A Fundamental Investigation of the Thermoplastic Behaviour and Porous Structural Evolution of Coke and Char Particles. During heating, solid fuel particles undergo complex physical changes resulting in sophisticated structures in the residual material (coke and char) which influence the operational performance of these materials in ironmaking and power generation processes. The mechanistic understanding of the evolution of physical structure and the coupled role of gas evolution has not been wel ....A Fundamental Investigation of the Thermoplastic Behaviour and Porous Structural Evolution of Coke and Char Particles. During heating, solid fuel particles undergo complex physical changes resulting in sophisticated structures in the residual material (coke and char) which influence the operational performance of these materials in ironmaking and power generation processes. The mechanistic understanding of the evolution of physical structure and the coupled role of gas evolution has not been well established. An interpretive and predictive mechanism to describe the process will be developed through experimental observations and mathematical modelling. The project will provide fundamental new insights and understanding of operational issues concerning the complex behaviour of solid fuel residues in coal based industrial processes.Read moreRead less
Microdynamic modelling and analysis of gas fluidization of particle mixtures. The project aims to develop a comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms governing the particle-fluid flow in gas fluidization of mixtures of particles of different sizes. This will be achieved through detailed analysis of the particle-particle and particle-fluid interactions on the basis of the microdynamic or particle scale results generated by the newly developed discrete simulation technique. The microscopic fin ....Microdynamic modelling and analysis of gas fluidization of particle mixtures. The project aims to develop a comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms governing the particle-fluid flow in gas fluidization of mixtures of particles of different sizes. This will be achieved through detailed analysis of the particle-particle and particle-fluid interactions on the basis of the microdynamic or particle scale results generated by the newly developed discrete simulation technique. The microscopic findings will be implemented in the macroscopic, continuum-based modelling and tested by comparing numerical and experimental results. It will significantly enhance the present capability of modelling particle-fluid flow in gas fluidization which is widely used in mineral/chemical industries.Read moreRead less
Granular dynamics: from discrete simulation towards continuum modelling. The project aims to develop a general averaging theory to link discrete to continuum description of granular dynamics and a comprehensive understanding of the underlying physics. This will be achieved through detailed analysis of the particle-particle and particle-wall interactions at both microscopic and macroscopic levels, supported by the newly developed averaging theory and novel discrete particle simulation. The result ....Granular dynamics: from discrete simulation towards continuum modelling. The project aims to develop a general averaging theory to link discrete to continuum description of granular dynamics and a comprehensive understanding of the underlying physics. This will be achieved through detailed analysis of the particle-particle and particle-wall interactions at both microscopic and macroscopic levels, supported by the newly developed averaging theory and novel discrete particle simulation. The results, in terms of constitutive relations and boundary conditions, will be implemented in continuum-based process modelling and tested by comparing numerical and experimental results via typical case studies. It will significantly enhance the present capability of modelling granular flow that is widely encountered in many industries and in nature.Read moreRead less
Understanding mass extinctions and deep-time climate change: International Timescale Calibration of the Late Permian-Early Triassic of Australia. The project will enhance Australia's research strength as world leaders in isotope geochronology, geological timescale calibration, and global biological evolution studies, and will expand knowledge and provide a long overdue robust chronostratigraphic framework for a critical part of Earth's history that is a particular focus for energy resources in A ....Understanding mass extinctions and deep-time climate change: International Timescale Calibration of the Late Permian-Early Triassic of Australia. The project will enhance Australia's research strength as world leaders in isotope geochronology, geological timescale calibration, and global biological evolution studies, and will expand knowledge and provide a long overdue robust chronostratigraphic framework for a critical part of Earth's history that is a particular focus for energy resources in Australia. Our work will provide vital input to enhanced models for deep-time biotic turnover, climate change and global warming that will aid prediction of modern global atmospheric and climate changes due to human impact and provide vital data and information for Australian policy makers.Read moreRead less
Effect of Saline Water on Flotation Processes. The Australian mineral and coal industry is valued at $40 billion in export income per year. This significant component of the Australian economy will benefit from this research into the increased use of highly saline water to improve coal and mineral flotation recovery. The project will keep Australia at the leading edge of flotation research, research training and development for the coal and mineral industry. With direct relevance to the National ....Effect of Saline Water on Flotation Processes. The Australian mineral and coal industry is valued at $40 billion in export income per year. This significant component of the Australian economy will benefit from this research into the increased use of highly saline water to improve coal and mineral flotation recovery. The project will keep Australia at the leading edge of flotation research, research training and development for the coal and mineral industry. With direct relevance to the National Research Priorities: Water - a Critical Resource, this project will make contributions to the development of a more environmentally sustainable coal and mineral processing industry.Read moreRead less
