Tailoring the microwave dielectric properties of promising electroceramics for use in wireless telecommunication components and devices. This project aims to develop and tailor the microwave dielectric properties of promising electroceramic materials specifically targeting next generation wireless telecommunications applications. The partnership between the ANU and the Australian company Microwave and Materials Designs has the potential to enable new microwave electroceramic materials to be disc ....Tailoring the microwave dielectric properties of promising electroceramics for use in wireless telecommunication components and devices. This project aims to develop and tailor the microwave dielectric properties of promising electroceramic materials specifically targeting next generation wireless telecommunications applications. The partnership between the ANU and the Australian company Microwave and Materials Designs has the potential to enable new microwave electroceramic materials to be discovered and then incorporated into new microwave components and/or devices developed in response to the requirements of the international wireless telecommunications market. The requested PhD student will gain experience in both the industrial and academic worlds and the skills needed to be part of Australia's high-tech workforce. Read moreRead less
Transforming residues from meat processing into engineered soil amendments. The aim of this project is to transform organic residues from meat processing into agricultural soil amendments that actively improve nutrient retention and reduce nitrous oxide (a potent greenhouse gas) emissions. Current disposal and treatment options for meat processing residues are economically and environmentally unsustainable. In this research, a modified hydrothermal carbonisation process will be developed to tran ....Transforming residues from meat processing into engineered soil amendments. The aim of this project is to transform organic residues from meat processing into agricultural soil amendments that actively improve nutrient retention and reduce nitrous oxide (a potent greenhouse gas) emissions. Current disposal and treatment options for meat processing residues are economically and environmentally unsustainable. In this research, a modified hydrothermal carbonisation process will be developed to transform organic residues into novel hydrochars. The influence of these hydrochars on soil nutrient retention and nitrous oxide production will then be assessed using stable isotope tracing, genetic characterisation, and numerical modeling. The project will reduce the economic and environmental costs of organic waste disposal.Read moreRead less
Nano-engineered catalysts for sustainable fuel production from waste . This project aims to address two major problems simultaneously-reducing the burden of non-recyclable waste currently going to landfill in Australia, and offsetting Australia’s reliance on imported diesel to support industry and transport needs. While approximately 95% of diesel consumed in Australia is imported, vast quantities of carbon-based waste ends up in landfill. Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) is a mixture of plant-based ....Nano-engineered catalysts for sustainable fuel production from waste . This project aims to address two major problems simultaneously-reducing the burden of non-recyclable waste currently going to landfill in Australia, and offsetting Australia’s reliance on imported diesel to support industry and transport needs. While approximately 95% of diesel consumed in Australia is imported, vast quantities of carbon-based waste ends up in landfill. Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) is a mixture of plant-based waste (including food, garden, paper, and wood) and fossil-fuel derived materials (plastics). Using an innovative and environmentally-sustainable catalytic process, the outcomes of this project are aimed alleviating Australia’s dependence on diesel fuel imports and better waste management solutions in Australia.Read moreRead less
Improving the processing of low quality iron ores by the modification of particle interactions. This project is aimed at modifying particle interactions to selectively stabilise or destabilise minerals during grinding and subsequent separation of low quality iron ores. The project will lead to improving grinding energy efficiency, increasing iron mineral production and reducing the impact of iron ore tailings on health and environment.
