Pre-blast screening of improvised explosive devices - a National counter-terrorism initiative. The proposed research is focused on the specific needs of Australian counter-terrorism interests, including those of border protection, the customs service, transport authorities, forensic laboratories, etc. The support of this proposal will ensure that Australia, and its States and Territories are protected against terrorist threats. The support provided by the collaborating organisations from the var ....Pre-blast screening of improvised explosive devices - a National counter-terrorism initiative. The proposed research is focused on the specific needs of Australian counter-terrorism interests, including those of border protection, the customs service, transport authorities, forensic laboratories, etc. The support of this proposal will ensure that Australia, and its States and Territories are protected against terrorist threats. The support provided by the collaborating organisations from the various Federal and State police and forensic agencies, and the customs service, etc, highlights the importance of this project to the nation. Finally, a PhD student and a research assistant will be involved with the project and will gain specialised skills positioning them to make strong contributions to Australia's counter-terrorism measures.Read moreRead less
Molecular Fingerprinting: Forensic Spectroscopy of Trace Gases. Safeguarding Australia from terrorism, crime and invasive diseases is essential to securing our national infrastructure. This project will develop national capabilities in anticipating and responding to critical threats to society. The scientific instrumentation developed from this effort will enhance Australia's potential aid for early detection of explosive and chemical weaponry and also in the analysis of crime scenes. This rese ....Molecular Fingerprinting: Forensic Spectroscopy of Trace Gases. Safeguarding Australia from terrorism, crime and invasive diseases is essential to securing our national infrastructure. This project will develop national capabilities in anticipating and responding to critical threats to society. The scientific instrumentation developed from this effort will enhance Australia's potential aid for early detection of explosive and chemical weaponry and also in the analysis of crime scenes. This research will significantly improve our abilities to maintain the operational advantage of Australia's security agencies through superior capabilities in threat detection.Read moreRead less
Whistling While They Work: Enhancing the Theory and Practice of Internal Witness Management in Public Sector Organisations. The protection of whistleblowers and other internal witnesses to corruption, misconduct and maladministration is a great unsolved problem in public sector governance. Involving 11 integrity institutions, this first national study of internal witness management will describe and compare organisational experience under varying public interest disclosure regimes across the Au ....Whistling While They Work: Enhancing the Theory and Practice of Internal Witness Management in Public Sector Organisations. The protection of whistleblowers and other internal witnesses to corruption, misconduct and maladministration is a great unsolved problem in public sector governance. Involving 11 integrity institutions, this first national study of internal witness management will describe and compare organisational experience under varying public interest disclosure regimes across the Australian public sector. By identifying and promoting current best practice in workplace responses to public interest whistleblowing, the project will use the experience and perceptions of internal witnesses and first- and second-level managers to identify more routine strategies for preventing, reducing and addressing reprisals and other whistleblowing-related conflicts.Read moreRead less
Near Infrared (IR) Laser Dyes for Latent Fingermark Detection. This project will enable Australian law enforcement agencies to recover latent fingerprints from difficult surfaces through the use of near infrared dyes. The project will allow the recovery of fingerprints from a scene which would otherwise be lost to an investigation. We will provide new fingerprint development techniques and imaging methods to law enforcement agencies, enhancing their ability to identify a perpetrator and thereb ....Near Infrared (IR) Laser Dyes for Latent Fingermark Detection. This project will enable Australian law enforcement agencies to recover latent fingerprints from difficult surfaces through the use of near infrared dyes. The project will allow the recovery of fingerprints from a scene which would otherwise be lost to an investigation. We will provide new fingerprint development techniques and imaging methods to law enforcement agencies, enhancing their ability to identify a perpetrator and thereby reducing crime rates.Read moreRead less
Hydrogen generation by subsurface iron mineral transformations. Aim
The aim of this project is to elucidate key factors responsible for natural hydrogen generation in Australian subsurface environments.
Significance
Large amounts of this valuable resource are produced naturally with estimates of production rates of this “gold” hydrogen at least 100 times the annual demand for this critical resource.
Expected Outcomes
Based on improved understanding of the source of natural hydrogen, predictive ....Hydrogen generation by subsurface iron mineral transformations. Aim
The aim of this project is to elucidate key factors responsible for natural hydrogen generation in Australian subsurface environments.
Significance
Large amounts of this valuable resource are produced naturally with estimates of production rates of this “gold” hydrogen at least 100 times the annual demand for this critical resource.
Expected Outcomes
Based on improved understanding of the source of natural hydrogen, predictive tools will be developed that will assist in assessing the viability in Australia of hydrogen exploration and engineered retrieval.
