Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0560679
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$932,870.00
Summary
Materials and Surface Characterisation Facility. Australian scientists are well positioned to be at the forefront of nanotechnology, biotechnology and advanced materials development. The proposed Facility, housing state-of-the-art equipment, will enable cutting-edge research in these areas by internationally renowned researchers at the University of Melbourne, Monash University, RMIT University, and CSIRO. Such research will facilitate the development of advanced materials for diverse applicatio ....Materials and Surface Characterisation Facility. Australian scientists are well positioned to be at the forefront of nanotechnology, biotechnology and advanced materials development. The proposed Facility, housing state-of-the-art equipment, will enable cutting-edge research in these areas by internationally renowned researchers at the University of Melbourne, Monash University, RMIT University, and CSIRO. Such research will facilitate the development of advanced materials for diverse applications including drug delivery, quantum computing, photonics and tissue engineering. The multi-user Facility will enable closer collaboration with researchers in academia and industry, and will be integral in training the next generation of Australian scientists in the nano- and biosciences.Read moreRead less
Effect of cane sugar juice composition on scaling rate and scale composition in sugar mills. The Australia sugar industry produces 1100 GWh of renewable electricity annually, abating ~1.1 M tonnes of CO2-equivalent of greenhouse gases. This can be increased if the juice evaporation performance, which largely determines the energy efficiency of the sugar factory, can be improved through reduced fouling of evaporators. This project will investigate the effect of juice composition on fouling of sug ....Effect of cane sugar juice composition on scaling rate and scale composition in sugar mills. The Australia sugar industry produces 1100 GWh of renewable electricity annually, abating ~1.1 M tonnes of CO2-equivalent of greenhouse gases. This can be increased if the juice evaporation performance, which largely determines the energy efficiency of the sugar factory, can be improved through reduced fouling of evaporators. This project will investigate the effect of juice composition on fouling of sugar factory evaporators so that a model to predict scale type and scale propensity can be developed. This will enable the development of better scale control strategies, resulting in reduced energy usage and reduced usage of the hazardous and polluting chemicals required to remove scale.Read moreRead less
Novel Nanofibre-Templated Nanotubes Prepared by Using ABA Block Copolymers. The aim of this project is to prepare new, highly functional nanomaterials using layer-by-layer assembly of polyelectrolytes on a three-dimensional template. Using this approach, a core-shell fibre is initially prepared by alternate deposition of oppositely charged materials onto an electrospun fibre template. The initial fibre can then be dissolved to give hollow nanotubes. New block copolymers, incorporating both charg ....Novel Nanofibre-Templated Nanotubes Prepared by Using ABA Block Copolymers. The aim of this project is to prepare new, highly functional nanomaterials using layer-by-layer assembly of polyelectrolytes on a three-dimensional template. Using this approach, a core-shell fibre is initially prepared by alternate deposition of oppositely charged materials onto an electrospun fibre template. The initial fibre can then be dissolved to give hollow nanotubes. New block copolymers, incorporating both charged and uncharged domains, will be used in the assembly, in order to design tubes with novel properties. The behaviour of these tubes under a variety of pH and solvent conditions will then be examined, and the tubes characterized using various microscopy techniques.Read moreRead less
Controlled Macromolecular Architectures for Functional Nanomaterials Design. The research involves an exciting and innovative collaboration between two internationally recognized Australian research groups, cementing Australia's position as a leading country for research in polymer science and nanotechnology. Advanced polymer chemistry will be used to make ?smart? polymers that can controllably respond to changes in their surroundings. These will then be assembled to form materials with dimensio ....Controlled Macromolecular Architectures for Functional Nanomaterials Design. The research involves an exciting and innovative collaboration between two internationally recognized Australian research groups, cementing Australia's position as a leading country for research in polymer science and nanotechnology. Advanced polymer chemistry will be used to make ?smart? polymers that can controllably respond to changes in their surroundings. These will then be assembled to form materials with dimensions of the order of millionths of millimeters - forming so-called "smart nanomaterials". The materials prepared are expected to find application in the agricultural and pharmaceutical sectors, contributing to the well-being of Australian citizens and the development of a robust Australian industry.Read moreRead less
