$1.25M supports biomaterials research in Guelph

Guelph, ON – Biomaterials research at the University of Guelph is receiving $1.25 million in funding from the BMO Financial Group.

“The support from BMO will allow our researchers to continue to revolutionize the use of plant materials,” said Alastair Summerlee, the university’s president. “This is critical work in a world of global warming, growing environmental threats and depleting petroleum resources.”

U of G researchers are using wheat, soy, corn and other crops to make car parts, furniture, building materials and new kinds of rubber. Leading this work is the university’s Bioproducts Discovery and Development Centre (BDDC). Opened in 2008, the centre is looking for renewable, eco-friendly alternatives to petroleum-based materials in manufacturing and consumer goods.

The centre aims to develop more complex manufacturing applications and higher-value green products. It is directed by Prof. Amar Mohanty, an international leader in biomaterials who holds the $3-million Premier’s Research Chair in Biomaterials and Transportation, part of the Ontario Research Chairs program.

The BMO gift will help expand the centre’s research and commercialization facilities and acquire cutting-edge research equipment, among other projects.

The university says it will name Phase II of the BDDC, now nearing completion, as the BMO Bioproducts Innovation Extension.