Industrial Transformation Training Centres - Grant ID: IC150100026
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$3,732,019.00
Summary
ARC Training Centre for Fruit Fly Biosecurity Innovation. ARC Training Centre for Fruit Fly Biosecurity Innovation. This training centre aims to transform the way that horticulture industries combat invasive fruit flies that threaten Australian crops, which are valued at $9 billion per year. For generations, Australia has relied on insecticides to protect crops. Owing to environmental damage and concerns for consumer health, the most effective insecticides have recently been banned for use on ma ....ARC Training Centre for Fruit Fly Biosecurity Innovation. ARC Training Centre for Fruit Fly Biosecurity Innovation. This training centre aims to transform the way that horticulture industries combat invasive fruit flies that threaten Australian crops, which are valued at $9 billion per year. For generations, Australia has relied on insecticides to protect crops. Owing to environmental damage and concerns for consumer health, the most effective insecticides have recently been banned for use on many crops leaving no equivalent replacements. Horticulture industries are unprepared for this change, and are in desperate need of new sustainable practices to combat fruit flies. New researchers who are trained in both scientific approach and practical application will be well placed to deliver these new tools.Read moreRead less
CropVision: A next-generation system for predicting crop production. Accurate and timely production estimates are essential to Australia’s grain producers and industry to better deal with down side risk caused by climate extremes and market volatilities. However, current systems for predicting crop production are inaccurate and unreliable. This project aims to develop a next generation system for advance and high accuracy predictions for yield, crop type and area at field scale. This will be don ....CropVision: A next-generation system for predicting crop production. Accurate and timely production estimates are essential to Australia’s grain producers and industry to better deal with down side risk caused by climate extremes and market volatilities. However, current systems for predicting crop production are inaccurate and unreliable. This project aims to develop a next generation system for advance and high accuracy predictions for yield, crop type and area at field scale. This will be done by integrating the state of the art global climate models (GCM), biophysical crop modelling, and high-resolution earth observation technologies. This project will deliver a next generation crop prediction system to predict crop production at field scale for improved decision-making and enhancing resilience.Read moreRead less
General systems modelling of hydrogen production network in Australia. The project aims at further developing a general framework for systems modelling and applying the framework to investigate the feasibility and sustainability of large-scale hydrogen production in Australia. Two pathways proposed in this project are to be examined: 1) hybrid plants sourcing hydrogen from fossil fuels and solar thermal energy and 2) hydrogen production network producing hydrogen from 100% renewable energy. The ....General systems modelling of hydrogen production network in Australia. The project aims at further developing a general framework for systems modelling and applying the framework to investigate the feasibility and sustainability of large-scale hydrogen production in Australia. Two pathways proposed in this project are to be examined: 1) hybrid plants sourcing hydrogen from fossil fuels and solar thermal energy and 2) hydrogen production network producing hydrogen from 100% renewable energy. The project involves building systems models and using these models to determine optimal operational parameters and conditions with the goal of maintaining export of high-end energy resources to Japan and other countries as well as using hydrogen domestically while minimising the environment effects of hydrogen production.Read moreRead less
Novel Propagation and Conservation Technologies for Australian Macadamia. Australia’s $850M macadamia industry is a booming contributor to regional growth with a strong domestic market niche. However the industry is threatened by a severe plant supply bottleneck. Also wild germplasm for breeding is threatened with extinction. This project aims to innovate world-first tissue culture technologies for macadamia propagation and secure cryo-storage of germplasm, aided by cutting edge genomics. Expect ....Novel Propagation and Conservation Technologies for Australian Macadamia. Australia’s $850M macadamia industry is a booming contributor to regional growth with a strong domestic market niche. However the industry is threatened by a severe plant supply bottleneck. Also wild germplasm for breeding is threatened with extinction. This project aims to innovate world-first tissue culture technologies for macadamia propagation and secure cryo-storage of germplasm, aided by cutting edge genomics. Expected outcomes of these new, cross-disciplinary techniques are on-demand supply of superior trees to growers and the protection of invaluable germplasm. This should provide significant benefits for industry growth, food security and conservation de-risked from global change.Read moreRead less
How to make antibiotics in pig feed redundant, naturally. Antimicrobial resistance has become a major issue in human and veterinary medicine being partially caused by the use of in-feed antimicrobials in farm animals. This project aims to completely eliminate antimicrobials from piglet feeds. The key differential approach is based on helping the physiology of the animal rather than testing interventions against bacteria. The project will consist of developing a novel nutritional strategy of natu ....How to make antibiotics in pig feed redundant, naturally. Antimicrobial resistance has become a major issue in human and veterinary medicine being partially caused by the use of in-feed antimicrobials in farm animals. This project aims to completely eliminate antimicrobials from piglet feeds. The key differential approach is based on helping the physiology of the animal rather than testing interventions against bacteria. The project will consist of developing a novel nutritional strategy of naturally (through maternal conditioning) boosting the natural appetite and the capacity to digest in piglets early in life. The anticipated outcome is that the new peri-natal program will result in minimal bacterial proliferation and diarrhoea thus, negating the need for in-feed antimicrobials in piglets. Read moreRead less
