Dr. Michael Thompson is a Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Associate Dean of Graduate Studies at McMaster University. His research specializes in industrial extrusion technologies with focuses on reactive melt modification, emulsification of polymeric materials, and the granulation of powders. He is considered one of the world leading experts in screw extrusion and polymer modification. He published 100 publications in journals and conference proceedings. Dr. Thompson is collaborating with General Motors of Canada, Imperial Oil Ltd., INCO, Decoma International (Magna Div.), 3M Canada, Xerox Canada, Brampton Engineering, and Shawcor Corporation. With his 20 years of experience in the fields of extrusion, reactive modification, rheology of polymers and bioplastics as well as compounding of polymer composites, he will be taking a leading role in the ORF project.