Linking the deep carbon cycle with critical mineral deposits. This project aims to determine how the global carbon cycle controlled the occurrence of carbonatites, which provide most of the world’s rare earth elements, using novel methods to improve our understanding of carbonatites and carbon-rich mantle rocks. This project expects to generate new knowledge on how global geodynamic processes, including the supercontinent cycle, influenced carbon recycling and mantle enrichments. This project wi ....Linking the deep carbon cycle with critical mineral deposits. This project aims to determine how the global carbon cycle controlled the occurrence of carbonatites, which provide most of the world’s rare earth elements, using novel methods to improve our understanding of carbonatites and carbon-rich mantle rocks. This project expects to generate new knowledge on how global geodynamic processes, including the supercontinent cycle, influenced carbon recycling and mantle enrichments. This project will have significant economic benefits for targeting economically critical mineral deposits required to transition to a decarbonized world and placing the carbon cycle in a paleogeographic context to understand the climate in deep time.Read moreRead less
Middle Age Earth: ocean chemistry and evolution in the Boring Billion. This project aims to investigate the role of ocean chemistry on the evolution of eukaryotes during the “Boring Billion” (1800-800 million years ago) and how sedimentary rocks record past ocean chemistry, by using innovative geochemical proxies. This project expects to generate new knowledge in geochemistry, sedimentology and paaleo-biology using interdisciplinary approaches. Expected outcomes include a quantitative understand ....Middle Age Earth: ocean chemistry and evolution in the Boring Billion. This project aims to investigate the role of ocean chemistry on the evolution of eukaryotes during the “Boring Billion” (1800-800 million years ago) and how sedimentary rocks record past ocean chemistry, by using innovative geochemical proxies. This project expects to generate new knowledge in geochemistry, sedimentology and paaleo-biology using interdisciplinary approaches. Expected outcomes include a quantitative understanding of the formation of sedimentary rocks, and of the links between evolution and marine nutrient and metal abundance. This should provide significant benefits, such as understanding the formation and alteration of ore-bearing sedimentary rocks and how life has evolved during Earth's Middle Age.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240100305
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$434,042.00
Summary
Unravelling the pathways of methane production and oxidation in mangroves. This project addresses a long-standing conundrum of why high methane emissions are sustained in saline coastal wetlands by identifying and quantifying methane production and oxidation processes in mangrove ecosystems. Using a novel combination of cutting-edge instrumentation for greenhouse gases, radiocarbon/stable isotope analysis, this project will generate a first complete picture of the mangrove methane cycle, to accu ....Unravelling the pathways of methane production and oxidation in mangroves. This project addresses a long-standing conundrum of why high methane emissions are sustained in saline coastal wetlands by identifying and quantifying methane production and oxidation processes in mangrove ecosystems. Using a novel combination of cutting-edge instrumentation for greenhouse gases, radiocarbon/stable isotope analysis, this project will generate a first complete picture of the mangrove methane cycle, to accurately quantify, for the first time, Australia’s contribution to global coastal mangrove emissions. The outcomes will establish currently lacking fundamental understanding of wetland methane cycling, advance global biogeochemical models, and improve strategies for natural climate solutions of coastal wetlands in Australia.Read moreRead less
Past trends and future risk of climate extremes in southern Australia. Prolonged droughts and periods of heightened flood and fire risk present a major challenge for Australia’s society and economy. This proposal aims to better resolve the causes and risks of decadal climate extremes through a suite of high quality records of temperature, rainfall/evaporation and humidity in southern Australia over 2000 years. Novel geochemical analyses will be developed and applied to lake sediments – method de ....Past trends and future risk of climate extremes in southern Australia. Prolonged droughts and periods of heightened flood and fire risk present a major challenge for Australia’s society and economy. This proposal aims to better resolve the causes and risks of decadal climate extremes through a suite of high quality records of temperature, rainfall/evaporation and humidity in southern Australia over 2000 years. Novel geochemical analyses will be developed and applied to lake sediments – method development which is likely to benefit climate, minerals and biosecurity research. New knowledge of mechanisms underlying climate variability is expected to benefit fundamental research, while future-facing models will allow land managers and policy makers to better anticipate extraordinary climate events.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE240101283
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$361,000.00
Summary
Linking Australia’s basement and cover mineral systems . The aim of this research is to use revolutionary new mineral-dating techniques to test the hypothesis that low-temperature fluids can transport metals from Australia's richly endowed geological basement to form new mineral deposits in the sedimentary basins that cover most of the continent. Sedimentary-hosted mineral systems are the largest source of the critical metal cobalt and the second largest source of copper on Earth. These two meta ....Linking Australia’s basement and cover mineral systems . The aim of this research is to use revolutionary new mineral-dating techniques to test the hypothesis that low-temperature fluids can transport metals from Australia's richly endowed geological basement to form new mineral deposits in the sedimentary basins that cover most of the continent. Sedimentary-hosted mineral systems are the largest source of the critical metal cobalt and the second largest source of copper on Earth. These two metals are essential to developing the green energy infrastructure and technologies that underpin a net zero economy. The expected outcomes are a detailed record of paleo-fluid flow and metal cycling in Australia's highly prospective sedimentary basins. Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE240100109
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$291,672.00
Summary
Compound specific isotopes of polar organic molecules in complex mixtures. This project aims to develop a liquid chromatography – isotope ratio mass spectrometry facility for the measurement of stable carbon isotope ratios of individual organic compounds in complex mixtures, most significantly sugars and amino acids. This will be the first such facility in Western Australia, strategically ranked to greatly expand existing world-class capabilities in stable isotope analysis. An important goal of ....Compound specific isotopes of polar organic molecules in complex mixtures. This project aims to develop a liquid chromatography – isotope ratio mass spectrometry facility for the measurement of stable carbon isotope ratios of individual organic compounds in complex mixtures, most significantly sugars and amino acids. This will be the first such facility in Western Australia, strategically ranked to greatly expand existing world-class capabilities in stable isotope analysis. An important goal of this project is the analysis of sugars in high-value foodstuffs such as honey, to develop a robust method of provenancing and authentication for important export markets. Other outcomes include elucidation of modern and ancient biological and ecological systems through the isotope analysis of natural products from microbes.Read moreRead less
Mid-Career Industry Fellowships - Grant ID: IM230100831
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$835,302.00
Summary
Protecting aquifers in the race to net-zero carbon emissions. This project aims to address the key risk factor of gas leakage from carbon dioxide geological sequestration and hydrogen or compressed air renewable-energy storage. This project expects to develop innovative methods for monitoring gas leakage contamination into overlying Australian aquifer water resources. Expected outcomes of this project include a multidisciplinary method to detect leakages of CO2 and future stored-energy gases t ....Protecting aquifers in the race to net-zero carbon emissions. This project aims to address the key risk factor of gas leakage from carbon dioxide geological sequestration and hydrogen or compressed air renewable-energy storage. This project expects to develop innovative methods for monitoring gas leakage contamination into overlying Australian aquifer water resources. Expected outcomes of this project include a multidisciplinary method to detect leakages of CO2 and future stored-energy gases that can contaminate aquifers. This should provide significant benefits including enabling greenhouse gas emissions reduction while protecting Australian water resources. This is critically important for Great Artesian Basin aquifers that support over 180,000 Australians and overlie many planned storage sites.Read moreRead less