Development and application of a virtue experimental blast furnace. This project aims to develop a virtual experimental blast furnace based on advanced discrete particle simulation technique. It is intended that the model furnace will be used to study the flow and thermochemical behaviour in iron making, quantify the effects of key variables related to raw material and operational conditions, and formulate strategies for optimum process design and control under different conditions. The findings ....Development and application of a virtue experimental blast furnace. This project aims to develop a virtual experimental blast furnace based on advanced discrete particle simulation technique. It is intended that the model furnace will be used to study the flow and thermochemical behaviour in iron making, quantify the effects of key variables related to raw material and operational conditions, and formulate strategies for optimum process design and control under different conditions. The findings aim to be very useful to comprehensively assess the performance of Australian minerals in iron making, improve the energy efficiency and reduce carbon dioxide emission in the steel industry, and enhance the competitiveness of the Australian economy.Read moreRead less
Assessment of the new technologies to maximise the internal energy efficiency by modelling the energy flows in Victorian power stations. Increased internal energy efficiency will reduce the CO2 emissions and increase the profit margin for the power stations. The aim of the proposed research is to investigate the internal energy efficiency in the brown coal fired power stations by modelling the internal energy flows to reveal the potentials in the 'waste' heat streams in the power stations, and t ....Assessment of the new technologies to maximise the internal energy efficiency by modelling the energy flows in Victorian power stations. Increased internal energy efficiency will reduce the CO2 emissions and increase the profit margin for the power stations. The aim of the proposed research is to investigate the internal energy efficiency in the brown coal fired power stations by modelling the internal energy flows to reveal the potentials in the 'waste' heat streams in the power stations, and to assess new waste heat recovery measures for the power industry. The proposed research, supported by the entire Victorian power generation industry, will help the industry to achieve their green house gas emission reduction target set by the Federal Government.
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Model studies of new ironmaking processes. This project aims to study the fundamentals governing the multiphase flow and thermochemical performance in representative new ironmaking processes, and formulate some useful strategies for the design, control and optimisation of next generation of ironmaking technology which is useful to Australia's future mineral and steel industries.
Process scalability and performance prediction of Viscous Transfer Micro Turbines for use as miniaturised power supplies. This project aims to predict the performance and scalability of viscous transfer turbines. The work will be carried out with Micromachines Ltd., a firm developing working turbines with 50 mm rotors. The goal of the research is to gain an understanding of the scaling laws for these turbines, in order to predict their performance. Viscous transfer turbines have a very simple di ....Process scalability and performance prediction of Viscous Transfer Micro Turbines for use as miniaturised power supplies. This project aims to predict the performance and scalability of viscous transfer turbines. The work will be carried out with Micromachines Ltd., a firm developing working turbines with 50 mm rotors. The goal of the research is to gain an understanding of the scaling laws for these turbines, in order to predict their performance. Viscous transfer turbines have a very simple disc construction making them ideal for manufacturing as small-scale units (with a 5 mm rotor). Small enough to replace batteries, but with a higher power output, they would provide the need for higher power output devices to replace batteries.Read moreRead less
Characterization of Fast Propagating Fires in Green Buildings. This project aims to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms of fast-propagating fires and to address the deficiency in current fire models in assessing the fire safety requirement of green buildings. Although there are many compelling advantages associated with green building designs, because they promote better natural ventilation they could pose a significant fire hazard to occupants due to the propensity of rapid fire and s ....Characterization of Fast Propagating Fires in Green Buildings. This project aims to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms of fast-propagating fires and to address the deficiency in current fire models in assessing the fire safety requirement of green buildings. Although there are many compelling advantages associated with green building designs, because they promote better natural ventilation they could pose a significant fire hazard to occupants due to the propensity of rapid fire and smoke spread within the enclosed space. The new predictive fire model in this project is expected to promote a safer and sustainable building environment.Read moreRead less
