engmag_winter_spring_08

Keeping in Touch with

Alumni

Tackling theTailing Ponds

Balance ofPower

Everywherea Sign

STONESet in

Masonry chairestablished

Homecom

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W I N T E R / S P R I N G 2 0 0 8 W W W. E N G I N E E R I N G . U A L B E R TA . C A

fromtheDean

U of A Eng i n e e r2

This year marks the 100th anniversary of engineering education at the University ofAlberta. As with most significant milestones, this centenary celebration gives us an

opportunity to reflect on our past, our present and our future.In 1908, five students in the UofA’s inaugural class began their engineering studies, underthe tutelage of Professor William Muir Edwards. One hundred years later, the Faculty of

Engineering’s enrollment has grown by a factor of 1000 to approximately5000 students—over 3800 undergraduate and just under 1200 graduatestudents. Our faculty complement has grown from one lone professor to over180 of the top educators and researchers in the world. We are proud toprovide more than $1.2 million in scholarships to new students each year andto host more than 45 research and endowed chair positions, including 12prestigious NSERC Industrial Research Chairs—more than any otherCanadian university.

Over the past century the graduates of our engineering programs, alongwith our professors and researchers, have been instrumental in advancingtheir respective engineering disciplines. The collective accomplishments of ouralumni form a foundation of leadership and innovation that inspires each

successive generation of UofA Engineers, who then in turn continue to add to thisfoundation. As a result of the hard work and perseverance shown by our alumni, facultymembers and staff, the Faculty of Engineering has earned a reputation of excellence thatreaches worldwide.

I’m sure you’ll agree we have a great deal to celebrate as we gear up for our next 100years. I encourage you to mark September 18 to 21, 2008 on your calendars for whatpromises to be an outstanding weekend of engineering events. Please see the back insidecover of this issue for more details on our Homecoming 2008 celebrations. No matterwhere your career has taken you since graduation, we hope you will be able to come backto campus and join us for this once-in-a-lifetime celebration.Yours truly,

David T. Lynch, PhD, P.Eng.Dean of Engineering

UofAEngineerU of A Engineer is the Faculty

of Engineering alumni magazine. It is pub-lished three times a year by the Dean'sOffice and is distributed to Faculty ofEngineering alumni, friends, and staff.

Dean of EngineeringDavid T. Lynch

(PhD Chemical '82), P.Eng.

Acting Assistant Dean,External RelationsLaurie Shinkaruk

External Relations TeamPeggy Hansen, Katherine Irwin, LindaKelly, Jamie Reid, and Erica Viegas

Publisher/Managing EditorSherrell Steele and Leanne Nickel

Copy EditorScott Rollans

Art DirectionHalkier + Dutton Strategic Design

Contributing writersand photographers

Blue Fish Studios, Andrea Collins, CaitlinCrawshaw, Phoebe Day, Tom Keyser,

Tarwinder Rai, and Bronwen Strembiski

Send your comments to:Leanne Nickel

Faculty of EngineeringE6-050 Engineering Teaching

and Learning ComplexUniversity of Alberta

Edmonton, AB T6G 2V4Tel: 780.492.4159 or 1.800.407.8354

Fax: 780.492.0500E-mail: [email protected]

Website: http://www.engineering.ualberta.ca

Winter/Spring 2008 Issue 25

Publications Mail AgreementNo. 40051128

Return undeliverable Canadianaddresses to:Faculty of Engineering,University of AlbertaE6-050 Engineering Teachingand Learning ComplexEdmonton, AB T6G 2V4

e-mail: [email protected]

VISION To be one of the largest and most accomplishedengineering teaching and research centres, a leader in North America.

MISSION To prepare top quality engineering professionals,to conduct world-leading research, and to celebrate the first-classreputation and outstanding accomplishments of alumni.

VALUES Dedication, integrity, professionalism, and excellence inteaching, research, and service to the global economy and community.

Message

Did you miss us?Due to staff changes, we have

combined the Winter and Spring

2008 issues of UofA Engineer.

Look for the Fall 2008 special

centenary edition in your mailbox

in late summer.

C O V E R S T O R Y

4 Set In StoneMichael Hatzinikolas (Civil ’77) wasthe first graduate student to studymasonry structures with theDepartment of Civil andEnvironmental Engineering, studyingunder Professors Jack Longworth(Civil ’45)—chair of the departmentfrom 1974–76—and Dr. Joe Warwaruk(Civil ’54). A new Masonry ContractorsAssociation of Alberta-NorthernResearch Chair in Masonry Systemsensures the legacy will continue.

F E A T U R E S

8 Flying HighCarl Gerard was just 17 when, withouthis parents’ knowledge, he earned hisprivate pilot’s license. He piloted hispassion for flying to the leading edgeof aerospace engineering, making hismark in military and private aviation.

12 Signs, Signs,Everywhere a SignSteven Melton (MEng Transportation’94) has no qualms about telling youwhere to go. Melton and his teamrecently wrote the book on signagefor Alberta’s highways—a task thatdemands clarity, foresight, consistentstandards and the ability to plan forevery contingency.

16 Balance of PowerImagine a house that turns a profit interms of energy use. The Net Zerohouse in Edmonton just might do it.Gordon Howell (Electrical ’75) ofHowell-Mayhew Engineering, Inc.,Peter Amerongen of Habitat Studio& Workshop Ltd., and Andy Smith(Civil ’78, MSc Civil ’83) are the centralplayers in the creation of a duplexthat will produce all of its own heatand energy.

of ContentsTable W i n t e r / S p r i n g 2 0 0 8

U of A Eng i n e e r 3

D E P A R T M E N T S

19 [email protected]

23 Kudos

28 Crosshairs on History –Mining EngineeringCoal. Alberta has an 800-yearsupply of it and for decades,the U of A has been instrumentalin exploiting this resource,through geology and mining.

35 In MemoriamC O R R E C T I O N

20 Tackling the Tailings PondsA year ago almost no one knewwhat the tailings ponds in northernAlberta are. Today, the tailingsponds are front and centre as anenvironmental issue that must bedealt with. Enter Dr. David Sego(Civil ’72, PhD Civil ’80), principalinvestigator of the U of A’s Oil SandsTailings Research Facility near Devon.Sego is leading an innovativeresearch program aimed at solvingthe toxic tailings conundrum.

26 The Firebag ProtocolBernie Moore (Mech. Co-op ‘85),Technical Director for Suncor’senormous Firebag projects, describesa unique management approach totapping a field with an estimatednine billion barrels of oil. To getthe job done, Suncor has formedlong-term partnerships with itsengineering contractors.

32 Turbocharged FriendshipAndrew Love (Electrical ’96) andTodd Ratke (Mechanical ’96) aregiving private and commercialvehicle turbochargers an overhaul—just in time. Concerns over theenvironment and fuel efficiency areleading to dramatic improvementsin design.

34 Homecoming 2008As the U of A celebrates itscentenary in 2008, the Faculty ofEngineering celebrates 100 years ofengineering education. Find outwhat events are planned to markthis once-in-a-lifetime occasion.

16

4

In the Fall 2007 issue, the story on Bill Kay, “A Gift of Confidence’, wasincorrectly credited in the biography. Linda Goyette was the author


Set in

STONby Tarwinder Rai


And that trowel belonged to Dr.Michael Hatzinikolas (Civil ’77)—thefirst graduate student to study mason-

ry structures with the department.“Masonry wasn’t a part of the curriculum

back then,” says Hatzinikolas. He beganworking on his PhD in Structural Engineeringunder the guidance of Prof. Jack Longworth(Civil ’45)—Chair of the Department of CivilEngineering from 1974–76—and Dr. JoeWarwaruk (Civil ’54).

Today, Hatzinikolas is recognized asWestern Canada’s most experienced masonryengineer. But he started out his career as anelementary school teacher.

After obtaining a degree in education fromGreece in 1964, Hatzinikolas served as an offi-cer in the Greek Army for two years. Decidinghe “didn’t like the second lieutenant,”Hatzinikolas emigrated to Canada in 1966. Hecompleted his Bachelors of Civil Engineeringdegree in 1971 and Master’s degree in 1972 atthe University of Manitoba. He then workedoverseas for three years. Jetting back toCanada, he came to the University of Albertato complete his PhD (1975–77).

“A lot of students came to study masonryat the U of A after me, and they have all goneon to become leaders in the masonry industryand education in Canada,” Hatzinikolaspoints out.

“Longworth and Warwaruk accepted thechallenge to supervise a student in a field theyhad no background or expertise in. They hadthe foresight to see that masonry was animportant area of civil engineering.

“The masonry industry owes a lot to thesetwo individuals. They saw the need to devel-op research in this area and they were the twothat started the process and deserve all thecredit. They were good teachers that becamegreat friends.”

This foresight, and the growing partner-ship between the MCAA Northern Regionand the Department of Civil andEnvironmental Engineering over the past fewyears, has strengthened the department andthe MCAA Northern Region to position itselfamong the best in masonry education.

MCAA Northern Region members ChrisAmbrozic, (president of Scorpio Masonry[Northern] Inc.) and Kery Donaghey (AlbertaDivision Manager, Gracom Masonry), helpedsecure not only research funding, but anendowed position that will put WesternCanada at the forefront of leading-edgemasonry technology and design.

The MCAA Northern Region, formed in1965, is an Edmonton-based contractor-dri-ven regional association with membership

E

The trowel that placed the first layer of mortar

32 years ago—when there were no researchers

studying masonry at the University of Alberta—

inadvertently set a course that has led to the

establishment of the prestigious Masonry

Contractors Association of Alberta (MCAA Northern

Region) Chair in Masonry Systems within the

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering.

South side of Lister Hall,University of Alberta campus.


Masonry is the building ofstructures from individual unitslaid in and bound together bymortar. Common materials ofmasonry construction includebrick, stone (such as marble,granite, travertine, andlimestone), concrete block,glass block, and tile. Masonry iscommonly used for the walls ofbuildings, retaining walls andmonuments. Brick is the mostcommon type of masonry, andmay be either weight-bearingor a veneer.

MASONRYrepresenting masonry producers, union andnon-union contractor interests in northernAlberta. Although regional in structure, itmaintains a national and international focuson masonry issues. It has a history of provid-ing a leadership role in masonry research andeducation, most recently through strong sup-port of the Canadian Masonry ConcreteInstitute, Edmonton, and its relationshipswith the Department of Civil andEnvironmental Engineering. It maintainsstrong partnerships with other local, regionaland national Canadian masonry associations,including the Canadian Masonry ContractorsAssociation, the Canada Masonry DesignCentre, and the Canadian Concrete MasonryProducers Association.

With ongoing support from Dr. J.J. RogerCheng (Chair of the Department of Civil andEnvironmental Engineering), Dr. Alaa Elwi (aprofessor emeritus with the department), andthe U of A’s Faculty of Engineering, success isonly a step away.

For Donaghey and Ambrozic the researchand innovation derived from the chair filtersbeyond just masonry contractors. The bene-fits of the improved products will be felt bysuppliers and users equally.

“Industry-wide, we’ve been getting orga-nized to address issues that affect us globally.

This is just one way to ensure our futuregrowth is sustainable,” says Donaghey. “Wehave a product available in the constructionworld that—if designed properly—is durable,cost-effective and lasts a lifetime.”

