Smart passive sampling of heavy metals in aquatic systems. Smart passive sampling of heavy metals in aquatic systems. This project aims to construct smart devices with extracting polymeric membranes for advanced passive sampling of heavy metal ions. These devices should improve the passive sampling of pollutants such as heavy metals by overcoming the effect of the variability of water temperature, composition and velocity during sampling, which substantially reduces the reliability of analytical ....Smart passive sampling of heavy metals in aquatic systems. Smart passive sampling of heavy metals in aquatic systems. This project aims to construct smart devices with extracting polymeric membranes for advanced passive sampling of heavy metal ions. These devices should improve the passive sampling of pollutants such as heavy metals by overcoming the effect of the variability of water temperature, composition and velocity during sampling, which substantially reduces the reliability of analytical data. These devices are expected to reliably identify sources of heavy metal pollution in urban municipal wastewaters and stormwaters without the need for labour intensive monitoring operations, thus saving considerable time and expense to the Australian water industry.Read moreRead less
Development of novel passive sampling devices for ammonia monitoring. This project will develop novel inexpensive passive samplers for ammonia which is an indicator for faecal contamination in stormwater. These devices will increase dramatically the efficiency in isolating intermittent faecal contamination sources in drainage networks by eliminating the need for extensive manual sampling and inspection operations.
Rapid amperometric measurement of chemical oxygen demand in polluted water based on electrochemical and photocatalytic properties of nanoparticulates. The project will enhance a newly developed technology for measuring aggregate organic pollution in wastewater. The conventional wet chemistry method is disadvantaged by being slow (2 hr) and requiring toxic heavy metal (mercury, chromium) and hazardous reagents. Aqua Diagnostic's method, by contrast, is rapid (5-10 minutes) and uses only safe ch ....Rapid amperometric measurement of chemical oxygen demand in polluted water based on electrochemical and photocatalytic properties of nanoparticulates. The project will enhance a newly developed technology for measuring aggregate organic pollution in wastewater. The conventional wet chemistry method is disadvantaged by being slow (2 hr) and requiring toxic heavy metal (mercury, chromium) and hazardous reagents. Aqua Diagnostic's method, by contrast, is rapid (5-10 minutes) and uses only safe chemical reagents. It will be further improved to facilitate unprecedented near-real-time (less than 1 minute) online pollution monitoring and greater analytical robustness. The project will directly benefit the wastewater management community, enrich Australian industry's expertise in nanotechnology applications and grow high-tech exports as this innovative technology continues to penetrate international markets.Read moreRead less
Surface modification of semiconducting organic charge transfer complexes with metal nanoparticles to create a new class of multifunctional materials. This project aims to deliver a facile and cheap method to produce a class of nanostructured composite materials to be used in applications which will have environmental and social benefits such as photocatalyst development for water purification, biosensing and the creation of antibacterial fabrics to prevent the spread of infection.