RIME

What we do

The RIME UQAT-Polytechnique encompasses a major research program aimed at developing environmentally friendly, original, and practical solutions for the entire life cycle of a mine. Much of this work is accomplished while also training highly qualified personnel who represent the workforce of tomorrow.

Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)

Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)

Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)

Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)

Polytechnique Montréal

Polytechnique Montréal

Polytechnique Montréal

Polytechnique Montréal

Our team

The RIME team includes approximately twenty researchers who are all respected specialists in their areas of expertise. They are supported by many research professionals, technicians, and administrative staff. Governance of the Institute is carried out by a Board of Directors that is composed of representatives from both universities as well as the industrial partners.

  • Executive board
  • Management
  • Scientific researchers
Abdelkabir Maqsoud
Fields of specialization
  • Applied hydrogeology and integrated characterization of aquifers
  • Integrated management of mine waste and their potential valorization
  • Mine site reclamation

Abdelkabir Maqsoud

Professor
UQAT
Ahmad Shakibaeinia
Fields of specialization
  • Hydraulic engineering
  • Hydrological engineering
  • Water resources and supply
  • Water quality and pollution
  • Fluid mechanics
  • Multiphase systems
  • Modeling and simulation
  • Surface water

Ahmad Shakibaeinia

Professor
Polytechnique Montréal
Benoît Courcelles
Fields of specialization
  • Geotechnics
  • Geological engineering
  • Environmental engineering
  • Water quality and pollution

Benoît Courcelles

Professor
Polytechnique Montréal
Benoît Plante
Fields of specialization
  • Environmental geochemistry in a mining context
  • Prediction of geochemical behaviour of mine waste
  • Acid mine drainage
  • Neutral contaminated mine drainage

Benoît Plante

Professor,
RIME UQAT-Polytechnique administrative director at UQAT,
RIME-UQAT scientific director,
UQAT
Bruno Bussière
Fields of specialization
  • Mine waste management
  • Rehabilitation of mine sites in northern, temperate and semi-arid climates
  • Passive treatment of mine effluents
  • Unsaturated hydrogeology

Bruno Bussière

Professor,
RIME UQAT-Polytechnique scientific director at UQAT,
UQAT
Carlos Ovalle
Fields of specialization
  • Geotechnical engineering
  • Geology engineering
  • Mining engineering

Carlos Ovalle

Associate professor
Polytechnique Montréal
Carmen Mihaela Neculita
Fields of specialization
  • Environmental biogeochemistry
  • Mine water treatment and management
  • Mine site reclamation

Carmen Mihaela Neculita

Professor,
Canada Research Chair in Mine Water Treatment and Management,
UQAT
Chloé G. Larochelle

Chloé G. Larochelle

Administrative assistant
UQAT
UQAT
Dany Lauzon
Fields of specialization
  • Mathematical geology
  • Stochastic processes
  • Groundwater
  • Algorithms
  • Modeling and simulation

Dany Lauzon

Assistant professor,
Polytechnique Montréal
Dominique Richard

Dominique Richard

Associate researcher
Polytechnique Montréal
Elmira Hassanzadeh
Fields of specialization
  • Hydrology
  • Hydrological engineering

Elmira Hassanzadeh

Associate Professor
Polytechnique Montréal
Faneva Rarison
Fields of specialization
  • Mine site reclamation using cover systems incorporating geosynthetic materials
  • Characterization of the chemical, mechanical, and hydrogeological properties of geosynthetic materials
  • Durability assessment of geosynthetics used in mine cover systems
  • Instrumentation and monitoring of mine cover systems incorporating geosynthetics
  • Mining geotechnics

Faneva Rarison

Professor specializing in mine site reclamation,
UQAT
Foutse Khomh

Foutse Khomh

Director of research and innovation,
Polytechnique Montréal
Gabriel Fabien-Ouellet
Fields of specialization
  • Applied geophysics
  • Environmental geophysics
  • Wave propagation
  • Mathematical modeling

Gabriel Fabien-Ouellet

Associate professor
Polytechnique Montréal
Geneviève Pepin

Geneviève Pepin

Chairperson of the board of the RIME UQAT-Polytechnique research program,
Sustainability and external relations manager,
Dhilmar - Éléonore
Isabelle Demers
Fields of specialization
  • Mine waste management
  • Mine site reclamation
  • Sustainable mine development
  • Gas movement in mine wastes
  • Environmental modeling
  • Environmental desulfurization

Isabelle Demers

Professor,
RIME-UQAT director,
UQAT
Isabelle Lapierre

Isabelle Lapierre

Director of Environment, Community Engagement and Governance,
Glencore - mine Raglan
Jasmine Williams
Fields of specialization
  • Mining engineering
  • Soil fertility
  • Stress physiology
  • Plant growth and development
  • Water and mineral nutrition in plants

Jasmine Williams

Assistant professor,
Polytechnique Montréal
Karine Sylvain

Karine Sylvain

Researcher
Li Li
Fields of specialization
  • Geotechnics
  • Geological engineering
  • Mining engineering
  • Rock mechanics

