to admission.

Admission requires a Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in chemical engineering or other engineering disciplines. Students with Bachelor's degrees in science wishing to pursue the M.Eng. first enter a Qualifying Program, normally of two terms, to prepare for entry into the M.Eng. program.

Admission requires a Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in science. In some cases, depending on the area of research, the student may be required to complete one or two extra courses as part of the graduate program.

Admission requires a Master's degree (or equivalent) from a recognized university. Students in the Department's M.Eng. (Thesis) or M.Sc. program may transfer to the Ph.D. program after one year without submitting the Master's thesis following a formal "fast track" procedure.

13.4 Application Procedures

The application procedure is outlined on the Web at www.mcgill. ca/chemeng/grad/application. The first step in the process is to complete a pre-application form. The completed preliminary application form is evaluated by the Admissions Committee. A formal application is only requested of the candidate if there is a reasonable probability of admission.

Full applications will be considered when the Graduate Admissions Committee has received:

Application deadlines differ for International and Canadian (and Permanent Resident) students, to allow time to obtain a visa.

Deadlines for Canadian (and Permanent Resident) applicants:
May 15 for September (Fall term) admission,
October 1 for January (Winter term) admission,
February 1 for May (Summer term) admission.

Deadlines for International applicants:
February 15 for September (Fall term) admission,
August 1 for January (Winter term) admission,
December 1 for May (Summer term) admission.

13.5 Program Requirements

The Master's degrees require the completion of 45 credits and three terms of residence at McGill.

Courses: 12 credits of graduate courses (500- or 600-level) (a minimum of 3 courses in Chemical Engineering, one of which is from the Chemical Engineering Fundamentals).

Research: 33 credits which include completion of a thesis proposal, presentation of a research seminar and submission of a thesis.

The M.Eng. (Project) follows the above distribution between courses and project.

The specialization in environmental engineering requires the completion of a Core of 12 credits of environmental engineering courses and a research or design project related to the environment.

Courses: A minimum of two 600-level Chemical Engineering courses; however, students must take at least three courses (or their equivalent) from the Chemical Engineering Fundamentals during their Master's and Ph.D. programs combined.

Research: completion of a thesis proposal, its defence, presentation of two seminars, and submission and defence of a thesis.


CHEE 611	Heat and Mass Transfer
CHEE 621	Thermodynamics
CHEE 631	Foundations of Fluid Mechanics
CHEE 641	Chemical Reaction Engineering
CHEE 662	Computational Methods

13.6 Courses

Students preparing to register should consult the Web at www.mcgill.ca/minerva (click Class Schedule) for the most up-to-date list of courses available; courses may have been added, rescheduled or cancelled after this Calendar went to press. Class Schedule lists courses by term and includes days, times, locations, and names of instructors.

(3) (3-0-6) (Prerequisites: CHEE 314 or MECH 331 or permission of instructor.) (Restriction: Not open to students who have taken MECH 563.) Basic principles of circulation including vascular fluid and solid mechanics, modeling techniques, clinical and experimental methods and the design of cardiovascular devices.

(3) (3-0-6) (Prerequisite: CHEE 458 or permission of the instructor.) The use of small computers employing a high level language for data acquisition and the control of chemical processes. Real-time system characteristics and requirements, analog to digital, digital to analog conversions and computer control loops are examined. Block level simulation.

(3) (3-0-6) (Prerequisite (Undergraduate): CHEE 481 or permission of instructor) Characteristics of thermoplastic and thermosetting polymeric matrices and particulate/fiber dispersed elements. Associated structure characterization. Processing techniques. Quantitative engineering analyses to correlate structure with properties and processing. Product/process design. Applications in chemical process equipment, construction, transportation (land, marine, aerospace), general industrial and consumer goods.

(3) (3-0-6) The presence and role of microorganisms in the environment, the role of microbes in environmental remediation either through natural or human-mediated processes, the application of microbes in pollution control and the monitoring of environmental pollutants.

(4) Rigorous derivation of equations of motion; creeping flow inviscid flow; boundary layer theory; hydrodynamic stability; turbulent flow, separated flows, drag on submerged bodies.

(4) Interpretation of chemical reaction data, especially for heterogeneous systems. Residence time, complete segregation, maximum mixedness, other advanced concepts. Reactor design.

(3) (Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor) An introduction to thermal (high temperature) plasmas as applied to chemical and materials engineering. Degree of ionization, velocity distribution function, plasma parameters, collisions and diffusion, energy states, plasma generation, diagnostic techniques for plasma and particles, particle-plasma interaction, mathematical modelling of plasma systems, applications.

(4) Methods of weighted residuals; solution to non-linear algebraic equations; stability in nonlinear equations; bifurcations; mesh refinement strategies; convection dominated transport; hyperbolic equations, particle simulation methods.

(4) (Prerequisite: CHEE 455) Process representation and identification and simulation; sensor stability; sensitivity of feedback control systems; feedward control; discrete representation of continuous systems; controller tuning; adaptive control.

(3) (Intensive course.) Fermentation pilot plant operations including downstream processing. Lecture material will supplement the pilot plant experiments.

(3) Application of chemical engineering fundamentals to the preparation and processing of polymers. Classification and characterization of polymers, reaction media and kinetics of polymerization, reactor design, viscoelasticity and rheology, processing techniques, extrusion, molding, composite formation, adhesion.

(3) Mechanical and transport properties of non-crystallizing and crystallizing thermoplastics, rigid thermosets, fibers, films, elastomers and composites with particle and fiber reinforcement. Elasticity, visco-elasticity, ultimate properties, diffusion of liquids and gases, thermal and electrical properties.

(3) Linear and nonlinear viscoelasticity, constitutive equations. Dependence of rheological properties of polymers on temperature, pressure, molecular weight, molecular weight distribution, long chain branching. Empirical relations between rheological properties. Role of rheology in plastics processing. Methods of measuring rheological properties.

(3) Survey of engineering properties of polymers and processing operations, degradation of polymers, extrusion, injection molding, fiber spinning, film blowing, blow molding, thermoforming, miscellaneous other processes. Lectures, plant visits, problem assignments.

(3) Principles of product design, optimization and processing conditions for the production of plastics articles. Selection of resins, process and equipment and tool design, considering cost, safety and environmental aspects of production. Students undertake projects to define specifications for the manufacture of selected plastics articles.

(3) Study of experimental aspects of polymer characterization. Areas of study are selected from molecular weighlt determination, polymer morphology, mechanical and rheological behaviour. Polymer processing areas available for study include extrusion, mixing and injection and compression molding.

(3) This course introduces techniques and develops skills necessary for commencing a particular thesis research project. A written report is required.

(6) Independent work under the general direction of a full-time staff member, on a problem of industrially-oriented design or research leading to a comprehensive report.

(6) Extended independent work on a problem of industrially-oriented design or research, leading to a comprehensive project report.

(6) (Students must also register for CHEE 698N2) (No credit will be given for this course unless both CHEE 698N1 and CHEE 698N2 are successfully completed in a twelve month period) (CHEE 698N1 and CHEE 698N2 together are equivalent to CHEE 698) Ongoing research pertaining to thesis.

(6) (Prerequisite: CHEE 698N1) (No credit will be given for this course unless both CHEE 698N1 and CHEE 698N2 are successfully completed in a twelve month period) (CHEE 698N1 and CHEE 698N2 together are equivalent to CHEE 698) See CHEE 698N1 for course description.