New biocatalysts for selective chemical oxidations under extreme conditions. This project will identify and design new enzyme biocatalysts which function under extreme conditions such as elevated temperature and high concentrations of peroxides. These enzymes will be sourced from microorganisms which are located in extreme biological environments e.g. hot springs (the so-called extremophiles). The expected outcome of this project are the identification of robust enzymes which can catalyse select ....New biocatalysts for selective chemical oxidations under extreme conditions. This project will identify and design new enzyme biocatalysts which function under extreme conditions such as elevated temperature and high concentrations of peroxides. These enzymes will be sourced from microorganisms which are located in extreme biological environments e.g. hot springs (the so-called extremophiles). The expected outcome of this project are the identification of robust enzymes which can catalyse selective oxidation reactions in complex organic molecules, such as steroids. The new biocatalysts developed in this project will have significant benefit in the development of new routes to access bespoke molecules of value in fine chemical synthesis and drug development.
Read moreRead less
Design and Fabrication of 2D Hybrid Materials. There are >300 2D materials like graphene with potentially exotic and useful electrooptic and superconductor properties that will drive novel industrial applications. This project aims to use advanced computational and experimental techniques to discover and fabricate new 2D hybrid materials built from different layers of 2D materials. This approach is essential as the number of possible hybrids is huge (millions) and current processes to identify a ....Design and Fabrication of 2D Hybrid Materials. There are >300 2D materials like graphene with potentially exotic and useful electrooptic and superconductor properties that will drive novel industrial applications. This project aims to use advanced computational and experimental techniques to discover and fabricate new 2D hybrid materials built from different layers of 2D materials. This approach is essential as the number of possible hybrids is huge (millions) and current processes to identify and build 2D hybrids are technically challenging and slow. Expected outcomes include defining a new paradigm for efficient identification and synthesis of 2D hybrids with exotic, bespoke properties. The generation of a large database of materials for researchers/industry would be of wide benefit.Read moreRead less
Mitigating Vehicular Crashes into Masonry Buildings . Around 2000 vehicles crash annually into school, home and shop buildings located at close proximity to heavily trafficked roads in Australia and cause significant distress to occupants of building and vehicle. The impacted walls mostly of masonry, suffer severe damage often with vehicle intrusion into the building. Despite this, the intrusion mechanism is not understood and no effective mitigation strategies exist at present. This project wi ....Mitigating Vehicular Crashes into Masonry Buildings . Around 2000 vehicles crash annually into school, home and shop buildings located at close proximity to heavily trafficked roads in Australia and cause significant distress to occupants of building and vehicle. The impacted walls mostly of masonry, suffer severe damage often with vehicle intrusion into the building. Despite this, the intrusion mechanism is not understood and no effective mitigation strategies exist at present. This project will uncover the mechanics of vehicle intrusions through masonry walls and develop novel mitigation strategies using high energy absorbing auxetic composite render and innovative vibration isolation at wall edges. These innovations will lead to new theories that can save lives in the building and vehicle.Read moreRead less
Development of an Adjustable Porphyrin-based Molecular Platform for Nanotechnology Applications. Nanotechnology, the art of molecular control, is often heralded as the next industrial revolution. For this to be realised, the construction of useful devices will require precise control at the molecular level. Our control is realised through a process called self-assembly which means that the once the components of the device are correctly designed, the device will simply be able to put itself tog ....Development of an Adjustable Porphyrin-based Molecular Platform for Nanotechnology Applications. Nanotechnology, the art of molecular control, is often heralded as the next industrial revolution. For this to be realised, the construction of useful devices will require precise control at the molecular level. Our control is realised through a process called self-assembly which means that the once the components of the device are correctly designed, the device will simply be able to put itself together. This research will use nature's light harvesting elements, namely porphyrins, and our ability to precisely control their position with respect to each other to build new, more efficient solar cells.Read moreRead less
Mycobacterial Cholesterol Degradation: A Unique Metabolic Weakness? This project aims to understand the use of the steroid cholesterol as a source of essential metabolic building blocks by bacteria. Cholesterol utilisation is a key feature of many bacterial pathogens which have evolved to survive in niche environments. By understanding the initial step in cholesterol degradation and the bioinorganic and bioorganic chemistry of the metalloenzymes that catalyse it, this work aims to develop strate ....Mycobacterial Cholesterol Degradation: A Unique Metabolic Weakness? This project aims to understand the use of the steroid cholesterol as a source of essential metabolic building blocks by bacteria. Cholesterol utilisation is a key feature of many bacterial pathogens which have evolved to survive in niche environments. By understanding the initial step in cholesterol degradation and the bioinorganic and bioorganic chemistry of the metalloenzymes that catalyse it, this work aims to develop strategies to block this activity. This will turn a key strength of these bacteria into a potent weakness and will generate the proof of principle and knowledge required for the future development of effective strategies to combat pathogenic bacteria.Read moreRead less
