Multicomponent gas counter-diffusion in coal. Coalbed methane resources in Australia surpass $20billion at present gas prices. Using CO2 as an enhancement fluid, recovery of methane can potentially be improved by 50% adding a further $10b value, simultaneously permanently and safely sequestering the CO2, with possible carbon credits of up to $15b. The nature of the simultaneous exchange of CO2, methane and other gases within the coal dictates many of the engineering requirements for optimal exp ....Multicomponent gas counter-diffusion in coal. Coalbed methane resources in Australia surpass $20billion at present gas prices. Using CO2 as an enhancement fluid, recovery of methane can potentially be improved by 50% adding a further $10b value, simultaneously permanently and safely sequestering the CO2, with possible carbon credits of up to $15b. The nature of the simultaneous exchange of CO2, methane and other gases within the coal dictates many of the engineering requirements for optimal exploitation. It underlies the development of coal gas reservoir simulators, which currently do not incorporate this critical feature. This project is directed at understanding that counterflow and exchange.Read moreRead less
Combating the spread of antibiotic resistance in urban water systems. This projects aims to investigate the occurrence, diversity, and transformation of antibiotic resistant genes in the entire urban water cycle. Using the latest metagenomic and analytical tools, this project will enhance our knowledge on fate and transfer mechanisms of antibiotic resistance genes in the urban water cycle. Based on this understanding, an expected outcome of the project is the development of innovative technologi ....Combating the spread of antibiotic resistance in urban water systems. This projects aims to investigate the occurrence, diversity, and transformation of antibiotic resistant genes in the entire urban water cycle. Using the latest metagenomic and analytical tools, this project will enhance our knowledge on fate and transfer mechanisms of antibiotic resistance genes in the urban water cycle. Based on this understanding, an expected outcome of the project is the development of innovative technologies for efficient reduction of antibiotic resistance genes to have future applications for environmental, human health and economic benefits for Australia.Read moreRead less
Optimising nanofiltration and reverse osmosis filtration processes for water recycling: effects of fouling and chemical cleaning on trace contaminant removal. In Australia, water recycling is considered a principal measure to manage the current ongoing water shortage and to better protect the environment. Membrane filtration processes play important roles in the treatment of reclaimed municipal wastewater. However, there is very limited knowledge regarding the reliability of such processes in re ....Optimising nanofiltration and reverse osmosis filtration processes for water recycling: effects of fouling and chemical cleaning on trace contaminant removal. In Australia, water recycling is considered a principal measure to manage the current ongoing water shortage and to better protect the environment. Membrane filtration processes play important roles in the treatment of reclaimed municipal wastewater. However, there is very limited knowledge regarding the reliability of such processes in removing trace contaminants from recycled water, which may result in unintended health consequences. This research will lead to a comprehensive understanding of the removal process of such contaminants by membrane filtration. Consequently, the likely avenue of risk can be eliminated and the treatment process can be optimised to achieve economic savings and environmental protection.Read moreRead less
Integration of Life Cycle Analysis, EnternE, and Economic Models to Sustainable Regional Development. This project involves the development of a novel decision-making framework to support the transition to sustainability within regions. The approach is based on integrating the methodologies of Life Cycle Analysis, externality costing and traditional economic analysis to assess the tradeoffs between economic, environmental and social outcomes. The integration of these techniques will allow the re ....Integration of Life Cycle Analysis, EnternE, and Economic Models to Sustainable Regional Development. This project involves the development of a novel decision-making framework to support the transition to sustainability within regions. The approach is based on integrating the methodologies of Life Cycle Analysis, externality costing and traditional economic analysis to assess the tradeoffs between economic, environmental and social outcomes. The integration of these techniques will allow the relative magnitude of positive and negative impacts of development decisions to be reported as an economic unit. This will allow the tradeoffs that occur between economic, environmental and social considerations to be quantified and the sustainability of a development or planning scenario to be assessed.Read moreRead less
Simultaneous dissolved methane and nitrogen removal. Direct anaerobic treatment of wastewater converts majority of organic matters in wastewater to methane, an energy source. However, up to 50% of the methane produced stays dissolved in wastewater. Its subsequent stripping to atmosphere in aerobic treatment not only causes significant loss of energy but also emission of a potent greenhouse gas. This project aims to develop a technology that not only avoids methane stripping but also enables its ....Simultaneous dissolved methane and nitrogen removal. Direct anaerobic treatment of wastewater converts majority of organic matters in wastewater to methane, an energy source. However, up to 50% of the methane produced stays dissolved in wastewater. Its subsequent stripping to atmosphere in aerobic treatment not only causes significant loss of energy but also emission of a potent greenhouse gas. This project aims to develop a technology that not only avoids methane stripping but also enables its beneficial use to enhance nitrogen removal, which is otherwise typically unsatisfactory due to the lack of organic carbon to support denitrification. The project will provide strong support to the Australian water industry in their endeavour to achieve energy- and carbon-neutral wastewater services.Read moreRead less
