Stage acoustical quality in auditoria: measurement, simulation, prediction and design. This project asks what acoustic qualities make a concert hall stage outstanding for musicians, and how can these qualities be achieved? It involves a collaboration between acoustics researchers in Australia and Korea, with complementary expertise in lab and field studies of auditorium stages.
Elastocaloric cooling systems for buildings and the built environment. This project aims to develop elastocaloric cooling systems that will find application in buildings and the built environment. The main aims of the projects are to establish a new technology capable of enhancing the efficiency of traditional cooling systems used for building applications and of reducing the contribution of structural and architectural components to the urban heat island effect. This work will be supported by a ....Elastocaloric cooling systems for buildings and the built environment. This project aims to develop elastocaloric cooling systems that will find application in buildings and the built environment. The main aims of the projects are to establish a new technology capable of enhancing the efficiency of traditional cooling systems used for building applications and of reducing the contribution of structural and architectural components to the urban heat island effect. This work will be supported by a new theoretical platform that will incorporate the elastocaloric cooling behaviour into the structural, thermal and energy performance of the building components, as well as by prototype testing. The outcomes of the project will lead to new building cooling technologies, increasing efficiency of traditional cooling building systems.Read moreRead less
Solving the problem of speech distraction in open-plan offices. The project aims to better understand how irrelevant speech in open-plan offices affects the occupants’ cognitive performance and creates annoyance leading to a loss of productivity. Over 97% of Australian office workers are located in open-plan offices. Without internal walls, open-plan offices are designed to make people interact more frequently, therefore be more collaborative and productive. Yet there is a high level of dissatis ....Solving the problem of speech distraction in open-plan offices. The project aims to better understand how irrelevant speech in open-plan offices affects the occupants’ cognitive performance and creates annoyance leading to a loss of productivity. Over 97% of Australian office workers are located in open-plan offices. Without internal walls, open-plan offices are designed to make people interact more frequently, therefore be more collaborative and productive. Yet there is a high level of dissatisfaction with open-plan layout because of frequent distraction by background speech from co-workers, which has been shown to significantly decrease work performance and productivity. The intended outcomes of the project are the development of powerful new tools to measure, model and predict the degree of speech distraction at work, enabling the establishment of new international standards that will increase work performance and productivity.Read moreRead less
Field survey of residential air conditioning and comfort in Australia. Air conditioning represents one of the fastest growing electricity end-uses in the Australian residential sector. This project will be the first large-scale Australian study into residential thermal comfort and air conditioning and will provide a solid basis for further greenhouse mitigation strategies and policies.
Structural domains of beta-tubulin and their role in microtubule dynamics and transport. This study aims to obtain a fundamental understanding of how the structural domains of the cytoskeletal protein beta-tubulin are involved in microtubule structures during cell division and vesicular transport. Using gene-editing technology and coupling this with cell biological approaches and high-resolution cell imaging will enable detailed analysis of the role of beta-tubulin domains in these important cel ....Structural domains of beta-tubulin and their role in microtubule dynamics and transport. This study aims to obtain a fundamental understanding of how the structural domains of the cytoskeletal protein beta-tubulin are involved in microtubule structures during cell division and vesicular transport. Using gene-editing technology and coupling this with cell biological approaches and high-resolution cell imaging will enable detailed analysis of the role of beta-tubulin domains in these important cellular processes. The outcomes will include fundamental new knowledge in cell biology and lead to the development of unique biological models that can be used to understand disease.Read moreRead less
Co-ordinated Action of ATM and DNA-PK in DNA damage recognition. The aim of this project is to investigate the mechanism of repair of double straind breaks in DNA sustained after radiation damage. Specifically we will focus on two proteins ATM (mutated in the genetic disorder ataxia-telangiectasia) and DNA-PK mutated in scid mice. There two proteins recognize double straind breaks in DNA and signal this damage to the DNA repair machinery of the cell and to cell cycle checkpoints. The emphasis ....Co-ordinated Action of ATM and DNA-PK in DNA damage recognition. The aim of this project is to investigate the mechanism of repair of double straind breaks in DNA sustained after radiation damage. Specifically we will focus on two proteins ATM (mutated in the genetic disorder ataxia-telangiectasia) and DNA-PK mutated in scid mice. There two proteins recognize double straind breaks in DNA and signal this damage to the DNA repair machinery of the cell and to cell cycle checkpoints. The emphasis here will be in the relationship between the two proteins in co-ordinating the repair of breaks in DNA. This information will be important in understanding mechanisms for maintaining the integrity of the genome.Read moreRead less
Digital fabrication technologies: analysing patterns of adoption and innovative transformations in architectural design and practice. This project on adoption of digital fabrication technologies by Australian architecture practices will reveal emerging opportunities for creative design and associated transformations in the design practices. These outcomes will enable the increasingly globalising sector of architectural design services to become more agile and innovative.
Collapse assessment of reinforced concrete buildings in regions of lower seismicity. This research aims to develop a new displacement based (DB) method for regions of lower seismicity, using 'Displacement Controlled' phenomenon, to assess the risk of collapse and seismic performance of buildings. The project will investigate the system behaviour of buildings in Australia that are laterally supported by lightly reinforced concrete geometric walls, including both torsional and wall floor interacti ....Collapse assessment of reinforced concrete buildings in regions of lower seismicity. This research aims to develop a new displacement based (DB) method for regions of lower seismicity, using 'Displacement Controlled' phenomenon, to assess the risk of collapse and seismic performance of buildings. The project will investigate the system behaviour of buildings in Australia that are laterally supported by lightly reinforced concrete geometric walls, including both torsional and wall floor interaction effects. The new DB method could allow buildings in regions of lower seismicity to be designed for robustness, gravity and wind loading and then checked using displacement principles for seismic compliance, which will dramatically simplify and improve the current seismic design process.Read moreRead less
Built-up cold-formed steel structures. The building industry is seeing a rapid uptake of joining two or more cold-formed steel sections to form large built-up sections with high carrying capacities. The joining consists of screws, or similar fasteners, placed intermittently along the member. The ease of joining encourages innovation in forming versatile new built-up section shapes in expanding areas of application. The project will provide guidelines and numerical tools for the efficient structu ....Built-up cold-formed steel structures. The building industry is seeing a rapid uptake of joining two or more cold-formed steel sections to form large built-up sections with high carrying capacities. The joining consists of screws, or similar fasteners, placed intermittently along the member. The ease of joining encourages innovation in forming versatile new built-up section shapes in expanding areas of application. The project will provide guidelines and numerical tools for the efficient structural design of built-up sections through experimental and theoretical research, studying the new failure modes pertaining to built-up sections, the increase in strength achievable from composite action and the optimum arrangement of fasteners. Read moreRead less
New technology for designing advanced surface textures. This project aims to develop new methods for the characterisation of advanced textures to aid the manufacturing industry. There is an increasing demand for surfaces with various texture patterns manufactured by modern industry. Thus, novel texture characterisation methods are needed. New methods will allow for optimisation of surface textures for example for improved energy efficiency, bone growth in artificial implants, and others.