Very thin, highly oriented and featured diamond films. The technology for making very thin diamond films, having sculpted surface features and fabricated from tiny and highly oriented individual diamond crystallites, would enable widespread potential applications, including eg surface acoustic wave devices, optical biosensors for ?lab-on-a-chip?, and field emitter arrays for paper thin, bright and wide angle flat panel displays, amongst others. Diamond is uniquely suited to these applications, ....Very thin, highly oriented and featured diamond films. The technology for making very thin diamond films, having sculpted surface features and fabricated from tiny and highly oriented individual diamond crystallites, would enable widespread potential applications, including eg surface acoustic wave devices, optical biosensors for ?lab-on-a-chip?, and field emitter arrays for paper thin, bright and wide angle flat panel displays, amongst others. Diamond is uniquely suited to these applications, and the capability to manipulate film properties and features which is the key requirement, is within grasp.Read moreRead less
High performance electrode materials for Reversible Solid Oxide Cells. This project aims to develop high-performance electrode materials used in reversible solid oxide cells (RSOC), which are a promising electrical energy storage technology. RSOC can work as solid oxide electrolysis cells for fuel production from electricity and as solid oxide fuel cells for electricity generation from fuel. The RSOC technology has the potential to provide a large-scale electrical energy storage solution for the ....High performance electrode materials for Reversible Solid Oxide Cells. This project aims to develop high-performance electrode materials used in reversible solid oxide cells (RSOC), which are a promising electrical energy storage technology. RSOC can work as solid oxide electrolysis cells for fuel production from electricity and as solid oxide fuel cells for electricity generation from fuel. The RSOC technology has the potential to provide a large-scale electrical energy storage solution for the widespread penetration of intermittent renewable energy resources into the electrical grid.Read moreRead less
Fundamentals and practical applications of hierarchically-structured bulk materials. Structured bulk materials are very promosing for process intensification. By using structured bulk materials instead of fine particles, this project will have the opportunity to realise hydrogen or methane storage at very low pressure, and significantly speed up the production of alternative transport fuels from syn gas.
Role of Reactive Particles in Explosive Emulsions. Concentrated water-in oil explosive emulsions are widely used in the minerals industry because they are cheap, easily detonated and relatively safe to handle. Their explosive energy can be significantly increased when reactive particles are introduced into the emulsion matrix. To do this, the interaction between the solid, oil, and water phases needs to be optimised. This investigation will increase our basic understanding of the physical and ch ....Role of Reactive Particles in Explosive Emulsions. Concentrated water-in oil explosive emulsions are widely used in the minerals industry because they are cheap, easily detonated and relatively safe to handle. Their explosive energy can be significantly increased when reactive particles are introduced into the emulsion matrix. To do this, the interaction between the solid, oil, and water phases needs to be optimised. This investigation will increase our basic understanding of the physical and chemical interactions that occur between the particle and the oil-water interface, and develop a more efficient explosive that can be produced continuously on a commercial scale.Read moreRead less
Microfluidic Studies of Stimuli-Responsive Emulsions. Breakthrough 'stimuli-responsive interface technology' has been developed in Australia to allow better control over emulsions, which are oil-in-water mixtures used widely in everyday products such as medicines. This project will increase our understanding of this new technology, by examining how the chemistry of the molecules at the interface interacts with fluid behaviour when the emulsion is made. The research will employ miniature lab-on-a ....Microfluidic Studies of Stimuli-Responsive Emulsions. Breakthrough 'stimuli-responsive interface technology' has been developed in Australia to allow better control over emulsions, which are oil-in-water mixtures used widely in everyday products such as medicines. This project will increase our understanding of this new technology, by examining how the chemistry of the molecules at the interface interacts with fluid behaviour when the emulsion is made. The research will employ miniature lab-on-a-chip systems, to give engineers and scientists design rules for this new technology, opening the way to new products that will improve our everyday lives. One immediate product to be researched is 'precision' double emulsions, which show unique properties for the delivery of chemotherapy medicines.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE100100001
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$360,000.00
Summary
An advanced thermogravimetric analysis system for world-leading research in clean energy, catalysis, material science and nanotechnology. Many chemical reactions occurring in solid materials during heating significantly affect the materials' stability, and subsequently affects the processes of production of clean energy, material synthesis, catalyst preparation, and nanotechnology. No equipment currently exists in Australia that will mitigate the wide range of conditions in such reactions in ma ....An advanced thermogravimetric analysis system for world-leading research in clean energy, catalysis, material science and nanotechnology. Many chemical reactions occurring in solid materials during heating significantly affect the materials' stability, and subsequently affects the processes of production of clean energy, material synthesis, catalyst preparation, and nanotechnology. No equipment currently exists in Australia that will mitigate the wide range of conditions in such reactions in materials processing. This situation impedes research progress in Australia, disadvantages Australian research students, and ultimately makes our research less competitive internationally. The establishment of the proposed apparatus will increase the competitiveness of Australian science and engineering, and contribute to the development of new Australian technologies that are important to the Australian economy and to environmental sustainability.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0989675
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$180,000.00
Summary
Interface-specific facility for quantifying adsorption and structures at particulate interfaces. The facility will be used by the collaborating universities to investigate adsorption and interface properties with great precision, and to develop new and improved technologies for coal and mineral processing, saline water utilisation, water desalination, energy production and environment protection. In particular, the project will investigate innovative ways of using ion-interface interactions in ....Interface-specific facility for quantifying adsorption and structures at particulate interfaces. The facility will be used by the collaborating universities to investigate adsorption and interface properties with great precision, and to develop new and improved technologies for coal and mineral processing, saline water utilisation, water desalination, energy production and environment protection. In particular, the project will investigate innovative ways of using ion-interface interactions in saline water for cleaning coal and recovering value minerals by flotation, and for improving dissolved air flotation used in water treatment and desalination to produce drinking water. The project will further investigate novel ways of capturing CO2, storing natural gases and hydrogen, and tailoring nutrient nano-crystals for foliar delivery.Read moreRead less
Engineering Nanostructured Bio-inspired Products. New nanostructured products that draw on biology promise to revolutionise our lives and economy. Designer emulsions and self-assembling particles inspired by viruses are two such products that form the focus for this research programme. The constitutive behaviour of bio-molecular films that control emulsion performance will be characterised and linked to molecular properties and manufacturing conditions. A broad-based technology platform for t ....Engineering Nanostructured Bio-inspired Products. New nanostructured products that draw on biology promise to revolutionise our lives and economy. Designer emulsions and self-assembling particles inspired by viruses are two such products that form the focus for this research programme. The constitutive behaviour of bio-molecular films that control emulsion performance will be characterised and linked to molecular properties and manufacturing conditions. A broad-based technology platform for the in vitro creation of self-assembling biological nanoparticles will also be developed. Key outcomes will be valuable IPR and fundamental engineering science knowledge to ensure that the value chain for this class of products can deliver commercial outcomes.Read moreRead less
Low cost on-site on-demand cyanide production for gold mining. This project seeks a breakthrough in providing a new, low cost, low environmental impact approach for synthesis of on-site, on-demand cyanide for gold extraction. This will facilitate economic processing of lower grade ores and enhance resource life. Also, avoiding transport of bulk cyanide to remote mine sites will improve community safety.
Sustainable molecular and chemical engineering of stimuli-responsive soft materials. Detergents, made from non-renewable resources, are used everywhere to control foam stability; this research will deliver new detergents that are both sustainable and stimuli-responsive, meaning that foam can be switched on and off as needed. The technology will have global impact including in key Australian industries such as food and mining.