Thermal Storage for Built Environment. Thermal storage systems with Phase Chage Materials (PCM) can be ulilised to reduce the energy required to cool and heat buildings. The PCM used has a freezing point around 20C. Thus alowing cool summer night air to freeze the PCM overnight. During the day warmer outside air is cooled significantly as it melts the PCM. PCM systems can be retrofitted to existing systems to precool the outside air, and thus significantly reduce the energy required to cool a bu ....Thermal Storage for Built Environment. Thermal storage systems with Phase Chage Materials (PCM) can be ulilised to reduce the energy required to cool and heat buildings. The PCM used has a freezing point around 20C. Thus alowing cool summer night air to freeze the PCM overnight. During the day warmer outside air is cooled significantly as it melts the PCM. PCM systems can be retrofitted to existing systems to precool the outside air, and thus significantly reduce the energy required to cool a building. This project deals with design, simulation and optimisation of this kind of thermal storage system. A laboratory prototype system will also be built and tested.Read moreRead less
Enhancing Australian Universities' Research Commercialisation Performance. The primary aims of the project are to develop a detailed understanding of the systematic barriers to research commercialisation within Australian universities and to promote innovation within the commercialisation through the adoption of effective processes. The project will also explore the needs of the smaller and regional universities to develop effective strategies that will enhance their research commercialisation c ....Enhancing Australian Universities' Research Commercialisation Performance. The primary aims of the project are to develop a detailed understanding of the systematic barriers to research commercialisation within Australian universities and to promote innovation within the commercialisation through the adoption of effective processes. The project will also explore the needs of the smaller and regional universities to develop effective strategies that will enhance their research commercialisation capacity and performance through the promotion of industry uptake of their research outcomes.Read moreRead less
Integrated Cooling Enhancement Technology for Power Electronics. This project aims to develop an unprecedented integrated cooling enhancement technology (IceTech) for silicon carbide on silicon power electronics. IceTech represents a radical departure from current failure-prone packaging solutions. The project aims to elucidate the fundamental interactions between magnetism, heat and mass transfer and apply them to cooling. In partnership with SPTS Technologies, the project then aims to develop ....Integrated Cooling Enhancement Technology for Power Electronics. This project aims to develop an unprecedented integrated cooling enhancement technology (IceTech) for silicon carbide on silicon power electronics. IceTech represents a radical departure from current failure-prone packaging solutions. The project aims to elucidate the fundamental interactions between magnetism, heat and mass transfer and apply them to cooling. In partnership with SPTS Technologies, the project then aims to develop fabrication processes for integrating microchannels and highly sensitive integrated silicon carbide temperature sensors into a chip. This novel fabrication technology allows for the implementation of the revolutionary enhanced cooling concept using two-phase flow with magnetic liquid plugs.Read moreRead less
Elastic and biodegradable sponges/aerogels from exfoliated silk nanofibres . The aim of this project is to investigate methods to produce highly porous elastic sponges from silk protein nanofibres. These sponges will have optimal mechanical, insulation and degradation properties making them suitable for a wide range of applications including the biomedical and personal care sectors, where current products have significant drawbacks due to the use of non-biodegradable synthetic materials. Outco ....Elastic and biodegradable sponges/aerogels from exfoliated silk nanofibres . The aim of this project is to investigate methods to produce highly porous elastic sponges from silk protein nanofibres. These sponges will have optimal mechanical, insulation and degradation properties making them suitable for a wide range of applications including the biomedical and personal care sectors, where current products have significant drawbacks due to the use of non-biodegradable synthetic materials. Outcomes include new knowledge on controlling porous structures and tailoring properties to targeted applications. This project, by laying the groundwork for a new generation of bio-based materials, will benefit the Australian advanced manufacturing sector, and enhance Australia's standing in materials science and engineering.Read moreRead less
Radio Frequency Wireless Monitoring in Sleep Apnoea (Particularly for Paediatric Patients). Disease diagnosis, chronic disease monitoring and stress monitoring all are limited by diagnostic systems that are attached to patients by wires restricting the recording of such parameters to limited intervals in the clinician's office. The proposed system will enable patients to have a range of physiological parameters recorded without the attachment of wires. This will enable extensive periods of dia ....Radio Frequency Wireless Monitoring in Sleep Apnoea (Particularly for Paediatric Patients). Disease diagnosis, chronic disease monitoring and stress monitoring all are limited by diagnostic systems that are attached to patients by wires restricting the recording of such parameters to limited intervals in the clinician's office. The proposed system will enable patients to have a range of physiological parameters recorded without the attachment of wires. This will enable extensive periods of diagnostic data to be recorded to characterize respiratory, cardiac and other parameters during extended periods, and during normal daily activity. In addition the system can be used to monitor patients with chronic disease and detect trends in their disease.Read moreRead less