Queen’s attracts two new Canada Research Chairs

Two international experts on polymer production and chemical dynamics are the newest Canada Research Chairs at Queen’s. Two of the university’s current CRCs have received renewals.

A total of $109.5 million in funding for 126 new Canada Research Chairs was announced today in Calgary. Both new positions at Queen’s are “Tier 1” researchers, who will receive $200,000 annually from the program for a period of seven years.

“Queen’s is proud to welcome two new Canada Research Chairs in the diverse fields of polymers and atmospheric and combustion chemistry, and to see two of our very promising researchers have their Canada Research Chairs renewed,” says Vice-Principal (Research) Kerry Rowe. “The CRCs continue to be a powerful tool for attracting and retaining our top research talent, and for expanding and strengthening our strategic research clusters.”

In announcing the new funding, Chad Gaffield, president of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and of the Canada Research Chairs Program’s steering committee, said, “The Canada Research Chairs Program helps Canadian universities build their research capacity to world-class standards. This program gathers brilliant minds, many of them representing the next generation of research, and sets them to work on major social, cultural and economic questions.”

Queen’s new Canada Research Chairs are:

Tucker Carrington (Chemistry), Canada Research Chair in Computational Chemical Dynamics. Dr. Carrington studies the motion that occurs when molecules vibrate and rotate, and reactions take place. He will develop theoretical methods to analyze and understand the properties of larger molecules, predict and interpret spectra, and extract information about intermolecular forces responsible for properties of liquids. New methods for calculating rates of reactions will have a profound effect on our ability to model and influence atmospheric and combustion chemistry.

Timothy McKenna (Chemical Engineering), Canada Research Chair in Polymer Reaction Engineering, comes to Queen’s from the Centre national de la rescherche scientifique, France, where he works to develop more innovative ways to produce polymers. The need to use several different phases in producing polymers requires greater understanding of how to create and stabilize the particles, and of how they interact with their environment. By doing so, Dr. McKenna hopes to explain the relationship between process chemistry, polymer molecular architecture and reactor design, and be able to propose innovative products and methods of production to industrial partners.

Queen’s chairs being renewed are:

Douglas Munoz (Physiology), Canada Research Chair in Neuroscience. Instrumental in the development and implementation of new technologies for neuroscience research at Queen’s, Dr. Munoz uses that infrastructure for research on eye movement control circuits in the brain and for analysis of eye movement abnormalities in neurological and psychiatric patients. These studies will lead to the development of new functional tools for clinical assessment.

James Bergin (Economics), Canada Research Chair in Economic Theory, studies the effects of patents on innovation, and waiting lists for orthopedic surgery. The first project arises from a growing concern with the patent system and the belief that rather than provide incentives to innovate, existing incentives actually impede research and innovation. The objective is to study the patenting process and identify ways to better align incentives to promote innovation.