Transforming residues from meat processing into engineered soil amendments. The aim of this project is to transform organic residues from meat processing into agricultural soil amendments that actively improve nutrient retention and reduce nitrous oxide (a potent greenhouse gas) emissions. Current disposal and treatment options for meat processing residues are economically and environmentally unsustainable. In this research, a modified hydrothermal carbonisation process will be developed to tran ....Transforming residues from meat processing into engineered soil amendments. The aim of this project is to transform organic residues from meat processing into agricultural soil amendments that actively improve nutrient retention and reduce nitrous oxide (a potent greenhouse gas) emissions. Current disposal and treatment options for meat processing residues are economically and environmentally unsustainable. In this research, a modified hydrothermal carbonisation process will be developed to transform organic residues into novel hydrochars. The influence of these hydrochars on soil nutrient retention and nitrous oxide production will then be assessed using stable isotope tracing, genetic characterisation, and numerical modeling. The project will reduce the economic and environmental costs of organic waste disposal.Read moreRead less
Targeting TGF-beta proteins to control animal reproduction. This project aims to develop a suite of novel biologics to control fertility in female mammals. This project expects to demonstrate that targeting a single class of ovarian proteins will enhance or inhibit egg production. The expected outcomes of this project are to (1) transform the breeding of livestock animals, which should provide significant benefits to the agricultural industry, through increased herd/flock sizes, and (2) provide ....Targeting TGF-beta proteins to control animal reproduction. This project aims to develop a suite of novel biologics to control fertility in female mammals. This project expects to demonstrate that targeting a single class of ovarian proteins will enhance or inhibit egg production. The expected outcomes of this project are to (1) transform the breeding of livestock animals, which should provide significant benefits to the agricultural industry, through increased herd/flock sizes, and (2) provide a non-surgical method of contraception in companion/feral species, which should address the large unmet need for fertility control in these animals.
Read moreRead less
Maximising pineapple production for Australian farmers using genome editing. This project addresses the single biggest issue affecting the viability of pineapple farming in Australia and internationally: premature flowering leading to supply collapse. We aim to develop CRISPR technology to breed new pineapple varieties using non-GM approaches. Expected outcomes include the production of pineapples with resistance to premature flowering, as well as the technologies to deliver additional improveme ....Maximising pineapple production for Australian farmers using genome editing. This project addresses the single biggest issue affecting the viability of pineapple farming in Australia and internationally: premature flowering leading to supply collapse. We aim to develop CRISPR technology to breed new pineapple varieties using non-GM approaches. Expected outcomes include the production of pineapples with resistance to premature flowering, as well as the technologies to deliver additional improvements in the future. The new varieties will benefit farmers through increased production, maximising supply capability for a rapidly growing internal demand. This will benefit Australian pineapple producers through higher profitability in existing markets, as well as enabling expansion into international and future markets.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE230101712
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$394,818.00
Summary
All-perovskite tandem solar cells for efficient green hydrogen production. This project aims to design functional materials for the development high-performance and durable solar energy conversion devices, which enable efficient green solar hydrogen production to reduce fossil fuel consumption and alleviate environmental burden. The expected outcomes include advanced semiconducting materials, proof-of-concept solar-driven water electrolytic system with a high solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficie ....All-perovskite tandem solar cells for efficient green hydrogen production. This project aims to design functional materials for the development high-performance and durable solar energy conversion devices, which enable efficient green solar hydrogen production to reduce fossil fuel consumption and alleviate environmental burden. The expected outcomes include advanced semiconducting materials, proof-of-concept solar-driven water electrolytic system with a high solar-to-hydrogen conversion efficiency, and cutting-edge knowledge in material science, physical chemistry, and nanotechnology. The success of this project expects to facilitate pilot-scale green hydrogen industry and thus position Australia at the frontier of advanced materials, clean energy, and renewable hydrogen supply technologies.Read moreRead less
Breeding super black soldier flies at scale for sustainable food production. This project aims to address the current challenges impeding the industrial scale-up of Australian Black Soldier Fly (BSF) farming across diverse feed waste substrates by generating critical on-farm knowledge. This project expects to generate fundamental knowledge in commercial BSF breeding designs whilst also developing and testing new animal evaluation technologies (ie, genetic & spectroscopy) through interdisciplinar ....Breeding super black soldier flies at scale for sustainable food production. This project aims to address the current challenges impeding the industrial scale-up of Australian Black Soldier Fly (BSF) farming across diverse feed waste substrates by generating critical on-farm knowledge. This project expects to generate fundamental knowledge in commercial BSF breeding designs whilst also developing and testing new animal evaluation technologies (ie, genetic & spectroscopy) through interdisciplinary approaches that will accelerate industry productivity. Expected outcomes of this project include the long-term growth and competitive advantage of the Australian insect farming industry, as well as promoting the benefits of a circular economy through bioconversion of organic waste into commercially viable products.Read moreRead less