Erosion of embankment dams and dam spillways. In excess of $250M is spent annually to maintain, upgrade, improve safety and monitor performance of Australian dams. Improved methods for assessing both spillway and internal erosion, the cause of 50 per cent of embankment dam failures and incidents requiring repairs, will be developed, maximising dam safety and minimising maintenance expenditure.
An experimentally-validated thermo-hydro-mechanical theory for waste containment lining systems. Geosynthetic clay liners are engineering systems that are widely used around the world to protect groundwater from municipal, industrial and mining contaminants. The project will conduct cutting-edge experimental, theoretical and computational research leading to a major improvement in their short-term and long-term performances.
Permeable Pavements with Concrete Surface Layers- Experimental and Theoretical Basis for Analysis and Design. Permeable pavements constitute unique and effective means to address important environmental issues and support green, sustainable growth. By capturing stormwater and allowing it to seep into the ground, porous pavements are instrumental in recharging groundwater, reducing stormwater runoff and preventing pollutants from entering the Australian river systems and sea-shores. Other advanta ....Permeable Pavements with Concrete Surface Layers- Experimental and Theoretical Basis for Analysis and Design. Permeable pavements constitute unique and effective means to address important environmental issues and support green, sustainable growth. By capturing stormwater and allowing it to seep into the ground, porous pavements are instrumental in recharging groundwater, reducing stormwater runoff and preventing pollutants from entering the Australian river systems and sea-shores. Other advantages for Australian communities that are associated with the construction of permeable pavement arise from their properties such as acoustic and thermal insulation due to the high void content of the material. Thus, permeable pavements improve on the living conditions in urban areas by reducing noise levels and preventing urban heat island effects.Read moreRead less
Waste Containment Lining Systems for Antarctica: Ensuring their Performance Under Extreme Conditions. The Australian Antarctic Territory, and elsewhere on the continent, has a legacy of diesel fuel spills. This project aims to better protect the Antarctic environment through a combination of innovative on-site containment and remediation, with state-of-art laboratory-based experimentation to underpin improved design of engineered geosynthetic composite containments. Currently Australia leads ot ....Waste Containment Lining Systems for Antarctica: Ensuring their Performance Under Extreme Conditions. The Australian Antarctic Territory, and elsewhere on the continent, has a legacy of diesel fuel spills. This project aims to better protect the Antarctic environment through a combination of innovative on-site containment and remediation, with state-of-art laboratory-based experimentation to underpin improved design of engineered geosynthetic composite containments. Currently Australia leads other Antarctic countries in the clean-up of contaminated sites and this project seeks to extend this leadership by developing a set of guidelines for containment of contaminated soils to safeguard this unique environment.Read moreRead less
Microplastics in Landfills and Surrounding Environments. This project aims to build a risk-based framework for managing micro- and nano-plastic particles in landfills and surrounding environments. It expects to develop a new experimentally validated theory of micro/nano-plastic transport in soils, focussing on lining systems used in landfills worldwide to protect aquifers from contamination. The project will use state-of-the-art experimental, theoretical and computational approaches to generate ....Microplastics in Landfills and Surrounding Environments. This project aims to build a risk-based framework for managing micro- and nano-plastic particles in landfills and surrounding environments. It expects to develop a new experimentally validated theory of micro/nano-plastic transport in soils, focussing on lining systems used in landfills worldwide to protect aquifers from contamination. The project will use state-of-the-art experimental, theoretical and computational approaches to generate new knowledge on micro/nano-plastic fate in lining systems and their effects on the mobility of heavy metals and organic pollutants. This should provide significant benefits including safe plastic containment and groundwater protection from landfill waste, a major reservoir of plastic in the environment.Read moreRead less
