Special Research Initiatives - Grant ID: SR180100030
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,103,883.00
Summary
Development of electrochemically activated sorbents for PFAS defluorination. This project aims to develop a new treatment technology to completely defluorinate per- and poly-fluroalkyl substances (PFAS) and to treat significant water quantities. The majority of existing water treatment technologies are unable to remove PFAS to the desired extent, are prohibitively expensive or are only useful for a very limited lifespan. This project is expected to develop a new treatment technology with the abi ....Development of electrochemically activated sorbents for PFAS defluorination. This project aims to develop a new treatment technology to completely defluorinate per- and poly-fluroalkyl substances (PFAS) and to treat significant water quantities. The majority of existing water treatment technologies are unable to remove PFAS to the desired extent, are prohibitively expensive or are only useful for a very limited lifespan. This project is expected to develop a new treatment technology with the ability to completely defluorinate PFAS, treat significant water quantities and help address many of the pressing concerns facing water treatment operators. This technology is also scalable, and can potentially be used to treat significant quantities of contaminated water.Read moreRead less
Tracking flood waters over Australia using space gravity data. This project aims to assess the utility of near-real-time data from the currently operating space gravity satellite mission to quantify and track flood waters in Australia. Through analysis of the satellite data and fusion of observed signals with rainfall, river flows and conventional hydrological modelling, it expects to create new knowledge of soil moisture and movement of flood waters. Expected outcomes include a capability to im ....Tracking flood waters over Australia using space gravity data. This project aims to assess the utility of near-real-time data from the currently operating space gravity satellite mission to quantify and track flood waters in Australia. Through analysis of the satellite data and fusion of observed signals with rainfall, river flows and conventional hydrological modelling, it expects to create new knowledge of soil moisture and movement of flood waters. Expected outcomes include a capability to improve hydrological models by including the information of water signals obtained from the near-real-time observations. This should provide significant benefits such as more accurate land saturation maps and better predictions of runoff and flood risk.Read moreRead less
Polymer nanofibres for advanced paint formulations. Surface coatings seal, strengthen, and decorate the majority of surfaces in the building industry—a $72 billion market. Despite their importance, advances in paint science have only been incremental and a truly robust and water resistant paint coating has yet to be developed. Dulux Group Australia and the University of Sydney will use polymer nanofibres as additives to radically redesign architectural coatings, with the goal to drastically incr ....Polymer nanofibres for advanced paint formulations. Surface coatings seal, strengthen, and decorate the majority of surfaces in the building industry—a $72 billion market. Despite their importance, advances in paint science have only been incremental and a truly robust and water resistant paint coating has yet to be developed. Dulux Group Australia and the University of Sydney will use polymer nanofibres as additives to radically redesign architectural coatings, with the goal to drastically increase their durability. The partnership will bring a technological breakthrough that will lead to less disruption for the environment, and important economic and technological benefits for Australia.Read moreRead less
Natural flood management: Nature-based flood mitigation in the 21st Century. The 2021-22 floods in Eastern Australia revealed the vulnerability of rivers to climate extremes. To prepare for a future with more intense floods, we must integrate nature-based flood mitigation strategies into river management. This project aims to address the potential of using Natural Flood Management (NFM) as a 21st Century flood mitigation solution. NFM uses natural processes to slow floods, reduce erosion, and mi ....Natural flood management: Nature-based flood mitigation in the 21st Century. The 2021-22 floods in Eastern Australia revealed the vulnerability of rivers to climate extremes. To prepare for a future with more intense floods, we must integrate nature-based flood mitigation strategies into river management. This project aims to address the potential of using Natural Flood Management (NFM) as a 21st Century flood mitigation solution. NFM uses natural processes to slow floods, reduce erosion, and minimise flood risk. Collaborating with NSW government partners the project expects to deliver scientific evidence for NFM and solutions for implementation in river rehabilitation, planning and community capacity building. The results will impact society's ability to adapt, reduce economic costs, and benefit the environment.Read moreRead less
Electron transport catalysis in organohalide pollutant respiration. This project aims to understand the link between substrate specificity and gene sequence of dehalogenating enzymes in organohalide respiring bacteria (ORB) and the mechanism by which electrons are transferred to dehalogenating enzymes through protein-protein interactions. Organohalides were present in Earth's early history and now pollute the environment globally. Organohalide respiring bacteria (ORB) can degrade these pollutant ....Electron transport catalysis in organohalide pollutant respiration. This project aims to understand the link between substrate specificity and gene sequence of dehalogenating enzymes in organohalide respiring bacteria (ORB) and the mechanism by which electrons are transferred to dehalogenating enzymes through protein-protein interactions. Organohalides were present in Earth's early history and now pollute the environment globally. Organohalide respiring bacteria (ORB) can degrade these pollutants by using them as terminal electron acceptors in their respiratory metabolism. This represents one of the most ancient respiratory systems on Earth about which little is known. This project will add to our fundamental knowledge of microbial evolution and metabolic systems, and pave the way for next generation organohalide remediation technologies.Read moreRead less