Impact of Fouling on Retention of Contaminants in Electrodialysis for Brackish Water and Wastewater Applications. Water desalination and water recycling are both of utmost importance in the current global water crisis. Reverse osmosis is a commonly used process in both areas but this process has two main limitations (1) it is limited in water recovery by the concentration of salts, and (2) it produces a relatively large amount of concentrates that require disposal. Using electrodialysis to treat ....Impact of Fouling on Retention of Contaminants in Electrodialysis for Brackish Water and Wastewater Applications. Water desalination and water recycling are both of utmost importance in the current global water crisis. Reverse osmosis is a commonly used process in both areas but this process has two main limitations (1) it is limited in water recovery by the concentration of salts, and (2) it produces a relatively large amount of concentrates that require disposal. Using electrodialysis to treat such concentrates will decrease the salinity problem caused by disposal and also increase the water efficiency of the treatment process. In this research project the potential performance limitations fouling and micropollutant removal will be investigated and hence the performance improved.Read moreRead less
Superhydrophobic fabrics for solar desalination of water. This project will further strengthen Australia's world leading position in water desalination technology and advanced fibrous materials research. It will lead to new membrane materials and techniques for high-efficiency, low-cost and energy-saving desalination of sea/saline water, which will have significant social and economic benefits.
Analytics to predict anaerobic codigestion & downstream process performance. This project aims to develop management approaches to enable the use of anaerobic co-digestion — the conversion of organic wastes and wastewater sludge to biogas for electricity production. Anaerobic co-digestion has the potential to bring significant economic savings to water stakeholders and environmental benefits to communities. However, full-scale deployment faces fundamental challenges in terms of managing impacts ....Analytics to predict anaerobic codigestion & downstream process performance. This project aims to develop management approaches to enable the use of anaerobic co-digestion — the conversion of organic wastes and wastewater sludge to biogas for electricity production. Anaerobic co-digestion has the potential to bring significant economic savings to water stakeholders and environmental benefits to communities. However, full-scale deployment faces fundamental challenges in terms of managing impacts on downstream processes (e.g. odour, dewaterability, biogas quality, and nutrient build-up). The analytical framework and analytics tool to be developed in this project by an interdisciplinary team with expertise in process engineering, biochemistry, analytical chemistry and analytics, is expected to enable water stakeholders to cost-effectively manage these impacts and thus realise the benefits of co-digestion.Read moreRead less
Advanced environmental technologies for increasing coal seam permeability. This project aims to understand the physical/chemical mechanisms occurring when benign chemicals interact and dissolve minerals and coal surfaces in the natural fractures during the extraction of coal seam gas. Technologies for increasing the permeability of coal have become necessary for commercially viable coal seam gas (CSG) extraction in Australia. Currently available methods from the conventional gas industry, are pr ....Advanced environmental technologies for increasing coal seam permeability. This project aims to understand the physical/chemical mechanisms occurring when benign chemicals interact and dissolve minerals and coal surfaces in the natural fractures during the extraction of coal seam gas. Technologies for increasing the permeability of coal have become necessary for commercially viable coal seam gas (CSG) extraction in Australia. Currently available methods from the conventional gas industry, are problematic for coal, and fail to capitalise on coal’s existing fracture network. The intended project outcome is a range of new coal-specific technologies for enhancing permeability that avoid unwanted and irreversible damage to seams and protect the environment. Combined with reduced costs, these methods would benefit sustainable growth of Australia’s CSG industry.Read moreRead less
Novel disinfection to combat antibiotic resistance . Control of antimicrobial resistance in water is critical. Disinfection in water and wastewater treatment plants is a vital barrier against antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB); however, it is less effective in controlling- and may even facilitate the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). This project aims to comprehensively investigate the effectiveness of widely-used disinfection processes in controlling ARB/ARGs, determine the underly ....Novel disinfection to combat antibiotic resistance . Control of antimicrobial resistance in water is critical. Disinfection in water and wastewater treatment plants is a vital barrier against antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB); however, it is less effective in controlling- and may even facilitate the spread of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). This project aims to comprehensively investigate the effectiveness of widely-used disinfection processes in controlling ARB/ARGs, determine the underlying mechanisms, and identify optimal treatment conditions. This project also aims to develop a novel, cost-effective and environmentally friendly disinfection process for efficient ARGs destruction, thus significantly strengthening Australia’s capacity to prevent the spread of antibiotic resistance.Read moreRead less