Examples of the two companies’ masonrywork and restoration can readily be seenacross the U of A campus, from AssiniboiaHall to HUB Mall. Just by walking acrosscampus, you get a feel for the kind of atmos-phere masonry design can create.

“Masonry structures are a very importantpart of the construction world. Sixty per cent

of the structures throughout the world still usemasonry as a part of the building process,”says Hatzinikolas. “You can’t restore a 100-year-old building without having a clearunderstanding of how masonry works—other-wise, you would destroy the building.

“New construction systems have prob-lems; masonry is a traditional system withmost of the problems already worked out. Weshouldn’t be rebuilding structures every 20years, but restoring them every 100 years.You can demolish a brick building and usethe bricks again. Wood, you can’t.

“A pressing issue facing the industry isthat buildings constructed in Canada in theprevious century now need to be restored.With the proper knowledge and tools, thiscan be done. Some historic buildings here inEdmonton that have recently been restoredhave suffered more damage than in the previ-ous 100 years, all because they were improp-erly done.” These can only be adequatelyrepaired by engineers with a solid under-standing of masonry, adds Hatzinikolas.“Educating engineers to use the products isthe best way to go.”

And that’s where the trio—Hatzinikolas,Ambrozic and Donaghey—believe the newendowed chair’s research will break tradi-tional ground.

Masonry structures are a

very important part of the

construction world—60 per

cent of the structures

throughout the world still

use masonry as a part of the

building process. You can’t

restore a 100-year-old

building without having a

clear understanding of how

masonry works . . . other-

wise, you would destroy the

building.

—DR. MICHAEL HATZINIKOLAS

One River Park condominimums,overlooking the North SaskatchewanRiver and downtown Edmonton.


Tarwinder Rai is the CommunicationsAssistant for the Department of Civiland Environmental Engineering.

While masonry is one of the most durableproducts available on the market, the con-struction industry doesn’t fully understand itsbehaviour. This keeps it from being usedmore, say the contractors.

The MCAA Northern Region EndowedResearch Chair in Masonry Systems willengage students with education and researchin the masonry field, which includes masonrystructural performance, masonry veneer, stonecladding, environmental separations, andrestoration of modern and historic structures.

In addition to research initiatives, thechair will develop and offer undergraduateand graduate courses related to masonry andmasonry systems, with a typical annual offer-ing of at least one undergraduate and onegraduate course.

“The masonry industry across Canada hasseen an overall lack of design and researchdevelopment over the past years,” observesAmbrozic, who is a second-generation masonin his family and a red seal certified brick layer.Scorpio Masonry Inc. has been in operationsince the 1970s, and he has owned and oper-ated it for the last four. “This position will pro-vide the industry with a better understandingof systems and gives a venue to test leadingedge material and better utilize our resources.

“We realize by having the U of A in ourbackyard, the masonry industry will have thesame benefits and garner similar milestones interms of success as other construction options.”

Hatzinikolas, who is most often creditedwith raising the bar on masonry design andconstruction in Western Canada, also ownsand operates FeroCorp. For 22 years, thisEdmonton-based company has manufacturedand distributed masonry ties designed tofacilitate the construction of masonry cavitywalls. Hatzinikolas was formerly ExecutiveDirector of the Canadian Masonry ResearchInstitute, and is currently an adjunct profes-sor with the Department of Civil andEnvironmental Engineering.

Donaghey, another businessman withroots entangled in the masonry industry, saysestablishing an endowed chair in civil engi-neering is just the beginning.

“Our motivation is to have this happen inevery university. It’s the oldest trade in theworld, and in a fast-paced economy like ours,people go for quick fixes and not durability,”says Donaghey, who has 32 years of industryexperience. “Masonry is the most durableproduct and lasts hundreds of years. You getlongevity with this product.”

With industry ties already cemented with-in the masonry, everyone agrees the opportu-nities for research and product advancementare endless.

“To have an endowed chair invest theirknowledge and expertise into masonry designis great,” enthuses Hatzinikolas. “There’s nobetter way to educate the young engineers tofeel comfortable to use the product. The chair

will be encouraging people to use moremasonry, which eventually will pay big divi-dends to the masonry industry. I’d like to seea professor who not only teaches masonrybut focuses on masonry wall systems, encour-ages industry participation to advance themasonry industry and promotes historicrestoration of masonry buildings.”

A pressing issue facingthe industry is thatbuildings constructed inCanada in the previouscentury now need to berestored.—DR. MICHAEL HATZINIKOLAS

Our motivation is to havethis happen in everyuniversity. It’s the oldesttrade in the world, and ina fast-paced economylike ours, people go forquick fixes and notdurability.—KERY DONAGHEY

The masonry industryacross Canada hasseen an overall lack ofdesign and researchdevelopment over thepast years. This positionwill provide the industrywith a better understand-ing of systems and givesa venue to test leadingedge material and betterutilize our resources.—CHRIS AMBROZIC

Unique structural concrete blockwork.

FLYING

Carl Gerard

remembers being

as young as four

years old and

already interested

in aircraft

by Phoebe Day


arl Gerard remembers being asyoung as four years old andalready interested in aircraft. As

a small boy growing up near Whitewood,Saskatchewan, he would hear the roar ofthe yellow Cornell trainer, run outside andwave as it passed overhead. Later, as ateenager in Victoria, B.C., he joined the air

C cadets, continuing to nurture his love foranything that flew.

At 17, Gerard earned his private pilotlicense, without even telling his parents whathe was doing because he knew they would beworried. But once he went solo, they becamehis first passengers when he took off from theSydney airport, near Victoria.

HIGHBombardier Learjet 45

9U of A Eng i n e e r


That early start, as a prairie boy admiringthe planes overhead, led to a stellar career inaerospace engineering. Gerard would go onto contribute to the design of some of themost renowned aircraft in the world.

Gerard joined the air force in 1952 rightout of high school, and was posted as an air-craft technician in a number of Canadiantowns. In Chatham, New Brunswick, at anoperational training unit for pilots, heworked on one of the Royal Canadian AirForce’s first jet fighters, the Sabre, as well asthe Lockheed T-33 and the World War IIMustang fighter. Chatham was also where hemet his wife, Angela.

By the time the young couple was postedoverseas they had three daughters, all underthe age of three. They spent four years inMarville, France, one of four RCAF basesestablished to support NATO’s goals duringthe Cold War. Gerard was promoted to cor-poral and, among other activities, took partas a technical team member in a competitionamong NATO countries to see whose pilotshad the best shot. As the non-commissionedofficer in charge of the instrumentation

group, Gerard was part of the Canadian teamthat took the title.

In 1956, the German Air Force had justbeen reinstated and equipped with theCanadian Sabre fighters. If Gerard’s base inFrance was ever destroyed, his group was tobecome part of the Alhorn wing in Germany.“Many of our pilots and the German pilotswere World War II vets and we all socialized,”says Gerard. “It was a real experience to meetthe people of that era and share their stories.”

Gerard returned to Canada for a briefposting in Portage La Prairie, Man., and in1963 was sent to the University of Alberta aspart of the air force’s Regular OfficerTraining Plan. He spent four years inEdmonton, returning to regular service everysummer at nearby Namao, where he was themaintenance officer on the Hercules.

“Having been away from school for anumber of years, that first semester took a lotof adjusting,” he recalls. “I had been awayfrom challenging classes like math and physicsfor a while. I went straight into calculus classand couldn’t even remember how to factor.”

Gerard settled in by the second semester,

however, and even got used to his 44-hourweeks. He left the U of A, he says, with aMechanical Engineering degree and a “goodacademic toolkit” that included the basics ofeconomics, common law, and productionmanagement.

Upon graduating in 1967, Gerard movedto Ottawa and then Cold Lake, Alta., wherehe spent the next five years as a flight testengineer with the Aerospace Engineering TestEstablishment. “It was phenomenal for a newgrad to have that kind of responsibility,” hesays. He guided aircraft—such as the DassaultFalcon business jet—through a range of coldand hot weather experiments. In the winter,he would fly up to Fort Churchill, Man. andcold soak the aircraft in temperatures plung-ing below -50° Celsius. “We would let it soakall night and in the morning, look for leakingseals or any other damage done,” he says.“We wanted to know if the battery wouldwork, if the engine would start, or how thehydraulic pumps functioned in that extremeenvironment. We had to test everything.”

He also tested a CF-5 fighter aircraft inblazing heat in Yuma, Arizona. With the

Carl Gerard and the production management teamwith a newly-manufactured Dash 8 Series 200.

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plane parked in the sun at 38° Celsius, cock-pit temperatures would reach temperatures of177° C—easily hot enough to bake a cake.

In 1972, Gerard packed up his largefamily—he now had three sons as well asthree daughters—and moved to England fora master’s degree in Structural and AerospaceDynamics from the Cranfield Institute ofTechnology. He then returned to Ottawa as astructural engineering specialist for CanadianForces aircraft. A highlight came in the late1970s, when he served as the structural engi-neering specialist on the selection of Canada’snew fighter aircraft program (the F-15 won).

Around the same time, Gerard and hiscolleague, Bill Lockhart, paid close attentionto a damage-tolerance philosophy practicedby the United States Air Force. That method-ology used recording equipment to measureflight loads and determine how many flighthours an aircraft could log safely beforerequiring an in-depth structural inspection.“Bill and I looked at how to apply this phi-losophy in economic terms to fit ourCanadian Forces aircraft fleets. After I left, itbecame enshrined in air force practice. It wasa nice contribution we made.” The Canadianforces officially adopted the program in1980, and continues to apply it today.

Gerard’s last post with the military was inNova Scotia, where he was the maintenanceofficer for the legendary Sea King helicopter.

At 44 years old, Gerard was already eligi-ble for a pension. But instead of retiring, hejoined IMP Aerospace, the largest militaryaircraft repair and overhaul firm in AtlanticCanada. He was hired to build up the com-pany’s engineering section. During his time atIMP, he helped win a proposal to service theAurora long-range patrol aircraft—theTracker, and then the Sea King.

He worked his way up IMP’s ladder, hold-ing a number of executive positions includingExecutive Vice President and COO IMPAerospace, and also served on the board ofdirectors. He collected a number of othertitles, including chairman of the Nova ScotiaCAD/CAM Collegium, and served as theAtlantic Canada member of the AdvisoryBoard for the NRC National AeronauticsEstablishment.

“As an executive vice president, I hung upmy slide ruler and concentrated more on pro-ject and personnel management,” Gerard says.

At an NRC advisory board meeting, a col-league asked Gerard to consider coming overto Canadian aerospace giant Bombardier,which had acquired Boeing’s subsidiary inToronto, de Havilland Aircraft of Canada.He decided to make one last pit stop beforeretirement.

But he arrived at a difficult time. TheBoeing arm had gone through massive lay-offs, and Gerard was forced to reduce thenumbers even more. To complicate matters,Bombardier decided to launch its business jetat the same time. So while it was getting ridof aerodynamics engineers, it was hiringaerospace structural engineers.

Six engineering directors were reduced tofour, and company morale had bottomed out.“The Boeing group had already been throughthe exercise once, and the de Havillandemployees were still licking their wounds, soit was tough when Bombardier came in anddid it again,” Gerard recalls. “It was a verychallenging period. The only way to build upconfidence was to give people work.”

