Behaviour and design of concrete-filled stainless steel tubular columns at ambient and elevated temperatures. Stainless steel is recognised as an advanced construction material for its merits of corrosion resistance, attractive appearance and ease of maintenance. It has enormous potential for use in steel-concrete composite construction, which will provide the structural engineering community with greater choice in terms of aesthetics, constructability, cost and sustainability. The research put ....Behaviour and design of concrete-filled stainless steel tubular columns at ambient and elevated temperatures. Stainless steel is recognised as an advanced construction material for its merits of corrosion resistance, attractive appearance and ease of maintenance. It has enormous potential for use in steel-concrete composite construction, which will provide the structural engineering community with greater choice in terms of aesthetics, constructability, cost and sustainability. The research put forward in this proposal will promote the better use of stainless steel in Australia's building, bridge and offshore infrastructure, thereby providing significant socio-economic benefits to Australia. Moreover it will greatly increase Australia's infrastructure maintenance capability.Read moreRead less
Enhancing our understanding of metallochemistry in neurobiology with modern electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. Many neurological diseases involve protein accumulation that appears causally linked to abnormal levels of metal ions in the brain. This project will use a special technique called electron paramagnetic resonance to uncover how these metals interact with specific proteins at the molecular level and how drug treatments can modify these interactions.
Automated structural analysis of proteins by nuclear magnetic resonance (ASAP-NMR): a leap forward in structural studies of proteins using NMR spectroscopy. Proteins form the machinery that makes life possible, and this research will revolutionise study of their three-dimensional structure by making the process faster and cheaper. This approach will be applied to study proteins isolated from animal venoms in order to identify and develop novel pharmaceuticals and bio-insecticides.
Elucidation of structure-function relationships in biological systems utilising advanced electron spin resonance. The human growth hormone receptor and mammalian P450 enzymes are implicated in numerous human disorders and the key to treatment is the rational design and delivery of drugs. This project will require a comprehensive understanding of the biological structure-function relationship which we will acquire using high-resolution electron spin resonance spectroscopy.
The role of structure in the formation and properties of glasses. This project aims to investigate the role of local atomic structure in the formation and mechanical properties of glasses by applying newly developed structure-determination methods. This project expects to establish why glasses form and how their structure gives rise to their undesirable, and limiting, brittle mechanical failure. The anticipated outcomes of this project are better ways to measure the atomic structure of disorder ....The role of structure in the formation and properties of glasses. This project aims to investigate the role of local atomic structure in the formation and mechanical properties of glasses by applying newly developed structure-determination methods. This project expects to establish why glasses form and how their structure gives rise to their undesirable, and limiting, brittle mechanical failure. The anticipated outcomes of this project are better ways to measure the atomic structure of disordered materials and the generation of more clear-cut structure-property relationships for glasses. This will provide significant benefit to Australian industries by enabling the design of better glass-forming systems and stronger, tougher glasses.Read moreRead less
Harmonic analysis in rough contexts. Harmonic analysis is a set of mathematical techniques aimed at decomposing complex signals into simple pieces in a way that is reminiscent of the decomposition of sounds into harmonics. It is highly efficient in analysing signals in homogeneous media such as wave propagation through the air that underpins wireless communication technology. However, wave propagation through inhomogeneous media, such as the human body in medical imaging or the Earth in geophysi ....Harmonic analysis in rough contexts. Harmonic analysis is a set of mathematical techniques aimed at decomposing complex signals into simple pieces in a way that is reminiscent of the decomposition of sounds into harmonics. It is highly efficient in analysing signals in homogeneous media such as wave propagation through the air that underpins wireless communication technology. However, wave propagation through inhomogeneous media, such as the human body in medical imaging or the Earth in geophysical imaging, is much harder to model. Phenomena with random components, as considered in finance for instance, are also problematic. This project is an important part of an intense international research effort to develop harmonic analysis in such rough contexts.Read moreRead less
Nanostructured Upconvertors for Advanced Solar Energy Harvesting. The efficiency of many solar energy conversion processes, such as solar photovoltaic and solar hydrogen, can be improved by management of the solar spectrum. One photon management strategy is up-conversion, whereby two lower energy, unusable photons are conjoined to bring about a higher energy photon. Photochemical up-conversion, where light harvesting and energy-pooling is performed in organic molecules, has been rapidly advanced ....Nanostructured Upconvertors for Advanced Solar Energy Harvesting. The efficiency of many solar energy conversion processes, such as solar photovoltaic and solar hydrogen, can be improved by management of the solar spectrum. One photon management strategy is up-conversion, whereby two lower energy, unusable photons are conjoined to bring about a higher energy photon. Photochemical up-conversion, where light harvesting and energy-pooling is performed in organic molecules, has been rapidly advanced in recent years, and promises to deliver the efficiencies required to find real-world application. This project brings together laser spectroscopy, organic and materials chemistry and nanotechnology to realise efficient up-convertors which will be applied to solar cells and solar fuels.Read moreRead less
Structural insights of virus-glycan interactions. Influenza virus, rotavirus and Dengue virus infect the body by adhering to certain types of sugars on the human cell surface. This project will develop a detailed structural understanding of how viruses interact with those sugar molecules for the development of novel drugs and vaccines to combat influenza and rotaviral infections.
Structure-property relationships in compositionally complex alloys. Physical metallurgy has entered a new era of compositionally complex metallic alloys that show unprecedented combinations of mechanical properties enabling the design of more energy-efficient and economically viable applications. This project aims to generate new knowledge about how locally-resolved, nano-scale atomic arrangements control macroscopic deformation behavior in these materials and develop a fundamental understanding ....Structure-property relationships in compositionally complex alloys. Physical metallurgy has entered a new era of compositionally complex metallic alloys that show unprecedented combinations of mechanical properties enabling the design of more energy-efficient and economically viable applications. This project aims to generate new knowledge about how locally-resolved, nano-scale atomic arrangements control macroscopic deformation behavior in these materials and develop a fundamental understanding of their processing-structure-fracture toughness relationships. Expected outcomes include an enhanced capacity to design materials with damage-tolerant properties superior to existing alloys from bottom up, thereby allowing for commercial benefits throughout transportation, defense, and biomedical device sectors.Read moreRead less
Artificial photosynthesis for solar fuel production. We aim to realise an artificial system that converts solar energy to hydrogen (artificial photosynthesis). The resulting device will be able to 'split' water into oxygen and hydrogen, whereas hydrogen can be further converted into electricity or heat (combustion).