Designing and Building Novel 2D Hybrid Materials. The aim of this project is to use computational and experimental techniques to discover and fabricate new hybrid materials. Single-layer (2-D) materials like graphene have gained prominence and new ones are constantly being reported. Hybrid materials built from combinations of 2-D layers are appearing but progress is slow. This project is designed to increase the rate of discovery and fabrication of hybrids. The outcome would be an extensive data ....Designing and Building Novel 2D Hybrid Materials. The aim of this project is to use computational and experimental techniques to discover and fabricate new hybrid materials. Single-layer (2-D) materials like graphene have gained prominence and new ones are constantly being reported. Hybrid materials built from combinations of 2-D layers are appearing but progress is slow. This project is designed to increase the rate of discovery and fabrication of hybrids. The outcome would be an extensive database of materials properties, clear direction on how to control material properties, and manufacturing protocols to build a wide range of new materials.Read moreRead less
Multifunctional Structural Panels for Next-generation Infrastructure. This project aims to develop a multifunctional prefabricated structural panel for current and future infrastructure applications for both land and offshore environments. Prefabrication enables enhanced product control as well as the ability to rapidly construct whole structures or their components. The panels utilise an inner lightweight foam and fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP) composite core with strong outer panels made from ....Multifunctional Structural Panels for Next-generation Infrastructure. This project aims to develop a multifunctional prefabricated structural panel for current and future infrastructure applications for both land and offshore environments. Prefabrication enables enhanced product control as well as the ability to rapidly construct whole structures or their components. The panels utilise an inner lightweight foam and fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP) composite core with strong outer panels made from FRP sheets and high-strength concrete. The expected outcomes include experimental and numerical validation of the system, that will give designers and asset owners the confidence to adopt this new panel. The panel system presents an upward step change in construction technology and built infrastructure performance.Read moreRead less
Creating pH-sensitive self-healing concrete using sludge waste for sewers. In Australia, our 117,000 km of concrete sewer pipes are currently internally corroding at a depth rate of 1-3 mm per annum. The repair of deteriorated concrete is costly and often short-lived. Based on an advanced composite technology, this project will develop a pH-sensitive self-healing concrete that can repair itself without human intervention at the early stage of corrosion. Sludge waste from drinking water treatment ....Creating pH-sensitive self-healing concrete using sludge waste for sewers. In Australia, our 117,000 km of concrete sewer pipes are currently internally corroding at a depth rate of 1-3 mm per annum. The repair of deteriorated concrete is costly and often short-lived. Based on an advanced composite technology, this project will develop a pH-sensitive self-healing concrete that can repair itself without human intervention at the early stage of corrosion. Sludge waste from drinking water treatment will be utilised as a healing agent to mitigate the corrosion. Combined experiments and molecular dynamics simulation will uncover all aspects of the healing process to enable the practical application of this technology. The findings will extend the lifetime of concrete structures and promote a circular economy.Read moreRead less
Human Leukocyte Antigen-A and -B regulation of Natural Killer cell function. The aim of this project is to determine how genetic variation in the genes encoding cell surface receptors expressed by innate lymphocytes and the molecules they recognise diversifies their capacity to sense and respond to infection. This knowledge is critical for understanding why there are intrinsic differences between individuals with respect to their capacity to respond to different types of infection and will ultim ....Human Leukocyte Antigen-A and -B regulation of Natural Killer cell function. The aim of this project is to determine how genetic variation in the genes encoding cell surface receptors expressed by innate lymphocytes and the molecules they recognise diversifies their capacity to sense and respond to infection. This knowledge is critical for understanding why there are intrinsic differences between individuals with respect to their capacity to respond to different types of infection and will ultimately inform our capacity to better deploy personalised medicines.Read moreRead less
Tailoring nanocomposites with controllable structural-property relationship. This project aims to process and fabricate graphene-based materials into useful devices. Understanding nanocomposite structure-property relationships are crucial to rapidly develop functional devices. This project will use graphene in the form of nanocomposites and precisely construct them in devices via three-dimensional printing. This will be achieved through the polymer chemistry and interfacial engineering of graphe ....Tailoring nanocomposites with controllable structural-property relationship. This project aims to process and fabricate graphene-based materials into useful devices. Understanding nanocomposite structure-property relationships are crucial to rapidly develop functional devices. This project will use graphene in the form of nanocomposites and precisely construct them in devices via three-dimensional printing. This will be achieved through the polymer chemistry and interfacial engineering of graphene for enhanced dispersibility and self-assembly in the targeted polymer matrix, thus affording maximum synergistic properties. The project expects to develop three-dimensional printing techniques and control and understand the effect of micro-patterning and nano-structuring on printed graphene nanocomposites.Read moreRead less