Experimental and theoretical analysis of gas leakage rate through composite landfill covers due to geomembrane defects. The Australian Greenhouse Office indicated that waste emissions contributed 3.1% of net national emissions in 2001 with methane emissions from landfills accounting for 92% of total methane emissions from the waste sector, despite an increase in methane recovered from solid waste. It pointed out that the recent changes in waste management practices did not have an impact on repo ....Experimental and theoretical analysis of gas leakage rate through composite landfill covers due to geomembrane defects. The Australian Greenhouse Office indicated that waste emissions contributed 3.1% of net national emissions in 2001 with methane emissions from landfills accounting for 92% of total methane emissions from the waste sector, despite an increase in methane recovered from solid waste. It pointed out that the recent changes in waste management practices did not have an impact on reported methane emission levels and there is need to undertake a range of activities to reduce emissions from waste management activities. This project will address specifically the above issue by providing a new method of analysis to predict gas leakage rate and allow engineers to propose solutions to mitigate gas escapes. Read moreRead less
Improved Landfill Barrier Design for Changing Climates. The proposed research project will develop advanced methods and guidelines for practising engineers for improved engineering and design of waste containment barrier systems, leading to improved protection of groundwater resources and the environment and sustainable development of the country. The project will contribute to the priority area of building an environmentally sustainable Australia with a specific focus on water as a critical re ....Improved Landfill Barrier Design for Changing Climates. The proposed research project will develop advanced methods and guidelines for practising engineers for improved engineering and design of waste containment barrier systems, leading to improved protection of groundwater resources and the environment and sustainable development of the country. The project will contribute to the priority area of building an environmentally sustainable Australia with a specific focus on water as a critical resource.Read moreRead less
An experimentally-validated thermo-hydro-mechanical theory for waste containment lining systems. Geosynthetic clay liners are engineering systems that are widely used around the world to protect groundwater from municipal, industrial and mining contaminants. The project will conduct cutting-edge experimental, theoretical and computational research leading to a major improvement in their short-term and long-term performances.
Erosion of embankment dams and dam spillways. In excess of $250M is spent annually to maintain, upgrade, improve safety and monitor performance of Australian dams. Improved methods for assessing both spillway and internal erosion, the cause of 50 per cent of embankment dam failures and incidents requiring repairs, will be developed, maximising dam safety and minimising maintenance expenditure.
Floating Forest – a breakwater for protecting the Australian coastline. This project aims to develop structural, materials and foundation solutions for a large floating forest that will act as a mega breakwater and windbreaker to protect the Australian coastline from strong waves and winds caused by climate change. This requires the evaluation of structural and environmental loads, concepts and optimal structural solutions, design, materials and foundation. The newly developed floating structure ....Floating Forest – a breakwater for protecting the Australian coastline. This project aims to develop structural, materials and foundation solutions for a large floating forest that will act as a mega breakwater and windbreaker to protect the Australian coastline from strong waves and winds caused by climate change. This requires the evaluation of structural and environmental loads, concepts and optimal structural solutions, design, materials and foundation. The newly developed floating structure will lead to future construction applications on the Australian harsh sea conditions that call for stringent requirements on infrastructures.Read moreRead less
Thermo-hydro-mechanics of geosynthetic liners: from processes to prediction. This project aims to resolve the complex interactions affecting the long-term performance of geosynthetic liner systems under harsh environmental conditions for preventing groundwater contamination. Failures of waste containment lining systems result in millions of dollars remedial costs and high societal costs. The project expects to underpin the development of an experimentally-validated theory to predict the performa ....Thermo-hydro-mechanics of geosynthetic liners: from processes to prediction. This project aims to resolve the complex interactions affecting the long-term performance of geosynthetic liner systems under harsh environmental conditions for preventing groundwater contamination. Failures of waste containment lining systems result in millions of dollars remedial costs and high societal costs. The project expects to underpin the development of an experimentally-validated theory to predict the performance of geosynthetic liner systems at high temperatures. Expected outcomes of the project are the establishment of a new conceptual framework and providing new guidelines for the design of geosynthetic liner systems for environmental protection. These outcomes are expected to benefit the waste and mining industries by informing planning, decision makers, consultants and construction engineers with science-based information on new lining systems for landfills and mining and industry waste containment.Read moreRead less