Computational modelling of hydraulic fracture. The project aims to develop new computational methods and software for simulating hydraulic fracture (commonly known as 'fracking'), which is now being used to extract natural gas from some Australian coal seams. This form of natural gas recovery has the potential to be a major economic driver, but the benefits are currently being tempered by widespread community concern over possible adverse impacts on the environment. The expected outcome is new m ....Computational modelling of hydraulic fracture. The project aims to develop new computational methods and software for simulating hydraulic fracture (commonly known as 'fracking'), which is now being used to extract natural gas from some Australian coal seams. This form of natural gas recovery has the potential to be a major economic driver, but the benefits are currently being tempered by widespread community concern over possible adverse impacts on the environment. The expected outcome is new methods, supported by scientific publications and software, which can be used to guide the natural gas industry and inform regulatory authorities of the risks inherent in hydraulic fracturing.Read moreRead less
Large-scale geotechnical analysis of new and aged pipeline infrastructure. This project aims to develop novel computational methods for predicting failure rates in geographically distributed pipeline networks affected by ground movements, one of the main triggers of bursts and leakages in buried pipe infrastructure. The project will be based on a blend of experimental work and development of simulation tools to quantify the coupled effects of pipe deterioration, poor backfilling and ground movem ....Large-scale geotechnical analysis of new and aged pipeline infrastructure. This project aims to develop novel computational methods for predicting failure rates in geographically distributed pipeline networks affected by ground movements, one of the main triggers of bursts and leakages in buried pipe infrastructure. The project will be based on a blend of experimental work and development of simulation tools to quantify the coupled effects of pipe deterioration, poor backfilling and ground movements in aged and new pipelines. The results will feed towards the formulation of a framework for the large-scale stress analysis of segmented and continuous pipes, capable of using as input high-resolution geospatial observations and predictions of ground movements.Read moreRead less
Impact of rolling dynamic compaction. The project will lead to improved understanding and greater use of rolling dynamic compaction (RDC). RDC is a relatively new compaction technique that can be used to improve soft and derelict ground prior to the construction of roads, railways, subdivisions and structures. This project will also lead to greatly reduced ground improvement costs.
Unsaturated soil-structure interaction with emphasis on buried pipelines. Buried pipeline networks is the most common mode of transporting and distributing water, oil and gas resources and pipeline failures may have a major socioeconomic and environmental impact. The goal is to develop a framework for describing the mechanisms underlying soil-pipe interaction, aiming to reduce the failure risk of pipes affected by geohazards. The project aims to model the response of pipelines in the laboratory, ....Unsaturated soil-structure interaction with emphasis on buried pipelines. Buried pipeline networks is the most common mode of transporting and distributing water, oil and gas resources and pipeline failures may have a major socioeconomic and environmental impact. The goal is to develop a framework for describing the mechanisms underlying soil-pipe interaction, aiming to reduce the failure risk of pipes affected by geohazards. The project aims to model the response of pipelines in the laboratory, using a new custom-built apparatus. Experimental results are expected to provide insight for developing a theoretical model to quantify the effect of soil moisture on pipe integrity, and propose design formulas. A general framework is intended to be developed for handling various unsaturated soil-structure interaction problems in geotechnical engineering.Read moreRead less
Qualitative and quantitative modelling of hydraulic fracturing of brittle materials. Few technologies have caused more concern in the general population than the so called hydraulic fracturing technique, applied to enhance the hydraulic conductivity of resource-bearing rocks by injecting high pressure fluids. The concern revolves around uncertainty with leakage of used chemicals to overlying aquifers, unwanted seismic events and surface subsidence. This research, combining experimental and compu ....Qualitative and quantitative modelling of hydraulic fracturing of brittle materials. Few technologies have caused more concern in the general population than the so called hydraulic fracturing technique, applied to enhance the hydraulic conductivity of resource-bearing rocks by injecting high pressure fluids. The concern revolves around uncertainty with leakage of used chemicals to overlying aquifers, unwanted seismic events and surface subsidence. This research, combining experimental and computational investigations, aims to establish fundamental understanding of key processes controlling fracture formation in brittle materials (coal seams and porous rocks) under the action of hydraulic fracturing. The research outcomes will help to assess and minimise the risks associated with the hydraulic fracturing technology. Read moreRead less