Controlled/living radical polymerization in environmentally friendly miniemulsions induced by compressed carbon dioxide for synthesis of nanoparticles and well-defined polymer. Controlled/living radical polymerization is a technique for precise synthesis of polymer by radical polymerization, which has revolutionized polymer synthesis in terms of accessible polymer structures. However, controlled/living radical polymerization has yet to gain a strong foothold in industry mainly due to problems as ....Controlled/living radical polymerization in environmentally friendly miniemulsions induced by compressed carbon dioxide for synthesis of nanoparticles and well-defined polymer. Controlled/living radical polymerization is a technique for precise synthesis of polymer by radical polymerization, which has revolutionized polymer synthesis in terms of accessible polymer structures. However, controlled/living radical polymerization has yet to gain a strong foothold in industry mainly due to problems associated with its implementation in (aqueous) dispersed systems. The present Proposal addresses this key challenge by a novel environmentally friendly and versatile method for aqueous miniemulsion preparation by use of compressed carbon dioxide. Controlled/living radical polymerization in dispersed systems generates polymeric nanoparticles, which are of importance in many advanced and emerging technologies.Read moreRead less
Bubble Stabilization and Density Control in Self-Supporting Explosive Emulsions. The mining industry in Australia employs about 70,000 people and has a total sales and service income of about $55B. Most mining outputs are commodities and a reduction in cost is the primary method of increasing market share. DNAP is a major supplier of explosive services to mines that produce coal, iron ore and gold for export. The work in this project will lead to more efficient explosives emulsions and allow mi ....Bubble Stabilization and Density Control in Self-Supporting Explosive Emulsions. The mining industry in Australia employs about 70,000 people and has a total sales and service income of about $55B. Most mining outputs are commodities and a reduction in cost is the primary method of increasing market share. DNAP is a major supplier of explosive services to mines that produce coal, iron ore and gold for export. The work in this project will lead to more efficient explosives emulsions and allow mining tolower total cost per unit sold. Such improvements in mining efficiencies will have a direct impact of the selling price of the product. Increased export earnings and a greater number of people employed in the industry would be direct results of the successful completion of the work proposed.Read moreRead less
Nanoparticles with designed morphology for surface-coating applications. Significantly improved water-based paints, with zero volatile organic content and organic opacifiers, are highly desirable for environmental and health reasons. The science needed to produce such paints has been persistently elusive. USyd and Dulux will collaborate to achieve these paints by using Australian-developed platform technologies that allow polymer architecture to be controlled at molecular and nanoscale levels. T ....Nanoparticles with designed morphology for surface-coating applications. Significantly improved water-based paints, with zero volatile organic content and organic opacifiers, are highly desirable for environmental and health reasons. The science needed to produce such paints has been persistently elusive. USyd and Dulux will collaborate to achieve these paints by using Australian-developed platform technologies that allow polymer architecture to be controlled at molecular and nanoscale levels. This will give us the means to make structured nanoparticles with morphologies that had been regarded as unachievable, and that are the key to dispensing with harmful ingredients in paints.Read moreRead less
Advanced nanoparticle stabilisation and functionalisation: small particles with huge potential. Australia is strongly investing in nanotechnology and through the governments priority goals 'Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries' it has been recognised as an important area for investment. This proposal will help develop an internationally recognised nano-industry. It is envisaged that the particles made during this work will have direct implications for the pub ....Advanced nanoparticle stabilisation and functionalisation: small particles with huge potential. Australia is strongly investing in nanotechnology and through the governments priority goals 'Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries' it has been recognised as an important area for investment. This proposal will help develop an internationally recognised nano-industry. It is envisaged that the particles made during this work will have direct implications for the public - creating a new class of medical diagnostic particles with better resolution and specificity. These particles have the potential to diagnose patients more precisely and at an earlier stage than is currently available. Additionally, these particles could be designed to load drugs and hence could be used to treat diseases such as cancer.Read moreRead less