Université Laval residences

- Superior university room (private bathroom): $155 + taxes / night

- hebergement@sres.ulaval.ca or by phone 418-656-5632 using event number #351069.

Hotels and motels in Québec

1045 rue de la Médecine

Pavillon Alexandre-Vachon

Local 2870

Québec (G1V 0A6)

Québec City’s history, friendly vibe, and myriad attractions throughout the year make it a stand‑out travel destination. Every season brings its own special activities and stunning sights.

Principal Research Scientist | CTO | CERT Systems Inc.

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Colin O'Brien is the Principal Research Scientist at CERT Systems Inc., a Toronto-based startup developing technology to electrochemically reduce CO₂ into valuable chemical feedstocks. He earned his PhD in 2022 from the University of Toronto, where he conducted research in Professor David Sinton’s lab, focusing on the electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide. During his doctoral studies, Colin was part of a team that became a finalist in the $20 million NRG COSIA Carbon XPrize, an international competition recognizing innovative approaches to carbon utilization. The hands-on experience gained through the XPrize—particularly in building and operating integrated CO₂ electrolysis systems under real-world conditions—has directly informed his current work at CERT Systems. There, he leads efforts to translate lab-scale innovations into robust, scalable technologies suitable for industrial deployment, with a particular focus on long-term stability and system integration.

Professor of Practice, University of British Colombia

Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering

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Biography

Sergio Berretta is a chemical engineer with three decades of industrial experience in the design and scale up of novel process technologies. Early in his career, he served as lead project engineer or project engineer for the design and construction of five major international industrial process facilities and has led more than a dozen design and construction projects globally.

With a specialized focus on process design and process control engineering, Sergio has provided technical leadership to numerous small and medium-sized companies, guiding the successful scale-up and de-risking of

complex, innovative process technologies. He is widely recognized as an expert in Carbon Capture, Conversion, and Storage (CCCS), and his current work includes industrial process development projects in carbon capture and storage, electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide to chemicals, and biomass conversion to fertilizers.

Throughout his career, Sergio has held several key executive positions, including Manager of R&D for NORAM’s nitration business unit, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at BC Research, and Founding Member of the Carbon Capture and Conversion Institute. He currently serves as Professor of Practice in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at the University of British Columbia, where he teaches courses on chemical and biological process design, process scale-up and commercialization, and CCCS.

INTERDISCIPLINARY COLLABORATION

August 5th, 10:30 a.m.

Professor at the École de bibliothéconomie et des sciences de l'information of Université de Montréal

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Biography to come

AI APPLICATIONS IN CARBON MANAGEMENT

August 5th, 1:45 p.m.

Senior Engineer / Project Manager, CanmetENERGY in Varennes

Energy Efficiency and Technology Sector

Natural Resources Canada | Government of Canada

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Ahmed Ragab is a Scientist in Artificial Intelligence (AI) at Natural Resources Canada (NRCan). He is also an Adjunct Professor at the Department of Mathematics and Industrial Engineering, Polytechnique Montréal. He received a Ph.D. degree in Industrial Engineering from Polytechnique Montréal, the University of Montréal, Canada in 2014. Dr. Ragab’s research interests include AI, Machine Learning, Pattern Recognition, Image Processing, Data & Decisions Fusion, Causality Analysis, Reliability Modeling, Operations Research, Discrete Event Systems, and Process Mining. At NRCan, he has worked on strategic projects funded by the Government of Canada including Forest Value Chain Optimization (FVCO) and Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS). His main thematic activities focus on the practical challenges of Big Data and AI in several industrial applications including Abnormal Events Diagnosis & Prognosis, Predictive Maintenance, Supervisory Control, Real-time Optimization, Production Scheduling, and Systems Design. Dr. Ragab has a bunch of experience in developing advanced AI algorithms and tools in the manufacturing industry, aiming at reducing energy consumption, Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and operational and maintenance costs while improving operations’ performance. He also teaches industrial engineering courses at graduate levels and supervises MSc and PhD students.

SHARING YOUR RESEARCH IN A COMPREHENSIVE WAY

August 6th, 10:15 a.m.

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Biography to come