THE UNIVERSITY OF NEWCASTLE

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

The Formation of Young Workers: A Multi Sited Study on the Periphery. This project aims to investigate how workforce skills and capacities become a part of a young people’s world view in zones of high unemployment. Youth outside Australia’s metropolitan centres are experiencing dramatically increased unemployment rates caused by industrial restructuring. Focusing on regional and outer-urban youth, this project seeks to explore how young people are responding to these conditions, examining the role of employment in youth identities and analysing how young people actively integrate the skills and capacities for labour into their identities and overall approach to life. The project intends to provide an evidence base for the design of welfare interventions and social policies that help marginalised young people to build fulfilling employment futures. Field of research: 1608 - Sociology

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Innovative integrated combustion flue gas dry cleaning technology. Innovative integrated combustion flue gas dry cleaning technology. This project aims to develop integrated dry cleaning technology for combined removal of sulphur oxides (SOx) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) from combustion flue gases. This process could replace conventional commercial systems for deSOx and deNOx, making the coal-fired power generation and glass industry more sustainable. The project should benefit Australia through advancing the fundamental science of catalytic heterogeneous reactions, allowing Australia to become a key international provider of combustion related environmental protection technologies and reducing SOx and NOx emissions by 95% for coal-fired power stations in Australia and beyond. Field of research: 0907 - Environmental Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Lunar crustal structure from high-res gravity, topography, and seismic data. This project aims to improve our knowledge of the Moon, including its surface processes, interior structure, modification by geological processes and creation and evolution. The Moon preserves the longest and cleanest records of surface geology in the Solar System’s history, unlike the Earth. The lunar crust should exhibit strong heterogeneity in density (both porosity and composition) given its complex history of impact bombardment and volcanism. This project aims to determine radial and lateral heterogeneity in density and porosity within the Moon's crust, by analysing Gravity Recovery And Interior Laboratory gravity and spacecraft tracking data, Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter topography and in situ Apollo seismological data. Field of research: 0909 - Geomatic Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Remotely sensed forest water use in space and time. Remotely sensed forest water use in space and time. This project aims to develop and apply new methods to scale forest water use from plot to catchment-level, using relationships between plot-level annual evapotranspiration and biophysical and biochemical properties of stands detectable by unmanned aircraft systems and other remote sensing platforms. Australia's water security depends on understanding how changes in forests from disturbance and climate change influence catchment water yields. This project will estimate water yields over time and space in ungauged catchments with disturbed eucalypt forests. This research is expected to enable more effective risk mitigation and planning for augmentations; improved fire management strategies; and better water management of the Murray Darling Basin. Field of research: 0406 - Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Enhancing fertility for the Thoroughbred and Standardbred industries. Enhancing fertility for the Thoroughbred and Standardbred industries. Responding to industry calls for improved methods of detecting and managing infertility in both stallions and mares, this project aims to provide a platform for competitive collaborations between universities, biotechnology companies and horse breeders: the end-users of technological developments in equine reproduction. The Thoroughbred and Standardbred breeding industries contribute over $6.5 billion per annum to the Australian economy and employ thousands of staff across their value chains. However, these industries suffer from breeding program inefficiencies that amount to over $800 million in annual losses. Expected outcomes are novel reproductive technologies and specialised research capabilities that will make the Australian equine industry a global leader. Field of research: 0702 - Animal Production

