Cause and effect: new mechanisms of particles formation in thunderstorms. This project aims to identify meaningful and specific indicators for predicting particle formation and alteration during thunderstorms. How thunderstorms develop is well-understood. However, identifying meaningful and specific indicators for predicting particle alteration during a thunderstorm is still not clear. This project will practically contribute to the evidence of the impact of air particulates, thereby having dire ....Cause and effect: new mechanisms of particles formation in thunderstorms. This project aims to identify meaningful and specific indicators for predicting particle formation and alteration during thunderstorms. How thunderstorms develop is well-understood. However, identifying meaningful and specific indicators for predicting particle alteration during a thunderstorm is still not clear. This project will practically contribute to the evidence of the impact of air particulates, thereby having direct implications for meteorological, and air pollution policy in Australia and worldwide. This project will allow researchers to understand the impact of these factors on the escalation of the causative effects, and to find a way to prevent unnecessary fatal outcomes.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE160100667
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$340,000.00
Summary
Removing a Key Barrier for Autotrophic Nitrogen Removal from Wastewater. This project aims to develop new technology to enable stable autotrophic nitrogen removal from domestic wastewater. The technology selectively suppresses the growth of nitrite-oxidising bacteria using a by-product of wastewater treatment – free nitrous acid. Maximising energy recovery from wastewater and providing greenhouse gas neutral water services have been the targets of water utilities in Australia and worldwide. The ....Removing a Key Barrier for Autotrophic Nitrogen Removal from Wastewater. This project aims to develop new technology to enable stable autotrophic nitrogen removal from domestic wastewater. The technology selectively suppresses the growth of nitrite-oxidising bacteria using a by-product of wastewater treatment – free nitrous acid. Maximising energy recovery from wastewater and providing greenhouse gas neutral water services have been the targets of water utilities in Australia and worldwide. The project will potentially change wastewater management and bring economic, environmental and social benefits to water utilities.Read moreRead less
Sustainable wastewater management. This project aims to extract high-value liquid products (medium-chain fatty acids) from wastewater with minimised greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption, in addition to clean water. Traditional wastewater treatment removes organic carbon and nutrients by using vast amounts of energy and releasing greenhouse gas. However, wastewater is a substantial but largely untapped renewable resource. The intended outcome is to transform wastewater from a troubleso ....Sustainable wastewater management. This project aims to extract high-value liquid products (medium-chain fatty acids) from wastewater with minimised greenhouse gas emissions and energy consumption, in addition to clean water. Traditional wastewater treatment removes organic carbon and nutrients by using vast amounts of energy and releasing greenhouse gas. However, wastewater is a substantial but largely untapped renewable resource. The intended outcome is to transform wastewater from a troublesome pollutant to a valuable resource and reduce carbon footprints.Read moreRead less
Inorganic membrane percrystallisation in hydrometallurgy. This project aims is to develop the scientific and engineering basis for a new Australian inorganic membrane technology for the crystallisation of metal compounds. Inorganic membrane percrystallisation is a recent breakthrough promising improved productivity, energy savings and the ability to tailor particle properties. This project will develop a mechanistic model encompassing solution transport phenomena, crystal nucleation-growth-agglo ....Inorganic membrane percrystallisation in hydrometallurgy. This project aims is to develop the scientific and engineering basis for a new Australian inorganic membrane technology for the crystallisation of metal compounds. Inorganic membrane percrystallisation is a recent breakthrough promising improved productivity, energy savings and the ability to tailor particle properties. This project will develop a mechanistic model encompassing solution transport phenomena, crystal nucleation-growth-agglomeration and engineering process parameters affecting single and binary salt systems. This model will provide a basis for technology development benefiting Australia, such as the improvement of the production of nickel sulphate for the growing battery materials market.Read moreRead less
Interface structures mediating load transfer between soft and hard tissues. This project aims to develop a novel technology platform to mediate load transfer between synthetic and biological materials with dissimilar mechanical properties, creating an effective interface mechanism. It will generate new knowledge in materials engineering by combining interdisciplinary expertise and state-of-the-art technologies in computational modelling, biomaterials, and additive manufacturing. Expected outcome ....Interface structures mediating load transfer between soft and hard tissues. This project aims to develop a novel technology platform to mediate load transfer between synthetic and biological materials with dissimilar mechanical properties, creating an effective interface mechanism. It will generate new knowledge in materials engineering by combining interdisciplinary expertise and state-of-the-art technologies in computational modelling, biomaterials, and additive manufacturing. Expected outcomes are high-tech ceramic structures optimized to interface effectively between synthetic soft tissues and natural hard tissues. This could ultimately benefit Australian industry engaged in developing next-generation synthetic orthopaedic solutions, providing a significant competitive advantage in an expanding global market.Read moreRead less
Novel concepts for bioelectrochemical generation of renewable fuels and chemicals from wastewater. Global warming and the diminishing fossil fuel resources are posing an ever increasing threat to our societies and economies. This project aims to develop novel and highly innovative bioelectrochemical processes for the production of valuable fuels and chemicals from wastewater, which is a largely untapped renewable resource.
