Control of Transitions in Wakes and Swirling Flows. We will attack industrially-important problems in fluid mechanics by building new, and substantially enhancing existing, international collaborations between key complementary teams of internationally-recognised French and Australian researchers. Funding will support the exchange of 6 senior staff and 3 graduate students, which, in turn, will measurably benefit the research output of a further 20 graduate students and 7 post-doctoral fellows as ....Control of Transitions in Wakes and Swirling Flows. We will attack industrially-important problems in fluid mechanics by building new, and substantially enhancing existing, international collaborations between key complementary teams of internationally-recognised French and Australian researchers. Funding will support the exchange of 6 senior staff and 3 graduate students, which, in turn, will measurably benefit the research output of a further 20 graduate students and 7 post-doctoral fellows associated with closely-related projects. From the Australian perspective, the planned exchanges will bring new research expertise, knowledge and skills, which will be focussed on a diverse range of applications. Target industries (with existing collaborations) include Airbus and Dassault Aviation in Europe, and Aerosonde and Warman pumps in Australia. Read moreRead less
Electrorheological Fluid-based Actuators. The proposed project will make significant contribution towards both fundamental understanding of nanoparticle materials and the development of novel nanomaterial based devices. It is expected that new technology obtained from this research will be transferred to the automotive industry in Australia. It will also strengthen the collaboration between Australia and other countries, such as Hong Kong where research is also at the forefront in this field. Au ....Electrorheological Fluid-based Actuators. The proposed project will make significant contribution towards both fundamental understanding of nanoparticle materials and the development of novel nanomaterial based devices. It is expected that new technology obtained from this research will be transferred to the automotive industry in Australia. It will also strengthen the collaboration between Australia and other countries, such as Hong Kong where research is also at the forefront in this field. Australian research students and engineers will also gain training opportunities from this project.Read moreRead less
Dehumidification and cooling driven by solar/waste heat using liquid desiccants. The provision of comfort cooling is responsible for a considerable and increasing portion of the world energy demand and electricity peak demand. To substitute electrically driven vapour compression machines with their high electrical energy consumption and especially high peak loads, the use of solar energy or waste heat for a cooling and dehumidification system driven by liquid desiccants is a promising opportunit ....Dehumidification and cooling driven by solar/waste heat using liquid desiccants. The provision of comfort cooling is responsible for a considerable and increasing portion of the world energy demand and electricity peak demand. To substitute electrically driven vapour compression machines with their high electrical energy consumption and especially high peak loads, the use of solar energy or waste heat for a cooling and dehumidification system driven by liquid desiccants is a promising opportunity. The project utilises the complementary strengths in the research groups to develop practical and economically feasible cooling/dehumidification systems for different types of buildings with different moisture removal and cooling requirements at different locations (Australia, Southern Europe).Read moreRead less
Using solar photocatalytic oxidation processes to treat organic pollutants in wastewater. The proposal is to use physical-chemical and solar engineering approaches to increase the efficiency of solar photons in the photocatalytic oxidation process applied to the detoxification of organic pollutants in wastewater. New photocatalyists and the effects of photocatalysts's superficial characteristics on the treatment perfomance will be studied. A specific structure for a solar collector for the proce ....Using solar photocatalytic oxidation processes to treat organic pollutants in wastewater. The proposal is to use physical-chemical and solar engineering approaches to increase the efficiency of solar photons in the photocatalytic oxidation process applied to the detoxification of organic pollutants in wastewater. New photocatalyists and the effects of photocatalysts's superficial characteristics on the treatment perfomance will be studied. A specific structure for a solar collector for the process will be developed. A more efficient way to use solar photons in the process and a better conceptual design of solar collector will be two main outcomes expected from the project.Read moreRead less
Noise control in aircraft and motor vehicles. The principal aim of this collaborative program between Australian and Japanese research teams is to tackle the complex issue of using active noise control systems focussing "zones of quiet" at passengers in aircraft and motor vehicles. The work has important implications for increased comfort of air travel and a safer environment for drivers of heavy vehicles. The outcomes will be the development of "smart skins" for application to aircraft and veh ....Noise control in aircraft and motor vehicles. The principal aim of this collaborative program between Australian and Japanese research teams is to tackle the complex issue of using active noise control systems focussing "zones of quiet" at passengers in aircraft and motor vehicles. The work has important implications for increased comfort of air travel and a safer environment for drivers of heavy vehicles. The outcomes will be the development of "smart skins" for application to aircraft and vehicle cabin interiors to actively control of interior noise. This will be achieved by combining the Japanese team's "structural wavenumber sensors" and the Adelaide team's "virtual microphones".Read moreRead less
Development of the applications of signal processing to mechanical problems and machine diagnostics. It is intended to extend research collaboration in the following areas of interest to both UTC and UNSW:
(1) Dynamics of gears for diagnostics and noise control
(2) Application of blind source separation techniques to mechanical problems
(3) Application of cyclostationary signal analysis techniques to machine diagnostics
(4) Determination of structural dynamic properties from response measure ....Development of the applications of signal processing to mechanical problems and machine diagnostics. It is intended to extend research collaboration in the following areas of interest to both UTC and UNSW:
(1) Dynamics of gears for diagnostics and noise control
(2) Application of blind source separation techniques to mechanical problems
(3) Application of cyclostationary signal analysis techniques to machine diagnostics
(4) Determination of structural dynamic properties from response measurements
(5) Diagnostics of diesel engines and other reciprocating machines.
This project will result in the publication of joint papers in each of these topics, and give material to form the basis of an application for at least one FAIR project in the area of gear noise control and diagnostics.Read moreRead less
Theoretical and Experimental Investigation of the Wear Behaviour of NiTi Shape Memory Alloy. Exploring high wear-resistant materials is always an active issue in tribology and material engineering in order to extend the life of the wide-ranged wearing components and devices. NiTi shape memory alloy (SMA) demonstrates a superior wear resistance to stainless steel. This project aims to theoretically and experimentally exam the wear mechanism of NiTi SMA and quantify its wear rate. The expected out ....Theoretical and Experimental Investigation of the Wear Behaviour of NiTi Shape Memory Alloy. Exploring high wear-resistant materials is always an active issue in tribology and material engineering in order to extend the life of the wide-ranged wearing components and devices. NiTi shape memory alloy (SMA) demonstrates a superior wear resistance to stainless steel. This project aims to theoretically and experimentally exam the wear mechanism of NiTi SMA and quantify its wear rate. The expected outcome will discover the contributions of phase transition and plasticity on the wear property of NiTi SMA, formulate a reliable wear model and stimulate the application of NiTi in tribology and modern micro-electric-mechanical systems.Read moreRead less