Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE240100063
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,900,000.00
Summary
Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope for Beam-Sensitive Materials. This project aims to establish a transmission electron microscopy facility for the high-throughput characterisation of delicate materials, at the atomic scale and a broad range of temperatures. Unique in Australia, this capability will enable the location and type of atoms critical to materials properties to be determined for materials as diverse as lithium-bearing minerals, next-generation solar cells and drug-delivery agen ....Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope for Beam-Sensitive Materials. This project aims to establish a transmission electron microscopy facility for the high-throughput characterisation of delicate materials, at the atomic scale and a broad range of temperatures. Unique in Australia, this capability will enable the location and type of atoms critical to materials properties to be determined for materials as diverse as lithium-bearing minerals, next-generation solar cells and drug-delivery agents. In this way it will foster the engineering of new materials for addressing current challenges in energy, environment, transport, health and manufacturing. This will be a national, open access facility for use by research institutions and industry, and for training the next generation of postgraduate students.Read moreRead less
Geodynamics and continental extension in the East African Rift System: origin and evolution of the Turkana Depression in northern Kenya. The Lake Turkana region in northern Kenya, famous for its fossil evidence of human origins, occupies a critical position within the Great Rift Valley of East Africa. This project seeks to explain how this complex region evolved and also the dynamic earth processes responsible for its formation between two great uplifted domes in Ethiopia and Kenya.
Understanding planetary-scale reorganisations in plate tectonics. This project aims to investigate the dynamics of Earth’s tectonics and its plate motions, with the aim of understanding the mechanisms that force single plates or whole-Earth motions’ changes. The Earth’s tectonics follow regular cycles, in every ~500 million years, of continental aggregation and dispersal, which are intervened by periodic destabilisation and rapid reorganisations. What causes the reorganisations and reversal of t ....Understanding planetary-scale reorganisations in plate tectonics. This project aims to investigate the dynamics of Earth’s tectonics and its plate motions, with the aim of understanding the mechanisms that force single plates or whole-Earth motions’ changes. The Earth’s tectonics follow regular cycles, in every ~500 million years, of continental aggregation and dispersal, which are intervened by periodic destabilisation and rapid reorganisations. What causes the reorganisations and reversal of the tectonics remain standing questions in planetary dynamics. The expected outcomes of the project will provide an understanding of the recent supercontinent formation and its fragmentation into the present-day continents.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR120200004
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$30,000,000.00
Summary
Australian Synchrotron Access Program. The Australian Synchrotron epitomises scientific research excellence in Australian and New Zealand. Its impact spans nearly every research sector. This proposal brings together over 30 Australian universities working together to ensure that world-class peer-reviewed science continues to be performed at the Australian Synchrotron.
The first Mesozoic fossiliferous amber from Southern Gondwana: an ancient portal into an Australian polar greenhouse. The May 2011 discovery of the oldest fossiliferous amber deposit from Australia, and all of Southern Gondwana, provides a unique opportunity to study the only recorded terrestrial biotas of this age on the continent. Employing new imaging techniques (MicroXCT-400, X-ray ultramicroscope and Synchrotron radiation), the new fossils dated as 90 million years old will be extracted vir ....The first Mesozoic fossiliferous amber from Southern Gondwana: an ancient portal into an Australian polar greenhouse. The May 2011 discovery of the oldest fossiliferous amber deposit from Australia, and all of Southern Gondwana, provides a unique opportunity to study the only recorded terrestrial biotas of this age on the continent. Employing new imaging techniques (MicroXCT-400, X-ray ultramicroscope and Synchrotron radiation), the new fossils dated as 90 million years old will be extracted virtually in three-dimensional to capture the finest details from this major palaeontological find. The outcomes of the study will attract much national and international attention as the researchers identify the first Mesozoic organisms of this age living in habitats in and close to the resin-producing forests, thus opening an entirely new window of opportunities in this field.Read moreRead less
Learned Academies Special Projects - Grant ID: LS140100016
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$474,334.00
Summary
Science decadal plans for a stronger, healthier, more prosperous Australia. This project will bring greater focus to Australia’s future research investment, ensuring that Australia has the science it needs to succeed in a rapidly changing world. It will develop Strategic Decadal Plans in the key science disciplines, Chemistry, Agricultural Science, and Earth Sciences, that are fundamental to key pillars of the Australian economy, such as manufacturing, agriculture and minerals exploration. Worki ....Science decadal plans for a stronger, healthier, more prosperous Australia. This project will bring greater focus to Australia’s future research investment, ensuring that Australia has the science it needs to succeed in a rapidly changing world. It will develop Strategic Decadal Plans in the key science disciplines, Chemistry, Agricultural Science, and Earth Sciences, that are fundamental to key pillars of the Australian economy, such as manufacturing, agriculture and minerals exploration. Working with the research sector, industry and government, this project will identify Australia’s future needs for key science disciplines, and outline how future research investment should be prioritised to ensure that Australia is positioned to succeed.Read moreRead less
Ultra-fast alchemy: a new strategy to synthesise super-dense nanomaterials. We have recently created a new super-dense aluminium phase by ultrafast laser microexplosion. This project will search further for new super-dense material phases with drastically different and exotic properties, such as those inside planets and stars, and which have great potential as new nanomaterials for industrial applications.
