Curtin University

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-07

Basalt FRP Rockbolt for Rock Reinforcement in Underground... Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-07

Basalt FRP Rockbolt for Rock Reinforcement in Underground... Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-06

Digital Twin and Vision-based Techniques for Bridge Health Monitoring Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-06

Digital Twin and Vision-based Techniques for Bridge Health Monitoring Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-05

SCALES of evolution: A genomic view on reptile resilience Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-05

Siyakhana: A hybrid Type 2 effectiveness-implementation stepped wedge... Category: Medical Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-05

SCALES of evolution: A genomic view on reptile resilience Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-01

From Titan's haze to Earth's labs: predicting organic crystal growth Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-01

From Titan's haze to Earth's labs: predicting organic crystal growth Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Mining Earth's Memory–From Crustal Thickness to Mineral Prediction. This project aims to map how Australia’s crustal thickness has changed over time, a key determinant on metal transport and mineral formation. By using existing government-funded samples and a novel approach enabled by recent analytical advancement, this project expects to generate new knowledge in predictive geoscience. Expected outcomes include i) a new isotopic tool that can track past crustal thickness; and ii) Australia’s first crustal thickness model through deep time to aid identify areas with high mineralization potential. These outcomes can benefit Australia by reducing exploration risk, maximizing the value of previous government investments, and strengthen Australia’s global leadership in analytical geochemistry. Field of research: 3703 - Geochemistry Australia’s goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050 depends on extracting mineral resources from Earth’s crust, as clean energy technologies – such as solar panels, wind turbines, batteries, and electric vehicles – require a substantial supply of critical minerals. With some of the world's largest recoverable critical mineral deposits, Australia has the potential to play a key role in global decarbonization. However, predicting the location of these resources remains one of geoscience’s greatest challenges. National strategic plans recognize that a holistic understanding of Earth, including crustal evolution, is essential for future exploration success and building Australia’s critical minerals pipeline. Aligned with this national priority, this project will use a cost- and time-efficient innovative approach to reconstruct Australia’s crustal architecture through time, helping to identify areas with favourable conditions for mineral deposit formation. This will reduce exploration risk, strengthen economic security, and support the transition to sustainable energy sources. The results will be made publicly available through free-to-access outlets, including open-access articles and data platforms, traditional and social media releases, as well as seminars to ensure broad dissemination to government, industry, and policy makers.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2026 · 2026-01

ARC Centre of Excellence for Quality Work in a Digital Age. This centre aims to bring together experts from the social and technical sciences to learn how to create quality work for the future. This aim is significant because intelligent technologies, such as AI and robotics, are radically disrupting work. The Centre will investigate how to use these technologies to augment human performance, how to enable people to collaborate across geographic and temporal boundaries, and how to future-proof workers by building capabilities to thrive in a digital era. Expected outcomes are that the Centre will generate knowledge, tools and guidance that is relevant and ready for use by government and industry. Social and economic benefits include improvements in health and well-being, inclusion and productivity. Field of research: 3507 - Strategy, Management and Organisational Behaviour The Centre for Quality Work in a Digital Age (QWiDA) investigates how to jointly design technology and work systems to create and sustain healthy, inclusive, and productive future work. It adopts a novel interdisciplinary approach informed by new theories and innovative methods. QWiDA is supported by diverse Partner Organisations that function as living labs, enablers, and/or disseminators, and involves engagement activities to ensure the new knowledge is relevant, ready for use, has reach, and is resilient (lasting). The research benefits Australians in many ways. First, the Centre enhances national productivity by fostering the optimal use of intelligent technologies to augment human work, reducing costly failed applications and wasted investment. Second, QWiDA enhances the mental and physical health and well-being of Australians by designing work that prevents psychosocial risks, thereby reducing burnout, minimising workers’ compensation cases, and mitigating other negative outcomes of poor work. Third, by creating future-ready workers, QWiDA supports inclusive and fair employment opportunities, closing the digital divide and enabling participation in quality work for all people. Combining the cost benefits across the three areas of impact, and adjusting for interdependencies, the economic value of creating effective, healthy, and fully inclusive Australian work is many billions per year. The societal value of meaningful work is also highly significant.

