Design tools for optimising data centre layout to minimise energy usage. Data centres are major consumers of energy worldwide, mainly through the need to cool the equipment. It has become imperative to develop the science for reducing this consumption. Rising computing demand, increasing power density, and increasing infrastructure and energy costs are major issue for data centres around the world. Our research will provide a powerful alternative to conventional thermal management techniques for ....Design tools for optimising data centre layout to minimise energy usage. Data centres are major consumers of energy worldwide, mainly through the need to cool the equipment. It has become imperative to develop the science for reducing this consumption. Rising computing demand, increasing power density, and increasing infrastructure and energy costs are major issue for data centres around the world. Our research will provide a powerful alternative to conventional thermal management techniques for cooling high-density heat loads in mixed-density environments. We will address the key issue of energy minimisation through a detailed flow analyses by the use of numerical simulations and optimisation algorithms.Read moreRead less
Darwin Harbour corals as environmental data archives and bio-monitors. The forecast rapid population growth and industrial development of the Darwin Harbour catchment necessitates research into novel environmental monitoring techniques to aid the sustainable management of the Harbours resources. This project will develop a powerful and cost-effective bio-monitoring system by using chemical data stored in yearly growth bands of coral skeletons stretching back at least two centuries. Such data wil ....Darwin Harbour corals as environmental data archives and bio-monitors. The forecast rapid population growth and industrial development of the Darwin Harbour catchment necessitates research into novel environmental monitoring techniques to aid the sustainable management of the Harbours resources. This project will develop a powerful and cost-effective bio-monitoring system by using chemical data stored in yearly growth bands of coral skeletons stretching back at least two centuries. Such data will form a comparative baseline against which present and future coral data on pollutants released by urban, industrial and other developments can be assessed.Read moreRead less
In-field assessment and lifetime prediction of composite insulators in high voltage electricity transmission networks. New types of composite insulators are now used in extra-high voltage overhead lines in Australia's national electricity grid. Flashover of such insulators due to early ageing may lead to unavailability of vital lines causing power transmission disruptions costing the National Electricity Market tens of millions of dollars.
In this project research will be conducted into agei ....In-field assessment and lifetime prediction of composite insulators in high voltage electricity transmission networks. New types of composite insulators are now used in extra-high voltage overhead lines in Australia's national electricity grid. Flashover of such insulators due to early ageing may lead to unavailability of vital lines causing power transmission disruptions costing the National Electricity Market tens of millions of dollars.
In this project research will be conducted into ageing of elastomers to provide early warning of insulator end-of-life and into new techniques for extracting elastomer samples from live high voltage insulators. Transgrid will cooperate in the application of the technology to give improved understanding of insulator ageing in transmission networks.
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Nano- and micro-scale engineering of MoS2-based catalyst for conversion of syngas to ethanol. Domestic production of ethanol to provide a 10% blend in petrol (E10) can be achieved from waste methane gas that Australia currently vents or flares to atmosphere. This project aims to develop a conversion process for making ethanol from syngas (the product of coal or methane gasification). Small scale, modularised plants would make ethanol locally to the methane emission source. The benefits of local ....Nano- and micro-scale engineering of MoS2-based catalyst for conversion of syngas to ethanol. Domestic production of ethanol to provide a 10% blend in petrol (E10) can be achieved from waste methane gas that Australia currently vents or flares to atmosphere. This project aims to develop a conversion process for making ethanol from syngas (the product of coal or methane gasification). Small scale, modularised plants would make ethanol locally to the methane emission source. The benefits of local E10 production would be a reduction in the oil trade deficit of $1 billion per year, $500 million per year in lower carbon imposts to industry and government, 25 million tonnes per year of reduced CO2e release to atmosphere and significantly improved urban air through reduced emissions from car transport, with attendant human health benefits.Read moreRead less
Using multiple data sources to understand the opioid crisis in Australia . This project aims to improve the quality and integration of population-level data for monitoring the consumption of opioids, licit and illicit, in Queensland communities. The analysis of opioids in wastewater, integrated with opioid use information such as prescription and seizure statistics will vastly increase knowledge of consumption patterns of opioids. By analysing wastewater samples from 2011 and triangulating with ....Using multiple data sources to understand the opioid crisis in Australia . This project aims to improve the quality and integration of population-level data for monitoring the consumption of opioids, licit and illicit, in Queensland communities. The analysis of opioids in wastewater, integrated with opioid use information such as prescription and seizure statistics will vastly increase knowledge of consumption patterns of opioids. By analysing wastewater samples from 2011 and triangulating with other datasets, the expected outcomes include building capacity to estimate consumption of all opioids; detecting the misuse of licit and illicit opioids over time. Anticipated benefit is to provide objective evidence of opioid use patterns for decision makers and a framework for a national opioids monitoring program.Read moreRead less