Unravelling the dynamics of nitrous oxide production in wastewater systems. This project aims to unravel the dynamics of Nitrous oxide (N2O) production in wastewater treatment systems by combining continuous stable isotope tracing techniques with innovative experimental design and sophisticated mathematical modelling. Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a potent greenhouse gas and a major contributor to the carbon footprint of wastewater treatment systems. Yet we have a poor understanding of how it is produc ....Unravelling the dynamics of nitrous oxide production in wastewater systems. This project aims to unravel the dynamics of Nitrous oxide (N2O) production in wastewater treatment systems by combining continuous stable isotope tracing techniques with innovative experimental design and sophisticated mathematical modelling. Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a potent greenhouse gas and a major contributor to the carbon footprint of wastewater treatment systems. Yet we have a poor understanding of how it is produced in such systems. The outcomes of this project will benefit Australian water utilities by helping them to reduce N2O emissions.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE150100393
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$335,000.00
Summary
Reducing nitrous oxide emission in wastewater systems by pathway regulation. Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a potent greenhouse gas that can be produced during biological nitrogen removal in wastewater treatment systems. N2O emissions primarily occur in aerated zones due to active striping, and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) are the major contributors to N2O production under such conditions. The project aims to carry out a systematic study on N2O production by AOB in mixed culture wastewater treatment ....Reducing nitrous oxide emission in wastewater systems by pathway regulation. Nitrous oxide (N2O) is a potent greenhouse gas that can be produced during biological nitrogen removal in wastewater treatment systems. N2O emissions primarily occur in aerated zones due to active striping, and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) are the major contributors to N2O production under such conditions. The project aims to carry out a systematic study on N2O production by AOB in mixed culture wastewater treatment systems. The project aims to advance the fundamental knowledge on N2O production pathways by AOB under different operational conditions, and deliver a modelling tool for reliably estimating N2O emission from wastewater treatment systems as well as strategies to reduce the emissions.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE130100451
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$375,000.00
Summary
Novel biotreatment for micropollutant removal from contaminated water. Micropollutants in contaminated water create major environmental challenges to water resource management in Australia. This project will use a novel biological process to remove micropollutants from water resources sustainably and ensure clean drinking water for Australians.
Pattern recognition in animals and machines: using machine learning to reveal cues central to the identification of individuals. The power to recognise individuals of a species requires significant image and pattern discrimination abilities. Yet, individual recognition has been found in a huge range of species, from humans to invertebrates demonstrating its importance for social interactions. The project will investigate this ability in lower vertebrates (fish, with no visual cortex), so as to u ....Pattern recognition in animals and machines: using machine learning to reveal cues central to the identification of individuals. The power to recognise individuals of a species requires significant image and pattern discrimination abilities. Yet, individual recognition has been found in a huge range of species, from humans to invertebrates demonstrating its importance for social interactions. The project will investigate this ability in lower vertebrates (fish, with no visual cortex), so as to understand the underlying mechanisms of pattern discrimination. The project will also test how robust this ability is during changes in water quality (elevated carbon dioxide levels and increased turbidity). The outcomes will further our knowledge base in lower vertebrate vision and evolution, and also have implications for human vision, image analysis, and artificial vision.Read moreRead less