B.Eng. (Jilin), M.Sc. (Peking), PhD (Regina), P.Eng.

Fellow, Canadian Academy of Engineering
Fellow, Engineering Institute of Canada
Fellow, Canadian Society for Civil Engineering
Member, Royal Society of Canada (College)

• Associate Dean, Graduate Studies
• UArctic Research Chair, Marine and Coastal Environmental Engineering
• Professor, Department of Civil Engineering
• Director, Northern Region Persistent Organic Pollution Control Laboratory (NRPOP Lab)
• Director, Network on Persistent, Emerging, and Organic PoLlution in the Environment (PEOPLE Network) and NSERC PEOPLE CREATE Network

 

Contact information

Ph: +1 (709) 864-8958
Em: bchen@mun.ca
Office: CSF3119
Personal website

Research expertise

• Environmental Engineering and Management
• Environmental Emergency Response
• Marine and Coastal Environmental Protection
• Environmental Nanotechnology and Biotechnology
• Sustainability and Climate Change Adaptation

Research interests

• Transport, fate, effect and removal of persistent and emerging contaminants, inland/marine oil spill response and cleanup
• Site remediation in harsh environments and cold regions
• Water and wastewater treatment and resource recovery by advanced oxidation, adsorption, and filtration enhanced with nano-catalytic and microfluidic approaches;
• Artificial intelligent (AI) aided decision making under uncertainty and emergency response management;
• Environmental biotechnologies for pollution mitigation and green processes/products;
• Integration of risk assessment, human factor analysis, process control and system optimization and applications for water and waste management, environmental sustainability and climate change adaptation.

Personal profile

Dr. Bing Chen obtained his B.Eng. and M.Sc. from Jilin University and Peking University in China, respectively, as well as his PhD from the University of Regina, Canada. He worked as an NSERC Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of British Columbia and conducted visiting research with Environment Canada before joining Memorial University in 2006. He is currently a professor and head of the Department of Civil Engineering and director of the Northern Region Persistent Organic Pollution Cntrol Laboratory (NRPOP Lab). He is also the founding director of a pan-Canadian and global Network of Persistent, Emerging, and Organic PoLlution in the Environment (PEOPLE Network or NSERC PEOPLE CREATE Network).

Dr. Chen has developed novel engineering and managerial solutions through integrating environmental engineering with nano-/bio-technologies and advancing physical and numerical modeling methods. He has acted as PI or Co-PI in over 60 research projects and contracts from diverse sources nationally and internationally. He has authored or co-authored more than 470 technical publications including over 160 refereed journal papers and three books as well as eight patents/disclosures. He has supervised or co-supervised more than 300 highly qualified personnel (HQP) including 80 thesis-based graduate students and postdoctoral research fellows. His HQP have received a large number of awards and are well placed in the field of their training in academia, industry, government and NGOs worldwide.

Dr. Chen’s teaching activities mainly focus on environmental systems engineering and management. He is the former chair/advisor of the Environmental Systems Engineering & Management Program, which provides a unique multidisciplinary setting for training and fostering professional engineers and managers who can take a leading role in the understanding and management of air, water and land resource deterioration in a sustainable manner.

Dr. Chen is very active in providing service and leadership in professional societies and academic communities. He has served as a senior expert of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), vice president (International) of the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE), vice-president (Atlantic) of the Canadian Association on Water Quality (CAWQ), vice-president (Avalon Chapter) of Sigma Xi - the Scientific Research Honor Society, Member of Canada’s Oceans Protection Plan (OPP)’s National Advisory Committee on Multi-Partner Response Research Initiative, Member of Royal Society of Canada (RSC)’s Expert Panel in oil spills, Alternate Chair/Member of Research Grant Evaluation Group (1509) of Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), Member of Research Tool and Instruments (RTI) Selection Committee (1609) of NSERC, Executive Member and rep of CSChE in Environmental Chemistry Division of Chemical Institute of Canada (CIC), Chair of Scholarship Committee of the Atlantic Canada Water & Wastewater Association (ACWWA), and Chair of Memorial University Senate Committee on Research, etc.

He is an Affiliated Faculty with University of California Berkeley and Adjunct/Visiting Professor of five other institutions worldwide. He has also served as Editor-in-Chief of Environmental Systems Research (Springer), Associate Editor of 4 refereed journals, Editorial Board Member of 7 refereed journals, and Guest Editor for many others. He has been frequently invited as reviewer for more than 50 journals and over 20 major funding organizations across the world (e.g., NSERC, CFI, NFRF, US NSF, TWAS, UNDP, and EC Horizon). He has given over 80 invited keynotes and guest lectures in conferences/workshops/seminars worldwide. As a registered Professional Engineer, he has provided consulting service to governments and industry from environmental/water, oil and gas, petrochemical, shipping, fishing, mining, and agriculture sectors as well as NGOs and communities in Canada and worldwide.