Examination of unique tear lipids and their role in the tear film's structure and function. The tear film lipid layer covers the eye, stabilises the tears and prevents their evaporation. Yet its structure, function and composition are yet to be fully elucidated. The aim of this project is to fully characterise the unique lipids in this layer, the long-chain omega-hydroxy fatty acids (not found elsewhere in the body), and to determine their role in its structure and function. The project is signi ....Examination of unique tear lipids and their role in the tear film's structure and function. The tear film lipid layer covers the eye, stabilises the tears and prevents their evaporation. Yet its structure, function and composition are yet to be fully elucidated. The aim of this project is to fully characterise the unique lipids in this layer, the long-chain omega-hydroxy fatty acids (not found elsewhere in the body), and to determine their role in its structure and function. The project is significant because the unique combination of skills including synthetic chemistry, mass spectrometry, lipidomics, biochemistry, biophysics which aim to result in a major shift in the understanding of this layer.Read moreRead less
Integrated Cooling Enhancement Technology for Power Electronics. This project aims to develop an unprecedented integrated cooling enhancement technology (IceTech) for silicon carbide on silicon power electronics. IceTech represents a radical departure from current failure-prone packaging solutions. The project aims to elucidate the fundamental interactions between magnetism, heat and mass transfer and apply them to cooling. In partnership with SPTS Technologies, the project then aims to develop ....Integrated Cooling Enhancement Technology for Power Electronics. This project aims to develop an unprecedented integrated cooling enhancement technology (IceTech) for silicon carbide on silicon power electronics. IceTech represents a radical departure from current failure-prone packaging solutions. The project aims to elucidate the fundamental interactions between magnetism, heat and mass transfer and apply them to cooling. In partnership with SPTS Technologies, the project then aims to develop fabrication processes for integrating microchannels and highly sensitive integrated silicon carbide temperature sensors into a chip. This novel fabrication technology allows for the implementation of the revolutionary enhanced cooling concept using two-phase flow with magnetic liquid plugs.Read moreRead less
Developing next-generation mass spectrometry imaging with isomer resolution. Mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) is a rapidly emerging technology for mapping molecular distributions within biological samples. This project will bring together market-leading MSI instrumentation from the industry partner Waters Corporation with unique technologies developed at QUT and UOW to develop an integrated MSI-platform capable of achieving high mass- and spatial-resolution, as well as discrimination of lipid iso ....Developing next-generation mass spectrometry imaging with isomer resolution. Mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) is a rapidly emerging technology for mapping molecular distributions within biological samples. This project will bring together market-leading MSI instrumentation from the industry partner Waters Corporation with unique technologies developed at QUT and UOW to develop an integrated MSI-platform capable of achieving high mass- and spatial-resolution, as well as discrimination of lipid isomers. Resolution of lipid isomers using this instrumentation will afford researchers a first glimpse of isomer-resolved images that will be used to visualise tissue-specific changes resulting from underlying chemical, physical or metabolic processes; changes that are currently invisible to contemporary imaging technologies.Read moreRead less
Correction of non-linearity in inductively-coupled-plasma mass-spectrometry. Chemical analyses by mass spectrometers underpin key Australian economic sectors, particularly minerals and agriculture. The quadrupole inductively-coupled-plasma mass-spectrometer has seen a particular rise in prominence over last 25 years. In this collaboration between mass spectrometrists and the leading instrument designer, we will improve the linearity of its detection system for more precise and accurate data. Bet ....Correction of non-linearity in inductively-coupled-plasma mass-spectrometry. Chemical analyses by mass spectrometers underpin key Australian economic sectors, particularly minerals and agriculture. The quadrupole inductively-coupled-plasma mass-spectrometer has seen a particular rise in prominence over last 25 years. In this collaboration between mass spectrometrists and the leading instrument designer, we will improve the linearity of its detection system for more precise and accurate data. Better elemental and isotope ratio data from these high-throughput instruments will open up new real-world applications in many areas of Australian interest, such as biosecurity, forensics, groundwater management, and drug design. The research will also inform design of the next generation instruments by the industry partner.Read moreRead less