Surface engineering of oriented nano-layers for performance control. This research project will deliver knowledge on how to graft oriented, self assembled films from a surface, develop structure-property relationships at a nano-scale, develop a means to control these properties and develop characterization techniques at nano-scales. This research project, if successful, will deliver the ability to tailor the properties of a surface in a manner and over a range of properties that is not even cont ....Surface engineering of oriented nano-layers for performance control. This research project will deliver knowledge on how to graft oriented, self assembled films from a surface, develop structure-property relationships at a nano-scale, develop a means to control these properties and develop characterization techniques at nano-scales. This research project, if successful, will deliver the ability to tailor the properties of a surface in a manner and over a range of properties that is not even contemplated today.
In addition to the scientific benefits, there are also immediate commercial applications in Australia and worldwide for ophthalmic products (e.g. anti-fog and easy to clean lenses), if the balance of properties can be obtained.
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Modifying and Improving Porous Sol-Gel Materials for Water Purification. XeroCoat is commercialising nanotechnology research out of UQ's Physics department. XeroCoat has received much local and international interest in its signature product 'XeroCoat'. The company is rapidly expanding and has established new research facilities with production facilities to be set-up. This will result in high technology, employment growth for Australia. Links with Flinders could see expansion into SA. The c ....Modifying and Improving Porous Sol-Gel Materials for Water Purification. XeroCoat is commercialising nanotechnology research out of UQ's Physics department. XeroCoat has received much local and international interest in its signature product 'XeroCoat'. The company is rapidly expanding and has established new research facilities with production facilities to be set-up. This will result in high technology, employment growth for Australia. Links with Flinders could see expansion into SA. The company operates in 'Sol-Gel' nanotechnology, which has huge global, academic and commercial interest. However in Australia this technology has only been serviced by Flinders, ANSTO and ANSTO's spin-out company Ceramisphere. The project will help to build a new Australian high tech industry in sol-gel nanotechnology.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0560981
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$160,940.00
Summary
Confronting the Challenges in Modern Spectroscopy of Polymers. Polymers and nanocomposites are increasingly being used in new, high value applications as diverse as medicine, structural engineering, optics and electronics. In order to control and understand polymer performance, a detailed knowledge of the chemical structure at all stages in their lifecycle is required - in the liquid, rubber and solid states and during degradation. This application seeks to establish a coordinated Polymer Spectr ....Confronting the Challenges in Modern Spectroscopy of Polymers. Polymers and nanocomposites are increasingly being used in new, high value applications as diverse as medicine, structural engineering, optics and electronics. In order to control and understand polymer performance, a detailed knowledge of the chemical structure at all stages in their lifecycle is required - in the liquid, rubber and solid states and during degradation. This application seeks to establish a coordinated Polymer Spectroscopy Network using new forms of infrared and NMR spectroscopy to probe samples (usually of an non-planar geometry) in a range of configurations. These will be used simultaneously with other techniques such as rheology or thermogravimetry, and will produce capabilities unique in Australia.Read moreRead less
Modelling rheology and flow parameters of injection moulding of liquid crystal polymer materials. Australian company Moldflow is a world leader in the modelling and simulation of injection moulding plastic parts, yet its sophisticated software is inadequate for liquid crystalline polymers. This research aims to redress this by appropriate rheological study of these materials, incorporating suitable rheological model in the simulation and by experimental validation. The benefit will be new know ....Modelling rheology and flow parameters of injection moulding of liquid crystal polymer materials. Australian company Moldflow is a world leader in the modelling and simulation of injection moulding plastic parts, yet its sophisticated software is inadequate for liquid crystalline polymers. This research aims to redress this by appropriate rheological study of these materials, incorporating suitable rheological model in the simulation and by experimental validation. The benefit will be new knowledge of the injection moulding process, enhancement of Australia's scientific reputation in this field, extension of the Moldflow software to a wider polymer range, new markets nationally and internationally, competitive edge of the improved software and contribution to national economy due to new business.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0211003
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$125,000.00
Summary
A Facility for Probing Nanostructure in Polymers. The properties of a polymer are only partly determined by its molecular structure. It is now clear that the organization of molecular structure and phase morphology on a nano-scale has an equally important role in determining material behaviour. Increasingly this can be manipulated by judicious choice of formulation and processing variables. The polymer Nano-Structure Facility will bring together Australia's principal polymer experts in this a ....A Facility for Probing Nanostructure in Polymers. The properties of a polymer are only partly determined by its molecular structure. It is now clear that the organization of molecular structure and phase morphology on a nano-scale has an equally important role in determining material behaviour. Increasingly this can be manipulated by judicious choice of formulation and processing variables. The polymer Nano-Structure Facility will bring together Australia's principal polymer experts in this area of structure-property relations and provide them with shared access to the appropriate, modern analytical tools required to probe the nano-structure of such new materials with enhanced properties.Read moreRead less