While restructuring the engineering organi-zation, Gerard modernized the design process.He introduced an integrated product develop-ment methodology—Concurrent Engineering.All the departments—manufacturing, finance,procurement—would sit down at one table,rather than operate as isolated units. At thetime, it was an innovative concept.

Gerard also worked on a number of pro-duction programs, including the Dash 8Series 200 certification, the Learjet 45 wingdesign (“for that little Lear wing, we needed90 engineers”) and the Global Expressbusiness jet rear fuselage design and finalassembly (“the Global Express had a phe-nomenal range of 14,000 km; it went fasterthan the 747 and could fly from New York toTokyo nonstop”), and, ultimately, the new 76passenger Dash 8 Series 400 airliner.

When de Havilland designed and built theGlobal Express business jet and the Dash 8Series 400, the company switched strategiesin order improve its competitiveness. It liftedthe veil of privacy on design and partneredwith Mitsubishi of Japan, Allied Signal fromthe U.S., Pratt and Whitney from Montreal,France’s Sextant and Westland from the UK.During this time the de Havilland engineeringorganization grew from 315 to more than1300.

Phoebe Day is an Edmonton-basedfreelance writer.

“This was a great team I had the privilegeof working with—a team of superb, world-class engineers. Some of the de Havillandengineers had been employed on Canada’sAVRO Arrow program,” says Gerard.“Throughout my entire career, I was fortu-nate to work with experienced people. I usedevery darn bit and then some of what I wastaught at the U of A and, as well, these peo-

ple I worked with all became my teachers.Throughout my career it was like I went toschool for 46 years.”

Even after he retired in 1998, Gerard stillkept a hand in the industry. He assistedauthor Stephen Armstrong on Engineeringand Product Development, and wrote thebook’s foreword.

He now fills his days with golf (he gets in60 to 70 games a year), travelling, volunteer-ing with his church parish, and visiting his 19grandchildren. Luckily, his three sons all livewithin five kilometres of his Halifax home.

“My whole career, I’ve been fortunate,”Gerard says. “My work has been my hobby.In my boyhood days, I built 300 model air-planes, designed many of them by trial anderror, and learned from mistakes. And in mycareer, I got to work on the real ones. It hasbeen fantastic.”

He introduced anintegrated productdevelopmentmethodology—Concurrent Engineering.All the departments—manufacturing, finance,procurement—wouldsit down at one table,rather than operateas isolated units.

hey regulate your actions, improve yoursafety, and guide you to your destina-tion, but you probably never even give

highway signs a thought. That’s becauseSteven Melton (MEng Transportation ’94) andhis team give them a great deal of thought.

In fact, you could say that Melton wrotethe book on the subject. He recently received a2007 Showcase Award for Alberta’s newHighway Guide and Information Sign Manual.

The project started as an update to theUrban Guide and Information Manual, but iteventually grew into an entirely new docu-ment. The new manual took about a year anda half to complete, as Melton worked to

T

SIGNSSIGNSeverywhere

SIGNSbyBronwen Strembiski

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strike a balance between safety, mobilityneeds, and community interests.

Melton is very modest when it comes to hiscontribution to the project. “This was very

much a joint venture with the TechnicalStandards Branch of Alberta Infrastructure andTransportation,” he says. Along with severalkey colleagues at Infrastructure and Transpor-tation, Melton points to the hard work of a U of ACivil Engineering co-op student, Marlis Foth.

As with most projects, the first step wasresearch. The team looked at similar manualsfrom across Canada and the United States,while also assembling and updating the datathat already existed in other AlbertaInfrastructure and Transportation documents.

An effective highway signs manual has toaddress every conceivable scenario on theroad. To do this, Foth explains, “Some stan-dard signing plans were developed for thecommon intersection and interchange config-urations, and then basic principles and exam-

ples were provided to allow an individual tocreate a signing plan for any situation.”

Human factors play the largest role indesigning signs, says Foth. “All of the factorsare based on an individual’s ability to detect,read, decide, and react to the signs.” To makeit easier to detect signs, roadside clutter iskept to a minimum, and signs are colour-coded according to their purpose. For exam-ple, directional signs are green, and facilitiesand service signs are blue.

Because a driver has only an instant to readand process a sign’s message, text is kept asshort and simple as possible. Even the font canbe crucial; Alberta now uses Clearview insteadof Gothic, because U.S. research indicates thatClearview is easier to read and understand.

Sign placement is another critical factor.

Tourist Destination AreaSign (Provincial Park)

Exit only (with single exit lane)

Tourist Destination Area Sign(Recreation Park)

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Excerpts from ISL Engineering and LandServices Ltd’s Information Sign Manual


Typical Ruralinterchange signing(parclo interchange)

Once a driver reads a sign, he or she firstneeds to decide whether or not to act, andthen needs adequate time to take that action.Within a few seconds, a driver going 100km/h may have to change lanes, slow down,and turn off the road. To allow time for that,you need to create a formula to determine thebest place to put each sign.

Above all, signs have to be consistent. Asign can accomplish much of its job purelythrough its colour and shape. For example,you don’t have to actually read the word onthat red octagonal sign. Your brain automat-ically puts your foot on the brake pedal.

Likewise, you shouldn’t have to expend alot of thought trying to find highway signs.If they appear in predictable places, you quick-ly learn where to look for them. “This is par-

ticularly important for drivers who are unfa-miliar with the route,” Foth points out.“Consistency is also important across otherjurisdictions, whether it is Alberta, Canada orother countries.”

The Highway Guide and InformationSign Manual will provide an essential set oftools for urban and rural municipalitiesthroughout the province, and for years tocome. Thanks to the work of Melton and histeam, we will be able to go right on not think-ing about highway signs.

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Bronwen Strembiski ownsConnectation Consulting, anEdmonton-based communicationsand public relations company.

Edmonton’sNET ZERO homemakes environmentalhistory

BalanceofPower


b y C a i t l i n C r a w s h a w

s of this fall, Edmonton willboast one of Canada’s mostenergy sustainable homes—theRiverdale NetZero Project—thanks to the efforts of a team

led by U of A Engineering alumni.Electrical Engineering alumnus Gordon

Howell of Howell-Mayhew Engineering, Inc.,Peter Amerongen of Habitat Studio &Workshop Ltd., and U of A Civil Engineeringalumnus Andy Smith are the central players inthe creation of a Riverdale duplex that willproduce all of its own heat and energy. Itsounds amazing, but the principles are simple.

“It uses small amounts of energy to beginwith,” explains Howell. Triple-paned win-dows on the south, east and west sides of thehouse and quadruple-paned windows on thenorth side of the house greatly reduce heatloss. It is extremely airtight and incorporatesa high-efficiency heat recovery ventilationunit. The house will have an R-value of 56in the walls and 100 in the ceiling, in contrastto the average new house, which has an aver-age R value of between 20-25 in the wallsand 40 in the ceiling, says Howell. To

illustrate how far building technology hascome: an early 1950s bungalow would havebeen built with an R value of 4 in the wallsand 12 in the ceiling.

In contrast, the super-efficient Riverdalebungalow “has such a low heat loss that itcan be heated at night in the winter at 32°Cwith six hair dryers,” says Howell.

The house includes an active solar heatingsystem that produces 94 per cent of the heatused for hot water and 78 per cent of the heatused to heat the house. The remainder is pro-vided during the daytime by electricity thatthe house generates through its solar electric-ity system, and at night through the city’selectricity grid.

This energy consumption and productioncreates a “net zero” balance over the yearbecause the house contributes electrical ener-gy to the grid during the day, when it gener-ates more than it can use. This counteractsthe amount the house draws from the grid atnight. The daily net production is greater inthe summer and less in the winter, and isexpected to leave the house with a slightannual electricity oversupply.

A

The group behind the Riverdale Net ZeroProject was one of 12 teams across Canada—and four in Alberta—that competed to win aposition in Canada Mortgage and HousingCorporation’s “EQuilibrium SustainableHousing” initiative to create a net zero energyhealthy home. The selected teams are combin-ing resource and energy-efficient technologiesto create these homes across the country.

Howell, who is also a team member ontwo of the other three Alberta projects,points out that these 12 homes are the first oftheir kind in Canada -- no net zero energyhouses have been built here before. The hous-es are leaders in changing our thinking abouthow we go about building our houses andother infrastructure, says Howell. “This isnot a panacea; this is merely one of the solu-tions we need to seriously consider in resolv-ing our energy delivery issues.”

Even though the house is not yetcomplete, several people are interested inbuying it. There won’t be major restrictionsplaced on who buys the house, but Howellsays the owners need to see themselves aspart of the team. “We want someone therewith whom we will have a relationship,because we want to know how well the houseworks and how well it hits our design goals,


Solar electricity modules being installed.

Solar heating collectors being installed.

When temperatures dip this coming winterand many Edmontonians face huge heating bills,one house in the city will owe the natural gascompany nothing.

All

phot

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Gor

don

How

ell

Caitlin Crawshaw is anaward-winning Edmonton-basedfreelance writer.


and we’ll be measuring its performance for acouple of years.”

“Because these are the first houses builtlike this in Canada, everybody’s learning ahuge amount. It’s not like we’ve done a hun-dred and we know how it all works.” Howellpredicts that the house will come within just afew per cent of its goal, but the attitude andchoices of the people living in the home willhave a great affect on its ability to achieve anet-zero result. “If the family is aware of howchoices affect energy consumption, we’ll havean energy surplus. If the family is not aware,then we will have a small deficit. Notice howthat has nothing to do with technology.”

A long-time sustainability advocate,Howell leads by example: his own home hasbeen very energy efficient since its construc-tion in the late ‘80s. In 1995, it became west-ern Canada’s 1st solar powered home to sellelectricity to the grid. Howell also organizeseco-solar home tours in Edmonton (there areabout nine solar-powered homes and evenmore solar-heated homes) to show peoplewhat's possible.

Howell’s environmental awareness plays apart in everything he does. His engineeringcareer has focused on resolving the barriersto getting solar power systems connected tothe grid. He has installed solar energy sys-tems at the Alberta Legislature and has beenpart of a number of other solar projectsaround the province.

His undertakings are complex, but hisphilosophy is simple. “I want to help peopleprepare for the energy and environmentalissues now around us. I’ve been saying thisfor a number of years, but we’re seeing moreand more these days. I’m happy to help peo-ple understand these things more clearly andto take action,” he says.

And he hopes his environmental leader-ship spreads.

“I came across a wonderful definition ofleadership the other day. It was: A leader issomeone who causes other people to takeeffective action. I want to help others … takeeffective action, so each of us can make thedecisions we need to make to reduce the envi-ronmental footprint that is causing this worldto start going down the tube pretty fast.”

Basement forms showing solar heat storage tanks.

Riverdale NetZero House nearing completion.


@ualberta.caengineer.alum

Civil and EnvironmentalEngineering

Rod Douglas (Mining ’48)

I enjoyed the most recent issue of U of AEngineer.

When I was located in Yellowknife NWTas Group Vice President of NorthernOperations for Cominco Ltd. (1975 to 1980)we had the task of devel-oping a lead zinc miningoperation on LittleCornwallis Island in thehigh Arctic (lat. 75degrees).

The team we assem-bled developed the idea ofbuilding the concentratorand power plant on abarge in Quebec and tow-ing it up to the site. By doing this we were ableto bring the mine into production a year earlywith a considerable saving on the construc-tion costs.