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Microbial detoxification of chrysotile - Towards safe disposal of... Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Upcycling of Mixed Waste Plastics for Sustainable Jet Fuel Production Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Structural health monitoring by using generative and physics-informed AI Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Nonlinear scheduling optimisation for green hydrogen production. This project aims to develop cutting-edge mathematical algorithms to optimise operation scheduling for green hydrogen plants, to enhance overall productivity and reduce green hydrogen production costs. Optimisation problems in this domain are highly nonlinear and of massive scale. The project will leverage recent breakthroughs in integer programming and nonlinear optimisation to create efficient computational algorithms for overcoming this complexity. These algorithms will provide critical insights into optimal operations strategies for potential Australian hydrogen scenarios. The new theoretical developments will contribute to bridging the gap between discrete and continuous optimisation, two fields that are normally studied disparately. Field of research: 4903 - Numerical and Computational Mathematics The Australian Government is investing billions of dollars to position the nation as a major global producer of green hydrogen. The success of this new industry relies on large-scale infrastructure and reliable operational systems, with efficient operation scheduling being crucial for performance and reliability. However, operation scheduling is a significant challenge. Even in mature industries like mining, it is already laborious and highly complex; and today's most advanced computer algorithms cannot scale to the dimensions required for operations scheduling in industry. There is a critical need for a novel mathematical optimisation framework and fast, scalable algorithms to tackle these complex scheduling problems. This project will address this gap by developing effective scheduling algorithms for optimising production activities through new advances in mathematical optimisation. The outcome will be innovative scheduling technology that provides optimal planning and scheduling strategies, minimising costs and safety risks while enhancing overall productivity and reliability. These new scheduling algorithms will be applied to proposed Australian hydrogen projects, accelerating the industry's viability and contributing to decarbonisation efforts.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Next-Generation Agentic AI System for Intelligent Infrastructure Monitoring. This project develops an innovative Agentic AI system powered by a large language model to automate infrastructure monitoring and management. It closes the loop between perception, analysis, and action by integrating multi-modality sensing, predictive simulation and natural language reasoning. The AI agent drives workflow automation, enabling early anomaly detection, real-time structural assessment, and autonomous decision-making. This reduces manual intervention, enhances efficiency, and ensures scalable, proactive infrastructure management. The research will improve safety, lower maintenance costs, and position Australia as a leader in AI-powered engineering solutions for resilient and sustainable infrastructure. Field of research: 4005 - Civil Engineering This project develops an AI system to enhance infrastructure monitoring and maintenance in Australia. It addresses the growing challenge of aging infrastructure, high maintenance costs, and safety risks by integrating advanced sensing, predictive simulation, and large language models. Current practices rely on manual inspections and costly simulations, leading to inefficiencies. We will create an automated system to detect structural damage early, predict deterioration, and enable proactive decision-making, reducing costs and improving resilience. Australians will benefit from safer, longer-lasting infrastructure, including bridges, rail networks, and roads. By reducing reliance on manual inspections and reactive maintenance, the project lowers maintenance expenses and transport disruptions. Integrating digital twins allows real-time monitoring and simulation, strengthening asset management and risk mitigation. Beyond academia, findings will be shared with government agencies, industry partners, and infrastructure operators through workshops, policy engagement, and open-access resources. The AI system holds significant commercialization potential for monitoring infrastructure in transportation, energy, and other sectors, as well as for applications in smart city development. By driving digital transformation in infrastructure management, this project will position Australia as a leader in AI-powered engineering solutions, delivering long-term economic and social benefits.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Where Are All Our Intermediate Mass Black Holes? How do galaxies grow? Current theory suggests the intermediate mass black holes that are the building blocks of supermassive black holes, should be distributed throughout the Universe. However, there is scant evidence. This project will leverage observations from new facilities like the Vera C. Rubin Observatory and the Square Kilometre Array, and take a the first systematic approach to finding these black holes, thereby testing a key theory of how our Universe evolved. By hunting for electromagnetic signatures of these black holes in 300,000 star clusters in the nearby Universe, it will be possible to detect the long-sought population of intermediate mass black holes, or place stringent constraints on their existence. Field of research: 5101 - Astronomical Sciences My research is aimed at answering one of the biggest open questions of how our Universe works, finding the evidence of the intermediate mass black holes that drive supermassive black hole formation and galaxy evolution. By performing the first systematic search for intermediate mass black holes in young massive star clusters, I will either discover these elusive black holes, or prove that we need to revisit our leading theory of how the Universe evolves. I will also build national capacity through my leadership in international collaborations. I will leverage the significant Australian investment in the A$3 billion dollar Square Kilometre Array and its precursors, leveraging existing investments with the Vera C. Rubin Observatory (A$1.4 million Australian investment), and provide new avenues of research with these facilities. As an experienced mentor, I am committed to leading and participating in impactful scientific outreach events to empower the next generation of Australian scientists. I have organised and contributed to over 30 public outreach events for the public, experience which will serve me well to communicate my exciting discoveries to the general public through broad reaching scientific outreach.

