Plasma-Catalytist Hybrid Process for Simultaneous Removal of NOx and SOx. Coal combustion provides over 80% of the electricity produced in Australia, with the power stations being major emitters of the pollutants NOx and SOx. This project will potentially lead to a new technology to simultaneously remove NOx and SOx in a single and economical process, eliminating the secondary waste streams that disadvantage current competing technologies. This will provide: significant environmental benefits f ....Plasma-Catalytist Hybrid Process for Simultaneous Removal of NOx and SOx. Coal combustion provides over 80% of the electricity produced in Australia, with the power stations being major emitters of the pollutants NOx and SOx. This project will potentially lead to a new technology to simultaneously remove NOx and SOx in a single and economical process, eliminating the secondary waste streams that disadvantage current competing technologies. This will provide: significant environmental benefits for Australia in reducing these dangerous atmospheric pollutants; economic advantage to our power stations by enabling cheaper, more efficient technologies and consolidate Australia's leading position in the world in air pollution control. Read moreRead less
Novel water treatment processes. The objective of this project is the discovery of novel methods for the treatment and reuse of water for both industrial and household applications. Improved treatment systems with the potential for water reuse offer significant improvements to our overall water management potential. The first part of the project is designed to focus on the study of hot bubble column evaporators for solute decomposition, sterilisation and the de-watering of heavily contaminated i ....Novel water treatment processes. The objective of this project is the discovery of novel methods for the treatment and reuse of water for both industrial and household applications. Improved treatment systems with the potential for water reuse offer significant improvements to our overall water management potential. The first part of the project is designed to focus on the study of hot bubble column evaporators for solute decomposition, sterilisation and the de-watering of heavily contaminated industrial wastewater. The second part would be based on the study of a suitable depth filter medium for the treatment of partially treated household sewage water. This is designed to form part of an on-site household sewage water treatment and reuse system which is currently being developed.Read moreRead less
Volatile Organic Compound removal from indoor air environments by an integrated photocatalytic/filtration system. This project promotes the development of technology for providing improved air quality in indoor environments. Mentoring by internationally renowned experts of young Australian researchers on this issue of high importance will be undertaken by the Chief and Partner Investigators. Success from this project will place Australia as a leader in the global community for developing technol ....Volatile Organic Compound removal from indoor air environments by an integrated photocatalytic/filtration system. This project promotes the development of technology for providing improved air quality in indoor environments. Mentoring by internationally renowned experts of young Australian researchers on this issue of high importance will be undertaken by the Chief and Partner Investigators. Success from this project will place Australia as a leader in the global community for developing technology in air pollution quality control.Read moreRead less
Detailed understanding of the behaviour of soot in, and emission from, turbulent flames and fires. While combustion processes involving soot have been widely employed for many years, their great complexity puts them beyond present capacity to understand or model reliably. Within a flame, soot plays an important role in radiant heat transfer, and hence in energy efficiency. Beyond a flame, soot can either be emitted as an unwanted air pollutant or as a desirable source of nano-particles, dependin ....Detailed understanding of the behaviour of soot in, and emission from, turbulent flames and fires. While combustion processes involving soot have been widely employed for many years, their great complexity puts them beyond present capacity to understand or model reliably. Within a flame, soot plays an important role in radiant heat transfer, and hence in energy efficiency. Beyond a flame, soot can either be emitted as an unwanted air pollutant or as a desirable source of nano-particles, depending on the application. The benefits to society from improved understanding and predictive capability include reduced air pollution, improved health and safety, increased efficiency in the utilisation of both fossil and alternative fuels, the support of the rapidly growing sector employing carbon nano-particles and increased fire safety. Read moreRead less
Study of hydrocarbon flames under heat and gas recirculation conditions. This project aims to study gaseous flames under heat and gas recirculation conditions. This technology has been proven to reduce fuel consumption, improve thermal efficiency and substantially reduce nitric oxides emission. The effect of mixing, turbulence and temperature on the structure and stability of these flames will be investigated. The project combines experimental and computational research applied to a laboratory s ....Study of hydrocarbon flames under heat and gas recirculation conditions. This project aims to study gaseous flames under heat and gas recirculation conditions. This technology has been proven to reduce fuel consumption, improve thermal efficiency and substantially reduce nitric oxides emission. The effect of mixing, turbulence and temperature on the structure and stability of these flames will be investigated. The project combines experimental and computational research applied to a laboratory scale burner and a small scale furnace. The main objectives are to better understand the chemical pathways in low temperature hydrocarbon flames under heat and gas recirculation conditions and to understand the effect of mixing and turbulence on the flame structure and pollutants emission.Read moreRead less
Optical fibre photoreactor for removing airborne molecular contaminants and volatile organic carbons for semiconductor fabrication and fuel cell applications. The collaboration integrates concepts from photocatalysis, optical fibre technology and filtration, to solve important issues in the semiconductor fabrication and fuel cell industries. The project will place Australia amongst the world-leaders in novel integrated photocatalytic/filtration techniques and provide significant opportunities fo ....Optical fibre photoreactor for removing airborne molecular contaminants and volatile organic carbons for semiconductor fabrication and fuel cell applications. The collaboration integrates concepts from photocatalysis, optical fibre technology and filtration, to solve important issues in the semiconductor fabrication and fuel cell industries. The project will place Australia amongst the world-leaders in novel integrated photocatalytic/filtration techniques and provide significant opportunities for penetration, in particular, into the US filtration market. The collaboration will afford young Australian-based researchers the opportunity to access technology, expertise and knowledge developed in the US, which is currently unavailable in Australia. It will strengthen ties between UNSW and UMN and provide opportunities for further collaboration.Read moreRead less
Development and Modellling of Advanced Coagulation and Oxidation Processes. The success of this program will help place Australia at the forefront of water quality control and management research. It will address concerns with managing and treating waters of changing characteristics due to climate change. In addition to the socio benefits, project success will also impart economic benefits to the nation through (i) fabricating new hybrid coagulants, that are versatile with enhanced performance ....Development and Modellling of Advanced Coagulation and Oxidation Processes. The success of this program will help place Australia at the forefront of water quality control and management research. It will address concerns with managing and treating waters of changing characteristics due to climate change. In addition to the socio benefits, project success will also impart economic benefits to the nation through (i) fabricating new hybrid coagulants, that are versatile with enhanced performance for removing NOM, and possess antimicrobial properties (ii) developing a new energy efficient photocatalysis technology.The proposed research will expand the knowledge base in this area and increase Australia’s international profile as a global leader in developing cutting-edge cost effective water resource technologies.Read moreRead less
Engineering nanostructured graphene-based semiconductor photocatalysts. Harnessing solar energy and converting it into useful chemical energy efficiently is the expected outcome of the project. Given the strategic solar-geographical position of Australia, solar photocatalysis is a leading option for utilising our renewable energy resources to applications relating to energy conversion and environmental remediation.
Improving performance of solvent extraction equipment for the minerals processing industry. This project will develop a fundamental understanding of how a new type of solvent extraction column, which was recently introduced to the mining industry, responds to changes in process conditions and operating parameters. This will enable the potential for optimal and efficient use of these assets and ensure a competitive advantage for Australia's biggest export earner.
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