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Science tops chart in LIEF grants
By Bob Beale
November 19, 2008
UNSW leads search for new planets
By Bob Beale
November 19, 2008
UNSW leads search for new planets
UNSW has won the largest share of any Australian university in the latest round of Federal Government research funding, being awarded 15% of the $31.6 million awarded nationally under the Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities (LIEF) Projects scheme.
They include funding for new equipment to test motor vehicles for their safety during rollover crashes; new ways of designing materials and drugs; sophisticated genetic studies aimed at developing medical, agricultural and biological discoveries; and a better way to discover new planets elsewhere in the Universe.
Researchers from the Faculty of Science were involved in all of the $4.7 million worth of successful new UNSW projects announced yesterday http://www.arc.
by The Minister for Innovation, Industry, Science and Research, Senator Kim Carr.
"This scheme is about development through collaboration - funding collaborative arrangements between higher education organisations and other organisations, including industry," Senator Carr said.
"The $31.6 million that I am awarding today will see Australian institutions collaborate with a large number of national, international and other government organisations."
The $4.7 million awarded to UNSW was the highest amount awarded to any of the 22 successful universities. The Australian National University was second ($4.6m), followed by the University of Queensland ($2.7m), University of Western Australia ($2.5m), University of Sydney ($2.35m), Monash University ($2.3m) and the University of Melbourne ($2.1m).
Faculty of Science researchers were also involved in a number of other successful projects in which UNSW is a collaborator. They include a $1 million zoology grant for "A Multi Resolution X-ray Microtomography Facility" and a $950,000 geochemistry grant for " The future of palaeoclimate and archaeological research in Australia: next generation instrumentation for chronology and environmental reconstruction"
The projects in which UNSW was the lead university were:
PHYSICAL SCIENCES
High Field Solid State and Multinuclear NMR Spectrometer for Structure/Funct
Project Summary: Projects requiring the proposed infrastructure are aligned with two of the National Research Priorities. The research will lead to the development of novel materials, polymers and drugs, in particular nanoporous molecular frameworks, as well as reactive catalysts. The understanding of protein structure, disease and metabolic pathways which will be established using the proposed equipment will contribute to the priority area 'Promoting and Maintaining Good Health'. In addition, the new equipment will extend capabilities and postgraduate training in chemistry, nanotechnology, and biomedicine (the priority area of 'Frontier Technologies for Building and Transforming Australian Industries').
Researchers: Prof BA Messerle; Prof TP Davis; Prof LD Field; Prof C Rae; A/Prof M Stenzel; Dr GE Ball; Dr JM Hook; Prof Dr T Maschmeyer; Prof CJ Kepert; Dr JP Mackay; Prof PW Kuchel; Prof G Otting; Mr JV Hanna.
GENETICS
An advanced high-throughput genomics facility for biological, medical, agricultural, environmental and evolutionary research. $ 950,000.
Project Summary: Infrastructure requested will expand the capacity of researchers in NSW/NT to undertake environmental, medical and evolutionary studies using state of the art technologies based on the recent advances in DNA sequencing analyses. It will ensure the retention of leading researchers in the exciting areas of genomics and Systems Biology and make a significant contribution to biomolecular research in medicine, agriculture and environmental biology, thereby providing major benefits to the wider community. The application will enhance existing genomic technologies by substantially increasing the scope of experiments that can be performed leading to important advances in gene discovery.
Researchers: Prof IW Dawes; A/Prof SC Schuster; Prof RJ Trent; Prof RJ Henry; Prof RJ Scott; Prof IT Paulsen; A/Prof KS Gibb; Dr T Thomas; Prof SL Kjelleberg; Prof R Cavicchioli; Prof BA Neilan; Prof JK Reichardt; Em/Prof PL Bergquist; Prof HW Stokes; A/Prof MR Gillings; Dr PM Giffard; Prof PR Dunkley; Prof PS Foster.
PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY
State of the Art Surface Characterisatio
Project Summary: Many of the grand challenges of our time, including finding alternative sources of energy, maximizing our current supply of natural resources, identifying and treating pollution in general, and in water in particular, and developing therapies and biomaterials that enable the personalisation of therapies to each individual are being solved using developments in the molecular sciences. Pivotal to the success of such research is to understand materials and surfaces at the molecular level. The request is to purchase surface analysis instrumentation which will dramatically enhance the ability of scientists around Australia understand how to develop solutions to these grand challenges.
Researchers: Prof JJ Gooding; Prof R Amal; Dr P Thordarson; Prof AN Buckley; Prof MA Green; Dr GJ Conibeer; Dr E Cho; Dr D Koenig; Prof RP Burford; Prof SM Thurgate; Prof MJ Crossley; Dr W Yang; Dr J Downes.