Benefits
Ready access to naturally produced hydrogen could enable Australia to replace hydrogen that is currently generated via the use of unabated hydrocarbons.Read moreRead less
Silent witness: New analytical approaches to advance and enhance the forensic value of human hair. The Australian criminal justice system is under ever-increasing scrutiny with recent threats to national security. Courtroom evidence is expected to carry an objective indication of its value, largely as a result of the success and widespread application of DNA evidence. This is problematic for conventional human hair evidence which has traditionally been presented as the expert opinion of a hair e ....Silent witness: New analytical approaches to advance and enhance the forensic value of human hair. The Australian criminal justice system is under ever-increasing scrutiny with recent threats to national security. Courtroom evidence is expected to carry an objective indication of its value, largely as a result of the success and widespread application of DNA evidence. This is problematic for conventional human hair evidence which has traditionally been presented as the expert opinion of a hair examiner who has conducted a microscopic comparison. A recent wrongful conviction in Canada and an associated Royal Commission has highlighted these problems. A comprehensive new hair examination sequence employing objective techniques will increase the forensic value of human hair, one of the most common evidence types found at crime scenes.Read moreRead less
The New Policing: Partnerships, Resources and Modes of Governance. This project promises to establish Australia as a world leader in policing research and policing practice. Following an exhaustive review of current approaches in Victoria and internationally, and backed up by needs assessments, a series of pilot programs at selected sites will allow the development of innovative models for securing and allocating resources that support innovative policing partnerships involving government, the b ....The New Policing: Partnerships, Resources and Modes of Governance. This project promises to establish Australia as a world leader in policing research and policing practice. Following an exhaustive review of current approaches in Victoria and internationally, and backed up by needs assessments, a series of pilot programs at selected sites will allow the development of innovative models for securing and allocating resources that support innovative policing partnerships involving government, the business sector, non-governmental agencies, community-based organizations and citizens. The collaboration with Victoria Police will provide a model for police-university partnership across Australia and the pilot programs developed will be replicable widely in Australia and overseas.Read moreRead less
Policing for the 21st Century. This project will design and evaluate an innovative policing strategy for the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The project team, including members of the Australian Federal Police, will conduct an exhaustive inventory of mechanisms for informing and consulting the public, and for empowering communities in the co-production of public safety. It will design a framework using those mechanisms best suited to the ACT, and integrate these with existing strategies of ....Policing for the 21st Century. This project will design and evaluate an innovative policing strategy for the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). The project team, including members of the Australian Federal Police, will conduct an exhaustive inventory of mechanisms for informing and consulting the public, and for empowering communities in the co-production of public safety. It will design a framework using those mechanisms best suited to the ACT, and integrate these with existing strategies of restorative justice and intelligence-driven policing. The project will evaluate the impact of the new policing strategies on citizen satisfaction with police performance, perceptions of public safety, and measures of crime.Read moreRead less
Scalable high-density hydrogen storage by nano-bubbles in layered materials. Stable and low-cost hydrogen storage and transportation are cornerstones of a global hydrogen economy. This project aims to advance a novel hydrogen storage technology based on highly pressurised nano-bubbles in layered materials. The project expects to expand our fundamental knowledge of the interactions between hydrogen and layered materials. Expected outcomes include a hydrogen storage technology that exhibits a rema ....Scalable high-density hydrogen storage by nano-bubbles in layered materials. Stable and low-cost hydrogen storage and transportation are cornerstones of a global hydrogen economy. This project aims to advance a novel hydrogen storage technology based on highly pressurised nano-bubbles in layered materials. The project expects to expand our fundamental knowledge of the interactions between hydrogen and layered materials. Expected outcomes include a hydrogen storage technology that exhibits a remarkable energy density, high stability and low cost. This should provide significant benefits, such as improving the capacity and robustness of low-cost hydrogen storage and transportation, reducing energy costs and making hydrogen energy a more accessible and sustainable clean energy source for Australia.Read moreRead less
Towards a superannuation system fit for the future. Towards a superannuation system fit for the future. This project aims to develop a stochastic superannuation model and propose alternative post retirement solutions, using data-led understanding of savings habits. Funding for the increasing cost of the growing older population will, if not modelled, forecast and managed adequately, swamp all other welfare and state funded costs. To manage older age costs adequately, governments need to encourag ....Towards a superannuation system fit for the future. Towards a superannuation system fit for the future. This project aims to develop a stochastic superannuation model and propose alternative post retirement solutions, using data-led understanding of savings habits. Funding for the increasing cost of the growing older population will, if not modelled, forecast and managed adequately, swamp all other welfare and state funded costs. To manage older age costs adequately, governments need to encourage people to save and provide ways people can save—but need to better understand how people save money for their old age. This research is expected to enable the “superannuation change“ necessary for the superannuation system to remain sustainable and fund retirees to live well.Read moreRead less