Hydraulic durability of geosynthetic clay liners in steep slope sealing systems for landfills constructed in former quarries. Old quarries are increasingly used for the construction of landfills. The engineering challenge in constructing such landfills includes developing an appropriate lining system for the often steep sided quarry walls. The use of GCLs as part of the lining system can be a viable and a cost effective solution. However, this solution suffers from the lack of meaningful data on ....Hydraulic durability of geosynthetic clay liners in steep slope sealing systems for landfills constructed in former quarries. Old quarries are increasingly used for the construction of landfills. The engineering challenge in constructing such landfills includes developing an appropriate lining system for the often steep sided quarry walls. The use of GCLs as part of the lining system can be a viable and a cost effective solution. However, this solution suffers from the lack of meaningful data on their hydraulic durability in this particular situation. This proposal presents an original approach to investigate this durability under operating conditions typically encountered in steep sided quarries. This work is expected to provide benefits to waste containment efforts at national and international level.Read moreRead less
Settlement of municipal solid waste. The mechanisms governing municipal solid waste settlement are many and complex. There is a clear need to adopt a methodology to forecast the landfilling space based on high quality full scale data where composition, method of placement, compactive effort employed during placement of the waste, thickness of daily cover, stage filling and local moisture content are all recorded. This is the only sound scientific way forward to develop a predictive model that ....Settlement of municipal solid waste. The mechanisms governing municipal solid waste settlement are many and complex. There is a clear need to adopt a methodology to forecast the landfilling space based on high quality full scale data where composition, method of placement, compactive effort employed during placement of the waste, thickness of daily cover, stage filling and local moisture content are all recorded. This is the only sound scientific way forward to develop a predictive model that links settlement to these parameters. This project will contribute to developing such a methodology for the benefit of the Australian waste containment industry.Read moreRead less
Minimisation of damage to residential structures due to ground movement. In Australia some 150,000 new houses are built every year with a total value of approximately $40 billion; making it one of the most significant industries affecting consumers and industries. With a quadrupling of the cost of building new houses in the last 20 years, an increase in the levels of expectations of owners, a high rate of reported damage in new and existing houses, and predications of worsening conditions under ....Minimisation of damage to residential structures due to ground movement. In Australia some 150,000 new houses are built every year with a total value of approximately $40 billion; making it one of the most significant industries affecting consumers and industries. With a quadrupling of the cost of building new houses in the last 20 years, an increase in the levels of expectations of owners, a high rate of reported damage in new and existing houses, and predications of worsening conditions under climate change scenarios; there is an urgent need to evaluate the causes of damage. The outcomes from this project will assist in minimising damage to houses from ground movement and in adopting new performance-based design methods for new homes to better match owner expectations. This will lead to cost effective and innovative solutions to meet adverse conditions.Read moreRead less
Functionally graded modelling of geopolymer and Portland cement concretes. This project aims to investigate why geopolymer concretes crack less than the Portland cement concretes. Carbon emissions from Portland cement is second only to fossil fuels. Geopolymer may emit less carbon dioxide than Portland cement concrete because it bleeds less and has higher creep. The project will test this hypothesis on geopolymer and Portland cement concretes, and emulate its findings in all types of concretes. ....Functionally graded modelling of geopolymer and Portland cement concretes. This project aims to investigate why geopolymer concretes crack less than the Portland cement concretes. Carbon emissions from Portland cement is second only to fossil fuels. Geopolymer may emit less carbon dioxide than Portland cement concrete because it bleeds less and has higher creep. The project will test this hypothesis on geopolymer and Portland cement concretes, and emulate its findings in all types of concretes. The project intends to create a specific market for geopolymer by developing a crack-free pavement and floors technology, while understanding cracking in concrete will reduce cracking issues.Read moreRead less