Photodesorption Phenomena and Photoreactive Nanosorbent Materials for Water and Wastewater Purification. Introducing more efficient production of drinking water and wastewater treatment methods for reuse is important to address increasing water scarcity in Australia. The proposed project will develop a water purification technology to remove pollutants using a recently discovered process. This process offers simple and affordable operation that is clean, robust and requires minimal attention. Th ....Photodesorption Phenomena and Photoreactive Nanosorbent Materials for Water and Wastewater Purification. Introducing more efficient production of drinking water and wastewater treatment methods for reuse is important to address increasing water scarcity in Australia. The proposed project will develop a water purification technology to remove pollutants using a recently discovered process. This process offers simple and affordable operation that is clean, robust and requires minimal attention. The technology is particularly suitable for small-scale applications in rural and remote areas, and has significant export potential. The project will strengthen established links between Australian and Korean research centres through the production of improved nanomaterials, and the development of the novel water purification technologyRead moreRead less
High performance conductive mesoporous carbon electrodes: a low energy desalination alternative. The high cost of existing desalination technology has limited its wider application. There is an urgent need for alternatives which require less energy than current methods. The proposed electrosorption process utilising porous carbon electrodes has the advantage of very low energy demand. Electrosorption therefore has the opportunity to become an alternative desalination option for application in a ....High performance conductive mesoporous carbon electrodes: a low energy desalination alternative. The high cost of existing desalination technology has limited its wider application. There is an urgent need for alternatives which require less energy than current methods. The proposed electrosorption process utilising porous carbon electrodes has the advantage of very low energy demand. Electrosorption therefore has the opportunity to become an alternative desalination option for application in a national and global water desalination market. Advancement in water desalination technology has the potential for a profound social, economical and environmental impact. This vital research is aligned with the National Research Priority 1, An Environmentally Sustainable Australia; Priority Goal: Water, A critical resource.Read moreRead less
New nanocomposites of porous materials and visible light sensitive TiO2 for efficient wastewater purification. The innovative newly proposed materials can trap and efficiently decompose dissolved organics in the same process, without generating any waste for disposal. No UV is required and the solar radiation can be efficiently used. The proposed research will be a significant breakthrough in the field of water treatment that reduces energy consumption, uses low cost materials and provides a rea ....New nanocomposites of porous materials and visible light sensitive TiO2 for efficient wastewater purification. The innovative newly proposed materials can trap and efficiently decompose dissolved organics in the same process, without generating any waste for disposal. No UV is required and the solar radiation can be efficiently used. The proposed research will be a significant breakthrough in the field of water treatment that reduces energy consumption, uses low cost materials and provides a real solution. The research findings will be useful to a wide spectrum of manufacturing industries which are currently generating slightly contaminated wastewater, and will be beneficial to the community in general. At the same time, the industries will be a step forward toward sustainable manufacturing.Read moreRead less
Zeolitic Nanoflake-Polymer Composite Membranes for Low Energy Desalination. The desalination of seawater is becoming an important source of drinking water for Australia. The current desalination process using polymer membranes is energy-intensive. The proposed project will contribute to the development of low energy desalination technology by advancing membrane design and fabrication techniques. The use of zeolitic nanoflake-polymer composite membranes developed in this project is expected to su ....Zeolitic Nanoflake-Polymer Composite Membranes for Low Energy Desalination. The desalination of seawater is becoming an important source of drinking water for Australia. The current desalination process using polymer membranes is energy-intensive. The proposed project will contribute to the development of low energy desalination technology by advancing membrane design and fabrication techniques. The use of zeolitic nanoflake-polymer composite membranes developed in this project is expected to substantially reduce energy consumption in the desalination process. This research will produce important economic and environmental benefits by developing a green technology for fresh water production and water treatment for power generation, irrigation and other industrial uses.Read moreRead less
Development of the thinnest possible, multifunctional DNA-nanoparticle membranes for ultrafast filtration and smart sensing. Development of ultrathin and multifunctional membranes is currently in urgent need to improve our technologies in energy, environment and healthcare. This project will apply innovative nanobiomaterials to build such membrane systems and establish the design rules and develop key technologies.