Using fossil micrometeorites to examine the ancient Earth environment. This project aims to use fossil micrometeorites to provide fundamental new data on changes in the chemistry of the ancient Earth's upper atmosphere before, during and after the Great Oxidation Event, the most significant atmospheric change in Earth’s history. This would provide insights into variations in the extent of interaction between the upper and lower atmosphere across the Great Oxidation Event. The project will also u ....Using fossil micrometeorites to examine the ancient Earth environment. This project aims to use fossil micrometeorites to provide fundamental new data on changes in the chemistry of the ancient Earth's upper atmosphere before, during and after the Great Oxidation Event, the most significant atmospheric change in Earth’s history. This would provide insights into variations in the extent of interaction between the upper and lower atmosphere across the Great Oxidation Event. The project will also use these micrometeorites to investigate how the flux, composition and sources of extra-terrestrial material arriving on Earth changed over time.Read moreRead less
Melting in the Earth and the origin of basalts. This project aims to investigate and link the many studies of natural basalts to better understand Earth’s global tectonics and mineral resources. Much of our knowledge of the deep Earth’s history comes from studying the melting of the mantle to produce basaltic magma. This project will investigate experimentally at high temperatures and pressures, link studies of natural basalts with melting processes in simplified chemical systems. The expected o ....Melting in the Earth and the origin of basalts. This project aims to investigate and link the many studies of natural basalts to better understand Earth’s global tectonics and mineral resources. Much of our knowledge of the deep Earth’s history comes from studying the melting of the mantle to produce basaltic magma. This project will investigate experimentally at high temperatures and pressures, link studies of natural basalts with melting processes in simplified chemical systems. The expected outcome is a comprehensive model for the origin of basalts on Earth and in other rocky planets, which will establish the framework for the geochemical cycles of the elements and lead to a better understanding of mineral resources.Read moreRead less
High resolution timeframe for hominin evolution in the Turkana Basin, Kenya. This project aims to establish a high-resolution timeframe for hominin evolution in the famed Omo-Turkana Basin, Kenya. The Basin hosts a vast array of hominin fossils that cover more than four million years of human evolution, and interbedded volcanic deposits within the Basin sediments has provided much of our current constraints on the timing of hominin evolution. However critical knowledge gaps remain. Using new ins ....High resolution timeframe for hominin evolution in the Turkana Basin, Kenya. This project aims to establish a high-resolution timeframe for hominin evolution in the famed Omo-Turkana Basin, Kenya. The Basin hosts a vast array of hominin fossils that cover more than four million years of human evolution, and interbedded volcanic deposits within the Basin sediments has provided much of our current constraints on the timing of hominin evolution. However critical knowledge gaps remain. Using new instrumentation and dating methods, this project will provide an ultra-precise chronological framework for the basin. This is critical for transforming our understanding of hominin evolution and migration, under changing climatic and environmental conditions.Read moreRead less