Novel Nanomaterials for Photocatalytic Water Purification - Science and Application. Water is rapidly becoming Australia's most critical natural resource, and there is an urgent need to re-use and recycle water from domestic use (graywater) and industry, as well as utilisation of larger scale harvesting of rainwater. The outcome of this project will be a technology which can remove organic material (biological and non-biological) from water, enabling a greater range of uses of wastewater. This ....Novel Nanomaterials for Photocatalytic Water Purification - Science and Application. Water is rapidly becoming Australia's most critical natural resource, and there is an urgent need to re-use and recycle water from domestic use (graywater) and industry, as well as utilisation of larger scale harvesting of rainwater. The outcome of this project will be a technology which can remove organic material (biological and non-biological) from water, enabling a greater range of uses of wastewater. This technology will play a significant role in delivering future water security, and developing new industries involved in manufacture and export of water treatment technologies. This project directly addresses the National Priority Research area of water, and international priorities involving greater re-use and recycling of water.Read moreRead less
Aerodynamic enhancement of the capture of fine particle emissions and gaseous pollutants by sorbents. Fine particulate emissions alone, and just within Australia's four largest cities, are estimated to be responsible for some 1600 deaths annually, and are a leading cause of asthma and other lung disease. Hence the economic and social benefits of greatly reducing fine particulate emissions is enormous. Similar benefits can be expected to arise from the enhanced capture of SOx, NOx and heavy metal ....Aerodynamic enhancement of the capture of fine particle emissions and gaseous pollutants by sorbents. Fine particulate emissions alone, and just within Australia's four largest cities, are estimated to be responsible for some 1600 deaths annually, and are a leading cause of asthma and other lung disease. Hence the economic and social benefits of greatly reducing fine particulate emissions is enormous. Similar benefits can be expected to arise from the enhanced capture of SOx, NOx and heavy metals. Many of these pollutants also contribute to the greenhouse effect, so the international exploitation of the technology will also help to mitigate climate change. Should suitable sorbents be developed for CO2 capture, the technology will also enhance carbon capture and storage.Read moreRead less
Wave to Wire: Optimising Hydrodynamic Performance and Capture Efficiency of Next Generation Ocean Wave Energy Systems. Wave energy in the oceans of the world represents a vast renewable energy resource that has not been tapped. This project will play a crucial role in maximising the performance and economic viability of a unique Australian wave energy technology. We will develop a dynamically integrated theoretical model aimed at capturing the complex behaviour of ocean waves and optimising the ....Wave to Wire: Optimising Hydrodynamic Performance and Capture Efficiency of Next Generation Ocean Wave Energy Systems. Wave energy in the oceans of the world represents a vast renewable energy resource that has not been tapped. This project will play a crucial role in maximising the performance and economic viability of a unique Australian wave energy technology. We will develop a dynamically integrated theoretical model aimed at capturing the complex behaviour of ocean waves and optimising the energy capture efficiency of the Oscillating Water Column (OWC) wave energy system. One of the most exciting aspects of the technology is its potential to provide on-site bulk desalination of seawater, whilst being driven entirely by renewable energy. It will also result in significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions from electricity generation.Read moreRead less
Combined Ozonation-Flotation for the Treatment of Potable Water. Water Authorities are tightly regulated to guarantee removal of pollutants such as algal cells and toxins, cryptosporidium oocysts, and geosmin from drinking water. Processing options such as membrane filtration are effective but become very expensive when continuously operated to protect against occasional contamination events. This project aims to develop a fully-integrated process combining flotation and ozonation which can be ....Combined Ozonation-Flotation for the Treatment of Potable Water. Water Authorities are tightly regulated to guarantee removal of pollutants such as algal cells and toxins, cryptosporidium oocysts, and geosmin from drinking water. Processing options such as membrane filtration are effective but become very expensive when continuously operated to protect against occasional contamination events. This project aims to develop a fully-integrated process combining flotation and ozonation which can be operated continuously when required in a number of different modes to provide a barrier against a range of contamination events. The process utilises much of the existing water treatment infrastructure reducing capital and operating costs.Read moreRead less
Development of a low emission, pulverised fuel rotary kiln burner utilising a low pressure-drop, oscillating jet nozzle. A low pressure-drop oscillating jet nozzle, developed recently by the investigators, will be applied to pulverised fuel combustion to provide an advanced, low emission burner for the cement industry. This design is expected to overcome the high pressure drop of the present design which limits its range of application. The program will apply advanced measurement techniques to ....Development of a low emission, pulverised fuel rotary kiln burner utilising a low pressure-drop, oscillating jet nozzle. A low pressure-drop oscillating jet nozzle, developed recently by the investigators, will be applied to pulverised fuel combustion to provide an advanced, low emission burner for the cement industry. This design is expected to overcome the high pressure drop of the present design which limits its range of application. The program will apply advanced measurement techniques to study the aerodynamic behaviour of particles, which control many aspects of the combustion. These will be used to advance understanding and for the development and validation of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models. A preferred design will be assessed in FCT's model lab and then in full-scale trials.Read moreRead less
