Richard G. Zytner

Richard G. Zytner is a Professor and Interim Dean of the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences at the University of Guelph. He holds a PhD from the University of Windsor (1988) and has been with the University of Guelph since 1991. A Professional Engineer of Ontario and Fellow of the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering, his work spans soil remediation, landfill gas management, and wastewater treatment in the fresh-cut fruit and vegetable sector.

Education:

• PhD, University of Windsor, 1988

Research Interests:

• Soil Remediation: Focuses on bioventing and soil vapor extraction (SVE), including scale-up factors for field applications.
• Landfill Gas Management: Develops passive methane oxidation barriers to mitigate fugitive methane emissions.
• Wastewater Treatment: Explores cost-effective solutions for vegetable/fruit wash-water recycling, using technologies like membrane bioreactors (MBR) and electrocoagulation.

Publications Trends: Recent work emphasizes methane emissions mitigation, machine learning for wastewater quality prediction, and hydrothermal conversion of biomass. Collaborations with industry partners highlight applied solutions for environmental challenges.

Awards:

• Fellow, Canadian Society of Civil Engineering (2017)
• Outstanding Associate Editor, Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering (2017)
• Member of the PEO Order of Honour (2010)

Grants & Advising: Secured NSERC Alliance/Discovery grants (2019) and OMAFRA funding. Currently advises PhD/MSc students on topics like 3D bioventing models, fugitive methane treatment design, and wastewater treatment technologies.

Labs & Teams: Active in interdisciplinary research teams addressing environmental engineering challenges, including partnerships with German and industry collaborators.