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

A novel mineral looping tar removal process for biomass gasification. A novel mineral looping tar removal process for biomass gasification. This project aims to develop a simple, robust and cost effective method for removing tar from biomass gasification processes. The solution (Mineral Looping Tar Removal) involves the cyclic carbonation and calcination of a mixture of naturally occurring minerals and/or solid waste to remove tar. This project will bring together energy researchers and renewable energy developers to resolve science and engineering issues that underpin the performance degradation of these minerals in large-scale settings. Project outcomes include improved understanding of gas cleaning and a cost effective and environmentally sound technology. Field of research: 0904 - Chemical Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Risk-Based Decision-Making for Terrorism and Infrastructure Security. The project intends to develop stochastic models to predict the likelihood and extent of damages, casualties and other losses from terrorist and military threats. Terrorism, security and defence policy-makers need robust probabilistic risk assessments to prioritise or optimise the protection of buildings and aviation infrastructure, as well as iconic structures and mass gatherings. A key focus of the project is malevolent and accidental explosive blast loadings on civilian and hardened infrastructure. A quantitative assessment of security risks and risk acceptance criteria would allow the effectiveness of security measures to be assessed to provide cost-effective levels of protection that is acceptable to society. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Hydrological changes in Australia and the South Pacific. This project plans to use stalagmites from the South–West Pacific to generate continuous rainfall records for the last 2000 years. Stalagmites contain uncorrupted data that are not available in other archives, and provide unparalleled accurate chronologies. The spatial and temporal variations of the data may highlight the interplay of climate drivers, such as El Niño Southern Oscillation, and how they change the distribution of rainfall in the Pacific. This knowledge would increase our scientific understanding and enable better predictions of the recurrence of droughts and wet events in Australia. Field of research: 0406 - Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Long-term corrosion of offshore steel structures in near-stagnant seawater. This project investigates the seawater corrosion of structural steels under near-stagnant and possibly polluted conditions. Better understanding of long-term corrosion of structural steels in near-stagnant seawaters is needed to predict the safety of steel offshore structures such as the pods supporting wind and wave energy generators. Also, the expensive maintenance of protective coatings and systems could be obviated or reduced if corrosion remains acceptable. This project plans to investigate experimentally the temporal development and stochastic nature of general corrosion and pitting for steels under actual near-stagnant seawater conditions. It also plans to build mathematical-probabilistic models for corrosion prediction, calibrated to field data. These models will include allowance for microbiological corrosion effects, important under anthropological pollution. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Investigation of Thermotransport in Liquid Metal Alloys. This project aims to improve understanding of thermotransport to support the use of liquid metal allows in manufacture and energy transfer. The coupled flow of heat and mass (thermotransport) rapidly produces segregation in liquid metal alloys in a temperature gradient. This is a major problem in optimising the solidification from melts in manufacturing and for the design of liquid alloys for transfer of heat. Thermotransport is very poorly understood. The project aims to achieve an understanding of the process through a combination of new theory, corresponding new experiments and advanced computer simulations. This would be a major advance in the area, supporting the development of new systems to prevent segregation. Field of research: 0913 - Mechanical Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Activating Lyapunov-Based Feedback - Nonsmooth Control Lyapunov Functions. This project aims to provide a novel high-performance feedback control design methodology, applicable in a wide range of areas from power to aerospace to biological systems. A general approach of feedback design based on so-called Lyapunov methods has been available for many years. However, this approach has suffered from several drawbacks including the inability to account for constrained system actions (eg where certain system variables must remain within certain constraints) and the inability to specify desired system performance. This project intends to leverage recent developments in Lyapunov methods, including novel numerical techniques, to develop a high-performance feedback control methodology for nonlinear dynamical systems competitive with the best currently available techniques. Field of research: 0102 - Applied Mathematics

