Electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide to formic acid. This project aims to develop economical and scalable carbon dioxide electrochemical technologies to convert carbon dioxide in blast furnace flue gas to formic acid as a value-added product in steel-making plants. The project expects to develop new electrochemical catalysts, to optimise the structure of electrodes and ultimately improve carbon dioxide conversion efficiency and reaction selectivity towards formic acid. The expected outco ....Electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide to formic acid. This project aims to develop economical and scalable carbon dioxide electrochemical technologies to convert carbon dioxide in blast furnace flue gas to formic acid as a value-added product in steel-making plants. The project expects to develop new electrochemical catalysts, to optimise the structure of electrodes and ultimately improve carbon dioxide conversion efficiency and reaction selectivity towards formic acid. The expected outcomes of this project will provide an efficient and economically viable electrochemical technology to convert carbon dioxide to a valuable product such as formic acid or syngas, with the potential to significantly reduce the emission of carbon dioxide from steel-making processes and coal-fired power plants.Read moreRead less
Carbon-Supported Iron Catalysts for Selective Catalytic Reduction of NO. Nitric oxide (NO) is a major pollutant from combustion systems. This project aims to develop cost-effective and environmentally benign zerovalent iron catalysts supported on carbon material for selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO using CO and unburned hydrocarbons as in-situ reductants. By applying differential reactor experimentation, kinetic modelling and advanced material characterisation techniques, the research w ....Carbon-Supported Iron Catalysts for Selective Catalytic Reduction of NO. Nitric oxide (NO) is a major pollutant from combustion systems. This project aims to develop cost-effective and environmentally benign zerovalent iron catalysts supported on carbon material for selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO using CO and unburned hydrocarbons as in-situ reductants. By applying differential reactor experimentation, kinetic modelling and advanced material characterisation techniques, the research will unravel complex relationships among catalyst structural features and activity, NO reduction mechanisms, and catalyst performance under practically relevant combustion conditions that underpin the development of an effective yet affordable SCR technology to control NO emission from industrial utilities and automobiles.Read moreRead less
Advanced Stability Sensor for Anaerobic Digestion Processes. Australia is firmly committed to energy reduction and production, where possible, renewable energy production. Anaerobic digestion is the only in-use wastewater treatment option that not only can have net zero energy consumption, but that actually produces energy. This energy is from renewable carbon sources is therefore a zero contributor to greenhouse gases. Australia has some of the strongest environmental limit laws in the world. ....Advanced Stability Sensor for Anaerobic Digestion Processes. Australia is firmly committed to energy reduction and production, where possible, renewable energy production. Anaerobic digestion is the only in-use wastewater treatment option that not only can have net zero energy consumption, but that actually produces energy. This energy is from renewable carbon sources is therefore a zero contributor to greenhouse gases. Australia has some of the strongest environmental limit laws in the world. While this is reasonable - given our sensitive environment -assisting industry in meeting those limits in a cost effective manner is a priority. Given sufficient process stability and transparency, anaerobic digestion is a low capital and operating cost option. Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354672
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$20,000.00
Summary
ARC Network in Mineral Processing, Extraction and Refining. The Network aims to develop long-term, collaborative research and training links between world-class researchers and research centres in mineral processing, extraction and refining. The goal is to ensure that Australia's major export industry is sustainable, environmentally acceptable and technically at the cutting edge.
Networking key researchers with complementary skills and expertise will enhance research quality, encourage a hol ....ARC Network in Mineral Processing, Extraction and Refining. The Network aims to develop long-term, collaborative research and training links between world-class researchers and research centres in mineral processing, extraction and refining. The goal is to ensure that Australia's major export industry is sustainable, environmentally acceptable and technically at the cutting edge.
Networking key researchers with complementary skills and expertise will enhance research quality, encourage a holistic approach to problem solving and support researchers to tackle big challenges, beyond their usual scope, that will transform the industry. The outcomes will be greater international competitiveness, better resource utilisation, and the incubation of new research leaders, enhancing Australia's minerals R&D infrastructure.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
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354551
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$20,000.00
Summary
ARC Research Network for Renewable Energy. The proposed Research Network will integrate and coordinate the entire research field of renewable energy in Australia. This Network covers a diverse range of technologies, and includes all prominent researchers in the area of renewable energy in Australia. The Network is strengthened by the inclusion of key people from government agencies, industry, industry associations and international research organisations.
