NRC unveils advanced materials research centre
EP&T Magazine
Electronics Production / Materials Printable Electronics Supply Chain Wearable Technology Editor Pick Electronics Mississauga NRC Printable Sheridan ParkMississauga facility represents the NRC's first physical R&D presence in the Greater Toronto Area
The National Research Council (NRC), Canada’s largest federal research and development organization, recently opened its doors its brand-new advanced materials research facility in Mississauga. Located in Sheridan Research Park, the facility represents the NRC’s first physical R&D presence in the Greater Toronto Area.
The facility acts as a catalyst to accelerate the development of advanced materials technologies and their commercialization in disruptive new products. Together with industry, academia, and other government department (OGD) partners, the facility establishes and operates a national innovation platform, supporting and undertaking foundational research and development (R&D) to develop new materials, scaling up their production, and de-risking and demonstrating their application.
Capabilities
The facility aims to support materials development and commercialization in numerous industrial sectors by establishing a technology platform and enabling infrastructure relevant to a broad range of materials and partners. The NRC team of research professionals and experts in chemistry, materials science, engineering, AI (artificial intelligence), robotics and technology transfer addresses common challenges in advanced materials development and commercialization through research and technology development (R&TD) spanning three core platform technologies:
Accelerated materials discovery and process development, including:
- computational materials discovery, design and process simulation
- high-throughput materials characterization and processing experiments
- structured materials and process databases
Production scale-up, demonstration and standardization, including:
- materials and process standards development
- materials synthesis and scale-up
- design and demonstration of multifunctional materials and devices
Materials and process sustainability and safety, including:
- cradle-to-grave materials and product life cycle assessment
- health and environmental impacts and mitigation methods
- accelerated aging of materials and devices
These platforms are applied to printed electronics, clean energy materials, smart and multi-functional materials and structures, and novel feedstock materials for additive manufacturing.
CCAMM
The NRC’s Mississauga facility also represents a major stepping stone in a long-term vision supporting the creation of the Canadian Campus for Advanced Materials Manufacturing (CCAMM), a joint initiative between the NRC and the Xerox Research Centre of Canada. CCAMM aims to offer unique shared facilities where new kinds of ‘public-academia-private’ partnerships representing high-value advanced materials expertise will be created and fostered.
CCAMM will act as a catalyst for development, manufacturing, and integration to aid in more quickly accessing markets for new advanced materials. As CCAMM grows, and by working together, the organizations will share the goal of accelerating research results, improving commercialization impacts, and helping to build an ecosystem where new relations with stakeholders and industrial partners are established.