The Dec. ’81/Jan ’82 issue of CanadianGeographic has an article by Tom Pullenabout the 3000-mile tow of the plant.

Gil Parker (Civil ’59)

While not aboutengineering, my newbook, Coast MountainMen; Mountaineering

Stories from the West

Coast is a compendiumof 14 biographies of

explorers of Vancouver Island and the WestCoast of Canada.

Thanks again for the article you printed tocomplement my last book, Looking throughGlasnost.

Chemical Engineering

B. W. Pedersen (Chemical ’64)

Just received my copy and am sending mycongratulations on a wonderful edition. Ithink you have truly captured the essence ofwhat this magazine was meant to be: a vehicleto recognize the accomplishments of the fac-ulty, its professors and its alumni (includingthose now retired).

Paul Goud (Electrical ’59, Professor Emeritus)

I was happy to receive the most recent issue ofU of A Engineer and the 2008 calendar. As always,I enjoyed reading the magazine and admiring thecalendar pictures and their explanations.

I particularly enjoyed the article on the AvroArrow. I have an engineering friend, Rod Drysdale,who also worked on the Avro Arrow and has interest-ing stories about it.

As I recall, it was claimed that developing the elec-tronic and armament systems for the Avro Arrow

would require a similar amount of money to what was being spent on developing theplane itself. Also, after the Russian Sputnik launch in 1957, the USA was hystericalabout being behind in the missile area and did not see a big future in fighter aircraft.President Kennedy made a big deal about the “missile gap” in his election campaignin 1960.

The Avro’s cancellation was highly controversial, and I don’t want to argue aboutwhether or not it was the right decision in its full context at that time—namely,money being spent versus expected future payoff. Sadly though, the cancellation sentmany highly trained Canadian engineers to the USA looking for jobs there.

Jim Saltvold (Electrical ’64)

In the Fall 2007 U of A Engineer, you invited readers to tell you about significantmilestones in engineering history. I regard the development of the CANDU nuclearpower reactor as a very significant milestone.

Unlike the Avro Arrow, which you featured in the Fall 2007 issue, the CANDUreactor continued to receive government funding. Today there are at least 18CANDU reactors producing power at five power stations in Canada, and anothernine CANDU reactors in four foreign countries. These reactors produce clean powerwithout emitting carbon dioxide.

Many U of A engineering graduates,including me, have had rewarding careersworking for Atomic Energy of CanadaLimited, a utility or a supplier to the nuclearindustry. Energy Alberta has recently filed anapplication to build a dual CANDU reactorpower station near Peace River. If it goesahead, many more U of A graduates will have an opportunity to work in the nuclearindustry. Therefore, I feel that an article on the CANDU reactor in a 2008 issuewould be very timely.

Three websites where more information on the CANDU reactor are listed below.In the third website, the Canadian engineering community, on the occasion of its1987 centenary, identified the CANDU reactor as one of the nation’s top ten engi-neering achievements of the preceding century.

• www.aecl.ca/• www.candu.org/candu_reactors.html• www.nuclearfaq.ca/CANDUcountry.htm


for the U of A’s $2.2 million Oil SandsTailings Research Facility (OSTRF).

A professor of civil and environmentalengineering, Sego helped launch this ambi-tious project in late 2005. But long beforethen, he learned to regard the vast Canadianoil sands with a combination of awe and pro-found respect. More than 177 billion barrelsof recoverable oil remain locked within threemassive northern Alberta bitumen deposits,and they will play a key role in Canada’slong-term economic health and growth.

At the same time, Sego stresses the vitalimportance of responsible management—because Alberta’s pristine landscape is itsmost precious resource of all.

Based at the provincially-owned CAN-MET Western Resources Centre in Devon,OSTRF is home to a small, dedicated squad

It’s no secret thatAlberta’s economic

future will be entirelyunderwritten bynatural resources

Tackling TailingPon

of grad students who spend most of theirwaking hours trying to solve a vexing dilem-ma: how to counteract the negative effects of“tailings,” a water-clay mixture about theconsistency of thin liquid yogurt.

Tailings are sandy, insoluble mineralbyproducts of the hot water process of oilsands extraction. They represent a seriousproblem, both to the major producers whodraw oil from the Athabasca sands and topragmatic environmentalists like Sego.

OSTRF students have embarked on afascinating array of research projects, investi-gating everything from the “biological dewa-tering” of tailings to the impact of claymineral-water bitumen geochemistry on tail-ings behaviour.

But they share a single goal: to signifi-cantly reduce the enormous volumes of tail-

the

t’s no secret that Alberta’s economic futurewill be entirely underwritten by naturalresources. But Dr. Dave Sego (Civil ’72;PhD ’80 ) believes profit must go hand in

hand with a strong sense of environmentalresponsibility as Canada’s richest provincemoves forward.

Such a conviction is right in character forthe soft-spoken Sego, principal investigator

I


b y Tom K e y s e r

nds

ings produced during extraction—about onecubic metre of tailings for every four barrelsof oil. At the same time, they hope to dra-matically speed up the reclamation process.

As his work led him to better understandthe oil sands, Sego learned things that text-books and lab research can’t teach. “Asfar back as the early 1990s, I began torealize how inextricably the economic futureof our province and our country are tiedup with the oil sands,” he says today. “I’mtalking about the opportunities they willprovide for all of us, our young people inparticular.”

At the same time, he concluded thatindustry and science need to work together todevelop creative new strategies for limitingdisruption of the land. In a nutshell, that’sOSTRF’s mission.

Ultimately, Sego says the goal is “to reacha point where we can return mature fine tail-ings to a condition of absolute stability, to cre-ate a natural landscape which would allowplants and animals to thrive. We want to takeall the material from the discharge pipe to cer-tification, where the land can be returned tothe public in a stable, natural state.”

There really is no alternative. Currently,Northern Alberta producers store their accu-mulated tailings in sprawling lagoons knownas tailings ponds—vast pools of waste thathave grown to rival Lake Erie in combinedarea. Such ponds are poisonous to fish,although toxicity subsides after tailings havebeen given two years to settle.

“The challenge of maintaining earthenembankments (to contain tailings) for hun-dreds of years is something I don’t think oursociety is ready to face,” Sego adds, clearlyunderstating the case.

As things stand now, this material won’tsustain any kind of reclamation. So the majorchallenge facing Sego, his students and hispartners in government and industry is tofind a way to remove water from the mixwith, an eye to developing new landscapes.

“We do have to face facts,” Sego warns.“The (original) landscape has been perma-nently altered. You can’t extract materials onthis scale and expect to put the soil backexactly the way it was. But we can manage itand build it into a sustainable landscape forthe benefit of future generations.”

According to reports, 42,000 hectares ofnorthern wilderness have already been dis-turbed during 40 years of open-pit mining.Sego’s personal ambition is to restore trees,shrubs, grasses and wildlife to as much ofthat land as possible. How? That’s what heand his students intend to find out.

It has never been Sego’s style to attack orvilify major oil sands operators, though. Onthe contrary, he has recruited many of themto help. They have responded in kind, pro-viding Sego with the cash, expertise and tech-nical support he needs to chase his dream.

OSTRF’s success serves as a textbookexample of the exciting things that can hap-pen when universities, government funders,and big corporations find themselves on thesame page. Such high-level synergies aren’tnecessarily rare. But the wheels must be putinto motion by energetic individuals whoshare an inspired combination of persuasion,determination and organization.

Sego was the person for the job.Encouraged by colleague Dr. Norbert

Morgenstern, now a professor emeritus atU of A, Sego began by casting his net uponthe waters, scoping out potential sources ofpublic cash. Eventually, he caught the ear oftwo government agencies—the CanadianFoundation for Innovation and AlbertaInnovation and Science. Both were interestedin helping out, as long as industry could bepersuaded to put up its fair share.

About that time, Sego sat down to lunchwith engineer Ted Lord, a senior researcher atSyncrude. Lord was extremely keen on theplan, and carried Sego’s pitch to his bosses.Similarly impressed, they bought in.

From there, the ball started rolling inearnest. Sego and Lord soon recruitedSuncor, Albian Sands,and True North Energy(which has since abandoned its oil sands pro-ject at Fort Hills).

Later on, Canadian Natural Resources andDeer Creek Energy (acquired by Total E&PCanada two years ago) climbed aboard, afteragreeing to match contributions made by theoriginal partners: $50,000 each for capital out-lay and an annual stipend of $50,000 each foroperating costs over a five-year renewable term.

OSTRF continues to pique industry inter-est, by the way. In the fall of 2007, Petro-Canada firmed up details for its ownpartnership agreement with OSTRF.

Thanks to the efforts of Hassan Hazma ofthe CANMET Western Resources Centre,room was found for OSTRF on-site inDevon. Meanwhile, OSTRF’s industry part-ners continued to step up to the plate.

One company sent along one seniorprocess engineer to draft the original capitalbudget and another to design OSTRF’s $1.5million process plant, which includes tailings

A composite tailings prototype at theSyncrude site. The company is nowreclaiming its entire east mine usinga foundation of composite tailings.Full scale planting of the area willbegin in 2010.

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Dr. Dave Sego


storage tanks, a large rotary mixer, a recon-figurable deposition flume, and two heftycolumns to facilitate large-scale saline testing.

“With this equipment, we can engineertailings right to spec, using whatever chemi-cal concentration or solids concentration bestsuits the student’s experiment,” chips in facil-ity manager Nicholas Beier, a PhD candidatein environmental engineering who worksclosely with Sego.

Part of Beier’s job is to co-ordinate theefforts of grad students who are anxious torun tests in the plant, which can process asmany as 2,000 kilograms of tailings an hour.However, prohibitive operating costs (asmuch as $7,000 a day) mean the researchershave to carefully pick their spots, underBeier’s watchful eye.

“Because of the cost and the large amountof materials needed to run a test, we ask ourstudents to define the nature of their projectsvery carefully,” Sego says. “Then, when theirresearch reaches a certain point of maturity,we can go ahead. Nick sets things up to runa single test for three or four students, withresults available to all.”

Always quick to praise his corporatepartners for the strength of their contribu-tion, Sego believes they’re getting their ownback, both in terms of valuable research andfresh talent. Of nine researchers who hademerged from OSTRF as of late 2007, sevenhave since been recruited by the oil sandsindustry. The remaining two have returned totheir studies.

Each OSTRF student is asked to discuss hisor her research with industry reps during annu-al symposia at the Alberta Research Council.

“It’s good for our corporate partners,because these students are in high demand.Oil sands producers are crying for qualifiedpeople and when they hire them fromOSTRF they’re getting some of the best,”says Sego, who is already firming up plansfor expansion.

Along with Beier, he is preparing to applyto the National Sciences and EngineeringResearch Council (NSERC) for funding thatcould open the door for more talented,highly qualified graduate students.

“Producers continue to build tailingsponds. But after so many years, they’re start-

ing to realize it’s time to learn to manage(tailings) a different way,” Sego sums up.

Now the challenge is to keep attractingtop students willing to dedicate their careersto such esoteric studies. “I’d like to bring in amore diversified mix of research talent, par-ticularly people from the rest of Canada andoffshore,” Sego says.

“Unfortunately, many foreign students, andeven many from Eastern Canada, haven’t yetgrasped the important of our research. Becausethey don’t live in Alberta, they’re not reallyaware of the significance of the oil sands.”

