Fluid mechanical and biological studies of a stem cell bioreactor. The project has generic benefits toward the improvement of cell and tissue based approaches to diseases which involve replacement of dysfunctional, injured or missing tissues. This is currently a global effort with the overall aim of improving medicine by improving methods in biological sciences. The development of improved bioreactors and other biotechnologies will also have commercial benefits toward the development of effici ....Fluid mechanical and biological studies of a stem cell bioreactor. The project has generic benefits toward the improvement of cell and tissue based approaches to diseases which involve replacement of dysfunctional, injured or missing tissues. This is currently a global effort with the overall aim of improving medicine by improving methods in biological sciences. The development of improved bioreactors and other biotechnologies will also have commercial benefits toward the development of efficient production systems to replace existing systems which are labour intensive and time consuming. Read moreRead less
Improving respiratory drug delivery through targeted nozzle design. The project aims to develop designs for inhaler components which significantly reduce the existing variability in the sprays they produce, as well as an enhanced capacity to predict inhaler performance through development of new empirical models. This project will combine recently developed synchrotron x-ray measurement techniques with traditional visible light diagnostics to develop a greater understanding of the link between t ....Improving respiratory drug delivery through targeted nozzle design. The project aims to develop designs for inhaler components which significantly reduce the existing variability in the sprays they produce, as well as an enhanced capacity to predict inhaler performance through development of new empirical models. This project will combine recently developed synchrotron x-ray measurement techniques with traditional visible light diagnostics to develop a greater understanding of the link between the geometry of pressurised, metered-dose inhaler components and the drug particles these devices produce. The long term benefit from this research will be improved delivery efficiency and shorter product development times, leading to reduced dose-rate costs. This understanding will enable the development of the next generation of treatment devices with enhanced efficiency in delivery of the drugs used to treat these diseases and reduced costs per dose.Read moreRead less
The Fluid-Particle Mechanics of a Synthetic Jet-based Dry Powder Inhaler. This project aims to untangle the fundamental principles that govern the fluid mechanics and particulate interactions in a novel concept chip-based micro-zero-net-mass-flux (micro-ZNMF) jet-assisted dry powder inhaler (DPI). Respiratory diseases affect 6.2 million Australians. The treatment of these diseases is hampered by the poor efficiency of current delivery systems, with conventional DPI devices exhibiting sub-optimum ....The Fluid-Particle Mechanics of a Synthetic Jet-based Dry Powder Inhaler. This project aims to untangle the fundamental principles that govern the fluid mechanics and particulate interactions in a novel concept chip-based micro-zero-net-mass-flux (micro-ZNMF) jet-assisted dry powder inhaler (DPI). Respiratory diseases affect 6.2 million Australians. The treatment of these diseases is hampered by the poor efficiency of current delivery systems, with conventional DPI devices exhibiting sub-optimum performance, delivering typically less than 20% of the loaded dose to the target site, the lungs. The new fundamental knowledge resulting from this research will enable the engineering of a high-efficiency groundbreaking DPI, with the potential to be fully adaptive user-specific benefiting millions of Australians. Read moreRead less
Gravity Current Driven Smoke Dispersion In a Stratified Ambient. Smoke from bushfires transported by gravity currents, and known to occur nationwide, caused the shutdown of businesses, education and events in Canberra in 2019. Recent scientific investigations have shown that the speed of propagation and concentration of smoke in these three-dimensional gravity currents have a long term ‘memory’ of their initial configuration. In this project, high-fidelity computational and experimental techniq ....Gravity Current Driven Smoke Dispersion In a Stratified Ambient. Smoke from bushfires transported by gravity currents, and known to occur nationwide, caused the shutdown of businesses, education and events in Canberra in 2019. Recent scientific investigations have shown that the speed of propagation and concentration of smoke in these three-dimensional gravity currents have a long term ‘memory’ of their initial configuration. In this project, high-fidelity computational and experimental techniques will be used to elucidate the fundamental mechanisms of gravity current entrainment and propagation. This knowledge will set a strong foundation to improve operational forecasts of smoke transport that will allow government agencies to better respond to the negative impact of these complicated flows.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE170100018
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$362,441.00
Summary
Engineering suspended particle sprays through controlled cavitation. This project aims to use cavitation to engineer particle size in sprays of micronised particles suspended in a propellant, and develop a physical mechanism for this process. Understanding how cavitation affects the size of agglomerates in the liquid phase and droplet size in a spray is critical to developing spray devices that require precise control over the final particle size. This will be achieved through high-resolution op ....Engineering suspended particle sprays through controlled cavitation. This project aims to use cavitation to engineer particle size in sprays of micronised particles suspended in a propellant, and develop a physical mechanism for this process. Understanding how cavitation affects the size of agglomerates in the liquid phase and droplet size in a spray is critical to developing spray devices that require precise control over the final particle size. This will be achieved through high-resolution optical imaging techniques and synchrotron X-ray diagnostics. This project is expected to provide physical insight with applications for inhaled and topical pharmaceutical sprays, and industry spray drying of food products.Read moreRead less
