Flora Ng

Flora Ng is a Professor and University Research Chair in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Waterloo. Her research focuses on catalytic processes for clean fuel development, heavy oil upgrading, and green chemistry. She pioneered catalytic distillation technologies to enhance reaction efficiency and reduce environmental impact. Her work includes developing novel catalysts for biodiesel production, sulfur-free fuel synthesis, and polymer recycling. Ng’s team has advanced methods for glycerol valorization and hydrogen generation from biomass.

Education:

• PhD in Chemistry, University of British Columbia (1970)
• MSc in Chemistry, University of British Columbia (1968)
• BSc in Chemistry & Physics, University of Hong Kong (1966)

Research Interests: Catalytic distillation, solid acid catalysis, biodiesel production, clean fuels, plastics recycling, and sulfur removal from fuels. Her work integrates chemical engineering principles with environmental sustainability, emphasizing low-carbon technologies and waste-to-value processes.

Key Contributions: Ng’s team invented a reactive distillation process for alkene upgrading and pioneered the use of water as a medium for hydrocarbon processing. She also demonstrated polyethylene pyrolysis for cetane additive production, advancing plastic recycling. Her group developed flow micro-calorimetry techniques for adsorption studies, improving sulfur removal from fuels.

Awards:

• 2013 Canadian Green Chemistry and Engineering Award
• 2008 CIC Catalysis Award
• Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada

Grants & Advising: Ng has secured significant funding for her research and currently supervises graduate students. Her lab focuses on catalytic innovation for energy and environmental applications.