Fracture propagation through fragmented solids. This project investigates fracture propagation in heavily fractured (fragmented) solids such as rock masses, ice covers, fractured coatings, mortar-free structures. It introduces new ideas and methods and has potential to result in a breakthrough science to achieve better understanding of the fundamental processes of fracturing fragmented materials that will advance knowledge and develop technological innovations. A particular outcome of the projec ....Fracture propagation through fragmented solids. This project investigates fracture propagation in heavily fractured (fragmented) solids such as rock masses, ice covers, fractured coatings, mortar-free structures. It introduces new ideas and methods and has potential to result in a breakthrough science to achieve better understanding of the fundamental processes of fracturing fragmented materials that will advance knowledge and develop technological innovations. A particular outcome of the project will be in developing tools for designing new materials with enhanced failure resistance. Another application is in Resource Engineering and Earth and Planetary Science; the project will contribute to understanding of fracture propagation in the Earth's (and generally, planetary) crust.Read moreRead less
Mechanism and Control of In-situ Minerals Extraction. By introducing the theory of coupled hydraulic-mechanical-thermal-chemical processes and the well technology in petroleum engineering into in-situ minerals extraction, mineral values will be extracted directly from ore deposits without the need for mining. This work will have the potential to convert the known sub-economic mineral resources (about 37 million tonnes in Australia alone) into reserves. The five-year project will lead to a comput ....Mechanism and Control of In-situ Minerals Extraction. By introducing the theory of coupled hydraulic-mechanical-thermal-chemical processes and the well technology in petroleum engineering into in-situ minerals extraction, mineral values will be extracted directly from ore deposits without the need for mining. This work will have the potential to convert the known sub-economic mineral resources (about 37 million tonnes in Australia alone) into reserves. The five-year project will lead to a computer simulation assisted in-situ minerals extraction methodology for application in mining industry.Read moreRead less
Continuum Damage Mechanics in Geotechnical Engineering. Mining and oil exploration are amongst the major industries in Australia and must address geotechnical problems in which growth in damage plays a central role. For example, failure of an offshore platform can occur under cyclic environmental loading, due to accumulated damage to the seabed soils. Design tools are therefore needed that incorporate continuum damage mechanics in modelling the response of geomaterials. The project will place Au ....Continuum Damage Mechanics in Geotechnical Engineering. Mining and oil exploration are amongst the major industries in Australia and must address geotechnical problems in which growth in damage plays a central role. For example, failure of an offshore platform can occur under cyclic environmental loading, due to accumulated damage to the seabed soils. Design tools are therefore needed that incorporate continuum damage mechanics in modelling the response of geomaterials. The project will place Australia at the forefront in this field through the development of rigorous yet simple numerical models that achieve this, and thus underpin safe but economic geotechnical engineering solutions in the mineral resource industries.Read moreRead less
An Advanced Numerical Technique for Stability Analysis of Mining Excavations in Jointed/Faulted Rock Masses under High Stresses. The aim of this project is to develop a sophisticated mathematical model and computational technique for the stability analysis of mining excavations in jointed/faulted rock masses. The development involves a novel solution method based on current work in finite element method, boundary element method and large-scale optimisation with partial differential equation cons ....An Advanced Numerical Technique for Stability Analysis of Mining Excavations in Jointed/Faulted Rock Masses under High Stresses. The aim of this project is to develop a sophisticated mathematical model and computational technique for the stability analysis of mining excavations in jointed/faulted rock masses. The development involves a novel solution method based on current work in finite element method, boundary element method and large-scale optimisation with partial differential equation constraints. The work is extremely important to the mining industry in Australia, as the outcomes of the project will provide engineers with an innovative simulation technique to optimise mine design and to predict and control rock failure so as to reduce personnel injuries and death toll in mine sites.Read moreRead less
Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR0354778
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$30,000.00
Summary
Deep Earth Resource Characterisation and Extraction - An Integrated Geoscience Approach. Sustainability, economy and safety in resource recovery require a high level of understanding of the mechanics of geomaterials in their natural conditions and a multidisciplinary approach to the geotechnical issues involved. This initiative aims to bridge gaps between geotechnical disciplines, to combine the testing, analytical skills and experience of the research groups and to incorporate expertise and ide ....Deep Earth Resource Characterisation and Extraction - An Integrated Geoscience Approach. Sustainability, economy and safety in resource recovery require a high level of understanding of the mechanics of geomaterials in their natural conditions and a multidisciplinary approach to the geotechnical issues involved. This initiative aims to bridge gaps between geotechnical disciplines, to combine the testing, analytical skills and experience of the research groups and to incorporate expertise and ideas from the cognate disciplines of geology and geophysics so that innovative engineering practice will develop. This approach should achieve breakthroughs in understanding the behaviour of, and the safe economic extraction from deep resources including minerals, coal, gas drainage, petroleum and geothermal energy.Read moreRead less