As Sego pursues expansion plans forOSTRF, you can count on him to do all hecan to spread the word.

Ultimately, Sego says the goal is “to reach a point where we can return mature finetailings to a condition of absolute stability, to create a natural landscape which wouldallow plants and animals to thrive. We want to take all the material from thedischarge pipe to certification, where the land can be returned to the public in astable, natural state.”

Tom Keyser is a Calgary-basedfreelance journalist.

A drum mixer is used to mix tailings.

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T a k i n g p r i d e i n a c h i e v e m e n t

BANNARD, JEFF(Electrical ’80), PEng

was a member ofa project teampresented withAPEGGA’sEnvironment andSustainability

Award for excellence in theapplication of engineering, geo-logical and geophysical methodstowards preservation of the envi-ronment and the practice of sus-tainable development. Bannardworked as part of the EnergySystems team on the Universityof Calgary’s Child DevelopmentCentre (CDC) which opened inOctober 2007. The four-storey12,000-square-metre buildinghouses a child-care facility and afull continuum of researchers,clinicians and frontline workersdedicated to child health anddevelopment, focusing on thefirst six years of life. The CDC isthe highest scoring LEED-certi-fied building in Canada andAlberta's first LEED Platinumstructure, the highest level ofenvironmental performanceobtainable. The CDC is twicethe combined size of all othercold-climate LEED Platinumbuildings in North America. Theenergy systems include the enve-lope (walls, windows and roof),lighting and HVAC. LEEDpoints were received for energyoptimization, renewable energy,thermal comfort, light pollutioncontrol, ventilation effectiveness,elimination of hydrochlorofluo-rocarbons and halons, the use ofCO2-based control for outdoorair, and controllability of non-perimeter systems.

CARTER, JAMES E.(DSc [Hon] ’04) PEng

has been appointedto the EPCORboard of directors.Carter is the for-mer president andchief executive offi-

cer of Syncrude Canada. Herecently retired from the compa-ny after 27 years—20 of them atthe executive level. Carter playeda prominent role in the growthof Syncrude, and the evolutionof Alberta’s oil sands and thecommunity of Fort McMurray.

DIBATTISTA,DR. JEFF(MSc Structural ’95,PhD Structural ’00) PEng

was recognized bythe ConsultingEngineers ofAlberta at the 2007Showcase Awards.He received an

award of merit in building engi-neering for the $13 million PCLCentennial Learning Centre inthe Edmonton PCL BusinessPark. As PCL’s learning hub, the2,430-square-metre building is amodel of sustainable design,gold-certified under the USGBCLeadership in Energy andEnvironmental design (LEED™)Green Building rating system.The structural, mechanical, andelectrical systems are exposedand incorporated into the archi-tecture. The facility houses state-of-the-art training rooms,boardrooms, meeting rooms,offices, and a grand hall.DiBattista is a partner withCohos Evamy in Edmonton.

GREENWOOD-MADSEN,TOM(Electrical ’83, MEng Electrical ’87),PEng

has been presentedwith the APEGGAOutstandingMentor Award inrecognition of hisexceptional

achievement as a mentor. Hisprofessional experience spansthe areas of power system plan-ning and operations, and electricutility project management. Hejoined ATCO Electric in 1988,where he is currently SupervisingEngineer, TransmissionDevelopment and OperationsPlanning. Greenwood-Madsenhas been active in the APEGGAMentoring Program since itsinception in 2004. Since then hehas mentored numerous peopleusing thoroughness and care,according to testimonials fromhis protégés. He encourages pro-tégés to determine their owncourse of action for meetinggoals and objectives, and helpsbuild their self-confidence byassisting them in identifyingtheir own strengths and buildingupon them.

GROVER, DR. WAYNE D.(PhD Electrical ’89), PEng

was awarded theAlberta IngenuityFund ResearchExcellence Awardat the APEGGA2008 Summit

Award Gala. The award recog-nizes professionals in academiaor industry who have conductedinnovative research in engineer-ing, geology or geophysics thathas been successfully applied toimprove our economic andsocial well-being. A professor inthe Department of Electrical andComputer Engineering, Groverhas been active for 30 years asan inventor, researcher and edu-cator in telecommunicationsR&D. For the last 20 years, hehas been internationally recog-nized as a leading expert in sur-vivable broadband networks.Grover has several landmark

papers and inventions to hiscredit and a reputation forinsightful and original work. Heis known for his vision of self-healing mesh networks, andmore recently as inventor andmain proponent of the p-cyclesconcept.

KRYWIAK, DAVE(Civil ’77) PEng

accepted an awardof merit in waterresources and ener-gy productionfrom theConsulting

Engineers of Alberta for phaseone of the City of St. Albert’ssanitary trunk sewer. Krywiak iswith Stantec. The City retainedStantec Consulting Ltd. to pro-vide interim in-line storage andconveyance to relieve existingsurcharging conditions in thecity’s wastewater collection sys-tem and to provide for the long-term servicing of future develop-ment in the northwest area ofthe City. The project exceededthe expectations set in the previ-ous feasibility study by identify-ing an alternate alignment andconstruction method, whichresulted in lower constructioncosts and significantly lessimpact on the community.

LEE, MICHAEL(Mechanical ’82) PEng

has been appointedpresident of AlbertaOil SandsIncorporated. Hewas formerly chiefoperating officer

and co-founder of PlatformResources Incorporated. Over his25-year career in the oil and gassector, Lee held several senior-level engineering positions withEnCana Corporation, BurlingtonResources Canada Ltd.,Stampeder Exploration Ltd., andAmoco Canada PetroleumLimited. His expertise encom-passes planning and budgeting,execution, andmanagement of large capital pro-jects, and exploitationengineering.

Kudos

Send your news of awards,appointments, and other successesto [email protected]

Do you havenews to share?

2008Celebrating aCentury ofengineering Excellence

Thanks to those who contributed photographs

to the 2008 Engineering Calendar. This specially

themed calendar marks 100 years of history of

the Faculty of Engineering and includes

historical highlights plus messages from

Engineering alumni.

Your donations to the calendar will benefit the

Engineering Students' Society. Thanks for your

contributions to date.

Are you interested in participating in the 2009

calendar? Contact [email protected]

for further information.

2008EngineeringCalendar

In 1919, after the end of the Great War, manyreturning soldiers resume their education. As aresult, enrolment at the U of A swells to 1,000.In 1914, the Department of MechanicalEngineering is created.

Historical Highlights

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Celebrating a Century ofengineering Excellence

Taj Mahal, Agra IndiaShaun Luong(Electrical ’99)

Completed in 1648, the TajMahal is a colossalmausoleum of white marblecommissioned by the MughalEmperor Shah Jahan, for his

favourite wife, MumtazMahal. The Taj Mahal is aWorld Heritage Site,described by UNESCO as“the jewel of Muslim art inIndia and one of theuniversally admiredmasterpieces of the world’sheritage.” It was recentlyselected as one of the NewSeven Wonders of the World.


BACKHOUSE, DR.CHRIS, PEngDirector, Engineering PhysicsProgramProfessor, Department of Electrical &Computer EngineeringDr. Backhouse was awarded the2008 APEGGA ProjectAchievement Award for hisachievements in developing state-of-the-art medical diagnostic sys-tems. A member of the facultysince 1999, Dr. Backhouse hasbeen developing lab on a chip(LOC) microfluidic technologiesthat have the potential to put thefunctionality of an entire lab upona single microfabricated chip. Thisinnovation will improve access tohealth care while providing a man-ufacturing opportunity for Albertaindustry. The fundamental engi-neering challenge has been toreduce the cost of the technologyso that it is accessible. Amongother innovations, Dr. Backhouse’slab has developed the TricorderToolkit (TTK). True LOC devices,these chips are able to performentire procedures in going from adroplet of a sample to a diagnosticsignal in tens of minutes, includingthe labour-intensive steps of sam-ple preparations, genetic amplifi-cation and genetic analysis. Dr.Backhouse’s latest version of theTTK is less than $200 in parts,approximately 5,000 times lessexpensive than the conventionalinstrumentation.

BEAULIEU, DR.NORMAN PEngProfessor, Electrical and ComputerEngineeringDr. Beaulieu has received the IEEECommunications Society EdwinHoward Armstrong AchievementAward in recognition of his out-standing contributions to theanalysis, design, and modeling ofwireless communication system.The award is named in honour ofEdwin H. Armstrong, the inventorand father of the complete FMradio system. Dr. Beaulieu joinedthe Faculty of Engineering inSeptember 2000 when he becamethe iCORE Research Chair inBroadband WirelessCommunications. He also holds a

Canada Research Chair inBroadband WirelessCommunications. His currentresearch interests include broad-band digital communications sys-tems, ultra-wide bandwidthsystems, fading channel modelingand simulation, communicationtheory, diversity systems, interfer-ence systems, and space-time cod-ing. Dr. Beaulieu is a Fellow of theEngineering Institute of Canada,the Canadian Academy ofEngineering, and the Royal Societyof Canada.

BURRELL, DR. ROBERTChair, Biomedical EngineeringProfessor, Chemical and MaterialsEngineeringDr. Burrell has earned the LifetimeAchievement Award from theWorld Union of Healing Societiesfor his achievements in the devel-opment of revolutionary newwound treatments. In 1995 heinvented Acticoat, considered oneof the most significant advances inwound-care history, while workingfor Westaim Corporation’sNucryst Pharmaceuticals. Acticoatuses nanocrystalline silver technol-ogy and was the first commercialtherapeutic application of nan-otechnology in the world. Today,Burrell is researching ways todeliver nanostructured metal ther-apeutics, known to reduce inflam-mation, without the side effectsthat accompany some existingtreatments. Dr. Burrell holds aCanada Research Chair inNanostructured Biomaterials.

FLECK, DR. BRIAN, PEngProfessor, Mechanical EngineeringDr. Fleck recently hosted eightepisodes of CBC’s “Project X”, atelevision series focusing on the“cool side of science”. As anexpert in the field of energy com-bustion and fluid mechanics, Dr.Fleck has been teaching, consult-ing and researching in the area formany years. He has also workedas a spoken word radio host, part-time actor, a military instructor,and an environmental instructor.Many of the episodes of “ProjectX” were filmed at the University

of Alberta – including in the wind-tunnel at the Department ofMechanical Engineering.

MASLIYAH, DR. JACOBPEng, OCUniversity Professor, Department ofChemical & Materials EngineeringDr. Masliyah was recently investedas an Officer of the Order ofCanada. The Order of Canada,our country’s highest civilian hon-our, was created in 1967 duringCanada’s centennial year to recog-nize a lifetime of outstandingachievement, dedication to com-munity and service to the nation.Dr. Masliyah has contributed totechnological and scientificadvancements in the oil sandsindustry for nearly three decades.Holder of the NSERC IndustrialResearch Chair in Oil SandsEngineering for over 15 years, hehas been researching the complexinteractions between oil, waterand sand particles to improve oilrecovery from Alberta’s tar sands.Equally important, he has sharedhis knowledge with his studentsand colleagues, and has fosteredpartnerships with industry leaders.His scientific contributions, as wellas his leadership in national col-laborative programs, have broughtsignificant benefits to theCanadian oil sands industry.

