A revolution in Earth History: Life and Environment in the Neoarchaean (2.5-2.8 Ga). This research will keep Australian scientists in the forefront of studies of early life on Earth. At a time when there is a great deal of interest in this topic because of the search for similar life elsewhere in the Solar System, this work will take a prominant place in international research. It will attract leading researchers from elsewhere, with consequent intellectual benefits, and will inspire students t ....A revolution in Earth History: Life and Environment in the Neoarchaean (2.5-2.8 Ga). This research will keep Australian scientists in the forefront of studies of early life on Earth. At a time when there is a great deal of interest in this topic because of the search for similar life elsewhere in the Solar System, this work will take a prominant place in international research. It will attract leading researchers from elsewhere, with consequent intellectual benefits, and will inspire students to careers in science.Read moreRead less
A Novel Approach to Processing of Australian Laterite Ores through Selective Reduction and Carbonylation. Processing of laterite ores, started in 1998 in Australia, has significantly enhanced Australian role on the international nickel market. However, the production of nickel from oxide ores by established technologies consumes two to three times energy as processing of sulphide ores with significant environmental impact. This underlines the importance of development of more energy efficient pr ....A Novel Approach to Processing of Australian Laterite Ores through Selective Reduction and Carbonylation. Processing of laterite ores, started in 1998 in Australia, has significantly enhanced Australian role on the international nickel market. However, the production of nickel from oxide ores by established technologies consumes two to three times energy as processing of sulphide ores with significant environmental impact. This underlines the importance of development of more energy efficient processes for oxide ores. The proposed technology will significantly decrease energy and water consumption, and greenhouse gas emissions in nickel production. It will enhance the competitiveness of Australian Nickel Industry and stimulate its expansion with significant economy and social benefits.Read moreRead less
Directed assembly and photoelectric properties of core-shell nanowire networks of PbSe-TiO2 heterostructures for high efficiency low-cost solar cells. The proposed program is aimed at studying numerous fundamental properties and phenomena of photoelectrochemical cells that have an important impact on environmentally friendly solutions to energy problems. Specifically, solar cells have a significant role in energy markets and in lessening CO2 emissions and other environmental impacts. Solar cell ....Directed assembly and photoelectric properties of core-shell nanowire networks of PbSe-TiO2 heterostructures for high efficiency low-cost solar cells. The proposed program is aimed at studying numerous fundamental properties and phenomena of photoelectrochemical cells that have an important impact on environmentally friendly solutions to energy problems. Specifically, solar cells have a significant role in energy markets and in lessening CO2 emissions and other environmental impacts. Solar cell technology, coupled with renewable energy sources, has the potential to provide a long-term solution to the energy crisis and the global warming threat. In addition, the strong team to be assembled will reach a leading position in this area of cutting edge technology. The outcomes will benefit Australian industries.Read moreRead less
Palaeobiology of hydrothermal mineral deposits. Mineral deposits that formed at up to 150 degrees C record the history of micro-organisms referred to as hyperthermophiles. Current biological studies predict that such organisms are the most primitive known. Thus by studying these deposits we have the opportunity to uncover the earliest history of life on Earth, and to improve our understanding of ore deposition. Such deposits are also prime targets for the search for life and former life elsewher ....Palaeobiology of hydrothermal mineral deposits. Mineral deposits that formed at up to 150 degrees C record the history of micro-organisms referred to as hyperthermophiles. Current biological studies predict that such organisms are the most primitive known. Thus by studying these deposits we have the opportunity to uncover the earliest history of life on Earth, and to improve our understanding of ore deposition. Such deposits are also prime targets for the search for life and former life elsewhere in the Solar System, and the proposed research will contribute to that search.Read moreRead less
Organic geochemistry of the McArthur River hydrothermal deposit. Exploration for hydrothermal ore deposits in sedimentary basins has many problems because of the lack of any general agreement on the mechanisms of formation of major deposits. This proposed research will focus on the fundamental issue of the interaction of organic matter and mineralizing fluids in contributing to ore mineral deposition. Given that the McArthur River orebody is an exquisitely preserved example of a hydrothermal dep ....Organic geochemistry of the McArthur River hydrothermal deposit. Exploration for hydrothermal ore deposits in sedimentary basins has many problems because of the lack of any general agreement on the mechanisms of formation of major deposits. This proposed research will focus on the fundamental issue of the interaction of organic matter and mineralizing fluids in contributing to ore mineral deposition. Given that the McArthur River orebody is an exquisitely preserved example of a hydrothermal deposit it will thus enable a comprehensive organic geochemical investigation to elucidate the role of organic matter in ore formation. The outcomes will benefit the Australian mineral exploration industry by refining current ore genesis models.Read moreRead less
Isotopic fractionation in ore metals (Cu, Fe and Zn): A new window on ore-forming processes. Stable isotopes of common ore metals (e.g, copper and iron) are new tools for investigating ore deposits. Our data suggest that metal isotopic variations can provide new insights into mechanisms operative during formation of ore deposits. Stable metal isotopes also show promise as a new exploration tool for identifying the location of economic mineralisation within large prospective terrains; e.g., weakl ....Isotopic fractionation in ore metals (Cu, Fe and Zn): A new window on ore-forming processes. Stable isotopes of common ore metals (e.g, copper and iron) are new tools for investigating ore deposits. Our data suggest that metal isotopic variations can provide new insights into mechanisms operative during formation of ore deposits. Stable metal isotopes also show promise as a new exploration tool for identifying the location of economic mineralisation within large prospective terrains; e.g., weakly vs. strongly mineralised zones in a volcanic belt.
