Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150101687
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$340,000.00
Summary
Nanostructure Tailoring of Inorganic Membranes by Rapid Thermal Processing. This project aims to produce inorganic membranes with desired nanostructures using a Rapid Thermal Processing (RTP) technique for gas separation applications. The key concept of the research is that the RTP will be able to achieve thin-film membrane layer with a finer microstructure and pore size control without heat stress-induced cracking. RTP aims to deliver superior membrane performance with less than 10 per cent of ....Nanostructure Tailoring of Inorganic Membranes by Rapid Thermal Processing. This project aims to produce inorganic membranes with desired nanostructures using a Rapid Thermal Processing (RTP) technique for gas separation applications. The key concept of the research is that the RTP will be able to achieve thin-film membrane layer with a finer microstructure and pore size control without heat stress-induced cracking. RTP aims to deliver superior membrane performance with less than 10 per cent of the fabrication time compared to normal slow calcination. The outcomes of this new technology aims to make inorganic membranes a commercial reality and maximize the membrane manufacturing capability and productivity of petrochemcial, chemical and clean coal/energy industries.Read moreRead less
Development of smart material for the adsorption of oil spills on roads. The cost of road fuel spills in both Australia and worldwide is enormous. The research objective is to develop an admixture suitable for the absorption/adsorption of fuel and oil from road spills. The material will be designed to be contained within a fabric. The innovation is the application of the admixture in the form of a carpet, which is designed as easily used, non-toxic, recyclable and environmentally friendly. T ....Development of smart material for the adsorption of oil spills on roads. The cost of road fuel spills in both Australia and worldwide is enormous. The research objective is to develop an admixture suitable for the absorption/adsorption of fuel and oil from road spills. The material will be designed to be contained within a fabric. The innovation is the application of the admixture in the form of a carpet, which is designed as easily used, non-toxic, recyclable and environmentally friendly. The application is rapid. The successful development of the material has enormous economic benefits to Australia, providing a new industry with many employees. This new industry has the potential to bring great wealth to Australia.Read moreRead less
Methane Coupling Using Mixed Conducting Catalytic Ceramic Hollow Fibre Membrane Reactor. The Gas product industry is one of the most important economic sectors in Australia, employing 10000 people with market value of $ 100 billion per year from power generation and LNG export. However, there are increasing concerns over issues of the green house gases emission and petroleum dwindling. This project addresses the technology needs in converting natural gas to more useful chemicals via a more effic ....Methane Coupling Using Mixed Conducting Catalytic Ceramic Hollow Fibre Membrane Reactor. The Gas product industry is one of the most important economic sectors in Australia, employing 10000 people with market value of $ 100 billion per year from power generation and LNG export. However, there are increasing concerns over issues of the green house gases emission and petroleum dwindling. This project addresses the technology needs in converting natural gas to more useful chemicals via a more efficient and cleaner means of methane utilization. The project target is to make the natural gas resources in Australia to delivery high value products with considerable economic benefits and increased employment opportunities. Read moreRead less
Preparing Carbon Molecular Sieve Membrane (CMSM) for Olefin/Paraffin Separation. Carbon molecular sieve membrane (CMSM) presents superior selectivity and stability for many gas separation processes. This technology is energy saving, environmental friendly and with minimal operating cost. The project will develop CMSMs for the separation of olefin/paraffin, particularly, the propane/propylene mixture which is currently separated by the energy intensive cryogenic distillation in industry. The pro ....Preparing Carbon Molecular Sieve Membrane (CMSM) for Olefin/Paraffin Separation. Carbon molecular sieve membrane (CMSM) presents superior selectivity and stability for many gas separation processes. This technology is energy saving, environmental friendly and with minimal operating cost. The project will develop CMSMs for the separation of olefin/paraffin, particularly, the propane/propylene mixture which is currently separated by the energy intensive cryogenic distillation in industry. The project involves both experimental works and theoretical studies and will provide: (1) techniques for preparing CMSMs for olefin/paraffin separation; (2) methods characterizing the micro-structure of CMSMs; (3) mathematical models predicting multicomponent gas permeation/separation properties on CMSMs; (4) effect of impurities on the separation processes. Read moreRead less
Perovskite Asymmetric Hollow Fibres for Oxygen Separation in Clean Coal Energy Delivery. The coal industry is one of the most important economic sectors in Australia, employing 30000 people, whilst black coal is Australia's largest export worth around $24.5 billion. Energy security of supply is critical to Australia's social stability and economic growth, though Australia's reliance on coal for energy delivery is under strong scrutiny due to carbon mitigation. This project addresses the technolo ....Perovskite Asymmetric Hollow Fibres for Oxygen Separation in Clean Coal Energy Delivery. The coal industry is one of the most important economic sectors in Australia, employing 30000 people, whilst black coal is Australia's largest export worth around $24.5 billion. Energy security of supply is critical to Australia's social stability and economic growth, though Australia's reliance on coal for energy delivery is under strong scrutiny due to carbon mitigation. This project addresses the technology needs in tonnage oxygen separation towards a more efficient and cleaner means of generating energy. The project's benefits target at providing Australian consumers with affordable electricity in a decarbonised economy, enabling clean coal energy delivery to underpin the international competitiveness of the entire Australian economy.Read moreRead less
