Advanced Materials from Automated Synthesis of Sequence-Defined Polymers. The project aims to develop industrially scalable and environmentally friendly methods for synthesis of sequence-defined multiblock copolymers (polymer chains containing segments of different polymer types) using automated synthesis methods. The materials to be explored will be largely based on renewable biomass-derived monomeric building blocks. Such polymers are able to undergo microphase separation into spatially period ....Advanced Materials from Automated Synthesis of Sequence-Defined Polymers. The project aims to develop industrially scalable and environmentally friendly methods for synthesis of sequence-defined multiblock copolymers (polymer chains containing segments of different polymer types) using automated synthesis methods. The materials to be explored will be largely based on renewable biomass-derived monomeric building blocks. Such polymers are able to undergo microphase separation into spatially periodic compositional patterns, thereby providing access to a vast range of nano-engineered materials. This would enable design and synthesis of new advanced materials, making use of renewable resources and supporting the circular economy, with diverse potential applications ranging from nanomedicine to materials science.Read moreRead less
New Biomimetic Nanostructured Coatings for Hip Implants. Over 30,000 hip implants operations take place in Australia each year, due largely to a significant and growing proportion of the population suffering from conditions such as osteoporosis. The coating on the implants, required to cause good bone ingrowth and adhesion between bone and implant, is far from perfect. We propose to spray coatings which mimic the structure of bone, and thus offer improved mechanical properties such as appropriat ....New Biomimetic Nanostructured Coatings for Hip Implants. Over 30,000 hip implants operations take place in Australia each year, due largely to a significant and growing proportion of the population suffering from conditions such as osteoporosis. The coating on the implants, required to cause good bone ingrowth and adhesion between bone and implant, is far from perfect. We propose to spray coatings which mimic the structure of bone, and thus offer improved mechanical properties such as appropriate rigidity and toughness, and stimulate better bone growth at the interface. In this way the implant should be much longer lasting and the need for undesirable revision surgery reduced. The processing technique proposed could also be a useful platform coating technology in a number of other industries.Read moreRead less
The effect of de-gassing on the dispersion and stability of emulsions and colloidal solutions. Although it is widely accepted that oil and water will not mix, the reverse has recently been found to occur (by the applicant) under the unusual conditions of complete de-gassing. This discovery has opened up new areas for investigation and for the development of new processes and products. Hydrocarbon oils and hydrophobic powders can now be readily dispersed in water without the use of additives. Ho ....The effect of de-gassing on the dispersion and stability of emulsions and colloidal solutions. Although it is widely accepted that oil and water will not mix, the reverse has recently been found to occur (by the applicant) under the unusual conditions of complete de-gassing. This discovery has opened up new areas for investigation and for the development of new processes and products. Hydrocarbon oils and hydrophobic powders can now be readily dispersed in water without the use of additives. However, the mechanisms involved have not yet been elucidated and it is the aim of this project to understand the process and develop potential commercial applications.Read moreRead less
Pro-Fluorescent Aryl Nitroxides: New Probes for Polymer Lifetime and Kinetics Research. Internal aryl rings present in novel probes developed for this project impart fluorescence which is efficiently and internally quenched by the presence of a paramagnetic nitroxide group. Scavenging of radicals by the nitroxide however "switches on" the fluorescence and this enables powerful new fluorescence-based detection levels for the technique of nitroxide free radical scavenging. Such sensitivity is a ....Pro-Fluorescent Aryl Nitroxides: New Probes for Polymer Lifetime and Kinetics Research. Internal aryl rings present in novel probes developed for this project impart fluorescence which is efficiently and internally quenched by the presence of a paramagnetic nitroxide group. Scavenging of radicals by the nitroxide however "switches on" the fluorescence and this enables powerful new fluorescence-based detection levels for the technique of nitroxide free radical scavenging. Such sensitivity is applicable to polymerization kinetics studies, as well as providing new means for the determination of materials lifetimes. The development of pro-fluorescent markers as indicators for polymer degradation would be a significant outcome for materials where component failure has a major negative impact.Read moreRead less