NANDAKUMAR, DR. KRISH-NASWAMY, PEngProfessor, Department of Chemical &Materials EngineeringDr. Nandakumar was awarded theFrank Spragins Technical ServiceAward at the 2008 APEGGASummit Awards Gala. This awardis presented to members of APEG-GA who are recognized by theirpeers for their integrity, expertise,and outstanding accomplishmentsin fields related to engineering,geology or geophysics. Dr.Nandakumar received his B.Tech.from Madras University in India,his M.Sc. from the University ofSaskatchewan and his PhD fromPrinceton University. He has had along and successful record ofaccomplishments in research,teaching and service to the profes-sion since joining the University of

Alberta’s Faculty of Engineering inJanuary 1983. Dr. Nandakumarconducts both fundamental andapplied research in the area ofcomputational fluid dynamics. Hefocuses on computer modelling ofa variety of chemical, electrochem-ical, mineral and polymer process-ing operations commonlyencountered in chemical engineer-ing. He has published more than120 papers in refereed, interna-tional journals and has deliveredan equivalent number of confer-ence presentations.

SUNDARARAJ, DR.UTTANDARAMAN(Chemical ’89), PEngProfessor, Department of Chemical &Materials EngineeringDr. Sundararaj was awarded theEngineers Canada 2008 Medal ofDistinction in EngineeringEducation in recognition of hisinnovative and effective teachingmethods. Dr. Sundararaj began hiscareer at the U of A as assistantprofessor in the Department ofChemical and MaterialsEngineering in 1994. In mid-1996,he accepted a research position atGE Plastics where, as a leader inSix Sigma—a business manage-ment strategy used by the compa-ny—he was responsible forteaching a wide variety of profes-sional groups: scientists, operators,secretaries, and business leaders.He returned to the U of A in2000, bringing with him the men-tal tools for teaching to a diversityof learning styles—visual, verbal,and kinesthetic. Dr. Sundararajuses e-learning tools such as Webchats and demonstrations to sup-plement face-to-face instruction.He believes that knowledge com-prehension and retention is depen-dent on the student beingengaged—both by the materialand by the teacher. He goes evenfurther and helps to foster rela-tionships between students so thatthey can generate ideas and solveproblems together. He sets thestage for critical thinking by start-ing with real-world examples and,only then, presenting theory.

T a k i n g p r i d e i n a c h i e v e m e n tFacultycongratulations


traditional fire bag is an intricate-ly beaded cloth bag used byAboriginal men to store theirflints, pipes and tobacco. A

woman would traditionally make the bag,and “all the skill and workmanship that wentit into would demonstrate her love for herman,” according to Melissa Belcourt-Moses,a Royal Alberta Museum cultural interpreterquoted recently in the Edmonton Journal.

The Firebag project near Fort McMurraymay not be quite so vividly romantic, but it isinfused with the passion, skill, and work-manship of a team of University of AlbertaEngineering alumni and their colleagues. Italso represents a unique project executionarrangement between Suncor Energy and itsengineering contractors.

“Traditionally, petroleum companiesmanage a project and sub-contract out theauxiliary and technical services they needsuch as engineering,” said Bernie Moore(Mech. Coop 1985), Suncor’s EngineeringTechnical Director for the Firebag projects.“With Firebag, we’ve forged a partnershipwhere we work collaboratively with ourengineering contractors since the beginningof stage two.”

This integration is reflected in Suncor’srelationship with Jacobs Engineering.Suncor’s project staff, including Moore, hasbeen based at Jacobs in Calgary for the pastfive years. “We have project personnel fromboth companies working here but we neversee it as a we/they situation. Wherever possi-ble, we select the best person for each jobregardless of their company of origin. We areall one integrated team.”

AThe project’s origins date back to 1964,

when Suncor began drilling exploration wellson its first lease near Fort McMurray. Namingthe project for the nearby Firebag River(where a native fire bag was discovered longago), the company increased its lease and landholdings to further develop the resource.

In the 1990s, major technologicaladvances in horizontal drilling made com-mercial development of the oil sands viableusing Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage(SAGD) technology. The company conductedenvironmental scans based on SAGD, andcommitted its engineers, project managersand accountants to rationalizing the potentialof Firebag and seeking the necessary regula-tory approvals.

The Firebag site has an estimated nine bil-lion barrels of recoverable resources, equiva-lent to one million barrels a day for 30 years.The Firebag pay zone is at 250 metres below

surface—too deep for oil sands mining—sothe project team relies fully on SAGD toextract the bitumen.

The Firebag project is designed in sixstages, planned from 2001 to 2012. Stagesone through three have been approved by theAlberta Energy and Utilities Board; an appli-cation for stages four through six is currentlyunder consideration.

Stages one and two have been completed,with first steam from stage one in 2003 andfrom stage two in 2004. They now includefour well pads, a central processing facility,and four pipelines, with a bitumen produc-tion capacity of 95,000 barrels per day.Suncor used a traditional business model forstage one, with Suncor overseeing projectmanagement and the technical aspects of theproject, and outsourcing engineering work.

For stage two, Suncor created the FirebagEngineering Group in recognition of the

Firebagthe

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staged approach that would be used to devel-op this project. This group is responsible forboth project management and the technicalaspects of future Firebag stages. JacobsEngineering was selected as the main engi-neering contractor for stage two and beyond.Because of the size and complexity of stagesthree through six, multiple Jacobs offices areproviding engineering services, along withColt Engineering and Washington GroupNorthern (WGN).

Stage three includes the field, central plantand infrastructure facilities to deliver 62,500barrels a day of bitumen via SAGD technolo-gy as well as 160 MW of electrical power viacogeneration. It is expected to produce itsfirst oil in January 2009.

Because it is such a massive project,Suncor decided to execute it differently. Itchose Jacobs Engineering as its main engi-neering partner for several reasons, saysMoore, “They were willing to work withinour project execution model, and they preferto work with clients over a long period.”

The Firebag execution model has workedwell. Stage two and a subsequent expansionproject finished on schedule and on budget, anadmirable feat considering the current short-ages of manpower, rising costs and other chal-lenges in Alberta. Construction of stage threeis well underway and stages four through sixare in various phases of engineering.

The core of Suncor’s engineering group onthe Firebag projects began with 25 staff mem-bers in 2001. Today, the project employs morethan 600 from Suncor as well as its engineer-ing partners, of which at least 5 per cent areU of A Engineering grads and coop students.

Constructing the infrastructure for theexpansion requires 2,000 tradespeople andother workers a year, a human resource needexpected to continue over the next three tofour years. Workers are recruited fromaround the world, and projects are carefullyscheduled to eliminate any lag time.

“We have a mini United Nations, both inthe engineering office and at the constructionsite,” says Moore. “They’ve come from faraway, and they’ll leave if there isn’t enoughwork. We need to be creative with how weuse them, so we don’t lose them.”

Because their workers must spend longstretches on the remote site, Firebag leadershave made comfortable housing a priority,along with baseball diamonds, an indoorhockey rink, gym, recreation centre, andhigh-speed internet. They are also adding anaerodrome, to enable their workers to gohome faster and more frequently.

Project management for stage three will behandled by Suncor Energy; with engineeringby Jacob, Colt, and WGN; and constructionby Flint, Ledcor, and Colt. The project execu-tion strategy is divided into five segments: oiltreatment, steam/water, cogeneration, sitedevelopment, and field development—eachmanaged by an area project manager. Everystage of the project will be carefully evaluatedon its safety, environmental impact, cost,schedule, quality, and organization.

New technologies are constantly beingresearched and tested. Firebag engineers,geologists and technical specialists are look-ing at ways to reduce water and energy con-sumption. “Some of the most promisingtechnologies aren’t ready yet, and may take

as much as ten years to go from idea to com-mercial operation,” says Moore. “We have tobe careful about what new technology weuse. This project is so big and so fast moving,we can’t make mistakes. We have to land onreliable, effective technologies which we canimplement now.

“Economics are a challenge as well.There’s a huge cost to building the infrastruc-ture, so we can’t always afford to experiment.However, we do make changes as we goalong. Each stage of Firebag has been a learn-ing experience that has enabled us to improveour operations and our results over time.Hopefully, good ideas we develop now thatdon’t fit into stages three to six will be usedin future stages.”

In 2012, when Suncor expects to com-plete stage six, the Firebag site should con-tribute significantly to Suncor’s overall plansof producing 500,000–550,000 barrels of oildaily through a combination of oil sandsmining and SAGD extraction.

All that hard work and passion will createone very impressive Firebag.

“We have a mini United Nations, both in the engineering

office and at the construction site,” says Moore.

“They’ve come from far away, and they’ll leave if there

isn’t enough work. We need to be creative with how we

use them, so we don’t lose them.”

Andrea Collins is an Edmonton-based freelance writer and publicrelations consultant

Construction on a FirebagStage 3 pipe rack.

Firebag Stages 1 and 2, with a digitalversion of the Stage 3 plant from a 3-Dmodel superimposed on the plant site.K

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on HistoryCross Hairs

MiningEngi

oal seams lie underneath 80 percent of Alberta’s landmass. Inaddition to the hard black coalitself, each deposit holds viscous

black oil and pockets of natural gas. Formore than 100 years, coal and its byproductshave been a primary fuel source for ourprovince and country, a top export commod-ity, a major source of employment, and abasis for Alberta’s wealth.

It is no surprise, then, to learn that someof the earliest programs at the University ofAlberta focused on geology and mining. Theyprovide a rich seam of stories and engineerswith a pioneering spirit.

John Andrew Allan was the earliest min-ing instructor connected with U of A. Born inQuebec in 1876, he arrived in Alberta in1912 with a newly minted PhD in Geologyfrom MIT. He was appointed professor of

geology and mineralogy in the Faculty ofScience at the newly formed University ofAlberta. Two years later, in 1914, he becamethe first head of Mining Engineering.

Allan’s career was a series of firsts. In 1925,he developed the first geology course inCanada specifically designed for civil engineers.In 1927, he wrote the first engineering geologypaper to appear in the (Canadian) EngineeringJournal and two years later published another

C

Senior Class, Department ofMining and Metallurgy,1930, with ProfessorNorman C. Pitcher (secondfrom left) and ProfessorAlan E. Cameron (back row,far right)

Earth

The first in a series of Crosshairs stories on the

themes of Earth, Air, Fire and Water, this story on

Mining Engineering focuses on Earth.


neering by Andrea Collins

Dr. Robert Wallace, President of the UofA(second from left), Dean Robert Starr LeighWilson, Faculty of Applied Science (secondfrom right), and Dr. J.A. Allan (right), on amining trip to Camp No. 4, 1930.

generates thought for fuel

article in the same publication on TheImportance of Geology in Civil Engineering.“The day was coming,” he wrote, “when thepracticing civil engineer would invariably havethe geological problem associated with the par-ticular project on hand investigated by onequalified in that profession.”

Allan taught at U of A for 40 years, andby all accounts was an inspiring teacher, buthe did not confine his activities to the class-room. He headed countless field trips acrossAlberta, meticulously documenting his find-ings in publications, photographs, maps andscale drawings. He also brought back a largecollection of minerals and fossils, making thegeological museum at the University one ofthe best in Western Canada.

Allan was also a founding member of theScientific and Research Council of Alberta

(now the Alberta Research Council), andchampioned the inclusion of geologists as aseparate wing of the Alberta Association ofProfessional Engineers (now APEGGA).