Coarse-Grid Eulerian-Eulerian Multiphase Model for Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit. A fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) unit is an important refinery unit operation responsible for about 45% of total petrol production. The aim of this study is to improve the petrol production efficiency of Australian refineries thus allowing our country not only to maintain its self-sufficiency but also to permit lucrative exports. This will be done by optimising the performance of the FCC unit through novel computat ....Coarse-Grid Eulerian-Eulerian Multiphase Model for Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit. A fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) unit is an important refinery unit operation responsible for about 45% of total petrol production. The aim of this study is to improve the petrol production efficiency of Australian refineries thus allowing our country not only to maintain its self-sufficiency but also to permit lucrative exports. This will be done by optimising the performance of the FCC unit through novel computational fluid dynamic simulations. The outcomes of this study will enable refiners to produce cleaner fuel (e.g., fuel with less sulphur) and decrease air pollution from the FCC unit (in the form of CO and particulates) thus helping Australia to preserve its diverse and relatively pollution-free environment.Read moreRead less
Optimisation of Building Structures Considering Wind Loading. Wind loading is a dominant factor that should be carefully considered and resourcefully exploited in the design of building structures. The ever-taller buildings proposed around the world have presented a major challenge and opportunity in the pursuit of new techniques and materials. The proposed research will improve the competitiveness and productivity of the Australian building design industry by establishing a cutting-edge compute ....Optimisation of Building Structures Considering Wind Loading. Wind loading is a dominant factor that should be carefully considered and resourcefully exploited in the design of building structures. The ever-taller buildings proposed around the world have presented a major challenge and opportunity in the pursuit of new techniques and materials. The proposed research will improve the competitiveness and productivity of the Australian building design industry by establishing a cutting-edge computer-automated design tool for creating innovative building systems that can resist wind loading effectively and efficiently. The developed technology will result in significant enhancement of the performance and safety of buildings, and substantial reduction of construction materials and costs.Read moreRead less
The novel production and analysis of breaking waves utilising circular-track moving disturbances. Surfing is a major industry in Australia, contributing $11billion to the economy. It has high active participation levels; but locations with good surfing conditions are limited and becoming crowded. New technologies, such as the circular-track wave pool, are required to provide safe environments for surfing with controllable high quality waves. The research in this proposal will considerably advanc ....The novel production and analysis of breaking waves utilising circular-track moving disturbances. Surfing is a major industry in Australia, contributing $11billion to the economy. It has high active participation levels; but locations with good surfing conditions are limited and becoming crowded. New technologies, such as the circular-track wave pool, are required to provide safe environments for surfing with controllable high quality waves. The research in this proposal will considerably advance knowledge of wave mechanics; provide the ability to design a commercially-viable wave pool and ensure the Australian surfing industry and sport continue to expand. The project will thus result in major scientific, economic and social benefits for Australia.Read moreRead less
Fundamental studies of screening processes in coal preparation. Screening is a most important unit operation widely used in industries but not well understood. This project will investigate the fundamentals governing the dynamic behaviour of coal slurry on desliming screens by a combined theoretical and experimental program. Its aim is to develop and validate a computer model that can simulate the operation under various conditions at a particle level, providing a cost effective way to quantify ....Fundamental studies of screening processes in coal preparation. Screening is a most important unit operation widely used in industries but not well understood. This project will investigate the fundamentals governing the dynamic behaviour of coal slurry on desliming screens by a combined theoretical and experimental program. Its aim is to develop and validate a computer model that can simulate the operation under various conditions at a particle level, providing a cost effective way to quantify the screening performance in relation to materials, machine and operation conditions. It will generate a basis for developing better design and control strategies of screen operation, resulting in an improved competitiveness of Australia's mineral industry.Read moreRead less
Enhancing Ammonium Phosphate Slurry Output from the Pre-Neutraliser Reactor via Rheological Study and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Modelling. A thorough understanding of slurry rheology is required for the design and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation of slurry reactor to obtain optimal performance. A poorly designed reactor will have poor mixing, flow short circuiting and stagnant zones. This project will provide a means of characterising the ammonia phosphate slurry rheology o ....Enhancing Ammonium Phosphate Slurry Output from the Pre-Neutraliser Reactor via Rheological Study and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Modelling. A thorough understanding of slurry rheology is required for the design and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation of slurry reactor to obtain optimal performance. A poorly designed reactor will have poor mixing, flow short circuiting and stagnant zones. This project will provide a means of characterising the ammonia phosphate slurry rheology on-line for WMC fertilizer plant, perform detailed rheological characterisation of the slurry with and without trace elements, and provide fluid flow behaviour within the reactor through CFD simulation. A mere 1% improvement over the current solids output of 100tonnes/hr will enhance the revenue by $2.5million/yr for WMC.Read moreRead less