Advanced protective coatings for thermal energy management devices. This project aims to develop new nanomaterial coatings and advanced plasma coating technology to address the global issue of e-waste caused by short lifespan thermal energy management devices (TEMDs) used in energy (solar, wind, oil), transport (aerospace, automotive, marine) and industrial (manufacturing, mining) sectors. The project expects to overcome issues of erosion and corrosion of TEMDs and toxic coating methods by devel ....Advanced protective coatings for thermal energy management devices. This project aims to develop new nanomaterial coatings and advanced plasma coating technology to address the global issue of e-waste caused by short lifespan thermal energy management devices (TEMDs) used in energy (solar, wind, oil), transport (aerospace, automotive, marine) and industrial (manufacturing, mining) sectors. The project expects to overcome issues of erosion and corrosion of TEMDs and toxic coating methods by developing new nanomaterial coatings and innovative plasma coating technology. This should provide significant benefits such as improved sustainability of TEMDs with improved corrosion resistance and durability, as well as new manufacturing products and processes that have far reaching economic benefits for Australia.Read moreRead less
Tuning catalyst reaction environments towards photoreforming of wastewater. This project aims to combine high-throughput computation and machine learning to screen photocatalysts more thoroughly for photoreforming of wastewater. The reaction environments effects on surface active units will be tailored for COx-emission-free selective organic synthesis with hydrogen production from organic-contained wastewater at ambient conditions. The project expects to expand our knowledge on the fast, reliabl ....Tuning catalyst reaction environments towards photoreforming of wastewater. This project aims to combine high-throughput computation and machine learning to screen photocatalysts more thoroughly for photoreforming of wastewater. The reaction environments effects on surface active units will be tailored for COx-emission-free selective organic synthesis with hydrogen production from organic-contained wastewater at ambient conditions. The project expects to expand our knowledge on the fast, reliable screening strategies, and the relationship between electric field (or lattice strain) and reaction pathways. This project will develop a photoreforming system for selective co-production of organics and hydrogen from wastewater, benefiting sustainable technologies development for chemical synthesis and hydrogen economy.Read moreRead less
Design of 2D Soft Plasmonic Photocatalysts for Artificial Leaves. The project aims to fabricate 2D soft plasmonic photocatalysts with leaf-like structures and functions for solar-to chemical energy conversions. The proposed 2D photocatalysts expect to change the traditional way of designing artificial photocatalysts. Expected outcomes of this project include fabrication of 2D soft plasmonic photocatalyst with large-area, ultrathin thickness, and high flexibility, understanding their plasmon-enha ....Design of 2D Soft Plasmonic Photocatalysts for Artificial Leaves. The project aims to fabricate 2D soft plasmonic photocatalysts with leaf-like structures and functions for solar-to chemical energy conversions. The proposed 2D photocatalysts expect to change the traditional way of designing artificial photocatalysts. Expected outcomes of this project include fabrication of 2D soft plasmonic photocatalyst with large-area, ultrathin thickness, and high flexibility, understanding their plasmon-enhanced photocatalysis mechanisms, and construction of artificial leaves to perform the solar-to-chemical conversions, which can provide significant benefits, such as creating new-generation of soft energy devices and advancing Australian expertise in photochemistry, self-assembly, and functional nanomaterials.Read moreRead less
Light Powered Materials for Producing Chemical Fuels. This project aims to develop a hybrid, solar-powered catalytic material for the manufacture of liquid hydrocarbon chemicals, without consuming external heating. The key concept is to transform hydrogen and carbon monoxide into long-chain hydrocarbons over hybrid materials that can convert light energy into heat and simultaneously catalyze the chemical transformation. Investigations on the relations between material synthesis, nanostructures, ....Light Powered Materials for Producing Chemical Fuels. This project aims to develop a hybrid, solar-powered catalytic material for the manufacture of liquid hydrocarbon chemicals, without consuming external heating. The key concept is to transform hydrogen and carbon monoxide into long-chain hydrocarbons over hybrid materials that can convert light energy into heat and simultaneously catalyze the chemical transformation. Investigations on the relations between material synthesis, nanostructures, and performance of the new catalysis processes will be conducted using experiments and theoretical computation. Expected outcomes include low cost and efficient materials for solar-to-fuel conversion, will provide benefits to low-carbon living, new clean energy resource and environmental protections.Read moreRead less
Locally structured polar-photofunctional materials for energy conversion. This project aims to develop a novel method to engineer local chemical structures for achieving the polarity in narrow bandgap oxides via advanced thin-film growth and ion beam irradiation techniques. The developed new polar-photofunctional materials will significantly improve opto-electro-mechanical coupling and energy conversion, facilitating uses in renewable energy harvesting and smart optomechanical devices. The proje ....Locally structured polar-photofunctional materials for energy conversion. This project aims to develop a novel method to engineer local chemical structures for achieving the polarity in narrow bandgap oxides via advanced thin-film growth and ion beam irradiation techniques. The developed new polar-photofunctional materials will significantly improve opto-electro-mechanical coupling and energy conversion, facilitating uses in renewable energy harvesting and smart optomechanical devices. The project expects to advance material science through a new concept and innovative methodology, achieve properties forbidden/limited by conventional strategies and expand candidate pools for new generation multifunctional materials, significantly advancing Australia’s capacity in advanced manufacturing and industry.Read moreRead less
A platform technology for developing mesoporous polymer particles. This project aims to apply polymerisation-induced self-assembly process to develop triggerable mesoporous polymer particles as advanced functional materials for various applications. By combining this scalable process and automated synthesis technique, mesoporous polymer particles that can disassemble in response to external triggers, such as light, redox conditions and enzymes, will be developed. The knowledge gained from this r ....A platform technology for developing mesoporous polymer particles. This project aims to apply polymerisation-induced self-assembly process to develop triggerable mesoporous polymer particles as advanced functional materials for various applications. By combining this scalable process and automated synthesis technique, mesoporous polymer particles that can disassemble in response to external triggers, such as light, redox conditions and enzymes, will be developed. The knowledge gained from this research will allow researchers to fully understand the formation and evolution mechanism of inverse bicontinuous structures observed in nature and produced in synthetic labs. Importantly, the applications of these novel stimuli-responsive particles as nano-carriers and templating scaffolds will be investigated.Read moreRead less