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150101617
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$330,000.00
Summary
Novel Three Dimensional Porous Boron Nitride Foam for Water Cleaning. This project aims to develop new three-dimensional (3D) porous nanomaterials of boron nitride (BN) foam with excellent sorption properties for water purification. New chemical synthesis approaches will be used to produce 3D porous BN foams with high porosity, large surface area and high mechanical stability leading to a high adsorption capacity, easy regeneration and excellent recycle ability for water purification. The expect ....Novel Three Dimensional Porous Boron Nitride Foam for Water Cleaning. This project aims to develop new three-dimensional (3D) porous nanomaterials of boron nitride (BN) foam with excellent sorption properties for water purification. New chemical synthesis approaches will be used to produce 3D porous BN foams with high porosity, large surface area and high mechanical stability leading to a high adsorption capacity, easy regeneration and excellent recycle ability for water purification. The expected outcomes include a new class of light absorbent materials, new production techniques and a high efficiency water cleaning technique.Read moreRead less
Engineered and functionalized nanocarbons for clean energy and water. This project aims to develop a novel material platform based on metal-free graphitic carbon nitride and its functionalised composites in solar energy utilisation for water treatment, energy conversion to hydrogen, solar cell, and electrochemical battery in energy storage. The project aims to address the scientific challenges in rational nanomaterial synthesis, functionalisation and practical applications. The research outcomes ....Engineered and functionalized nanocarbons for clean energy and water. This project aims to develop a novel material platform based on metal-free graphitic carbon nitride and its functionalised composites in solar energy utilisation for water treatment, energy conversion to hydrogen, solar cell, and electrochemical battery in energy storage. The project aims to address the scientific challenges in rational nanomaterial synthesis, functionalisation and practical applications. The research outcomes are expected to provide a scientific basis for development of cutting-edge nanotechnologies for sustainable energy transformation and wastewater treatment, leading to significant benefits in Australian energy industries and environment.Read moreRead less
The Nanotechnology Desalination Research Project - Low Energy Desalination Membranes. Population growth and global warming is rapidly increasing the strain placed on fresh water supplies. Environmentally sustainable solutions to this water shortage need to be found urgently. This project will develop new, low energy desalination technologies which can be powered by renewable energy sources, to enable desalination to be widely applied with low environmental impacts. It addresses several national ....The Nanotechnology Desalination Research Project - Low Energy Desalination Membranes. Population growth and global warming is rapidly increasing the strain placed on fresh water supplies. Environmentally sustainable solutions to this water shortage need to be found urgently. This project will develop new, low energy desalination technologies which can be powered by renewable energy sources, to enable desalination to be widely applied with low environmental impacts. It addresses several national priorities: Water - a critical resource; Transforming existing industries; Overcoming soil loss, salinity and acidity; Responding to climate change and variability; Frontier technologies and Advanced materials.Read moreRead less
Porous Nanosheets. This research aims to develop novel efficient absorbent materials from porous boron (carbon) nitride (B(C)N) nanosheets, which are new two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials consisting of a few atomic layers. The porous B(C)N nanosheets have a large surface area and a strong selective adsorption property. In addition, they can be regenerated and re-used for many times due to high thermal stability. This project aims to synthesise these nanosheets with controlled nanoporous structu ....Porous Nanosheets. This research aims to develop novel efficient absorbent materials from porous boron (carbon) nitride (B(C)N) nanosheets, which are new two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials consisting of a few atomic layers. The porous B(C)N nanosheets have a large surface area and a strong selective adsorption property. In addition, they can be regenerated and re-used for many times due to high thermal stability. This project aims to synthesise these nanosheets with controlled nanoporous structures. Applications for removing pollutants from water and air will be evaluated. The outcomes are expected to advance our knowledge in 2D nanomaterials, create new technologies for cleaning-up of oil spillage and contaminated water, and provide benefits for environmental protection.Read moreRead less
Interactions between nanoparticles and bacteria. This project aims to understand how nanoparticles interfere with bacterial metabolism, and how these interactions lead to cell death, lysis and dispersal from biofilms. Intensive use of nanomaterials results in their continuously releases into the environment. While various nanoparticles have inhibitory and even toxic effects on microorganisms in ecosystems, the underlying mechanisms are not understood. This project will investigate model organism ....Interactions between nanoparticles and bacteria. This project aims to understand how nanoparticles interfere with bacterial metabolism, and how these interactions lead to cell death, lysis and dispersal from biofilms. Intensive use of nanomaterials results in their continuously releases into the environment. While various nanoparticles have inhibitory and even toxic effects on microorganisms in ecosystems, the underlying mechanisms are not understood. This project will investigate model organisms’ responses to nanoparticles at the cellular, enzymatic and gene expression levels. The findings are expected to help assess the immediate and long-term effect of nanoparticles on ecosystem health, for improved environmental management.Read moreRead less