This project will provide fundamental baseline data that will help elucidate the processes that cause metal isotope variations. This will allow stable metal isotopes to be used much more effectively by the mining and exploration industries.
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Links Between Modern and Fossil Microbes and the Evolution of Life in Earth's Extreme Early Environments. The quest to understand early and modern life in extreme environments tackles some of the most profound questions of humankind. The novel application of spectroscopic techniques to investigate modern and fossil microbes presents an unprecedented opportunity to establish the link between primitive living and fossil organisms, thus enriching our understanding of the early evolution of life and ....Links Between Modern and Fossil Microbes and the Evolution of Life in Earth's Extreme Early Environments. The quest to understand early and modern life in extreme environments tackles some of the most profound questions of humankind. The novel application of spectroscopic techniques to investigate modern and fossil microbes presents an unprecedented opportunity to establish the link between primitive living and fossil organisms, thus enriching our understanding of the early evolution of life and its interactions with Earth's early environments. The project links fundamental processes that shaped the Earth and thus fits into the National Research Priority 1: An Environmentally Sustainable Australia. Read moreRead less
Studies on metal dusting : reaction mechanisms and their control. Gases which are supersaturated with carbon can react at high temperatures with steels and nickel-base alloys to destroy them, producing a dust of carbon plus metal and/or metal carbides. The mechanism is not properly understood, and the rate of the process impossible to predict. This program will dissect the mechanism using kinetic studies and electron microscopy of precisely located parts of the reacting system. Ways of controll ....Studies on metal dusting : reaction mechanisms and their control. Gases which are supersaturated with carbon can react at high temperatures with steels and nickel-base alloys to destroy them, producing a dust of carbon plus metal and/or metal carbides. The mechanism is not properly understood, and the rate of the process impossible to predict. This program will dissect the mechanism using kinetic studies and electron microscopy of precisely located parts of the reacting system. Ways of controlling the process via alloy compositional changes will be explored.Read moreRead less
Multi-scale modelling of particle breakage in grinding process. The minerals industry is the largest exporter in Australia, contributing approximately 40% of Australia's total exports. Grinding is one of basic operations in mineral processing to liberate valuables from the host rock. Grinding process, however, has very low efficiency and may account for 50% of the direct operating cost of a mineral processing plant. This project is to develop a novel, multi-scale model to investigate grinding at ....Multi-scale modelling of particle breakage in grinding process. The minerals industry is the largest exporter in Australia, contributing approximately 40% of Australia's total exports. Grinding is one of basic operations in mineral processing to liberate valuables from the host rock. Grinding process, however, has very low efficiency and may account for 50% of the direct operating cost of a mineral processing plant. This project is to develop a novel, multi-scale model to investigate grinding at both process and individual particle levels and to provide a more accurate prediction of grinding performance. This will result in improved control and design of grinding process with reduced energy consumption and mineral waste, which will be of immense economic and environmental benefit to Australia.Read moreRead less
Design of reactive foils for joining amorphous alloys. Amorphous alloys or metallic glasses are special materials that retain the random structure of a liquid but in a solid form. They can show special properties of very high strength, toughness and corrosion resistance. The enormous difficulty in joining amorphous alloys to make larger assemblies is greatly curbing their uptake in technology. In this research, state of the art experimental and computational tools will be used to investigate the ....Design of reactive foils for joining amorphous alloys. Amorphous alloys or metallic glasses are special materials that retain the random structure of a liquid but in a solid form. They can show special properties of very high strength, toughness and corrosion resistance. The enormous difficulty in joining amorphous alloys to make larger assemblies is greatly curbing their uptake in technology. In this research, state of the art experimental and computational tools will be used to investigate the extremely fast high temperature reactions occurring in reactive foils of layered metals which, when inserted at the proposed join and ignited, quickly produce a bond. The research will lay the foundation for a robust and reliable means for joining amorphous alloys by means of reactive foils. Read moreRead less