June 2007 Issue
NEWS
New U of A Engineering Research Chair Reflects Importance of Metals and Minerals
BY KIRK THRUBIDE
Schulich School of Engineering
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METTLE FOR METAL |
The metals and minerals sector contributes about $50 billion to Canada’s economy and employs about 400,000 people. It represents about four per cent of Canada’s gross domestic product, and increasingly it needs new and advanced technologies to process ores with complex characteristics.
To lead in the development of these new mineral process technologies, the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Alberta, in partnership with Teck Cominco Ltd., has announced a $2-million endowment to create the Teck Cominco Chair in Mineral Process Systems. This major donation will, over time, receive matching funds from the Province of Alberta’s Access to the Future Fund, resulting in the endowment eventually reaching $4 million.
The Teck Cominco Chair will focus on the development of advanced mineral processing technology, primarily centering on extraction and purification of base metals but also on precious metals, coal and other mineral resources, says a news release from the faculty. The specific research focus will be on fundamental surface and interfacial phenomena related to mineral process chemistry and mineral systems.
In addition to research initiatives, the Teck Cominco chair will directly support the development and offering of undergraduate and graduate education in mineral processing, to prepare future leaders for the metals and minerals sector.
Dr. Andy Stradling, research director for Teck Cominco, said that the investment will help develop technology that addresses the needs of Teck Cominco’s existing base metal, gold, and coal operations, and future business growth. It will also help provide the company with an ongoing supply of highly qualified engineers.
This partnership between Teck Cominco and the University of Alberta builds upon strong links that already exist between the Faculty of Engineering and the minerals industry in Western Canada, says the news release.
“This new position at the University of Alberta represents Alberta’s commitment to enhancing learning opportunities and advancing natural resources and energy development,” said Alberta Advanced Education and Technology Minister Doug Horner. “Bringing students and industry together opens the door for Alberta’s students to develop new technologies and become industry leaders.”
Dr. David Lynch, P.Eng., University of Alberta Dean of Engineering, said that the new chair demonstrates the faculty’s international leadership in providing research, development and education in mineral process systems and technologies. The chair builds on the century-long history of the Faculty of Engineering as a major partner with the natural resources sector — dating back, in fact, to the very establishment of the U of A.
Dr. Zhenghe Xu, P.Eng., professor of chemical and materials engineering, will lead the program’s implementation as the first chair. Over the past 10 years, Dr. Xu has authored or co-authored more than 110 referred journal articles and 30 conference proceeding papers, along with seven invited book chapters. He has two U.S. patents to his credit and three patents pending.
His research expertise includes interfacial phenomena, surface engineering with an emphasis on mineral and materials processing and recycling, waste management, nanomaterials technology, mesoporous nanocomposites, and emission control.
Dr. Xu graduated with his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in minerals engineering from the Central South Institute of Mining and Metallurgy in Changsha, China. After completing his PhD in materials engineering in 1990 at Virginia Tech, he worked as a research associate at the Virginia Center for Coal and Mineral Processing, and then as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in chemical and nuclear engineering.
In September 1992, he became an assistant professor in metallurgical engineering at McGill University in Montreal. He moved to the Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering at the University of Alberta as an associate professor in January 1997, and became a full professor in 2000.
Dr. Xu currently leads the NSERC/EPCOR/AERI Industrial Research Chair program in Advanced Coal Cleaning and Combustion Technology. In 2006 he was awarded a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Mineral Processing.
Teck Cominco is a diversified mining company, headquartered in Vancouver.
The company is a world leader in the production of zinc and metallurgical coal,
and also a significant producer of copper, gold and specialty metals.