Development of Advanced Fracture Mechanics Models and Novel Technical Tools for Integrity, Durability and Safety Assessment. The proposed project will lead to the new understanding of fracture phenomena and structural integrity. It will create a range of novel computer based technical tools for life and integrity assessment of structures in the presence of cracks and other defects, so as to meet the high safety standards across a wide range of industries. The project will result in technology th ....Development of Advanced Fracture Mechanics Models and Novel Technical Tools for Integrity, Durability and Safety Assessment. The proposed project will lead to the new understanding of fracture phenomena and structural integrity. It will create a range of novel computer based technical tools for life and integrity assessment of structures in the presence of cracks and other defects, so as to meet the high safety standards across a wide range of industries. The project will result in technology that will help to make Australian products stronger and more durable so they become more competitive with low cost overseas imports. All the research outcomes will have a direct benefit to Australian interests, including both public and private industries.Read moreRead less
Foundations of Vision Based Control of Robotic Vehicles. Automated and partially automated robotic vehicles are an emerging technology in society. The safety and performance of such systems depends crucially on their sensing and control algorithms. Vision sensing is one of the few sensor modalities that has the potential to adequately represent the complexity of a real world environment. By providing simple and effective vision based control algorithms this project develops Frontier Technologi ....Foundations of Vision Based Control of Robotic Vehicles. Automated and partially automated robotic vehicles are an emerging technology in society. The safety and performance of such systems depends crucially on their sensing and control algorithms. Vision sensing is one of the few sensor modalities that has the potential to adequately represent the complexity of a real world environment. By providing simple and effective vision based control algorithms this project develops Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries by enabling a wide range of robotic vehicle applications, including aerial, submersible, and wheeled vehicles.Read moreRead less
A 60% efficient solar microconcentrator for electricity and hot water. The aim of this project is to develop a microconcentrator for deployment on house roofs that will produce both solar hot water and solar electricity with a combined efficiency above 60%. The system will have a low profile and will be nearly invisible from the street. The system will track the sun. Concentration will be accomplished by a mixture of refraction and reflection. About 20% of the sunlight will be converted to elect ....A 60% efficient solar microconcentrator for electricity and hot water. The aim of this project is to develop a microconcentrator for deployment on house roofs that will produce both solar hot water and solar electricity with a combined efficiency above 60%. The system will have a low profile and will be nearly invisible from the street. The system will track the sun. Concentration will be accomplished by a mixture of refraction and reflection. About 20% of the sunlight will be converted to electricity using lines of tiny solar cells, with the balance being converted to heat which is removed by cooling fluid and stored in hot water tanks.Read moreRead less
Next generation nondestructive inspection using guided-wave mixing. This project aims to develop a novel approach for early damage detection. It relies on a systematic experimental investigation of nonlinear ultrasonic interaction between different input wave modes in the presence of damage, so as to identify optimal mode selections and operating parameters that will maximise the sensitivity to particular forms of structural damage. The effects of in-service loading on wave-mixing response, and ....Next generation nondestructive inspection using guided-wave mixing. This project aims to develop a novel approach for early damage detection. It relies on a systematic experimental investigation of nonlinear ultrasonic interaction between different input wave modes in the presence of damage, so as to identify optimal mode selections and operating parameters that will maximise the sensitivity to particular forms of structural damage. The effects of in-service loading on wave-mixing response, and non-contact detection suitable for hard-to-inspect surface conditions, will also be investigated. The new developments will help transform existing schedule-based maintenance practice to a condition-based maintenance paradigm, to achieve significant cost savings in maintenance.Read moreRead less
Atomisation and Combustion Physics of Australian Bio-oils. Australia is highly dependent on fossil fuels for energy production and transport, and this dependence is growing. Wide spread substitution of liquid hydrocarbon fuels by indigenous renewable bio-oil has the potential to improve Australian's energy outlook and assist in reaching greenhouse gas targets. Understanding the interrelationships between the physical and chemical properties of bio-oil, its atomisation, droplet formation and com ....Atomisation and Combustion Physics of Australian Bio-oils. Australia is highly dependent on fossil fuels for energy production and transport, and this dependence is growing. Wide spread substitution of liquid hydrocarbon fuels by indigenous renewable bio-oil has the potential to improve Australian's energy outlook and assist in reaching greenhouse gas targets. Understanding the interrelationships between the physical and chemical properties of bio-oil, its atomisation, droplet formation and combustion physics is fundamental to the delivery of an efficient and reliable combustion process using this fuel. Measurements using laser based diagnostics of the atomisation flow, droplet formation and combustion process will provide the experimental data to understand this complex interrelationship.Read moreRead less
