M.A.Sc. Projects

• Development of Laboratory Testing Methodologies for Retrofit Projects
  As Canada stives to meet its emission targets, including net-zero by 2050, it is imperative that Canada not only builds better new buildings, but starts to undertake deep-energy retrofits of its existing and ageing building stock. The retrofit of buildings poses a number of technical and building science challenges associated with adding additional insulation and reducing air changes within the existing buildings, including moisture build-up, leaks, and the potential for mould and rot formation. As such, before these retrofits can be implemented, extensive testing and modelling is required. Currently, no standard test methodology exists to evaluate retrofit solutions within laboratory settings. As such, Dr. Cruickshank is looking to recruit an M.A.Sc. student who will develop and validate a standard test methodology with which to evaluate all future retrofit projects.
• Modelling and Optimization of a Zero-Carbon Off-Grid House
  In partnership with a homeowner based in North-Western Ontario, the potential for creating a zero-carbon, passive house certified, off-grid home will be explored. To achieve this, a variety of technologies will be explored, such as coupling photovoltaic panels, battery storage, solar thermal panels, heat pumps and thermal storage systems. To complete this project, Dr. Cruickshank is looking to hire an M.A.Sc. student to develop and calibrate a model of the previously built passive house, develop conceptual layouts of three separate solutions using the aforementioned technologies, and create models of the systems within TRNSYS to optimize for zero carbon emission operations. Based on these models, a single solution will be selected, and an economic analysis completed.
• Integration of Air Based Thermal Storage for Demand Side Management Using Phase Change Materials within Multi-Unit Residential Buildings
  As Canada’s supply of housing in increasingly constrained, the use of multi-unit residential buildings (MURBs) are becoming more common. These buildings, with many occupants and individual units provide a unique opportunity for demand side management (control of when energy is used during the day), as it will be rare that all units are simultaneously occupied. As such, systems can be incorporated into MURBs that balance energy use across the day, eliminating significant consumption peaks. One potential method is to integrate air-based thermal storage systems using phase change materials, storing energy during low demands, and releasing it during high demand. To complete this project, Dr. Cruickshank is looking to recruit a M.A.Sc. student to complete a modelling study to determine the potential impact of these strategies within various sized MURBs and upon optimizing the design, the strategy will be experimentally evaluated in an existing set up in Dr. Cruickshank’s lab. This work will be complemented with a policy scan and surveys/ interviews/focus group sessions with relevant actors. This project will be co-supervised with Dr. Alex Mallett from the School of Public Policy and Administration as part of the Hybrid Thermal Electric Microgrid (HyTEM) CREATE Program led by Simon Fraser University.
• Development of Pre-Fabricated Wall Panels Using Super Insulating Materials for Northern Applications
  Many challenges exist with construction of residential buildings in the North, including a lack of skilled trades, short construction season and high shipping costs for materials. As such, a panelized approached using super insulating materials could address these concerns. Dr. Cruickshank is currently looking for an M.A.Sc. student to work with industry and government partners to develop highly insulated building panels incorporating super-insulating materials to be used in new and retrofit of single and multi-family residential buildings in the arctic. The use of super-insulating materials would significantly reduce the volume and weight of panels required for constructing homes, leading to lower shipping costs, while providing excellent thermal performance. This increased thermal performance compared to homes in the rest of Canada is required to combat harsh arctic climate and being resilient enough to withstanding the high interior relative humidities typically seen in arctic residences. These panels must be able to be quickly assembled, allowing many homes to be constructed in a short period of time with limited labour requirements. This project involves design development, thermal and hygrothermal modelling, prototyping and experimental evaluation under both steady-state and in-situ conditions.
• Assessment of Plant-Based Materials for Low-Carbon Latent Thermal Storage within Buildings
  Latent thermal storage via phase change materials (PCMs) is a compact thermal storage solution that can be used to store midday solar gains and shift the period during which the thermal energy is transferred to the space to evening or overnight periods. To date, most research on PCMs has been on carbon-intensive paraffin-based compounds. However, plant-based oils such as coconut oil, are an emerging PCM option that exhibit similar properties to those of the paraffin PCM counterparts. Despite its benefits, additional knowledge of these plant-based oils are critical to predict the performance within buildings; this includes greater knowledge of melting and solidification rates and performance within buildings. The objective of this project will be to integrate a plant-based oil within the walls of one of the two in situ chambers at CABER, while comparing the thermal performance of the chamber and PCM to the reference in situ chamber. This project will include determination of an encapsulation method for the PCM and corresponding integration strategy for the material into the chamber walls, followed by the full experimental testing of the PCM to illustrate its performance in situ.

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