Electronically Conducting Nanofibres and Assemblies. With the use of new techniques that have just emerged in the last two years and are receiving rapidly growing interest throughout the world, this project will bring to Australia a new nanofabrication platform for making a variety of complex nanostructures. Fundamental researches on these complex nanostructures will greatly advance nanoscience. New nanotechnologies will be developed to address some world-wide challenging problems, e.g. energy ....Electronically Conducting Nanofibres and Assemblies. With the use of new techniques that have just emerged in the last two years and are receiving rapidly growing interest throughout the world, this project will bring to Australia a new nanofabrication platform for making a variety of complex nanostructures. Fundamental researches on these complex nanostructures will greatly advance nanoscience. New nanotechnologies will be developed to address some world-wide challenging problems, e.g. energy conversion and storage, chemical/biological sensing and other micro- and nanoelectronic devices. This project will bring both breakthrough science and frontier technologies for building and transforming Australian industries and help place Australia at the forefront of nanotechnology. Read moreRead less
Value Adding to Australian Cashmere Fleece. This project will lead to major technical advance in the processing of both cashmere fibres and cashmere guard hair. Reducing the level of breakage in fine cashmere fibres will add significant premium to the price of cashmere fibres and products. In addition, the large amount of coarse guard hair removed from cashmere dehairing process will be converted into quality fine powders, which will add significant value to an otherwise 'waste' product. This pr ....Value Adding to Australian Cashmere Fleece. This project will lead to major technical advance in the processing of both cashmere fibres and cashmere guard hair. Reducing the level of breakage in fine cashmere fibres will add significant premium to the price of cashmere fibres and products. In addition, the large amount of coarse guard hair removed from cashmere dehairing process will be converted into quality fine powders, which will add significant value to an otherwise 'waste' product. This project will benefit the entire animal fibre industry, particularly the rare animal fibre industry.Read moreRead less
Three-Dimensional Polymer Fibre Scaffolds with Functional Nano-structured Surface. The Partner Organisation to this research, CyGenics Ltd, is a world leader in cell biotechnology. A key challenge faced by the CyGenics and other biotech companies is the provision of tissue scaffolding materials that have the right three-dimensional macroscopic structure plus a suitable nano-structured surface micro-environment, similar to the natural extracellular matrix. This joint project combines expertise in ....Three-Dimensional Polymer Fibre Scaffolds with Functional Nano-structured Surface. The Partner Organisation to this research, CyGenics Ltd, is a world leader in cell biotechnology. A key challenge faced by the CyGenics and other biotech companies is the provision of tissue scaffolding materials that have the right three-dimensional macroscopic structure plus a suitable nano-structured surface micro-environment, similar to the natural extracellular matrix. This joint project combines expertise in polymer fibres, surface engineering and cell culture to tackle the key challenge. The outcome will help position the local polymer fibre and cell culture industries at the forefront of tissue scaffolding materials research and development. Read moreRead less
The characterization and pocessing of Australian grown hemp fibres. This project will, for the first time, systematically examine the characteristics and processing behaviour of Australian grown hemp fibres. The hemp industry is an emerging new industry in rural Australia. This research will tackle a number of complex problems concerning characterization, degumming, and processing of Australian grown hemp, and will engineer the finest and softest yarns as well as industrial products from this he ....The characterization and pocessing of Australian grown hemp fibres. This project will, for the first time, systematically examine the characteristics and processing behaviour of Australian grown hemp fibres. The hemp industry is an emerging new industry in rural Australia. This research will tackle a number of complex problems concerning characterization, degumming, and processing of Australian grown hemp, and will engineer the finest and softest yarns as well as industrial products from this hemp. This will position the local hemp industry as well fibre processing industry in a very strong position to meet the growing demand world wide on this "green" fibre.Read moreRead less
Understanding the Behavior of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes in Liquids. The imminent manufacture of Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes (SWNTs) at prices comparable to those of high-performance polymers such as Kevlar, will open up potential applications of SWNTs as high-performance fibres and coatings. A major challenge is the development of scalable processes for producing large objects made of SWNTs. This project, in collaboration with researchers at Rice and Stanford Universities, aims to unders ....Understanding the Behavior of Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes in Liquids. The imminent manufacture of Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes (SWNTs) at prices comparable to those of high-performance polymers such as Kevlar, will open up potential applications of SWNTs as high-performance fibres and coatings. A major challenge is the development of scalable processes for producing large objects made of SWNTs. This project, in collaboration with researchers at Rice and Stanford Universities, aims to understand the principles that underlie the successful liquid state processing of SWNTs. The novel strategies that arise will cement Australia's position as a leading country for research in nanotechnology, and place it at the forefront of this field, with great potential for economic advantage.Read moreRead less
