Dynamic Controllability Analysis for Plantwide Process Design and Control. World-wide chemical plants represent many billions of dollars of investment. Improvements to the process designs in terms of controllability would have the potential to provide large economic benefits, as it implies improved productivity, reduced operating costs and product variability. This proposed research will be a step towards integration of process design and control, which has been widely recognized as the key to t ....Dynamic Controllability Analysis for Plantwide Process Design and Control. World-wide chemical plants represent many billions of dollars of investment. Improvements to the process designs in terms of controllability would have the potential to provide large economic benefits, as it implies improved productivity, reduced operating costs and product variability. This proposed research will be a step towards integration of process design and control, which has been widely recognized as the key to this improvement. The outcomes from this project may be readily implemented in process design practice, and therefore have a direct impact to the Australian and world-wide process industries, helping to build a more efficient and environmental conscious Australian process industries.Read moreRead less
Drag Force on Bubbles and Particles in Turbulent Flows. Australian exports are dominated by the minerals, metallurgical and chemicals industries, with minerals exports worth at least $40 billion annually. Many of the production processes are underpinned by the complex interaction between particles, bubbles and liquids. It is important that we understand the complex interactions taking place. This will enable us to improve existing operations and also to design completely new technologies, especi ....Drag Force on Bubbles and Particles in Turbulent Flows. Australian exports are dominated by the minerals, metallurgical and chemicals industries, with minerals exports worth at least $40 billion annually. Many of the production processes are underpinned by the complex interaction between particles, bubbles and liquids. It is important that we understand the complex interactions taking place. This will enable us to improve existing operations and also to design completely new technologies, especially in the emerging fields of nano and biotechnology. This project is important because it adds to our knowledge in the national priority area of Transforming Australian Industries, and its success will ensure that our industries remain at the forefront of innovation and are globally competitive. Read moreRead less
Force Interactions in Packed and Fluidised Beds at Micro-Scale Operation. Industrial processing in the 20th century was about increasing size to gain benefit from economies of scale. This century, the focus is on micro devices like lab-on-a-chip and high speed computer processors that deliver their product directly to the consumer. There are significant obstacles facing this new technology. Mixing is reduced due to laminar flow, and a large amount of energy is needed to move the fluid through su ....Force Interactions in Packed and Fluidised Beds at Micro-Scale Operation. Industrial processing in the 20th century was about increasing size to gain benefit from economies of scale. This century, the focus is on micro devices like lab-on-a-chip and high speed computer processors that deliver their product directly to the consumer. There are significant obstacles facing this new technology. Mixing is reduced due to laminar flow, and a large amount of energy is needed to move the fluid through such small devices. Particles are often added to improve mixing and heat transfer, but their presence adds to the energy requirements. This study will help us overcome these challenges. Read moreRead less
Analysing Instabilities in Complex Combustion Models for Different Geometrical Configurations. Anyone who has gazed into a fire will appreciate the complexity of combustion. To date only the simplest of models have been comprehensively analysed. This project, which aims to analyse more complex combustion models, will address some of the fundamental issues of combustion theory. Results from this project will lead to a better understanding of combustion processes, with the potential to prevent exp ....Analysing Instabilities in Complex Combustion Models for Different Geometrical Configurations. Anyone who has gazed into a fire will appreciate the complexity of combustion. To date only the simplest of models have been comprehensively analysed. This project, which aims to analyse more complex combustion models, will address some of the fundamental issues of combustion theory. Results from this project will lead to a better understanding of combustion processes, with the potential to prevent explosions in reactors and storage tanks. Other potential applications range from bushfires to the manufacture of exotic materials. Furthermore, the novel mathematical techniques developed in this project can be easily adapted to other types of systems such as those used in biology (eg. epidemiology and tumour growth), economics, physics etc. Read moreRead less
Development of High Performance Nanocomposite Filtration Membranes: Fabrication and Fouling Mechanisms. This project will develop high performance membranes for the filtration of water and wastewater using novel nanotechnology processes. This will reduce the costs and environmental impact of water treatment and risk from low-level chemical contaminants such as micropollutants. The project will also provide an enhanced technology base for producing low cost, hybrid inorganic-organic materials fo ....Development of High Performance Nanocomposite Filtration Membranes: Fabrication and Fouling Mechanisms. This project will develop high performance membranes for the filtration of water and wastewater using novel nanotechnology processes. This will reduce the costs and environmental impact of water treatment and risk from low-level chemical contaminants such as micropollutants. The project will also provide an enhanced technology base for producing low cost, hybrid inorganic-organic materials for widespread environmental, agricultural and food applications.Read moreRead less