As a consultant, J. A. Allan took on manyprivate projects, including work on the hydro-electric projects on the Bow River system thatproved instrumental to industrial growth insouthern Alberta. However, he is perhaps bestknown as the author of the first geologicalmap of Alberta, published in 1926.

Allan first began mapping the geologyof the province in 1910, but his work took ona higher profile when the provincialgovernment contracted him to systematicallymap Alberta’s mineral resources. This projectlasted several decades, and led to a seriesof publications with maps. By the timeAllan had finished his survey work in 1940, he had mapped an amazing 225,000 square miles,

or approximately 74 per cent of the province.Though the first of these surveys was

intended to gauge the province’s iron oredeposits, Allan’s discoveries forced him toconclude that while Alberta was poor inmetallic minerals, it had abundant supplies ofcoal, natural gas and petroleum, as well asbituminous sands, gypsum, and clay. In 1932,in an article published in the EngineeringJournal, he declared, “Alberta is essentially afuel province”.

Allan’s field trips and survey projectsattracted students from across North America.Among these was Alan Cameron, a MiningEngineering student from McGill, who assist-ed Allan in a project in the Kicking Horse Passin the summer of 1912. When Cameron com-pleted his degree in 1914, he joined Allan asa Mining Engineering instructor at U of A,

Geology students ona field trip in 1912.


lecturing in engineering and geology. (GordonKidd, the first U of A applied science graduateto specialize in mining engineering, receivedhis BSc in 1916.) Cameron taught at U of Auntil 1937, including a stint in London in1917-18 for the Khaki University establishedby U of A president Dr. Henry Tory. Whileteaching, Cameron completed his PhD fromMIT in 1926.

During the summers, Cameron madegeological explorations for private industryand government in northern Alberta and theNorthwest Territories. As his careeradvanced, he focused on metallurgy and wasactive in both research and field studies. Heserved as secretary of the Research Council ofAlberta for ten years before moving to NovaScotia to become Deputy Minister of Minesand, subsequently, President of Nova ScotiaTechnical College.

Mining Engineering became a full-fledgeddepartment at the University of Alberta in1920. Norman C. Pitcher, a McGill graduatein mining engineering, was lured away fromLethbridge Colleries in 1919 to head the newdepartment. He remained its head until hisretirement in 1955.

“He came with an enviable career alreadyaccomplished in the coal mining industry ofAlberta where had risen to the top engineer-ing and managerial positions in several of the

principal coal companies,” said Dr. KarlClark at Pitcher’s retirement ceremony.

Those positions included work with theDominion Coal Company and other mines inNova Scotia, and, after his arrival in Albertain 1914, the Canadian Coal Mines in Kipp,Beaver Mines in Lovett, St. Albert mine, andNorth American Colleries in Lethbridge. Hewas also chief construction engineer forAlberta Railroad and Irrigation.

While at U of A, Pitcher introduced theprojects method of teaching, in which fourth-year students took a mining project and fol-lowed each step of engineering operations,from the sinking of the shaft to the develop-ment of a scale model. His students called him“a walking encyclopedia in mining matters.”

The first engineering graduates with BScdegrees in mining engineering emerged in1921, and the first MSc in mining wasawarded that same year. In 1922, the U of Aoffered three options in Mining Engineering:coal, metal mining, and mining geology(courses in metallurgy were introduced in1925). By the mid- to late-1930s, Mining

Engineering had a larger enrolment than anyother branch of engineering at the University.

Along with the development of an engi-neering faculty at U of A, president Tory estab-lished the Scientific and Research Council ofAlberta (SIRCA) at the university. Its originalaim was to carry out research related to coaland petroleum resource development.

A physical chemist named Karl Adolf Clarkwas among the first researchers recruited bythe Council. Clark came to Alberta in 1920,following five years of work with the CanadianGeological Survey Mining Department inOttawa. Through the 1940s, Clark’s work withthe research council was seriously limited bylack of funding (he became a professor at U ofA in the 1930s, when the council’s fundingdried up completely). Nevertheless, he some-how managed to forge ahead in discoveringnew ways to extract oil from the tar sands. In1929 he patented a revolutionary hot-waterextraction process, and the first small-scale oilextraction plant using this process opened nearFort McMurray in 1949. The rest, as they say,is history.

on HistoryCross Hairs c o n t i n u e d

Karl Clark

Norman Pitcher


Andrea Collins is an Edmonton-based freelance writer and publicrelations consultant.

Clark became head of Mining Engineeringin 1945, when Pitcher retired, and served inthis capacity until 1954. He then returned tothe research council as a consultant for thenext 10 years. Though he officially retired in1964, he continued to consult with GreatCanadian Oil Sands (now Suncor) until hisdeath in 1966. A year later, in 1967, that com-pany opened the first successful oil sandsplant based on Clark’s process.

Another SIRCA researcher with a miningengineering background was EdgarStansfield. British by birth and education,Stansfield also worked for the Bureau ofMines in Ottawa before arriving in Alberta in1921. He worked at SIRCA until his retire-ment in 1946.

Stansfield’s research on coal becameknown nationally and internationally. Hisprimary area of study was on acceleratedweather testing, a process to evaluate the abil-ity of coal to resist disintegration whenexposed to extreme weather. This process wasof particular value to producers who wantedto export coal to distant markets. Stansfieldalso focused on tests to reduce the risk of dustexplosions in coal mines, and perfected amethod of making charcoal briquettes.

Stansfield produced more than 43 publi-cations and made numerous presentations,including a keynote address at the WorldPower Conference in London in 1928.

Whether through pathfinders like Allanand Cameron, who laid the groundwork in theearly years, or the powerful triumvirate ofPitcher, Clark and Stansfield who led it to

renown in its first formal 26 years, the MiningEngineering department at the University ofAlberta made its mark. Since those days it hasmorphed into many variations, from Miningand Metallurgy, to Mineral Engineering, toChemical and Petroleum Engineering, toMining, Metallurgy and PetroleumEngineering—but the foundation of its birth inAlberta, the “fuel province” remains strong.

MiningEngineers

Mining engineers perform someor all of the following duties:

• Conduct preliminary surveysand studies of ore, mineral orcoal deposits to assess theeconomic and environmentalfeasibility of potential miningoperations

• Determine the appropriatemeans of safely andefficiently mining deposits

• Determine and advise onappropriate drilling andblasting methods for mining,construction or demolition

• Design shafts, ventilationsystems, mine services,haulage systems andsupporting structures

• Design, develop andimplement computerapplications such as those formine design, mine modeling,mapping, or monitoring ofmine conditions.

• Plan and design or selectmining equipment andmachinery and mineraltreatment machinery andequipment in collaborationwith other engineeringspecialists

• Plan, organize and supervisethe development of minesand mine structures and theoperation and maintenanceof mines

• Prepare operations andproject estimates, schedulesand reports

• Implement and coordinatemine safety programs

• Supervise and coordinatethe work of technicians,technologists, surveypersonnel, and otherengineers and scientists.

Stansfield

Student camp Snaring River


ove and Ratke are working—inFrance and Japan, respectively—on a project for GarrettTurbochargers, a subsidiary ofHoneywell International. Garrett

sells Variable Nozzle Turbochargers (VNTs),and Love and Ratke are working to design thecompany’s next generation of electrical actua-tor, an important turbocharger component.

Turbochargers increase power and fuel effi-ciency in gas and diesel engines. They takeenergy from the exhaust of a vehicle and use itto compress air for the intake. This can

increase an engine’s power, improve its fuel effi-ciency, or achieve a combination of the two.

“On the commercial vehicles they’re usedto increase the efficiency of an engine,because on big transport vehicles, the fuelefficiency is very, very important,” Love says.“And on passenger cars, it’s a bit of both.Sometimes they’re used to increase efficiencyand sometimes they’re used just to increasethe power of the vehicle.”

Love has been assigned to design electricalactuators for passenger cars, while Ratke cre-ates electrical actuators for commercial

trucks. An effective electrical actuator canallow a turbocharger to operate consistentlyand well under high temperatures.

An electrical actuator acts like the muscle ofthe turbocharger, Ratke says. “Basically whatwe’re doing here is changing the internal shapeof the turbocharger so that we can optimize thepressure drop and air flow to optimize the effi-ciency of the turbochargers through a range ofengine speeds and load conditions.

“And therefore the turbocharger is actingin some conditions like a small turbocharger.So it’s very efficient when the engine speed is

With sky-high oil prices and growing concern over

climate change, many drivers still feel the need for

speed. That’s why many scientists—including Andrew

Love (Electrical ’96) and Todd Ratke (Mechanical

’96)—are looking to find new ways to boost car

performance while cutting back fuel consumption.

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low and the loading is very low. But whenyou step on the gas and you really need a lotof power, the turbocharger changes its shapeand acts like a very large turbocharger. Forthat reason, it is now efficient for that differ-ent condition, where you need much higherair flow in the turbo.”

Variable Nozzle Turbochargers have beenavailable for 15 years, but they have tradition-ally been controlled by pneumatic actuators.These use air pressure to open and close theturbocharger’s nozzle, rather than electricalmotors. Love explains, “The controllability ofthe electrical actuator is much better becauseyou can open and close the variable nozzle muchfaster and you can do it with more accuracy.”

Although VNTs are currently twice aslikely to use pneumatic actuators than electri-cal actuators, Love and Ratke feel that it’sonly a matter of time before the trend revers-es. Pneumatic actuators cost less than electri-cal actuators to build and install, but can endup costing more in the long run. “With anelectric actuator you plug it into a wire har-ness and you’re done,” says Ratke. “All youneed is electrical power and a communicationmethod. So it’s a very, very low system cost.With a pneumatic actuator you need a vacu-

um pump, and you need switching valves,and hoses, and all these other things.”

Years ago, pneumatic actuators could befound throughout a vehicle—beneath seats,in door locks, and in heating ventilation sys-tems. These areas now use strictly electricalparts. The only place you’ll find a pneumaticactuator these days is on the turbocharger.

Developers like Love and Ratke predictthat their next generation of electrical actua-tors will come within 15 to 20 per cent of thecost of pneumatic actuators, and will provefar more reliable. “We built this actuator tobe stronger and faster,” Love insists. “Andalso to increase reliability. People want com-ponents that are going to last much longer inthe vehicle. That was one of the main factorsin the new design.”

As global environmental concerns grow,Love and Ratke’s work will become even

more important. People will turn moretoward efficient diesel engines, which all relyon turbochargers.

“In North America, turbochargers are tra-ditionally found on pickup trucks, importedEuropean cars and commercial vehicles andthat’s starting to change now,” says Ratke.“With the global push to lower carbon dioxideemissions and the global push to have higherperformance engines, turbochargers are start-ing to see more usage in markets traditionallywhere there hasn’t been, like North America.”

Love and Ratke are working with theirsupplier, Mitsubishi Electric, and expect tosee their electrical actuators installed in newvehicles worldwide by 2009.

Interestingly, Love and Ratke first becamefriends while working together as teammatesfor the U of A at the 1996 Detroit MinivanChallenge. Neither of them could have predict-ed how far their friendship, and their workingrelationship, would eventually carry them.

Hanna Nash is anEdmonton-basedfreelance writer.

rgedndship

b y H a n n a N a s h

“People want components that

are going to last much longer in

the vehicle. That was one of the

main factors in the new design.”

