2. Develop new polymer nanocomposites; Measurement, instrumentation in nanocomposites ; Industrial applications in nanocomposites; Modeling of mechanics of nanocomposites. Research in nanotechnology: Carbon nanofibers (nanotubes) / polymer nanocomposites; Nanoclay /epoxy nanocomposites; Electrospinning nanofibers; Nanomechanics. Projects: For general information: Dr. Suong V. Hoa ( hoasuon@alcor.concordia.ca)

3. Nanoclay/ Epoxy nanocomposites Mixing methods: DM ─ Direct Mixing; HPM ─ High Pressure Mixing. Fracture toughness G 1C increase about 6 times, K 1c increase 120%. Carbon nanotubes/nanofiber / Epoxy nanocomposites Electrical Conductivity increases about 10 decades. Electrical conductive resin can be used for EMI (electromagnetic interference)/ RFI (radio frequency interference) shielding applications. For general information: Dr. Suong V. Hoa ( hoasuon@alcor.concordia.ca)

4. Flame retardance / self extinguishing nanocomposites Vertical burning tester (left) & Oxygen Index Analyzer (right) Epoxy with 3% I.30E nanoclay show 35% increase in LOI index. Instrumentation: High Presure Machine Powerful Vacuum Mixer High Speed Mixer Brabender IntelliTorque Rheometer / Mixer Haake Minilab Microextruder For nanocomposite process : Break agglomerated particles under 1 μm. Eliminate even sub-micron air bubbles. Regular mixing High pressure mixing SEM of 6wt% I.30E /Epoxy sample For general information: Dr. Suong V. Hoa ( hoasuon@alcor.concordia.ca)

5. Electro spinning Tensile Test by MTS nanoBionix: (A) PVA nanofibers, ø2µm; (B) PEO nanofibers ; A B Instrumentation: MTS NanoUTM : the most advanced machine in nanofiber study. Vecco AFM (Atomic Force Microscope) Hysitron NanoIndentation For general information: Dr. Suong V. Hoa ( hoasuon@alcor.concordia.ca)

6. Self healing Epoxy Concordia Centre for Composites Bridges the research and industrial applications, and promotes the future of nanocomposites. http://concom.encs.concordia.ca/ Neat sample Sample with healing agent healed crack Cracks healed For general information: Dr. Suong V. Hoa ( hoasuon@alcor.concordia.ca) Composite materials used in space applications are susceptible to damage due to space debris, thermal shock, and exposure to UV radiations. New capsules filled with healing agent and catalyst were used as self healing agents. Different types of environmental conditioning tests were carried out. Preliminary thermal shock test showed healing of cracks in extreme temperature fluctuation environment.

7. For general information: Christine DeWolf (cdewolf@alcor.concordia.ca) For information regarding facilities and services: Rolf Schmidt (rschmidt@alcor.concordia.ca) Design, synthesis, and physical characterization of bio-inspired self-folding systems (Louis Cuccia) Study of light-induced electron transfer in organized membrane-bound pigment-protein complexes (Laszlo Kalman) Exploring structure-function relationships in photosynthetic pigment-protein complexes (Valter Zazubovits) Biomimetics Instrumentation Atomic force microscopy Scanning tunneling microscopy Molecular force probe Ellipsometry Gel permeation chromatography Single entity detection/spectroscopy Current applications ‘Molecular springs’ for biotechnology and nanotechnology Artificial energy converters for sustainable future energy production Explosives detection

8. For general information: Christine DeWolf (cdewolf@alcor.concordia.ca) For information regarding facilities and services: Rolf Schmidt (rschmidt@alcor.concordia.ca) Synthesis and characterization of upconverting lanthanide nanoparticles (John Capobianco) Use of nanocapsules and nanoparticles in analytical separations (Cameron Skinner) Nanoparticles and nanocapsules Instrumentation Scanning electron microscopy Atomic force microscopy Optical microscopy Capillary electrophoresis Flow cytometry of particles Luminescence and fluorescence lifetime measurements Laser induced fluorescene line narrowing spectroscopy Raman spectroscopy Current applications –Biolabels and biological assays –Telecommunications –Bioseparations –Extraction and recovery of trace metals from solution

9. For general information: Christine DeWolf (cdewolf@alcor.concordia.ca) For information regarding facilities and services: Rolf Schmidt (rschmidt@alcor.concordia.ca) Functional thin films Development of functional surface coatings using nanopatterning techniques (Christine DeWolf) Development of electrochemical measurement techniques for DNA-based biosensors (Marcus Lawrence) Instrumentation Langmuir and Langmuir-Blodgett film balance Ellipsometry Brewster angle microscopy Dynamic surface tensiometer Contact angle measurements Atomic force microscopy Fluorescence microscopy Cyclic voltammetry Chronoamperometry Impedance spectroscopy Current applications –Ultrahydrophobic surfaces –Biosensors –Biocompatible surfaces –Nanowires