Making hydrogen storage work for the new hydrogen economy. This project aims to develop an innovative Liquid Organic Hydrogen Storage technology and prove its energy industry potential. This project expects to expand and validate the performance, safety and scale-up potential of this new technology in an industrial context to promote the development of the hydrogen economy. Expected outcomes include providing practical, efficient, large-scale storage technology for use in intermittent renewable ....Making hydrogen storage work for the new hydrogen economy. This project aims to develop an innovative Liquid Organic Hydrogen Storage technology and prove its energy industry potential. This project expects to expand and validate the performance, safety and scale-up potential of this new technology in an industrial context to promote the development of the hydrogen economy. Expected outcomes include providing practical, efficient, large-scale storage technology for use in intermittent renewable energy storage and hydrogen vehicle refuelling, and addressing legal/regulatory implementation issues. This should provide significant benefits in cultivating the emerging hydrogen energy industry, strengthening industrial competitiveness, enhancing Australia’s fuel security and protecting the environment.Read moreRead less
Stress Evaluation with Non-Linear Guided Waves. This project plans to investigate a novel approach for in situ measurement of stress in structures based on an internal resonance phenomenon for nonlinear guided waves. Monitoring the stress level of critical structural components is important to ensure structural safety. The project plans to derive the requirements for this internal resonance and its dependence on stress analytically and verify them experimentally for both simple waveguides and mo ....Stress Evaluation with Non-Linear Guided Waves. This project plans to investigate a novel approach for in situ measurement of stress in structures based on an internal resonance phenomenon for nonlinear guided waves. Monitoring the stress level of critical structural components is important to ensure structural safety. The project plans to derive the requirements for this internal resonance and its dependence on stress analytically and verify them experimentally for both simple waveguides and more realistic structures. The expected outcome is the demonstration of the feasibility of a new inexpensive method for continuous monitoring of applied or thermally-induced stresses, which is of great importance in several engineering contexts, such as modern railway track rails, pipelines or pre-stressed strands in concrete structures.Read moreRead less
Thermo-electro-chemo-mechanical properties of biological systems. The proposal is aimed at developing a new theoretical framework for piezoelectric biological materials and structures, through theoretical analysis, computation and numerical simulations, as well as experimental investigations, to produce high-reliability, high-performance hydrogel components and smart soft tissue structures. It is envisaged that successful outcomes of this program will give the Australian biological industry a te ....Thermo-electro-chemo-mechanical properties of biological systems. The proposal is aimed at developing a new theoretical framework for piezoelectric biological materials and structures, through theoretical analysis, computation and numerical simulations, as well as experimental investigations, to produce high-reliability, high-performance hydrogel components and smart soft tissue structures. It is envisaged that successful outcomes of this program will give the Australian biological industry a technology edge over their competitors and provide easy-to-use guidelines for the design of smart biological systems.Read moreRead less
Multiscale engineering of durable absorber coatings for solar thermal power. This project aims to advance the long-term stability and efficiency of high-temperature absorber coatings for Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plants. Solar energy is a vast and largely untapped resource in Australia. The project will design superior light absorbers and scalable and low-cost approaches for their fabrication. Optimal absorber properties will be achieved by multi-scale engineering of the coating composition ....Multiscale engineering of durable absorber coatings for solar thermal power. This project aims to advance the long-term stability and efficiency of high-temperature absorber coatings for Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plants. Solar energy is a vast and largely untapped resource in Australia. The project will design superior light absorbers and scalable and low-cost approaches for their fabrication. Optimal absorber properties will be achieved by multi-scale engineering of the coating composition and micro-texturing via modelling of the light absorption and heat transport within these complex nanocomposite structures. The intended outcome of the project is a set of commercially competitive absorber coatings, with superior performance and durability, that support the development of CSP as a competitive technology for energy generation.Read moreRead less
Building Australia's Electric Vehicle Fast Charging Infrastructure. This project aims to enhance the resilience, safety, and efficiency of electricity grids operated with fast-charging Electric Vehicles (EVs) by developing new control and optimisation frameworks. This project expects to develop new robust controllers for EV fast-charging infrastructure operated in coordination with wind and solar generated electricity. Expected project outcomes include enabling fast-charge EV infrastructure to b ....Building Australia's Electric Vehicle Fast Charging Infrastructure. This project aims to enhance the resilience, safety, and efficiency of electricity grids operated with fast-charging Electric Vehicles (EVs) by developing new control and optimisation frameworks. This project expects to develop new robust controllers for EV fast-charging infrastructure operated in coordination with wind and solar generated electricity. Expected project outcomes include enabling fast-charge EV infrastructure to be developed and deployed in Australia by the industry partner SwitchDin. Expected benefits including enabling significant reduction in carbon emissions from the transportation sector, accelerating the energy transition to renewables, and placing Australian industry at the forefront of EV grid integration technology.Read moreRead less