ÉTS

Environmental Research at ÉTS: a Multi-Disciplinary Approach

ÉTS professors are at the forefront of environmental research. As they rely on a multidisciplinary engineering approach, the work they lead covers widely diversified areas, ranging from the creation of new treatment methods for water, air and soil, to better understanding environmental changes of anthropogenic origin, to the development of sustainable cities and performance indicators for social acceptability.  

Laboratories Specializing in the Environment

Research Chair

All the research chairs 

Research Units 

All the research units

Environmental Research at ÉTS

More than a dozen professors are carrying out research activities in environmental engineering. In addition, nearly 80% of their work is conducted in partnership with industry, government bodies and socio-economic actors. In particular, their work is aimed at:

  • Developing tools and methods for the characterization and treatment of environmental problems;
  • Characterizing the impacts of global environmental changes on the atmosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere and geosphere, and proposing innovative solutions for adaptation;
  • Building sustainable cities;
  • Developing materials and processes to reduce the impact of human activities on the environment.

An Overview of the Québec Clean Technologies Sector

Innovations that have a favourable impact on the environment are called clean technologies. In Quebec, this is an emerging sector:  Companies in the domain are generally small in size and the innovations they design are often in the pre-commercialization phase.  They must therefore adapt and refine their products in order to satisfy their target markets. 

As this is a new area, there would be great added value in creating demonstration platforms to validate and quantify the environmental benefits and economic resources of these technologies under realistic conditions.  Companies could then demonstrate the capabilities of their products to potential customers while the universities could use them to train their students. 

To this end, the needs of the environment sector in the field of research are such that entrepreneurs must rapidly expand their knowledge base. Training the next generation must rely on a multidisciplinary path which links environmental concepts to the characteristics of application areas.

Environmental Research at ÉTS
More than a dozen professors do research related to the environment
It’s the percentage of environmental research that is conducted in partnership
ÉTS has six research units related in varying degrees to the environment
Real-time optimization is one of the key issues in the field of renewable energy. Icon
Lyne Woodward: Research that Benefits Renewable Energy Industrial Systems

There can be an enormous difference between an industrial system that just works and one that works optimally, both in terms of performance and cost. Lyne Woodward, Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering, specializes in real-time optimization of industrial systems and processes. She develops complex algorithms for the field of renewable energies.

Learn more
Against a backdrop of climate change, gaining a better understanding of the hydrology of glaciers and snow is crucial to managing water resources. Icon
Michel Baraër: The Hydrology of Glaciers and Snow in Tropical and Subarctic Regions

The two main passions that drive the work of Michel Baraër, a professor in the Construction Engineering Department, are glaciers and snow, along with their vulnerability to climate change. These two passions have also led this expert in Alpine and northern hydrology to travel to tropical and subarctic regions.

Learn more
June 7 - Environment Turning Organic Waste into Biogas May 31 - Environment Sustainable Development, Circular Economy and the Built Environment April 15 - Environment Seeking Balance in the Face of a Changing Climate