Flow process and visible-light driven reactions for polymer manufacturing. This project aims to develop rapid, scalable light-driven continuous flow processing techniques that allow the production of value-added synthetic polymers that cannot be achieved by existing technologies. The project will take advantage of the spatio-temporal control of the light mediated polymerisation with flow process to achieve control over the primary structure, the sequential arrangement of monomer units in a polym ....Flow process and visible-light driven reactions for polymer manufacturing. This project aims to develop rapid, scalable light-driven continuous flow processing techniques that allow the production of value-added synthetic polymers that cannot be achieved by existing technologies. The project will take advantage of the spatio-temporal control of the light mediated polymerisation with flow process to achieve control over the primary structure, the sequential arrangement of monomer units in a polymer chain and the molecular weight distribution. The project will result in the preparation of functional polymers containing a specific arrangement of monomers in the polymer chain and a precise distribution of polymer chains. The development of such process will result in the development of advanced materials.Read moreRead less
Salt, Sugar and Sequence: The Effect of Molecular Forces on Polymer Conformation. We propose a combined experimental and theoretical investigation of single polymer chains, exploring how their shape or conformation, and stretching characteristics are affected by specific molecular interactions. Our tools in this study are both experimental and theoretical: optical tweezers, atomic force microscopy, as well as new theories in colloid science, and computer simulation. In particular, we will exa ....Salt, Sugar and Sequence: The Effect of Molecular Forces on Polymer Conformation. We propose a combined experimental and theoretical investigation of single polymer chains, exploring how their shape or conformation, and stretching characteristics are affected by specific molecular interactions. Our tools in this study are both experimental and theoretical: optical tweezers, atomic force microscopy, as well as new theories in colloid science, and computer simulation. In particular, we will examine the effect of different salts and sugars upon the properties of polymers such as DNA, and how monomer sequence can lead to dramatically different structures in solution which in turn will lead to novel materials.Read moreRead less
Baseline-free Methods for Early Damage Diagnosis using Nonlinear Ultrasound. To address the significant limitation of existing non-destructive evaluation techniques in detecting and characterising early damage, this project aims to discover the physical nature of self-generated nonlinear waves by structural damage and to explore its potential for an entirely new class of non-destructive evaluation and structural health monitoring techniques. Major applications are expected to include a baseline- ....Baseline-free Methods for Early Damage Diagnosis using Nonlinear Ultrasound. To address the significant limitation of existing non-destructive evaluation techniques in detecting and characterising early damage, this project aims to discover the physical nature of self-generated nonlinear waves by structural damage and to explore its potential for an entirely new class of non-destructive evaluation and structural health monitoring techniques. Major applications are expected to include a baseline-free structural health monitoring technique capable of detecting and quantifying barely-visible impact damage in advanced composite materials, non-destructive evaluation of structures made by additive manufacturing, and detection of hard-to-inspect locations in unitised structures.Read moreRead less
Manufacturing Nanostructured Polymer Thin Films using Visible Light. This research aims the development of selective photochemical tools driven by different colours of light for the fabrication of nanostructured polymer brush thin films. By using different wavelengths to selectively activate specific chemical reactions, this will enable multiple reactions to be performed simultaneously, significantly streamlining fabrication. Additionally, the increased selectivity offers pathways to more sophis ....Manufacturing Nanostructured Polymer Thin Films using Visible Light. This research aims the development of selective photochemical tools driven by different colours of light for the fabrication of nanostructured polymer brush thin films. By using different wavelengths to selectively activate specific chemical reactions, this will enable multiple reactions to be performed simultaneously, significantly streamlining fabrication. Additionally, the increased selectivity offers pathways to more sophisticated nanoarchitectures in comparison to existing methods. This research will lead to the fabrication of 3D polymer brush architectures with unparalleled precision, which will be of high scientific and industrial value for a diverse range of applications, such as optoelectronics, nanoactuation, and sensing.Read moreRead less