Honours/awards/recognitions

• Fellow, Canadian Academy of Engineering (CAE), 2022
• Member, European Academy of Sciences and Arts (EASA), 2022
• UArctic Research Chair in Marine and Coastal Environmental Engineering, 2022
• Fellow of the Engineering Institute of Canada(EIC), 2021
• Fellow of the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering (CSCE), 2020
• Editor-in-Chief of Environmental Systems Research (Springer), 2020
• Elected Member of the Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Honor Society, 2019
• Member of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) Engineering Research Tools and Instruments (RTI) Selection Committee (1609), 2017-18, 2019-2020
• Member (appointed by the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Coastal Guard) of the National Advisory Committee of Canada’s Oceans Protection Plan (OPP) Multi-Partner Response Research Initiative (MPRI), 2017-18
• Affiliated Faculty, Center for Catastrophic Risk Management, University of California Berkeley, 2017-
• Arthur Sidney Bedell Award, Water Environment Federation (WEF) and Atlantic Canada Water & Wastewater Association (ACWWA), 2017
• Member of the Royal Society of Canada (RSC) College of New Scholars, Artists and Scientists, 2016
• Alternate Chair and Member of Research Grant Evaluation Group in Civil, Industrial and Systems Engineering (EG1509), Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), 2014-2017
• Senior Visiting Scholar Award, Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada (DFATD), 2016
• Visiting Intentional Fellowship Award, American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) and Environmental and Water Resources Institute (EWRI) (as host)
• Member of Royal Society of Canada (RSC) Expert Panel on oil spills, 2015
• FEAS Award for Research Excellence, 2014
• Terra Nova Young Innovator Award (former Petro Canada Young Innovator Award), 2014
• Leaders Opportunity Fund Award, Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI), 2007, 2013
• Elected Member of the Global Young Academy (GYA), 2012
• Various paper and presentation awards and recognitions (IEEE, CAWQ, AEHS, IOSC, etc.)
• Outstanding Contribution in Reviewing by Elsevier (Environmental Pollution, Chemical Engineering Journal, Water Research, Journal of Cleaner Production, Marine Pollution Bulletin, etc.)
• Etc.

Research highlights

Dr. Bing Chen possesses strong expertise and has made significant contributions in the areas of environmental emergency (marine and inland oil spills) response and cleanup in harsh environments, advanced water and wastewater treatment and resources recovery, persistent and emerging organic pollutant transport/fate/effect/removal, environmental nano/biotechnology, site remediation in cold regions, watershed modeling and management, decision making under uncertainty, waste management, impact/risk assessment, climate change and environmental sustainability.

He is the founding director of the NRPOP Lab, the first of its kind in Canada. The lab has been recognized worldwide for its pioneering research on persistent and toxic pollutants and their pollution mitigation in cold regions and harsh marine environments. Operational or accidental releases of these pollutants, especially from petroleum, chemical, pharmaceutical, manufacturing, and shipping industries, pose significant risks to humans and ecosystems and have long-term negative effects on aquatic environments. The NRPOP lab consists of world-class research expertise and facilities dedicated to innovation and creativity through integration of traditional environmental engineering approaches with nanotechnology and biotechnology, and coupling of physical/numerical simulation with risk assessment and systems optimization for dynamic decision support. Dr. Chen and his lab are dedicated to innovative research and development for supporting the sustainable development of natural resources and the eco-friendly operation of industries especially in cold regions and harsh environments.

Dr. Chen is the Founding Director of the PEOPLE Network which has been funded by the NSERC CREATE program (NSERC PEOPLE CREATE Network). The network targets the acute and chronic pollution problems caused by a fast-growing group of persistent, emerging and organic pollutants (PEOPs). They mainly include but not limited to petroleum hydrocarbons (e.g., PAHs), micro-/nano-plastics, pharmaceutical and personal care products (PPCPs), chemical surfactants, disinfection by-products (DBPs), flame retardants, pesticides, aquaculture therapeutants, engineered nanoparticles, etc. The network is dedicated to innovative research and development to address critical gaps and pressing needs in understanding fate, behavior and effect of persistent and emerging pollutants especially in cold regions and marine environments and more importantly to find and apply integrated engineering and managerial solutions. PEOPLE has become a leading global consortium hosting more than 200 members (including 150 researchers) from over 30 Canadian and foreign institutions and over 30 major partners from government, industry, NGOs and communities from five continents.

As a registered professional engineer in Canada, Dr. Chen has extensive practical experience through engineering contracts and technology transfer (from lab testing to field demonstration/application) and provides consulting service to partners from oil & gas, mining, petrochemical, agriculture, shipping sectors and from governmental agencies at different levels in Canada and worldwide.t and emerging pollutants especially in cold regions and marine environments and more importantly to find and apply integrated engineering and managerial solutions. PEOPLE has become a leading global consortium hosting more than 180 members (including 130 researchers) from over 30 Canadian and foreign institutions and over 30 major partners from government, industry, NGOs and communities from five continents.

As a registered professional engineer in Canada, Dr. Chen has extensive practical experience through engineering contracts and technology transfer (from lab testing to field demonstration/application) and provides consulting service to partners from oil & gas, mining, petrochemical, agriculture, shipping sectors and from governmental agencies at different levels in Canada and worldwide.

For more information, please visit the NRPOP Lab and the PEOPLE Network.

Selected publications are available: https://www.engr.mun.ca/~bingchen/publications.html