Li Li

Professor,
RIME UQAT-Polytechnique scientific director at Polytechnique,
Polytechnique Montréal
Li Zhen Cheng
Fields of specialization
  • Applied geophysics for the exploration of natural resources and the study of Earth’s crustal structure
  • Surface geology mapping using airborne survey data and advanced image processing techniques
  • Development of advanced 3D modeling and inversion tools for the interpretation of geophysical datasets
  • Investigation of soil stability and subsurface fracturing-related hazards through geophysical observations and numerical modeling

Li Zhen Cheng

Professor
UQAT
Louis Imbeau

Louis Imbeau

Vice-Rector for research and innovation,
UQAT
Lucie Coudert
Fields of specialization
  • Hydrometallurgy of precious, critical, and strategic elements
  • Management and valorization of mine tailings and industrial waste
  • Treatment of contaminated effluents
  • Recovery and valorization of target metals

Lucie Coudert

Professor
UQAT
Mamert Mbonimpa
Fields of specialization
  • Environmental and mining geotechnics
  • Soil mechanics, including unsaturated soils
  • Classical and environmental hydrogeology
  • Rheology and transport of mine tailings
  • Environmental management of mine waste
  • Reclamation techniques for mining sites generating AMD

Mamert Mbonimpa

Professor
UQAT
Maria Prieto
Fields of specialization
  • Characterization of contaminated sites affected by groundwater and soil pollution
  • Biogeochemistry: Investigating the processes governing contaminant degradation, mobilization, and natural attenuation

Maria Prieto

Assistant professor
Polytechnique Montréal
Marie Guittonny
Fields of specialization
  • Functioning of the soil–plant system
  • Reforestation of degraded sites
  • Water balance in vegetated surfaces
  • Vegetation and performance assessment of cover systems

Marie Guittonny

Professor,
Scientific Director of the UQAT-MRNF Research Partnership on Abandoned Mine Site Reclamation (ResMinA),
UQAT
Mehrez Hermassi
Fields of specialization
  • Membrane separation and membrane-assisted crystallization
  • Water treatment and resource recovery
  • Management and valorization of industrial and mining waste
  • Recovery and concentration of ammonia from return liquor and CO2 valorization
  • Hydrometallurgy
  • Modeling of mass transport in various physico-chemical processes

Mehrez Hermassi

Professor
UQAT
Michel Julien

Michel Julien

Vice President, Environmental Affairs,
Mines Agnico Eagle Limitée
Monica Monzon

Monica Monzon

Research professional,
Coordinator of the RIME at Polytechnique Montréal,
Polytechnique Montréal
Nelson Morales
Fields of specialization
  • Mining engineering
  • Operations research and management science
  • Mathematics for computer science
  • Optimization
  • Modeling and simulation studies

Nelson Morales

Associate Professor
Polytechnique Montréal
Pedro Cacciari
Fields of specialization
  • Rock mechanics
  • Geotechnics
  • Geological engineering
  • Numerical analysis

Pedro Cacciari

Assistant professor
Polytechnique Montréal
Richard Simon
Fields of specialization
  • Geotechnics
  • Mining and mineral engineering
  • Rock mechanics
  • Environmental geology

Richard Simon

Associate professor,
Administrative director of the RIME-Polytechnique,
Polytechnique Montréal
Samuel Yniesta
Fields of specialization
  • Geotechnics
  • Geological engineering
  • Modeling, simulation, and finite elements methods

Samuel Yniesta

Associate professeur,
Chair of the department of the civil, geological and mining engineering,
Polytechnique Montréal
Simon Taurines
Fields of specialization
  • Rewilding of abandoned mine sites
  • Restoration ecology on mining sites
  • Study of primary succession
  • Community dynamics in disturbed environments
  • Metagenomics applied to disturbed ecosystems

Simon Taurines

Professor specializing in the rewilding of abandoned mining sites,
UQAT
Steve Pelletier

Steve Pelletier

Senior environmental director,
IAMGOLD Corporation
Suzie Poirier

Suzie Poirier

Environmental director
Rio Tinto Fer et Titane
Tikou Belem
Fields of specialization
  • Solid mine waste management
  • Environmental geomechanics
  • Physico-mechanics of cementitious composites
  • Transport and rheology of solid-liquid suspensions
  • Rock mechanics and ground control

Tikou Belem

Professor
UQAT
Vincent Boulanger-Martel
Fields of specialization
  • Mine site reclamation in northern / arctic climates
  • Cold regions mining geotechnics
  • Thermo-hydro-geotechnical behavior of mine waste
  • Thermal and hydrogeological modeling

Vincent Boulanger-Martel

Assistant Professor in Mine site Reclamation and mining Geotechnics in Northern Environments,
Canada Research Chair in Mining Geoenvironment in Cold Regions,
UQAT
Violaine Houle

Violaine Houle

Liaison agent
UQAT