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Modelling of Slug Pneumatic Conveying with an In-situ Microprobe Sensor. This project aims to develop a particle-scale microprobe to capture the transient dynamics of particle behaviours for pneumatic conveying. Slug flow pneumatic transport of granular materials such as mineral particles and food grains is extremely popular across the processing industry. However, without the fundamental understanding of the conveying mechanism at the particulate level, pneumatic conveyors are over-designed and energy intensive. The project aims to enable accurate measurement of the motion, inertia and force information at the particle scale, so as to produce more accurate design protocols for such a conveying system. Improved pneumatic conveyors may have the potential to reduce the energy consumption in such systems by up to a factor of 10. Field of research: 0904 - Chemical Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Three-dimensional flotation of fine particles. Three-dimensional flotation of fine particles. This project aims to research three-dimensional flotation of fine particles under both batch and continuous steady state conditions. In flotation, fine hydrophobic particles adhere to the two-dimensional surface of rising air bubbles, forming concentrate. In three-dimensional flotation, however, the particles adhere to and become embedded in a novel binder, forming a highly buoyant product. The process is very selective and arguably 1000 times faster than conventional flotation. The project is expected to provide the knowledge required to achieve scale-up, so the technology can be used to recover high value product from tailings waste, eliminating the capital impediment and possibly transforming the entire mining industry. Field of research: 0914 - Resources Engineering and Extractive Metallurgy

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Development of structural-functional integrated concrete. This project seeks to create a structural concrete to control indoor temperature using thermal energy storage aggregates (TESA). Such concrete would improve indoor comfort without human intervention and significantly reduce the energy consumed in heating and cooling. TESA concrete is made of porous lightweight aggregate impregnated with phase-change materials. The aim of this project is to investigate and optimise the structural and functional performance of TESA concrete. In particular, it aims to reveal the microstructure, mechanical, thermal, durability properties of TESA concrete and ways to optimise its overall performance. This knowledge would provide a solid foundation for the numerical simulation of TESA concrete and its use in engineering applications. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Fragmentation of rocks upon impact. The project aims to create a new understanding of how rocks fragment upon impact to allow more realistic predictions of rockfall hazards. Rockfall results in loss of human life, damage to infrastructure and economic loss; each year in Australia, millions of dollars are spent on rockfall protection. To mitigate rockfall risk, it is important to understand and predict how blocks break as they fall down a slope. Unfortunately, there is limited data and knowledge on this phenomenon. This project aims to produce a comprehensive, high-quality database of fragmentation events and develop an innovative fragmentation model that can be included in existing rockfall codes. This project is expected to lead to optimised and cost-effective rockfall barrier protection measures. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Learning from our mistakes: How and when complex decisions fail. The project aims to develop a novel mathematical framework, augmented by simulations and a set of experiments, to study when and how people commit errors. The modern environment bombards us with signals, such as radio and television advertisements as we sit at home or warning lights and car honks as we cross the road. Despite years of psychological research, it is not entirely clear how efficiently people cope with increasing amounts of information nor is it clear whether they process multiple signals simultaneously (in parallel) or one after the other (serial). The project offers new measures, based on the rate and pattern of error responses, to supplement the commonly used response times. The combination of a theoretical framework, based on mathematical and computational work, with empirical data to test the models, may deliver a better understanding of human performance and its limitations. Field of research: 1701 - Psychology

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

A novel route to produce olefin feedstock for Australia. This project aims to develop a new process to produce longer chain hydrocarbons usable in Australia's olefin and polymer industries. Besides their use as a fuel, hydrocarbons are major industrial chemicals used for the production of polymeric materials and as refrigerants. Olefins are precursors to polymers and conventionally are produced from saturated hydrocarbons through the process of steam cracking. The major precursors for monomers are present in significant quantities in only a few natural gas sources and these sources also undergo significant seasonal variation and are costly. The project aims to develop new catalysts and process conditions to convert low-value feedstock hydrocarbons into feedstock for conventional steam crackers. Field of research: 0904 - Chemical Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Unquiet Minds: Psychiatry in World War Two and its aftermaths. This project aims to provide the first comprehensive account of psychiatry in World War Two and its consequences in American, British and Australian contexts. World War Two was a watershed in the theory and practice of psychiatry in the western world, yet it figures less in the literature than the shell shock of World War One and the post-traumatic stress disorder of the Vietnam War. The projects aims to investigate the diverse patient cohorts – such as prisoners of war, veterans and children separated from caregivers – encountered by psychiatrists and the impact of the theories and practices that resulted from these interactions. It expects to provide historical context for current psychiatric concepts and practices. Field of research: 2103 - Historical Studies