Australia is a leading player in the ....ARC Research Network for Renewable Energy. The proposed Research Network will integrate and coordinate the entire research field of renewable energy in Australia. This Network covers a diverse range of technologies, and includes all prominent researchers in the area of renewable energy in Australia. The Network is strengthened by the inclusion of key people from government agencies, industry, industry associations and international research organisations.
Australia is a leading player in the world's renewable energy industry. An effective structure for networking and for the exchange of people, information and research results will maintain and improve Australia's position in this rapidly growing industry.Read moreRead less
Innovative Grid-Connected, Small-Scale Wind Turbine Generators Offering Low Cost and Wide Operating Speed Range. Growing concerns about sustainability issues with fossil fuels have resulted in strong interest in wind power worldwide. Grid-connected inverters are an efficient way of utilising small wind turbines on domestic, farming or small commercial properties which have access to the power grid. Existing small-scale, grid-connected wind turbines are expensive and have a limited operating wind ....Innovative Grid-Connected, Small-Scale Wind Turbine Generators Offering Low Cost and Wide Operating Speed Range. Growing concerns about sustainability issues with fossil fuels have resulted in strong interest in wind power worldwide. Grid-connected inverters are an efficient way of utilising small wind turbines on domestic, farming or small commercial properties which have access to the power grid. Existing small-scale, grid-connected wind turbines are expensive and have a limited operating wind speed range. We are investigating new designs for low-cost wind turbine generators which can produce power over a wide range of wind speeds. The project should result in a greater application of small-scale wind generators in Australia and will lead to reductions in fossil fuel usage and greenhouse gas emissions.Read moreRead less
Thermal isolation: a novel pathway to transforming complex waste. This project aims to establish a novel pathway for transforming complex waste otherwise destined for landfill into valuable products and resources. By leveraging high temperature reactions, the team plans to thermally isolate useful carbons and silica from within automotive shredder residue (ASR) in situ, to produce activated carbon products and silica layers, and so completely recycle this bulk toxic waste for the first time. Suc ....Thermal isolation: a novel pathway to transforming complex waste. This project aims to establish a novel pathway for transforming complex waste otherwise destined for landfill into valuable products and resources. By leveraging high temperature reactions, the team plans to thermally isolate useful carbons and silica from within automotive shredder residue (ASR) in situ, to produce activated carbon products and silica layers, and so completely recycle this bulk toxic waste for the first time. Such innovative new pathways for separating out valuable materials from complex and toxic wastes offer industries an alternative low-cost and sustainable source of raw materials, while reducing pressures on landfills and finite natural resources.Read moreRead less
Improving biological nitrogen removal by enhanced mixing in non-aerated bioreactors. Mixing has been identified as a key factor in achieving enhanced performance out of existing and upgraded bioreactors. There is currently a poor understanding of the relationship between non-ideal flow and performance in wastewater treatment bioreactors. The project will determine this relationship and subsequently use it to show how reactor performance can be improved, providing first criteria by which mixing c ....Improving biological nitrogen removal by enhanced mixing in non-aerated bioreactors. Mixing has been identified as a key factor in achieving enhanced performance out of existing and upgraded bioreactors. There is currently a poor understanding of the relationship between non-ideal flow and performance in wastewater treatment bioreactors. The project will determine this relationship and subsequently use it to show how reactor performance can be improved, providing first criteria by which mixing can be assessed, and second a systematic methodology for improving reactor performance by improving mixing.Read moreRead less
Sustainable Technology for Removal of Trace Contaminants in Rural Water Supplies. Provision of safe drinking water treatment using sustainable technology which can be applied in rural locations and emergency situations is the main aim of this project. A hybrid membrane process will be combined with solar energy for the removal of pathogens and trace pollutants such as uranium, fluoride, arsenic, boron and nitrates. The technology will be designed for remote community situations and hence be robu ....Sustainable Technology for Removal of Trace Contaminants in Rural Water Supplies. Provision of safe drinking water treatment using sustainable technology which can be applied in rural locations and emergency situations is the main aim of this project. A hybrid membrane process will be combined with solar energy for the removal of pathogens and trace pollutants such as uranium, fluoride, arsenic, boron and nitrates. The technology will be designed for remote community situations and hence be robust and low in maintenance. Using solar energy is a challenge for trace contaminant removal as the operating conditions vary with the power fluctuations, which presents a substantially different situation to grid power connection.Read moreRead less