2008MARK YOUR CALENDAR

HOMECOMINGThis fall, the Faculty of Engineering will celebrate 100 years ofengineering education at the University of Alberta. No matterwhat anniversary year you are celebrating, we hope that you andyour classmates will join us for our centenary year.

The following events taking place during Homecoming 2008 are sponsored by theFaculty of Engineering and are complimentary to alumni and their guests. Unless other-wise noted, events will take place in the Solarium, located on the 2nd floor (MaierLearning Centre) of the Engineering Teaching and Learning Complex (ETLC). A full listof Homecoming 2008 events, including those sponsored by other faculties and by theUniversity of Alberta, can be found at www.ualberta.ca/alumni/centenary.

ThursdaySeptember 18Mechanical Engineering50th AnniversaryCelebration

4:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.RSVP: register online atwww.ualberta.ca/alumni/centenaryContact: Linda Kelly at (780) 492-4160or [email protected]

The Department of MechanicalEngineering is celebrating its 50thAnniversary and we want allMechanical Engineering Alumni tocome and relive some great memorieswith us! Join us for a special evening aswe remember the past, celebrate thepresent and look forward to the future.

FridaySeptember 19Mechanical EngineeringFacility Tour

10:00 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.Meeting Place: TBARSVP: Linda Kelly at(780) 492-4160 [email protected]

For those interested in a tour of theMechanical Engineering Building,90-minute tours will take place at10:00 a.m. and at 1:30 p.m.

Class of 1948 EngineeringAlumni Luncheon

11:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.Union Bank InnRSVP: register online atwww.ualberta.ca/alumni/centenaryContact: Leanne Nickel at (780) 492-4159or [email protected]

All engineering graduates from the Class of1948 and their guests are invited to cele-brate their 60th anniversary and reminiscewith their classmates at a private lunch host-ed by the Dean of Engineering.

Century of EngineeringExcellence Reception

4:30 p.m. - 7:00 p.m.RSVP: register online atwww.ualberta.ca/alumni/centenaryContact: Peggy Hansen at (780) 492-7050or [email protected]

Join us for a special celebration of 100 yearsof engineering excellence at the University ofAlberta. Kick off your Homecoming Weekendby reconnecting with Engineering classmates,professors, and colleagues. Dean David Lynchinvites all Engineering alumni and their gueststo join him for complimentary hors d'oeuvresand refreshments in the ETLC Solarium. Abrief formal program will begin at 5:30.

SEPTEMBER 18 TO 21

Many Engineering classes will be holdingprivate dinners or other events throughoutHomecoming Weekend. For information onindividual class events or on how to becomea class organizer, please call your departmentcontact as noted below:

Chemical, Materials, MetallurgicalKatherine Irwin – (780) 492-1317or [email protected]

Civil, Environmental, Mining, PetroleumErica Viegas – (780) 492-4004or [email protected]

Electrical, Computer, Engineering PhysicsJamie Reid – (780) 492-8351or [email protected]

MechanicalLinda Kelly – (780) 492-4160or [email protected]

Individual Class Gatherings



in memoriam

Alho, Laurie (Petroleum ‘53)Andzelm, Darius (Chemical ‘03)Bekevich, Dale (Civil ‘80)Blackstock, William (Civil ‘42)Blakey, Norman (Civil ‘41)Boyd, Neill (Civil ‘57)Brassard, Jules (Chemical ‘70)Bright, Maurice (Civil ‘52)Brown, Peter (Chemical ‘52)Bullen, Ronald (Mechanical ‘61)Burnard, Allan (Electrical ‘48)Christensen, Dr. Gustav(Engineering Physics ’58,Professor Emeritus)Clarke, The Honourable JusticePhilip (Civil ‘62)Cochrane, Charles (Petroleum ‘56)Dane, K. Allan (Electrical ‘55)Evans, Glyn (Civil ‘50)Falkenberg, Harold (Civil ‘52)Farrell, Douglas (Civil ‘59)Finlay, James (Mining ‘49)

Finnan, Ian (Civil ‘56)Fuller, Patrick (Chemical ‘51)Gorgichuk, Gerald (Electrical ‘69)Grabow, Joseph (Civil ‘79)Graham, Everett (Chemical ‘46)Hadlington, Al (Electrical ‘50)Hamilton, Norman (Electrical ‘51)Hassink, Jan (Electrical ‘75)Hrynchuk, Walter (Electrical ‘48)Kelmer, Boris (Electrical ‘79)Kereliuk, Stanley (Electrical ‘60)Krebes, William (Chemical ‘57)Labatiuk, Dr. Charles(Civil ’77, PhD Environmental ‘92)Leeder, Francis (Chemical ‘46)Lipinski, Ted(Engineering Physics ‘51)Meeres, L Stewart(Engineering Physics ‘49)Murray, John (Civil ‘61)O'Connell, KatherineM. (Civil ‘83)Parry, Glyn (Mining ‘51)

Patton, Alexander (Chemical ‘49)Petursson, Jon (Civil ‘64)Pimblett, Brian (Civil ‘81)Proctor, Gordon (Civil ‘47)Robertson, Alan (Electrical ‘48)Rouse, James (Civil ‘64)Rowan, William (Electrical ‘44)Rutz, Gordon (Chemical ‘61)Sanden, Emil (Civil ’46, MSc Civil ‘60)Seto, Kin (Chemical ‘61)Shandro, Michael (Electrical ‘40)Shimek, Kenneth (Mechanical ‘81)Short, Alan (Chemical ‘41)Slupsky, John(Chemical ’53, MSc Chemical ‘58)Smith, Allan (Mechanical ‘66)Speer, Raymond (Electrical ‘67)Stevinson, Arthur (Electrical ‘45)Tutty, Dale (Civil ‘72)Wilson, Eric (Mining ‘39)Wiltshire, James(Metallurgical ‘60)

The Faculty of Engineering sincerely regrets the passing of the following alumni and friends.

Boswell, Bob(Civil ‘55, MSc Civil ‘66)Buckingham, James(Chemical ‘47)Hamilton, Wilmont (Civil ‘61)Hrudko, Eugene(Civil ’68, MEng Civil ‘69)Kassem, Sam (Civil ‘77)Livingstone, Donald (Chemical ‘44)Low, John R. (Civil ‘62)MacDonald, Malcolm (Civil ‘49)Musgrove, Bill(Chemical ’53, MSc Chemical ‘61)Nawolsky, Russell(Petroleum ‘56)Stephen, John (Electrical ‘49)Ulveland, Ralph (Civil ‘56)

The Faculty of Engineering wasrecently made aware of thefollowing alumni who passedaway more than a year ago.

Dean’s EngineeringAlumni Brunch

9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.RSVP: register online atwww.ualberta.ca/alumni/centenaryContact: Peggy Hansen at (780) 492-7050or [email protected]

All Engineering alumni who graduated in1963 or earlier, along with their guests, areinvited to a complimentary hot brunch host-ed by Dean David Lynch. At approximately9:45, Dr. Lynch will give his commentary onthe past, present and future of the Faculty ofEngineering at the University of Alberta.Breakfast will be served until 10:30 am.

Open House, Tours,and Lectures

9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.Engineering Teaching & Learning Complex(ETLC), Maier Learning Centre (ground and2nd floors)

The Faculty of Engineering welcomesalumni, prospective students and guests to

Engineering Open House 2008. Take in dis-plays from the four Engineering departmentsand numerous student groups and attendfree lectures on a variety of engineering-related topics. Tours of the Engineeringbuildings will be available. For tour times,phone or e-mail the department contact asnoted under “Individual Class Gatherings”on page 34, or contact your class organizer.

Centenary Gala Dinner –Engineering CocktailReception

5:00 – 6:00 pmShaw Conference Centre, Salon 8RSVP: register online atwww.ualberta.ca/alumni/centenaryContact: Peggy Hansen at (780) 492-7050or e-mail [email protected]

Join the Dean of Engineering for acomplimentary cocktail and mingle withfellow engineering alumni before theCentenary Gala Dinner.

Saturday, September 20Class Organizers

’48 Civil – Bruce Burgess

‘48 Electrical and Eng Physics –Jack Scrimgeour, Keith Provost,Bob Mason & Bob Taylor

‘48 Mining & Petroleum – Bob Spencer

‘51 Chemical – Art Davison

‘53 Electrical and Eng Physics – Ted Jacobs

‘53 Petroleum – Roy Fisher

‘58 Chemical – Don Thurston,Grant Olsen, Alex Sidjak, Bill Turner

‘58 Civil – Ken Brown, Mike Morin

‘58 Electrical – Bud Finley

‘58 Eng Physics – Keith Stromsmoe

‘63 Mechanical – Gary Faulkner

‘68 Chemical – Bruce Burdenie

‘68 Mechanical – Val Pohl

‘75 Civil – John Lee

‘78 Chemical – Gregory Gulayets

‘78 Civil – Glen Davidson, Allan Kwan,Patrick Tso

‘78 Mechanical – Tom Gooding

‘83 Computer – Samson Mah

‘83 Mechanical – Doug Cox

‘88 Electrical – Mike Palamarek

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If you were an Alberta resident on December 31, 2007 and have alreadygiven $200 elsewhere, your combined income tax savings will be:

* To best meet Faculty of Engineering’s needs, donations maybe directed to endowed funds. Donations made to endowment fundsare invested in perpetuity and the investment earnings are used toadvance the specified purposes of the fund within the University.

I would like my gift to support:

$ __________ Faculty of Engineering in support of undergraduate student projects,new educational initiatives in all disciplines, and general student lifeenhancement activities.

$ __________ Chemical and Materials Engineering Fund*

$ __________ Civil and Environmental Engineering Fund*

$ __________ Electrical and Computer Engineering Fund*

$ __________ Mechanical Engineering Learning Laboratory Fund*

$ __________ Mining and Petroleum Engineering Fund*

I would like information on how to make a gift of publicly tradedsecurities to support the Faculty of Engineering at the U of A.

I would like information on how to include the Faculty of Engineeringat the U of A as part of a will, life insurance, or other planned gift instrument.

I have provided for the Faculty of Engineering at the U of A in a will or trust agreement.

Please return to:Office of the Dean, Faculty of EngineeringUniversity of AlbertaE6-050 Engineering Teaching and Learning ComplexEdmonton, Alberta T6G 2V4

U n i v e r s i t y o f A l b e r t a ENGINEERING

This year, as we celebrate 100 years of engineering education at the University

of Alberta, the 20,000th U of A Engineer will graduate. More than ever, a new

generation of engineering graduates will be inspired by the accomplishments of

those alumni who have graduated before them. But while the campus, the tools,

and the technology may have changed, today's engineers share a common goal

with their predecessors: to use human creativity and imagination, along with an

understanding of natural phenomena, to solve the problems of society.

Today, the Faculty of Engineering at the U of A is recognized as one of the top

engineering programs in North America, and the foundation of our success has

been the outstanding tradition of our alumni supporting each new generation of

engineers. We thank you for your continued commitment to our faculty.

If you have any comments regarding the Faculty of Engineering or would like more

information on how you can support future U of A Engineers, please contact:

Laurie Shinkaruk, Acting Assistant Dean, External Relations

Faculty of Engineering, University of Alberta

c/o E6-050 Engineering Teaching and Learning Complex

Edmonton, AB T6G 2V4

Tel: 403.718.6394

E-mail: [email protected]

Celebratinga Century

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