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Enhance ferromagnetic ordering by exchange coupling and defect engineering. This project aims to achieve room temperature ferromagnetism in two-dimensional materials via magnetic element doping and defect and interface engineering. Achieving high spin polarisation, high spin diffusion length and effective spin manipulation, the pre-requisites for functional spintronics devices, makes research into two-dimensional materials for spintronics applications difficult. This project could establish a solid foundation for realising qualified spintronics materials for spintronics devices. The expected outcomes are low power, high speed, spintronics devices, enhancing Australia’s strength in spintronics research. Field of research: 0912 - Materials Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Weather cultures: Enhancing adaptive capacity to environmental change. This project aims to understand the relationship between weather, people and place. The current context of environmental change makes it essential to understand how people relate to anomalous weather, and how they might respond. The project will research weather cultures, including their expression through songs, songlines and stories. It plans to work with Indigenous and non-Indigenous cultures affected by Cyclone Oswald (2013) – where winds gathered (Timor Leste), where the cyclone formed (Yolngu Sea-Country, Arnhem Land), and where rivers flooded (Gumbaynggirr Country, NSW). The project aims to enhance adaptive capacity to environmental change through Indigenous-non-Indigenous two ways learning. Field of research: 1604 - Human Geography

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Geographies of co-existence in urban and rural areas. Geographies of co-existence in urban and rural areas. This project aims to develop and trial a practical resource and set of protocols for Caring for Country—Indigenous-led natural resource management (NRM) that draws on Indigenous ways of working and being with the land—in densely populated urban and rural contexts. Caring for Country approaches have enriched NRM in Australia but their implementation in heavily populated rural and urban contexts has been challenging. This project is expected to support resilient communities and build options for flexible, place-based responses to environmental change in urban and rural communities. Field of research: 0502 - Environmental Science and Management

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Framework for a cost-effective geohazard assessment. Framework for a cost-effective geohazard assessment. This project aims to develop and validate a new, robust and cost-effective method for geotechnical hazard assessment of rock slopes. Each year in Australia, millions of dollars are spent on stabilising unstable slopes and mitigation measures to control the associated risk and avoid severe financial impacts. The proposed framework will combine a new qualitative approach for geotechnical hazard assessment with accurate, efficient geo-structural surveys achieved with emerging surveying technologies. Stochastic components of slope geostructural description should minimise the surveying operations. This project is expected to reduce the cost and time of surveying geostructural features of slopes and designing mitigation measures. Field of research: 0905 - Civil Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Deterioration of structural integrity of ageing ships and marine platforms. Deterioration of structural integrity of ageing ships and marine platforms. This project will research the deterioration of structural integrity and remaining life of marine assets such as ships and offshore energy facilities, by integrating structural response analysis methods with aged-structure assessment techniques. Maritime assets exposed to ocean conditions suffer from time dependent phenomena, which reduce structural capability, affect safety and could have catastrophic environmental and economic consequences. Making assets available and affordably safe is a problem for operators. The key to prolonging asset life is in understanding the interrelationships over time between the asset’s structural condition and its use. Anticipated outcomes are superior safety, expected lifetime and economic benefits of maritime assets. Field of research: 0911 - Maritime Engineering

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2016 · 2016-01

Relaxed reflection methods for feasibility and matrix completion problems. The project proposes to further develop the non-linear convergence theory, and to provide problem-specific implementations. Many applied and pure problems require solution of a large set of linear or nonlinear equations (or inequalities). Highly effective, parallelisable methods are based on iterated projection or reflection algorithms which aggregate information about individual equations. The theory is well developed in the linear case, but does not explain many important applications for which they are often highly successful (eg optical aberration correction, protein reconstruction, tomography, compressed sensing). The project also plans to provide heuristics to help explain why an algorithm performs well on one class of applications but fails on another. Field of research: 0103 - Numerical and Computational Mathematics