A Novel Surface Alloying Technique to Improve the Corrosion and Wear Resistance of Magnesium Alloys. Surface mechanical attrition treatment will be used to generate nanometer-sized grains in the surface layer of engineering magnesium alloys, and therefore activate the surface of this material. Together with the use of efficient activators, the project will develop a novel low temperature surface alloying technique to significantly improve the wear and corrosion resistance of magnesium alloys wi ....A Novel Surface Alloying Technique to Improve the Corrosion and Wear Resistance of Magnesium Alloys. Surface mechanical attrition treatment will be used to generate nanometer-sized grains in the surface layer of engineering magnesium alloys, and therefore activate the surface of this material. Together with the use of efficient activators, the project will develop a novel low temperature surface alloying technique to significantly improve the wear and corrosion resistance of magnesium alloys without changing the substrate properties. Microstructural features and the wear and corrosion resistance of the ultrafine-grained surface layer will be examined. In addition, it may be possible to combine the surface alloying process with the conventional ageing process together in order to save energy.Read moreRead less
Bulk Metallic Glasses and Their Applications. Bulk Metallic Glasses (BMG) represent a significant breakthrough in amorphous metallic materials research and opens up an enormous potential for BMG as engineering materials. However, currently there is no effective way to select optimum composition. The project will bring Australia together with two leading international research groups to develop a computer model for BMG alloy design and to further optimise BMG production processes. BMG engineering ....Bulk Metallic Glasses and Their Applications. Bulk Metallic Glasses (BMG) represent a significant breakthrough in amorphous metallic materials research and opens up an enormous potential for BMG as engineering materials. However, currently there is no effective way to select optimum composition. The project will bring Australia together with two leading international research groups to develop a computer model for BMG alloy design and to further optimise BMG production processes. BMG engineering components will be produced. The project provides Australian researchers access to leading expertise and specialized facilities which will rapidly bring us to the highest level. It represents Australia's first involvement in this significant material innovation. Read moreRead less
Long-term natural ecological consequences of disturbance on coral reefs: the benthic foraminifera perspective. The tropical coastline of Australia encompasses world-renowned coral reefs (Great Barrier Reef and Ningaloo Marine Park). Even these reefs are not pristine and are increasingly susceptible to disturbance from human impact. The long-term ecological effects of disturbance on reef communities cannot be experimentally determined; but natural experiments from the fossil record provide mech ....Long-term natural ecological consequences of disturbance on coral reefs: the benthic foraminifera perspective. The tropical coastline of Australia encompasses world-renowned coral reefs (Great Barrier Reef and Ningaloo Marine Park). Even these reefs are not pristine and are increasingly susceptible to disturbance from human impact. The long-term ecological effects of disturbance on reef communities cannot be experimentally determined; but natural experiments from the fossil record provide mechanisms to ensure that managers of Australia's reefs have critical information on how past disturbance frequency and intensity has affected coral reef communities. This information will help ensure the continuation of ecosystem goods and services from Australia's high diversity coral reefs.Read moreRead less