Could porous pavements be a part of the urban water solution? With water demand in Australia approaching, and sometimes exceeding, limits of sustainability, there is a pressing need to find alternative water sources. At the same time, urban stormwater pollution remains a major environmental threat. These problems are particularly difficult in urban areas, due to space constraints. This project will test and refine porous pavement technology, which could help solve the 'urban water problem'. R ....Could porous pavements be a part of the urban water solution? With water demand in Australia approaching, and sometimes exceeding, limits of sustainability, there is a pressing need to find alternative water sources. At the same time, urban stormwater pollution remains a major environmental threat. These problems are particularly difficult in urban areas, due to space constraints. This project will test and refine porous pavement technology, which could help solve the 'urban water problem'. Replacing impervious areas with porous pavements will allow urban stormwater to be treated and harvested for re-use. Waterways will be protected from pollution, and the vast quantity of urban stormwater generated (similar to the total reticulated water supplied in Australia) can be harvested to sustain cities.Read moreRead less
Investigation of Geopolymer based Concretes for the Construction of High Fire Risk Infrastructures. Geopolymer concretes are emerging new materials promising superior fire resistance and durability and potentially cheaper than the widely used high strength concretes, which also consume high levels of Portland cements. Production of 1 ton of Portland cement releases 1 ton of green house gases. Further, the 6.5 million tons/year of cement currently produced in Australia is insufficient to meet the ....Investigation of Geopolymer based Concretes for the Construction of High Fire Risk Infrastructures. Geopolymer concretes are emerging new materials promising superior fire resistance and durability and potentially cheaper than the widely used high strength concretes, which also consume high levels of Portland cements. Production of 1 ton of Portland cement releases 1 ton of green house gases. Further, the 6.5 million tons/year of cement currently produced in Australia is insufficient to meet the industry demand. This project investigates the use of fly ash to make geopolymer concrete, without using any Portland cement, to find usage for part of the 11 million tons/year of fly ash produced as a waste from coal power stations in Australia.Read moreRead less
Multi-Scale Model-Based Simulation of Glass Fragmentation under Blast Loading. It is estimated that most injuries from bomb blasts can be attributed to airborne sharp glass fragments. The proposed project will help us gain better understanding of glass failure mechanism under impact/blast loading. The results from the proposed project are expected to help in developing more effective blast-resistant transparency, ensuring the reliability and quality of buildings and facilities, mitigating injury ....Multi-Scale Model-Based Simulation of Glass Fragmentation under Blast Loading. It is estimated that most injuries from bomb blasts can be attributed to airborne sharp glass fragments. The proposed project will help us gain better understanding of glass failure mechanism under impact/blast loading. The results from the proposed project are expected to help in developing more effective blast-resistant transparency, ensuring the reliability and quality of buildings and facilities, mitigating injury or death due to flying glass fragments, and eventually enhancing public safety and security.Read moreRead less
Thin-walled Structures Subjected to Impact and Blast Loading. Terrorist attacks have cost Australians much human grief and billions of dollars. Containing the consequences of a blast or impact is crucial to survival and restricting damage to critical civilian/defence infrastructure. Thin-walled structures are used extensively in such infrastructure. There is a lack of knowledge about their behaviour when subjected to impulse and blast loads. The investigators will establish the most economical m ....Thin-walled Structures Subjected to Impact and Blast Loading. Terrorist attacks have cost Australians much human grief and billions of dollars. Containing the consequences of a blast or impact is crucial to survival and restricting damage to critical civilian/defence infrastructure. Thin-walled structures are used extensively in such infrastructure. There is a lack of knowledge about their behaviour when subjected to impulse and blast loads. The investigators will establish the most economical means of designing passive blast protection into thin-walled structures and hence, Australia's critical infrastructure. This knowledge will be transferred into design standards and Australia's limited defence resources.Read moreRead less
High Strength Steel Protection Bollards. Terrorist attacks cost Australians much human grief and millions of dollars. Prevention of an attack is paramount. Passive road bollards are commonly used to stop a vehicle approaching and/or entering security sensitive infrastructure. Thin-walled tubes are used to manufacture such bollards. However there is a lack of knowledge about their behaviour, and in particular high strength alloy steel bollards, when subjected to impact loads. The investigators wi ....High Strength Steel Protection Bollards. Terrorist attacks cost Australians much human grief and millions of dollars. Prevention of an attack is paramount. Passive road bollards are commonly used to stop a vehicle approaching and/or entering security sensitive infrastructure. Thin-walled tubes are used to manufacture such bollards. However there is a lack of knowledge about their behaviour, and in particular high strength alloy steel bollards, when subjected to impact loads. The investigators will apply their extensive knowledge in thin-walled tubular structures to establish the most economical means of designing high strength bollards. This knowledge will be transferred into design standards and Australia's limited defence resources.Read moreRead less
Development of an Alkali Activated Slag based Construction Material for High Fire Risk Infrastructures. This project will develop an alkali-activated slag (AAS) based construction material for tunnel construction. In tunnels, conventional concretes are likely to 'spall' in a hydrocarbon fire accident, possibly resulting in a tunnel collapse. The project is set to develop a spalling-resistant AAS as an alternative to conventional Portland cement, which is responsible for 6.5 million tons of gre ....Development of an Alkali Activated Slag based Construction Material for High Fire Risk Infrastructures. This project will develop an alkali-activated slag (AAS) based construction material for tunnel construction. In tunnels, conventional concretes are likely to 'spall' in a hydrocarbon fire accident, possibly resulting in a tunnel collapse. The project is set to develop a spalling-resistant AAS as an alternative to conventional Portland cement, which is responsible for 6.5 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions in Australia per year, whereas AAS is based on slag, an industrial waste product. The project also seeks to provide better understanding of the spalling phenomenon so that the engineers can design fireproofing for conventional concrete tunnels with confidence.Read moreRead less
Response of residential structures to blast vibration. This proposed project combines the expertise and disciplines of residential construction, structural dynamics and blasting technology. The ultimate aim of the project is to develop a rational methodology for assessing the damage potential of ground vibration resulting from blasting on typical Australian residential structures. The project involves field blast vibration measurements, static and dynamic laboratory tests on structural sub-assem ....Response of residential structures to blast vibration. This proposed project combines the expertise and disciplines of residential construction, structural dynamics and blasting technology. The ultimate aim of the project is to develop a rational methodology for assessing the damage potential of ground vibration resulting from blasting on typical Australian residential structures. The project involves field blast vibration measurements, static and dynamic laboratory tests on structural sub-assemblages in a controlled environment, and comprehensive analytical modelling of both loading and response. The outcomes from this research will have direct application to the mining, insurance, construction and defence industries.Read moreRead less
Microstructure-Based Computational Homogenization of Geomaterials. This project seeks to establish a basis for virtual testing of materials. This type of non-destructive testing has numerous applications of obvious benefit to society and will contribute to the continued growth and development of a large number of industries in Australia and worldwide. The methods developed will allow for cheaper, faster, and more accurate testing of materials. The outcomes of the project can find direct applicat ....Microstructure-Based Computational Homogenization of Geomaterials. This project seeks to establish a basis for virtual testing of materials. This type of non-destructive testing has numerous applications of obvious benefit to society and will contribute to the continued growth and development of a large number of industries in Australia and worldwide. The methods developed will allow for cheaper, faster, and more accurate testing of materials. The outcomes of the project can find direct application in civil engineering as well as in environmental, mining and petroleum engineering which together make up a significant portion of the nation's industry.Read moreRead less