Sustainability news

Sustainability programs and research at U of T Engineering are at the forefront of alternative technologies that can mitigate the impact of climate change.

A bifacial perovskite/silicon tandem prototype being field-tested at King Abdullah University of Science & Technology in Saudi Arabia. The new technology is the result of a collaboration that includes U of T Engineering researchers. (Photo: Michele De Bastiani)

Two-sided solar cells can collect scattered light to gather more energy

New technology developed by international team from Saudia Arabia, Canada, Germany and Italy

Part of the new DC microgrid, these commercial-scale solar arrays on the roof of the Galbraith Building deliver electric power to ECE’s Energy Systems Lab. (Photo: Afshin Poraria)

Fully operational DC microgrid boosts sustainability research in ECE

Researchers and students will have access to commercial-scale solar arrays and energy storage facilities — with the ability to collect real-time data

PhD candidate Geonhui Lee works on an electrolyzer in the lab of Professor Ted Sargent (ECE). She is the lead author on a new paper in Nature Energy that outlines an electrochemical method for converting captured carbon into useful products, from fuels to plastics. (Photo: Marit Mitchell)

How clean electricity can upgrade the value of captured carbon

Researchers from U of T Engineering have developed a new pathway to convert CO2 captured with liquid amines into higher-value products, from fuel to plastics

This rendering shows the vision for the Sustainability Lab, a new facility to be constructed on the roof of the Wallberg Building. (Image courtesy Baird Sampson Neuert Architects)

Two new clean-energy hubs in the GTA to boost U of T Engineering sustainability research

Professor Timothy Bender is a key figure in both the Collaboration Centre for Green Energy Research Materials and the Sustainability Lab

A new set of research collaborations will look at innovative ways to improve the movement of goods across the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area. (Photo: Markus Spiske via Unsplash)

Smart Freight Centre launches new research collaborations on safer, cleaner and more efficient transport of goods in the GTHA

NSERC Alliance Grant will support 24 research projects over the next four years

Ning Yan and her collaborators in the Low-Carbon Renewable Materials Centre (LCRMC) are developing a new generation of products made from forestry biomass — including currently under-utilized materials such as tree bark. (Photo: Tyler Irving)

The forest biorefinery: Developing a new generation of sustainable plant-based materials and products

Professor Ning Yan and her colleagues are converting tree bark and other forestry byproducts into commodity chemicals and more

Sales of passenger electric vehicles are growing fast, but a new analysis from U of T Engineering researchers shows that on its own, electrifying the U.S. fleet will not be enough to meet our climate change mitigation targets. (Photo: microgen, via Envato)

U of T Engineering study: Electric vehicles can fight climate change, but they’re not a silver bullet

Researchers estimate that meeting U.N. climate targets would require up to 90% of U.S. passenger vehicles to be electric by 2050, a scenario considered unrealistic

Professor Lesley Warren performs environmental sampling at Syncrude Canada’s Base Mine Lake, an important location for mining-impact water research and technology development in Alberta’s Oil Sands. (Photo courtesy Lesley Warren)

Methane-converting viruses could play a role in combating climate change

Genomic study reveals the complex interactions between bacteria and viruses in industrial wastewater

A3MD researchers will combine high-throughput experimentation and artificial intelligence to accelerate the discovery of new energy conversion materials and consumer electronics. Ziliang Li (ECE PhD candidate, pictured) holds a next generation light-emitting material in the Sargent Lab at the University of Toronto. (Photo courtesy of Ziliang Li)

New academia-industry partnership to accelerate the search for materials for sustainable energy and smartphones

A new consortium of world-leading researchers and industry partners looks to use artificial intelligence to flip the materials discovery process on its head