Reinforced crumbed rubber concrete for residential construction. Reinforced crumbed rubber concrete for residential construction. This project aims to use crumb rubber from used tyres to replace natural sand aggregate in concrete used in housing construction. Globally, very few of the millions of tyres discarded annually are recycled, while natural sand used in concrete is being depleted. This project intends to provide the tyre industry with a viable market for end of life tyres, and the premix ....Reinforced crumbed rubber concrete for residential construction. Reinforced crumbed rubber concrete for residential construction. This project aims to use crumb rubber from used tyres to replace natural sand aggregate in concrete used in housing construction. Globally, very few of the millions of tyres discarded annually are recycled, while natural sand used in concrete is being depleted. This project intends to provide the tyre industry with a viable market for end of life tyres, and the premix concrete industry with a “green” product for the residential construction market. Expected benefits include the increased use of a waste resource (used tyres), reduced use of a scarce natural resource (sand), and the development of an economic but green alternative concrete option for residential builders and owners.Read moreRead less
Engineering the sulphidising reactions for flotation of low quality ores. Engineering the sulphidising reactions for flotation of low quality ores. This project aims to engineer sulphidisation reactions to enhance the flotation of low quality ores for the minerals industry. Sulphidisation uses flotation to enrich base metal and precious minerals from low quality ores containing oxides and oxidised sulphides before expensive leaching or smelting. However, the current sulphidisation method is neit ....Engineering the sulphidising reactions for flotation of low quality ores. Engineering the sulphidising reactions for flotation of low quality ores. This project aims to engineer sulphidisation reactions to enhance the flotation of low quality ores for the minerals industry. Sulphidisation uses flotation to enrich base metal and precious minerals from low quality ores containing oxides and oxidised sulphides before expensive leaching or smelting. However, the current sulphidisation method is neither efficient nor widely used. This project will tailor sulphidisation reactions to generate desirable surface products that are not sensitive to flotation conditions. The intended outcome of this project is to provide a step change value in processing low quality resources while minimising the environmental effects of stockpiles.Read moreRead less
Development of a Novel Photoelectrochemical Method for Ultra-sensitive and Selective Determination of Organic Pollutants. Rapidly deteriorating environmental conditions have caused worldwide fresh water shortage problems. For Australia, this is an urgent issue due to our limited fresh water resources. Globally, all levels of governments and legislative authorities have attempted to adopt stricter environmental legislation and better water resource management practice to address these urgent prob ....Development of a Novel Photoelectrochemical Method for Ultra-sensitive and Selective Determination of Organic Pollutants. Rapidly deteriorating environmental conditions have caused worldwide fresh water shortage problems. For Australia, this is an urgent issue due to our limited fresh water resources. Globally, all levels of governments and legislative authorities have attempted to adopt stricter environmental legislation and better water resource management practice to address these urgent problems. However, these priorities cannot be achieved until large scale and accurate environmental data are available. The success of the project would result in a new environmental monitoring system capable of online, real-time monitoring of environmental water quality, which will directly benefit water resource management practice in Australia. Read moreRead less
Australian Marine Biodiversity As A Source Of New Drugs To Control Neurodegenerative Disease. With the aging of Australia's population the impact of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's is rapidly on the rise. There is an urgent need to develop new and better drugs to treat the symptoms and underlying cause of these debilitating diseases. Historically, the majority of the world's pharmaceuticals have been drawn from biodiversity (ie plants, microbes and animals). As one ....Australian Marine Biodiversity As A Source Of New Drugs To Control Neurodegenerative Disease. With the aging of Australia's population the impact of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's is rapidly on the rise. There is an urgent need to develop new and better drugs to treat the symptoms and underlying cause of these debilitating diseases. Historically, the majority of the world's pharmaceuticals have been drawn from biodiversity (ie plants, microbes and animals). As one of the few megabiodiverse nations, Australia is ideally positioned to accelerate and focus the search for drugs from nature. This project will explore an exceptionally promising pool of Australian biodiversity, its marine ecosystems, as a source of inspiration for the development of new drugs to treat neurodegenerative diseases. Read moreRead less
Bioleaching of copper in tropical systems. This project is focussed on bioleaching of chalcopyrite, to recover copper from currently sub-economic low-grade ore. Conventional mining processes are too energy intensive to economically extract copper from low-grade ores. However, these waste ores are still subject to natural, bacterial leaching causing environmental harm. Enhancing this natural process by removing key limitations in bacterial colonisation of metal sulfides aims to enhance bioleachin ....Bioleaching of copper in tropical systems. This project is focussed on bioleaching of chalcopyrite, to recover copper from currently sub-economic low-grade ore. Conventional mining processes are too energy intensive to economically extract copper from low-grade ores. However, these waste ores are still subject to natural, bacterial leaching causing environmental harm. Enhancing this natural process by removing key limitations in bacterial colonisation of metal sulfides aims to enhance bioleaching of low-grade ores creating a win-win scenario, reducing environmental harm while extracting value from these currently uneconomic materials.Read moreRead less
Double Exposure Photoresists for the 32 and 22 nm Lithographic Nodes. The semiconductor industry is one of the largest world-wide, with annual revenue of $220B and employing over 1.5M people around the world. This project provides a unique opportunity for development within Australia of significant expertise in the field of double exposure lithography. The novel photoactive polymeric films to be developed are expected to support the next generation of microchips. A major outcome of this project ....Double Exposure Photoresists for the 32 and 22 nm Lithographic Nodes. The semiconductor industry is one of the largest world-wide, with annual revenue of $220B and employing over 1.5M people around the world. This project provides a unique opportunity for development within Australia of significant expertise in the field of double exposure lithography. The novel photoactive polymeric films to be developed are expected to support the next generation of microchips. A major outcome of this project will be establishment of Australia as a world-leader in this rapidly expanding field. Furthermore the technology can be applied broadly to many printing technologies.Read moreRead less