Improving water quality modelling by better understanding solute transport. Poor stream water quality is a critical problem in Australia and globally. Stream water quality depends directly on pathways and time taken for water to transport pollutants through catchments. Predicting these pathways is highly challenging and currently requires specialised data. This project aims to better model the movement of water from rainfall to streams, enable greatly improved use of water quality data routinely ....Improving water quality modelling by better understanding solute transport. Poor stream water quality is a critical problem in Australia and globally. Stream water quality depends directly on pathways and time taken for water to transport pollutants through catchments. Predicting these pathways is highly challenging and currently requires specialised data. This project aims to better model the movement of water from rainfall to streams, enable greatly improved use of water quality data routinely collected in Australia's catchments and thereby better predict water quality behaviour. Proposed field studies aim to support this development. The outcomes sought are improved planning and management of water quality in our rivers, lakes and estuaries, improved health of these water bodies and improved water supplies.Read moreRead less
Biogeochemical remediation approaches for PFAS contaminated environments. This project aims to identify and harvest microorganisms capable of directly or indirectly affecting PFOS or PFOA degradation in the environment. Fluorinated compounds such as PFOS and PFOA in firefighting foams are contaminants of concern now routinely detected in contaminated groundwater and soil globally. Understanding the role of microorganisms, and the biogeochemical processes they perform in relation to fluorinated c ....Biogeochemical remediation approaches for PFAS contaminated environments. This project aims to identify and harvest microorganisms capable of directly or indirectly affecting PFOS or PFOA degradation in the environment. Fluorinated compounds such as PFOS and PFOA in firefighting foams are contaminants of concern now routinely detected in contaminated groundwater and soil globally. Understanding the role of microorganisms, and the biogeochemical processes they perform in relation to fluorinated compounds, will inform handling of contaminated sites and lead to development of cost effective and sustainable remediation technologies. Read moreRead less
Early Career Industry Fellowships - Grant ID: IE230100245
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$460,237.00
Summary
Transforming wastewater services in regional Australia. Wastewater treatment in regional Australia faces challenges of odour control, poor pollutant and pathogen removal, and greenhouse gas emissions. This project aims to innovatively use iron salts to realise highly efficient wastewater treatment in regional areas. With Partner, Western Australia Water Corporation, this project expects to leverage a recent breakthrough discovery on iron chemistry to co-develop and field test a solar system that ....Transforming wastewater services in regional Australia. Wastewater treatment in regional Australia faces challenges of odour control, poor pollutant and pathogen removal, and greenhouse gas emissions. This project aims to innovatively use iron salts to realise highly efficient wastewater treatment in regional areas. With Partner, Western Australia Water Corporation, this project expects to leverage a recent breakthrough discovery on iron chemistry to co-develop and field test a solar system that doses wastewater with iron, to overcome four challenges and a supply chain issue simultaneously. Expected outcomes include industry capacity to adopt and commercialise a novel technology with important global relevance. Outcomes should reduce the inequity of wastewater services in regional Australia.Read moreRead less
Antimony geochemistry and Earth's dynamic near-surface iron cycle. This project aims to advance our fundamental understanding on the geochemistry of antimony – a critical mineral resource and environmental pollutant of growing concern. This will be achieved by pioneering an innovative combination of advanced synchrotron-based tools and sophisticated isotopic approaches to unravel important interactions between antimony geochemistry and the iron cycle in soils, sediments and aquatic systems. The ....Antimony geochemistry and Earth's dynamic near-surface iron cycle. This project aims to advance our fundamental understanding on the geochemistry of antimony – a critical mineral resource and environmental pollutant of growing concern. This will be achieved by pioneering an innovative combination of advanced synchrotron-based tools and sophisticated isotopic approaches to unravel important interactions between antimony geochemistry and the iron cycle in soils, sediments and aquatic systems. The expected outcomes will provide novel insights into refined strategies to manipulate coupling between antimony mobility and iron cycling for improved rehabilitation of degraded landscapes, safe disposal of hazardous wastes and sustainable exploitation of Australia’s valuable antimony reserves.Read moreRead less
Working with recovery: Future proofing our rivers against floods & droughts. It's happening! Rivers in coastal NSW are showing signs of recovery. 25 years of improved management has increased the structural and vegetative roughness of river channels. Getting the ‘fibre’ back into rivers has impacted most positively on flood hydrology, but less so on riparian vegetation quality. This project aims to understand how river recovery occurs, its impact on flood flows and test new techniques to improve ....Working with recovery: Future proofing our rivers against floods & droughts. It's happening! Rivers in coastal NSW are showing signs of recovery. 25 years of improved management has increased the structural and vegetative roughness of river channels. Getting the ‘fibre’ back into rivers has impacted most positively on flood hydrology, but less so on riparian vegetation quality. This project aims to understand how river recovery occurs, its impact on flood flows and test new techniques to improve vegetation quality. It will investigate where corridors of recovery are, where to prioritise rehabilitation and the cost:benefit of working with recovery. This will benefit public policy, improve flood and drought risk analysis, and change decision-making and rehabilitation practice - essentially future proofing our rivers.Read moreRead less