Pore Engineering of Chromatography Membranes for Bioseparation. Protein separation and purification is an essential unit operation in manufacturing processes of therapeutic proteins. The project aims to advance the practical applications of chromatography membrane, an emerging technology for protein separation and purification, by tailoring membrane pore geometry and surface functionality to achieve enhanced separation performance. The project expects to generate advanced knowledge and technique ....Pore Engineering of Chromatography Membranes for Bioseparation. Protein separation and purification is an essential unit operation in manufacturing processes of therapeutic proteins. The project aims to advance the practical applications of chromatography membrane, an emerging technology for protein separation and purification, by tailoring membrane pore geometry and surface functionality to achieve enhanced separation performance. The project expects to generate advanced knowledge and techniques in the fields of reactive polymer synthesis, functional membrane fabrication and application in bioseparation. The innovative membranes developed in the project are able to improve the production capacity of therapeutic protein manufacturing processes, providing significant economic benefits to Australia.Read moreRead less
Carbon Molecular Sieve Membranes for Organic Solvent Separation. Directly addressing the pressing challenge of organic solvent separation faced by numerous industries, the project aims to develop molecular sieve membranes with outstanding selectivity and solvent tolerance by constructing zeolite-carbon mixed matrix membrane via incorporating zeolite nanosheets into carbon materials. The project expects to generate advanced knowledge of nanosheet synthesis, membrane fabrication and selective mole ....Carbon Molecular Sieve Membranes for Organic Solvent Separation. Directly addressing the pressing challenge of organic solvent separation faced by numerous industries, the project aims to develop molecular sieve membranes with outstanding selectivity and solvent tolerance by constructing zeolite-carbon mixed matrix membrane via incorporating zeolite nanosheets into carbon materials. The project expects to generate advanced knowledge of nanosheet synthesis, membrane fabrication and selective molecule transport. The membranes developed in the project have great potentials for improving the production capacity and sustainability of Australian industries, e.g., pharmaceutical manufacturing, bioethanol production and petroleum refining, providing significant economic and environmental benefits to Australia.Read moreRead less
Volatile Organic Compound removal from indoor air environments by an integrated photocatalytic/filtration system. This project promotes the development of technology for providing improved air quality in indoor environments. Mentoring by internationally renowned experts of young Australian researchers on this issue of high importance will be undertaken by the Chief and Partner Investigators. Success from this project will place Australia as a leader in the global community for developing technol ....Volatile Organic Compound removal from indoor air environments by an integrated photocatalytic/filtration system. This project promotes the development of technology for providing improved air quality in indoor environments. Mentoring by internationally renowned experts of young Australian researchers on this issue of high importance will be undertaken by the Chief and Partner Investigators. Success from this project will place Australia as a leader in the global community for developing technology in air pollution quality control.Read moreRead less
Modelling of Nitric Oxides and Carbon Monoxide Emissions from Bagasse-Fires Boilers. The project aims to develop computational models to predict emissions of nitric oxides and carbon monoxide from sugar-mill boilers burning bagasse. Bagasse combustion does not contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and clean and efficient combustion of this fuel has become very important for the sugar industry and for Australia. The project combines the opportunity of direct boiler measurements by SRI with the m ....Modelling of Nitric Oxides and Carbon Monoxide Emissions from Bagasse-Fires Boilers. The project aims to develop computational models to predict emissions of nitric oxides and carbon monoxide from sugar-mill boilers burning bagasse. Bagasse combustion does not contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and clean and efficient combustion of this fuel has become very important for the sugar industry and for Australia. The project combines the opportunity of direct boiler measurements by SRI with the modelling expertise at the University to develop combustion-kinetics models for these species. The models will be incorporated into the previously developed computational fluid dynamics - combustion code of the furnace to give the capability of emission prediction as a function of burner operating conditions and fuel parameters.Read moreRead less
Characterisation and Treatment of Reverse Osmosis Concentrates from Water Recycling Applications. Concentrates from reverse osmosis (RO) pose a considerable threat to both the environment but also the successful implementation of reverse osmosis as a technology. Naturally, the concentrate contains everything that the RO retains and hence contaminants such as viruses, organics such as pharmaceutically active compounds and hormones as well as nutrients and salinity. Treatment of such waste streams ....Characterisation and Treatment of Reverse Osmosis Concentrates from Water Recycling Applications. Concentrates from reverse osmosis (RO) pose a considerable threat to both the environment but also the successful implementation of reverse osmosis as a technology. Naturally, the concentrate contains everything that the RO retains and hence contaminants such as viruses, organics such as pharmaceutically active compounds and hormones as well as nutrients and salinity. Treatment of such waste streams will enhance the health of receiving water bodies and reduce the risk of increased build up of contaminants if wastes are recycled into wastewater treatment plants. New ways to treat such contaminants will be explored, the efficiency and cost evaluated in the broader water cycle and sustainability framework.Read moreRead less