Economic Operability Assessment of Leaching Process at Kwinana Nickel Refinery. Process operability is concerned with systematic analysis and improvement of process performance in the face of variable operating conditions. This project will develop a rigorous methodology for analysis of process operability with respect to short-term and transient disturbances. The proposed technique will be applied to the Kwinana Nickel Refinery Leach section, in order to reduce the plant variability and increas ....Economic Operability Assessment of Leaching Process at Kwinana Nickel Refinery. Process operability is concerned with systematic analysis and improvement of process performance in the face of variable operating conditions. This project will develop a rigorous methodology for analysis of process operability with respect to short-term and transient disturbances. The proposed technique will be applied to the Kwinana Nickel Refinery Leach section, in order to reduce the plant variability and increase nickel throughput and plant availability. This can be considered as significant move by a process industry to embrace advanced theoretical developments and will act as a benchmark to promote future links between Australian industry and academia.Read moreRead less
Optimising Fouling Control in Membrane Bioreactors. Membrane bioreactors (MBR) are growing in importance for wastewater treatment because they offer an alternative for producing higher effluent quality wastewater within a more compact space compared to conventional processes. However, due to the pumping and bubbling used to keep the membranes clear of foulants resulting from the biological processes in MBR's, controlling fouling incurs significant energy usage and costs. The proposal aims to red ....Optimising Fouling Control in Membrane Bioreactors. Membrane bioreactors (MBR) are growing in importance for wastewater treatment because they offer an alternative for producing higher effluent quality wastewater within a more compact space compared to conventional processes. However, due to the pumping and bubbling used to keep the membranes clear of foulants resulting from the biological processes in MBR's, controlling fouling incurs significant energy usage and costs. The proposal aims to reduce the costs of fouling control by understanding the optimal conditions to remove these depositions and improve the design of MBR modules, operating conditions and shear delivery in the membrane system.Read moreRead less
Macromolecular Fouling in Membrane Bioreactors. As the demands for domestic and industrial water increasing in Australia and overseas, membrane bioreactors (MBR) offer an alternative for producing higher effluent quality wastewater compared to conventional processes. However, aeration costs used to remove fouling deposits (which reduce the operating performance) need to be further minimised. The proposal aims to study fundamental mechanisms involve in the deposition of foulant components by usin ....Macromolecular Fouling in Membrane Bioreactors. As the demands for domestic and industrial water increasing in Australia and overseas, membrane bioreactors (MBR) offer an alternative for producing higher effluent quality wastewater compared to conventional processes. However, aeration costs used to remove fouling deposits (which reduce the operating performance) need to be further minimised. The proposal aims to study fundamental mechanisms involve in the deposition of foulant components by using model systems of polysaccharides, proteins and microbial cells and comparing these with real MBR systems. The effect of bubbling varied gas compositions (air/H2S ratios) a novel approach in this study will be investigated to prevent or remove foulants in MBR systems. Read moreRead less
The elutriation of ultrafine particles according to their density. This study is concerned with exploiting a new and powerful mechanism for separating particles according to their density, with strong potential for recovering and concentrating tens of billions of dollars worth of valuable minerals annually. By coupling the new separation mechanism with a centrifugal force it should be possible to apply gravity separation technology, arguably for the first time, to the recovery of ultrafine parti ....The elutriation of ultrafine particles according to their density. This study is concerned with exploiting a new and powerful mechanism for separating particles according to their density, with strong potential for recovering and concentrating tens of billions of dollars worth of valuable minerals annually. By coupling the new separation mechanism with a centrifugal force it should be possible to apply gravity separation technology, arguably for the first time, to the recovery of ultrafine particles from 200 microns to well below 10 microns, at high separation efficiency, and high feed rates. This study is also ideal for training new researchers, especially at the PhD level, in an area of importance to Australia's economic future. Read moreRead less
Influence of Impurities in Commercial Solvent Extraction Processes. This project directly supports the solvent extraction industry in Australia. This industry is responsible for generating in excess of $600M annually of export earnings for Australia. This type of technology can be applied in the recovery of base metals such as coper, nickel, cobalt, etc and in the environmental area for the clean up of heavy metals from waste water. Solvent extraction has the advantage of high selectivity that ....Influence of Impurities in Commercial Solvent Extraction Processes. This project directly supports the solvent extraction industry in Australia. This industry is responsible for generating in excess of $600M annually of export earnings for Australia. This type of technology can be applied in the recovery of base metals such as coper, nickel, cobalt, etc and in the environmental area for the clean up of heavy metals from waste water. Solvent extraction has the advantage of high selectivity that enables metals to be recovered and recycled, thus reducing the wastage of these metals in, for example, the chromium plating process.Read moreRead less