Seeing without eyes: the evolution of non-visual photoreceptors in vertebrates. Australia's underwater biodiversity is second to none with endemic species representing the earliest stages in vertebrate evolution, many of them relying heavily on vision for survival. Tracing the evolution of light detection and image formation will provide crucial information about the lifestyles of our vertebrate ancestors, the environmental selection pressures driving speciation and colour communication. Charact ....Seeing without eyes: the evolution of non-visual photoreceptors in vertebrates. Australia's underwater biodiversity is second to none with endemic species representing the earliest stages in vertebrate evolution, many of them relying heavily on vision for survival. Tracing the evolution of light detection and image formation will provide crucial information about the lifestyles of our vertebrate ancestors, the environmental selection pressures driving speciation and colour communication. Characterisation of optimal light environments and extra-ocular light detection will also help protect and manage endemic species in wild and captive environments. Read moreRead less
Better Planning for and Managing Asymmetric Threats to Australia's Security: Applying the Field Anomaly Relaxation (FAR) Systems Thinking Approach. Despite an enviable national security condition, Australia is at risk in an information-abundant world that increasingly spawns asymmetric threats such as information terrorism. What is needed are enhanced strategic and operational structures to improve the nation's security and ensure sound futures planning. This research focuses on applying the Fie ....Better Planning for and Managing Asymmetric Threats to Australia's Security: Applying the Field Anomaly Relaxation (FAR) Systems Thinking Approach. Despite an enviable national security condition, Australia is at risk in an information-abundant world that increasingly spawns asymmetric threats such as information terrorism. What is needed are enhanced strategic and operational structures to improve the nation's security and ensure sound futures planning. This research focuses on applying the Field Anomaly Relaxation (FAR) systems thinking approach to asymmetric information warfare threats to Australia. This is a new approach previously developed by ECU researchers investigating risk and innovation in the armed forces. It will now be extended to improve professional practice and the knowledge and skill base of Australia's information defence practitioners.Read moreRead less
Deep Downunder: designing a deep-sea exploration and discovery capability for Australia. Exploration of the deep-sea with the modern technologies to be developed by Deep-Downunder is a first for Australia. We aim to explore and discover life at depths from 50-3000m off The Great Barrier Reef, around the seamounts of Lord Howe Island and Tasmania and in the deep canyons of WA and SA. We expect to discover new species, hope for a glimpse of giant squid at home and will answer specific questions on ....Deep Downunder: designing a deep-sea exploration and discovery capability for Australia. Exploration of the deep-sea with the modern technologies to be developed by Deep-Downunder is a first for Australia. We aim to explore and discover life at depths from 50-3000m off The Great Barrier Reef, around the seamounts of Lord Howe Island and Tasmania and in the deep canyons of WA and SA. We expect to discover new species, hope for a glimpse of giant squid at home and will answer specific questions on Australia's ocean biology, fisheries and biotechnology never before approachable. To be effective guardians of Australian waters we must learn what lies in the depths we can't see from a boat.Read moreRead less
A Cost-Effective System for Monitoring Lightning Strikes Across Australasia. Lightning causes many major fires in Australia, and rural fire managers would benefit from access to lighting data. Lightning data have been prohibitively expensive because acquiring them requires a dense monitoring network. Low Frequency Electromagnetic Research Ltd (LF*EM) has developed an alternative, cost-effective technology for monitoring lightning based on a sparse network of stations monitoring VLF radiation. We ....A Cost-Effective System for Monitoring Lightning Strikes Across Australasia. Lightning causes many major fires in Australia, and rural fire managers would benefit from access to lighting data. Lightning data have been prohibitively expensive because acquiring them requires a dense monitoring network. Low Frequency Electromagnetic Research Ltd (LF*EM) has developed an alternative, cost-effective technology for monitoring lightning based on a sparse network of stations monitoring VLF radiation. We propose to translate LF*EM's basic science results into a product that can deliver lightning data to fire managers and other users across Oceania.Read moreRead less
ARC Research Network for a Secure Australia. The Research Network for a Secure Australia (RNSA) is a multi-disciplinary collaboration established to strengthen Australia's research capacity for protecting critical infrastructure from natural or human-caused disasters including terrorist acts. The RNSA will facilitate a knowledge-sharing network for research organisations, government and the private sector to develop research tools and methods to mitigate emerging safety and security issues relat ....ARC Research Network for a Secure Australia. The Research Network for a Secure Australia (RNSA) is a multi-disciplinary collaboration established to strengthen Australia's research capacity for protecting critical infrastructure from natural or human-caused disasters including terrorist acts. The RNSA will facilitate a knowledge-sharing network for research organisations, government and the private sector to develop research tools and methods to mitigate emerging safety and security issues relating to critical infrastructure. World-leaders with extensive national and international linkages in relevant scientific, engineering and technological research will lead this collaboration. The RNSA will launch various activities to foster research collaboration and nurture young investigators.Read moreRead less