Dissecting the Indigo Pathway in Natural Indigo Producing Plants: Intricate Pathway Engineering for the Generation of Blue-Fibre Cotton. Australian cotton growers must maintain a sustained competitive advantage in the future to compete within the global cotton market by commanding higher margins for specialty cotton lint over and above current revenues. Development, via biotechnology, of naturally-colored, 'blue' lint cottons is the technical goal, where novel environmentally-benign textile prod ....Dissecting the Indigo Pathway in Natural Indigo Producing Plants: Intricate Pathway Engineering for the Generation of Blue-Fibre Cotton. Australian cotton growers must maintain a sustained competitive advantage in the future to compete within the global cotton market by commanding higher margins for specialty cotton lint over and above current revenues. Development, via biotechnology, of naturally-colored, 'blue' lint cottons is the technical goal, where novel environmentally-benign textile products could be produced without the use of toxic synthetic dyes or caustic dyeing processes. Success will provide a unique opportunity to re-establish an Australian cotton/textile industry by allowing direct participation in the development, branding and marketing of novel Australian textile products, generating potential revenue upwards of $10B/year. Read moreRead less
Field-Enhanced Electrospinning for Fine and Uniform Nanofibres. This project will result in a new platform technology to produce very fine and uniform nanofibres that can be used in a range of advanced applications. It will further strengthen our leading position in the field of nanofibre technology, and contribute to the National Research Priority area of Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries. Australia already has niche expertise in nanomaterials. This proje ....Field-Enhanced Electrospinning for Fine and Uniform Nanofibres. This project will result in a new platform technology to produce very fine and uniform nanofibres that can be used in a range of advanced applications. It will further strengthen our leading position in the field of nanofibre technology, and contribute to the National Research Priority area of Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries. Australia already has niche expertise in nanomaterials. This project will significantly enhance our international standing in the field. There is a growing list of local companies that are interested in exploring the production and application of nanofibrous materials also.Read moreRead less
Modelling the stability and efficiency of ring spinning. This research will benefit the animal fibre industry, particularly the multi-billion dollar wool industry. Low spinning efficiency adds a significant cost to the conversion of animal fibres into textile products, which reduces the competitive position of these natural fibres. The proposed research will lead to improvement in the efficiency of ring spinning. It has been estimated that a 1% improvement in spinning efficiency will add about $ ....Modelling the stability and efficiency of ring spinning. This research will benefit the animal fibre industry, particularly the multi-billion dollar wool industry. Low spinning efficiency adds a significant cost to the conversion of animal fibres into textile products, which reduces the competitive position of these natural fibres. The proposed research will lead to improvement in the efficiency of ring spinning. It has been estimated that a 1% improvement in spinning efficiency will add about $16 million to the wool industry alone. Read moreRead less
Scouring and Dehairing Australian Cashmere Fibres. The project aims to develop a viable method of dehairing greasy Australian cashmere materials. Traditionally, cashmere materials are scoured or washed first, followed by dehairing to extract the useful fine cashmere fibres. This is expensive and water consumption for scouring is also high. The current project will overcome the difficulties in dehairing greasy cashmere and optimise the process of scouring dehaired cashmere fibres. Technology deve ....Scouring and Dehairing Australian Cashmere Fibres. The project aims to develop a viable method of dehairing greasy Australian cashmere materials. Traditionally, cashmere materials are scoured or washed first, followed by dehairing to extract the useful fine cashmere fibres. This is expensive and water consumption for scouring is also high. The current project will overcome the difficulties in dehairing greasy cashmere and optimise the process of scouring dehaired cashmere fibres. Technology developed in this project will reduce scouring cost and water consumption, improve dehairing yield, and increase the flexibility of cashmere scouring and processing, leading to a more sustainable Australian cashmere industry.Read moreRead less
Wet-Spinning Novel Multi-Functional Bio-Synthetic Platforms. The project will deliver new advanced materials for novel biomedical devices such as nanostructured electrodes and tunable drug delivery systems. It will develop a very versatile and low-cost technology that is well-suited for overcoming some of the current limitations in exploiting nanomaterials in nanoscience and biomedical industries. The research will benefit existing biomedical industries in Australia and provide opportunities for ....Wet-Spinning Novel Multi-Functional Bio-Synthetic Platforms. The project will deliver new advanced materials for novel biomedical devices such as nanostructured electrodes and tunable drug delivery systems. It will develop a very versatile and low-cost technology that is well-suited for overcoming some of the current limitations in exploiting nanomaterials in nanoscience and biomedical industries. The research will benefit existing biomedical industries in Australia and provide opportunities for new start-up companies, as well as potentially attracting biomedical industries from overseas to establish a presence in Australia.Read moreRead less