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Mapping the Influencer Aspirations and Literacies among Australian... Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2026 · 2026-01

AI-Driven Sustainable Battery Adoption: Sizing, Profiling, and Recycling. This proposal aims to develop an AI-driven platform for residential battery management by integrating selection, sizing, optimisation, and end-of-life recycling into a unified framework. It addresses current lifecycle gaps by combining consumer profiling, real-time analytics, and sustainability metrics to support data-informed decisions from adoption to disposal. Expected outcomes include advanced AI models for battery sizing, predictive performance, and traceable recycling. The platform will accelerate battery uptake, enhance lifecycle efficiency, and reduce environmental impact. It will strengthen Australia’s capability in sustainable energy, support SME innovation, and advance national decarbonisation goals. Field of research: 4008 - Electrical Engineering To support Australia’s clean energy transition and net-zero targets, this project will deliver an AI-driven platform that empowers consumers and industry to make data-informed decisions across the entire residential battery lifecycle—from pre-adoption to end-of-life. Current approaches tend to focus narrowly on technical or policy aspects; this project introduces a unique, consumer-centric, and empirically grounded solution. Using large-scale data collection and advanced analytics, the platform will identify key adoption barriers and offer tailored solutions through smart battery sizing, performance optimisation, and responsible recycling pathways. A central feature is an AI-based battery sizing tool designed to help solar retailers provide customised advice, boosting consumer confidence and uptake. Expected outcomes include increased battery adoption, enhanced lifecycle performance, and improved recycling participation. The platform will support Australia's growing energy and recycling sectors, foster digital innovation in energy, and build industry skills in AI and renewables. Scalable to global high solar-penetration markets, this project positions Australia as a global leader in next-generation, consumer-led energy transition technologies—delivering economic, environmental, and societal value at scale.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Recovery of rare metals from e-waste through mechano-electrochemistry. This project aims to harness mechano-electrochemistry for the efficient one-pot recycling and repurpose of rare metals and plastics from e-waste. Australia is among the world's larger producers of e-waste on a per capita basis, yet only 35% are properly recycled, with much still reaching landfills, which lead to environmental concerns and the loss of valuable resources. This project expects to fill the current knowledge gap in efficient recycling of rare metals in e-waste. This will provide substantial benefits both to Australia and internationally by enhancing the reuse of e-waste, minimizing landfill waste, reducing the ecological impact of mining and improving community health. Field of research: 3406 - Physical Chemistry Australia is among the world's larger producers of e-waste on a per capita basis, but only about 35% of the materials from e-waste are properly collected and recycled, with a significant portion still ending up in landfills. E-waste contains materials such as heavy metals and difficult-to-degrade plastics, which can seep into the environment, polluting soil and water supplies. Traditional techniques for rare metals recovery from e-waste such as solvent extraction and selective precipitation often suffer from low selectivity and recovery rates, significant chemical usage, and associated environmental risks. Additionally, these approaches fail to enable the simultaneous recycling of rare metals and hard-to-degrade plastics. Inspired by triboelectrification and mechano-electrochemistry at interfaces, this project aims to harness mechano-electrochemistry for the efficient one-pot recycling and repurposing of rare metals and plastics from e-waste. The experimental model described in this proposal will offer a promising technology for large-scale, efficient, and selective recovery of rare metals from e-waste, enhancing the reuse of e-waste, reducing costs, and mitigating mining’s ecological impact, for example, one ton of PCBs can recycle nearly 300 g Pd, valued at $10,000. It will also minimize landfill waste and toxic exposure, improving community health while promoting sustainability and international collaboration.