Characterization of star nanogels by advanced transmission electron microscopy. This project will provide an excellent opportunity to combine research expertise from The Polymer Science Group at The University of Melbourne and The Polymer Morphology Group at North Carolina State University (NCSU) to develop and characterize novel star nanogels with unique macromolecular architectures. The success of the project will reveal the absolute structures of these molecules and the proposed studies are b ....Characterization of star nanogels by advanced transmission electron microscopy. This project will provide an excellent opportunity to combine research expertise from The Polymer Science Group at The University of Melbourne and The Polymer Morphology Group at North Carolina State University (NCSU) to develop and characterize novel star nanogels with unique macromolecular architectures. The success of the project will reveal the absolute structures of these molecules and the proposed studies are both intellectually challenging in the cutting-edge of leading research in the field and important to provide vital information for the design of new structures of these new materials for their application in many areas, such as drug delivery, new membrane formation, advance high density memory chips and possibly the next generation of automotive coating.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0346891
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$200,000.00
Summary
Characterization facilities for new macromolecular architectures. The proposed facility is essential for characterization of the new polymeric architectures such as copolymers for tissue engineering, nanogels for automotive paints and biodegradable polymeric packaging. The facilities include characterizations of (1) molar mass and molecular sizes of novel polymer architectures (MU); (2) viscoelastic mechanical properties of tensile, bending, bulk and flow (RMIT); and (3) thermal properties of c ....Characterization facilities for new macromolecular architectures. The proposed facility is essential for characterization of the new polymeric architectures such as copolymers for tissue engineering, nanogels for automotive paints and biodegradable polymeric packaging. The facilities include characterizations of (1) molar mass and molecular sizes of novel polymer architectures (MU); (2) viscoelastic mechanical properties of tensile, bending, bulk and flow (RMIT); and (3) thermal properties of compositions (CSIRO). These new polymeric architectures cannot be sufficiently characterized by existing facilities. The success of the project will significantly enhance the new macromolecular research and facilitate collaborations. This project also falls within the nano and biomaterials of the Designated Priority area of Research.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0347346
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$210,000.00
Summary
Electrochemical Atomic Force Microscope and Nano-Manipulation Facility. This new Facility will add the nano-dimension to the excellent electrochemical mapping facility established at the University of Wollongong over the past 2 years. The instrument we propose to install will allow us to probe electrochemical events and, in particular, the influence of these events on the structure of customised materials at the nano level. This new capability will impact on our research into the development o ....Electrochemical Atomic Force Microscope and Nano-Manipulation Facility. This new Facility will add the nano-dimension to the excellent electrochemical mapping facility established at the University of Wollongong over the past 2 years. The instrument we propose to install will allow us to probe electrochemical events and, in particular, the influence of these events on the structure of customised materials at the nano level. This new capability will impact on our research into the development of efficient artificial muscles, biosensors, corrosion protection coatings, polymeric photovoltaics and new surfaces for mammalian cell culturing.Read moreRead less
Low Fouling Hollow Fibre Membranes. The aim is to obtain hydrophilic water-filtration membranes. This is important as making the filtrations more hydrophilic reduces fouling. We expect the outcome to be a new type of water filtration membrane with improved properties over existing commercial membranes.
New Fluorescent Probes to Elucidate Complex Oxidation Mechanisms. From medicine to manufacturing, polymers ("plastics") are a major component in the materials we use in our modern society, yet the manner by which they degrade and break down is often not well understood. Controlling the lifetime of polymers by either accelerating degradation on the one hand or preventing, or limiting, it on the other, will have significant benefits to society but this can only be achieved by reaching a thorough u ....New Fluorescent Probes to Elucidate Complex Oxidation Mechanisms. From medicine to manufacturing, polymers ("plastics") are a major component in the materials we use in our modern society, yet the manner by which they degrade and break down is often not well understood. Controlling the lifetime of polymers by either accelerating degradation on the one hand or preventing, or limiting, it on the other, will have significant benefits to society but this can only be achieved by reaching a thorough understanding of the degradation process. This project makes use of a unique, Australian-designed additive which stabilises polymeric materials, provides a marker for degradation levels and also provides information about the nature of the degradation processes occurring within polymers.Read moreRead less