Transport phenomena in foam fractionation. Foam fractionation has a number of immediate applications in mineral and food processing but its most exciting potential is as low cost alternative for recovering and purifying high value biosurfactants. These are materials used to stabilise interfaces in living systems, and can be used as antibiotics and antiviral agents. The affinity for biosurfactants to collect at an interface suggests that foam fractionation is an ideal process to concentrate valua ....Transport phenomena in foam fractionation. Foam fractionation has a number of immediate applications in mineral and food processing but its most exciting potential is as low cost alternative for recovering and purifying high value biosurfactants. These are materials used to stabilise interfaces in living systems, and can be used as antibiotics and antiviral agents. The affinity for biosurfactants to collect at an interface suggests that foam fractionation is an ideal process to concentrate valuable products. Clearly, a cost-effective and reliable method of enriching streams of biosurfactants will make their use even more attractive and will engender the development of more novel biomaterials, such as pepfactants.Read moreRead less
New process for mineral flotation. Flotation is an important process in the minerals industry, which underpins Australia's prosperity. Ore is first finely ground and suspended in water. Finer grinds need more energy. The energy used in grinding in Australia is 14 percent of the national electricity consumption. This project will lead to a flotation technology that can successfully process much coarser particles than current devices, with large savings in grinding energy, greenhouse gas emissions ....New process for mineral flotation. Flotation is an important process in the minerals industry, which underpins Australia's prosperity. Ore is first finely ground and suspended in water. Finer grinds need more energy. The energy used in grinding in Australia is 14 percent of the national electricity consumption. This project will lead to a flotation technology that can successfully process much coarser particles than current devices, with large savings in grinding energy, greenhouse gas emissions and water consumption. A case study of a large mine shows that, by increasing the initial grinding size from 100 µm to 500 µm, the new technology could cut grinding energy by 45 percent, the carbon dioxide emissions by the same amount, and the water consumption by a factor of five.Read moreRead less
Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Granular Flow in Hoppers. Handling and processing of bulk solids such as coal and metal ores perform a key function in many industries, and hoppers are the most common devices for storage and discharge of granular materials in this field. The proper design of this equipment is very important. This project provides a systematic investigation of granular flow in hoppers, which is essential in order to avoid structure failures and associated costs. It wil ....Experimental and Numerical Investigation of Granular Flow in Hoppers. Handling and processing of bulk solids such as coal and metal ores perform a key function in many industries, and hoppers are the most common devices for storage and discharge of granular materials in this field. The proper design of this equipment is very important. This project provides a systematic investigation of granular flow in hoppers, which is essential in order to avoid structure failures and associated costs. It will lead to a fundamental understanding of relevant industrial processes, improvement of their efficiency, and hence improved competitiveness of Australian mining/mineral/metallurgical industries.Read moreRead less
Extending the range of the flotation process for particle separation. The minerals industry is a significant contributor to Australia's prosperity. Flotation is an important process for upgrading low-grade ores to high-grade concentrates, and for recovering fine coal from tailings. This project is aimed at solving a long-term problem in current flotation practice, the difficulty in recovering ultrafine and coarse particles, currently lost from production. We will pursue two new discoveries recen ....Extending the range of the flotation process for particle separation. The minerals industry is a significant contributor to Australia's prosperity. Flotation is an important process for upgrading low-grade ores to high-grade concentrates, and for recovering fine coal from tailings. This project is aimed at solving a long-term problem in current flotation practice, the difficulty in recovering ultrafine and coarse particles, currently lost from production. We will pursue two new discoveries recently made by us, relating to the recovery of ultrafines and coarse particles. Benefits to Australia are of the order of $500 million a year in increased exports, education of high-quality graduates, export income from license fees and equipment.Read moreRead less
Mass transport in aqueous foams. Flotation is extremely important in the minerals industry, whose exports are $110.5 billion annually. This project aims to significantly advance understanding of liquid transport in flotation froths, via a quantitative study of foam mass flow mechanisms. If successful, it may lead to modifications to current flotation devices, improving their froth-zone performance and saving money, water, energy and greenhouse gas emissions.