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Development of Hybrid Precast Concrete-Steel Wind Turbine Tower Systems. This project aims to develop an advanced wind turbine system that combines precast concrete segments and steel towel as well as corrosion resistance FRP prestress tendon for enhanced strength, durability, constructability, and hazard resistance capacities. It will integrate UAV-based inspection with digital twin to enable effective and efficient inspection and performance prediction. By addressing key technical and economic barriers to deploying tall wind turbines especially in remote and coastal regions, the project will support safer and more cost-effective renewable energy infrastructure. Outcomes will directly benefit Australia’s clean energy transition, ensure infrastructure resilience, and contribute to national decarbonization goals. Field of research: 4005 - Civil Engineering This project directly serves Australia's national interest by addressing urgent needs in renewable energy infrastructure and accelerating the transition to a low-carbon economy. The proposed hybrid precast concrete-steel wind turbine tower system, incorporating corrosion-resistant materials and modular construction, is designed to significantly enhance structural integrity, durability, and economic viability. It particularly addresses the logistical challenges and structure resilience against natural hazards faced by remote and coastal regions across Australia, enabling more robust and reliable renewable energy solutions in these vulnerable locations. The integration of advanced UAV-based inspection and digital twin technologies will transform maintenance practices and performance monitoring of wind turbines. This innovative approach will substantially reduce operational costs, enhance safety, and improve reliability over the long term. Such advancements will bolster Australia's domestic capabilities and stimulate the growth of new industries within the renewable energy sector. By directly contributing to Australia's commitment to net-zero emissions by 2050, this project aligns strategically with national science and research priorities, including renewable energy and resilient infrastructure. Additionally, it will nurture skilled researchers and enhance collaboration between industry and academia, thereby reinforcing Australia's leadership in renewable energy innovation.

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Rapidly-evolving jets at the highest angular resolution Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-01

High-entropy colloidal nanocrystals for sustainable energy production Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

GrantConnect (Australian Government grants) · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Coproducing biochar pellets and green chemicals via biomass pyrolysis Category: Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) Research

ARC National Competitive Grants · FY 2026 · 2026-01

Passing the Keys: Homeownership Across Generations in Australia. This project aims to address a critical gap in understanding how homeownership is passed between generations in Australia, examining both financial support—the Bank of Mum and Dad—and broader socioeconomic advantages tied to parental homeownership. It also aims to provide the first systematic study of the growing Bank of Nan and Pop, investigating the prevalence, motivations, and forms of grandparental assistance. Using longitudinal data and applying innovative research methods, this project expects to generate new knowledge on how family housing wealth shapes inequality. This should provide significant benefits by better informing policies aimed at reducing housing inequality and protecting older Australians providing financial assistance. Field of research: 4407 - Policy and Administration Owning a home is key to financial security and wellbeing in Australia, but family wealth now plays a bigger role in who can buy a home. The Bank of Mum and Dad is one of the country’s largest lenders, and more grandparents—the Bank of Nan and Pop—are also helping. This project will investigate how homeownership is passed between generations, examining both direct financial help and the broader advantages of having homeowner parents. With housing inequality affecting Australia’s economy and social wellbeing, policymakers need a clear picture of how family wealth shapes access to housing. By examining the growing role of grandparents, this research will also highlight risks to older Australians providing financial support, motivating the case for improved consumer protections. Beyond financial impacts, it aligns with the National Wellbeing Framework by exploring how housing support affects family wellbeing, including financial stress and relationships. To maximise impact, results will be shared with government, the financial sector, and the public through policy briefs, summary reports, and media outreach, ensuring the research informs better housing policies and supports housing security for future generations.