Gren Patey

University of British Columbia

CV Highlights

• Professor, Chemistry

• EWR Steacie Memorial Fellowship

• Rutherford Medal for Chemistry

• Canada Council Killam Research Fellowship

• Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada

• Research Interests: The theory and computer simulation of liquids, solutions and interfacial phenomena

Complex Fluids

Realistic models are offering a glimpse at the molecular choreography behind ion-water behaviour in nanopores. Measurements of structure and dynamics offer important clues to understanding and influencing the transport of ions and water through biological channels, carbon nanotubes, inorganic nanotubes, and nanopores of all types.

Such systems have been previously studied, but Gren Patey and his research team's simulations shed new light on the important role density and concentration fluctuations play in these circumstances. Patey's approach is a blend of general theoretical methods and "exact" computer simulation techniques.

His team has developed efficient simulation codes to test their theories surrounding ion-water behaviour in nanopores. WestGrid resources provide the immense processing power needed to transform that code into tangible results. Preliminary findings have alluded to new methods of altering ion transport. Within this realm of computational chemistry, there is a constant need for more computing power. For Patey, more processors implies better simulations, and better simulations greatly enhance our understanding of these interesting and important physical systems.