Surfactant Effects In Sonoprocessing. This project will provide the fundamental science required to further develop a range of ultrasonic applications within the Australian food industry, for wastewater treatment and in medical science. In particular, it will assist more applied research currently sponsored by both the Victorian government STI initiative and the CSIRO Food Futures Flagship, which considers the use of ultrasound to assist in bioactives separation, food emulsification and membrane ....Surfactant Effects In Sonoprocessing. This project will provide the fundamental science required to further develop a range of ultrasonic applications within the Australian food industry, for wastewater treatment and in medical science. In particular, it will assist more applied research currently sponsored by both the Victorian government STI initiative and the CSIRO Food Futures Flagship, which considers the use of ultrasound to assist in bioactives separation, food emulsification and membrane operations. The development of ultrasound contrast agents (surfactant coated microbubbles) also has the potential to increase both the length and quality of life for many Australians. The work addresses both National Research priorities and the CSIRO Food Futures Flagship goals. Read moreRead less
Understanding and modelling platelet flow and binding in blood. Understanding and modelling platelet flow and binding in blood. This project aims to predict how platelets flow through vascular scale geometries, using an experimental and numerical development programme. Platelets maintain a healthy vascular system. Like other cells, they respond to local stimuli: the concentration of chemical agonists, bonds with neighbouring species, fluid dynamic stresses, and even their history. On a single ce ....Understanding and modelling platelet flow and binding in blood. Understanding and modelling platelet flow and binding in blood. This project aims to predict how platelets flow through vascular scale geometries, using an experimental and numerical development programme. Platelets maintain a healthy vascular system. Like other cells, they respond to local stimuli: the concentration of chemical agonists, bonds with neighbouring species, fluid dynamic stresses, and even their history. On a single cell level, many of these biophysical processes are not understood or quantified. At the blood vessel level, multiscale modelling techniques cannot translate this single cell knowledge to capture how collections of platelets behave. This project is expected to lead to better therapies for cardiovascular disease and a new class of strongly interacting multiphase fluid dynamics problems.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE170100032
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$900,000.00
Summary
Access to the National Computing Infrastructure peak supercomputing facility. This project aims to continue the access of Intersect’s computational researchers to the National Computational Infrastructure (NCI) peak supercomputing facility. The peak supercomputing facility at NCI is critical collaborative infrastructure on a globally competitive scale. Transformative advances in science and technology increasingly rely on high performance computing capabilities across a wide range of research di ....Access to the National Computing Infrastructure peak supercomputing facility. This project aims to continue the access of Intersect’s computational researchers to the National Computational Infrastructure (NCI) peak supercomputing facility. The peak supercomputing facility at NCI is critical collaborative infrastructure on a globally competitive scale. Transformative advances in science and technology increasingly rely on high performance computing capabilities across a wide range of research disciplines. Ongoing access to this facility will allow researchers to tackle major problems in national priority areas including energy, health, and environmental change.Read moreRead less
Investigation of capillarity and photonics for inexpensive and accurate electrophoresis instrumentation. Capillary electrophoresis promises sensitive detection of specific proteins in blood which can be correlated to heart diseases. This project aims to research new ways to do this simply and cheaply so that tests can be done at rural places to derive maximum benefit from fast online medical consultation without setting up costly laboratories.
Redefining sediment transport predictions in benthic ecosystems. This project aims to understand and predict the mobilisation of sediment, and the rates and modes of sediment transport. Sediment dynamics control the health and productivity of some of the world’s most valuable marine ecosystems, including seagrass meadows and coral reefs. However, the theory and predictive models needed to quantitatively understand sediment transport over the large bottom roughness in these ecosystems has proven ....Redefining sediment transport predictions in benthic ecosystems. This project aims to understand and predict the mobilisation of sediment, and the rates and modes of sediment transport. Sediment dynamics control the health and productivity of some of the world’s most valuable marine ecosystems, including seagrass meadows and coral reefs. However, the theory and predictive models needed to quantitatively understand sediment transport over the large bottom roughness in these ecosystems has proven elusive. This project will integrate comprehensive laboratory and field programmes to develop predictive models of these sediment dynamics, which should help better understand, manage and protect these critical ecosystems and their services.Read moreRead less