ORGANIC CHEMISTRY
High Resolution LC/MS and MALDI for Molecular and Macromolecular Characterisatio
Project Summary: The provision of high resolution and matrix assisted laser desorption ionisation mass spectrometers configured for the molecular and macromolecular research of high quality research groups will lead to earlier and better fundamental discoveries that are directed at important practical developments in medicine, biotechnology, nanotechnology, light energy harvesting, polymer materials and sensors. These include anticancer agents, nanodevices for drug delivery, better polymers with more energy efficient industrial processes, bioactive molecules for industrially important nitrogen fixation and many more.
Researchers: Prof M Guilhaus; Prof DB Hibbert; Prof LD Field; Prof BA Messerle; Prof JJ Gooding; Prof MM Harding; Prof C Barner Kowollik; A/Prof MJ Monteiro; Dr AS Micallef; Dr MR Whittaker.
INTERDISCIPLINA
Fabrication Facilities of Atomic Scale and Nanostructured Materials for the Development of Novel Devices, Sensors, and Biomedical Components. $ 857,230.
Project Summary: Australia's energy, mining, metallurgical, defence and biomedical industries are spearheading the advancement of technologies in the global competitive market. They are the engines of Australian economy's strength. Future progress of these industries will be largely driven by advances in materials. The installation of the proposed facilities will add a new dimension to high level research performance and significantly enhance the capability for the development of advanced materials and biomedical components in Australia. The continual development of advanced material and biomedical components will potentially provide a sustainable means for meeting the increasing global challenge for the industries.
Researchers: Dr SS Li; Dr N Valanoor; Prof C Zhang; Prof MA Green; Dr R Zheng; Dr D Yu; Prof AB Yu; Prof Y Zhao; Prof CC Sorrell; A/Prof AV Pan; Dr J Horvat; A/Prof AJ Ruys; Dr Y Liu; Dr MZ Quadir; Dr JZ Wang; Dr Y Zhang.
ASTRONOMICAL SCIENCES
CYCLOPS : A Better Way to Find Extrasolar Planets. $ 350,000.
Project Summary: The primary scientific driver for this new facility is the search for planets orbiting other stars. Australian astronomers, and the Anglo Australian Telescope, have played a leading role in this new frontier for astronomy, detecting 25 of the 250 odd extrasolar planets known to orbit nearby stars. The CYCLOPS project brings together a team of leading Australian astronomers to build on this track record with a new facility that further advances Australia's capabilities in both this field, and several other high profile astronomical endeavours: including the study of seismology in stellar interiors, the detailed measurement of elemental abundances in stars throughout our Galaxy, and the mapping of spot features on the surfaces of stars.
Researchers: Prof CG Tinney; Prof M Colless; Prof TR Bedding; Dr L Kiss; Prof KC Freeman; Prof JE Norris; Prof GS Da Costa; Prof JC Lattanzio; Dr BD Carter; Dr SC Marsden
PUBLIC HEALTH AND HEALTH SERVICES
Rollover Crash Research Infrastructure Capacity Building. $300,000.
Project Summary: Around 1 in every 3 vehicle occupants die in a crash where the vehicle rolls over. This crash mode also accounts for around 25% of spinal injuries and cost the community around $2.5 billion annually. There are no rollover crash standards or consumer crash tests. The equipment purchased will be used to develop a rollover crashworthiness test protocol that can be adopted by consumer testing groups, to understand the role of fatigue in precipitating rollover crashes, and to develop a driver fatigue metric. It is estimated this research will result in saving around 150 lives, reducing serious spinal and head injuries and save the Australian community around $800 million per annum.
Researchers: Prof RH Grzebieta; Prof AM Williamson; Prof MJ Hoffman; A/Prof AS McIntosh; A/Prof MM Attard; Dr M Bambach; Dr C Caponecchia; Ms R Friswell; Dr J Hatfield; Dr RF Job; Ms P Albany; Dr D Friedman; Mr I Cameron.
GEOCHEMISTRY
Inter-universit
Project Summary: The items in this proposal will form the first stage of a larger facility for Elemental and Structural analytical programs in materials engineering and the natural sciences. The vision is to create an analytical facility which will have at its core and at the outset true collaboration leading to great national benefit. The equipment will be available via on line access management allowing equitable and transparent access for users from multiple institutions. The resulting facility will complement existing microstructural capabilities and networks and will be open for all researchers and collaborators to use, further enhancing the national benefit.
Researchers: Prof CC Sorrell; A/Prof DB Gore; Prof TD Waite; Prof RP Burford; Prof DB Hibbert; Dr IT Graham; A/Prof ID Goodwin; Prof M Westoby; Dr GC Hose; Prof N Kanawati; Dr MR Leishman.
THEORETICAL AND CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
Upgrading Australia's highest magnetic field facility for high speed measurements of quantum devices at cryogenic temperatures. $100,000.
Project Summary: Electronic devices are a trillion dollar industry, and underpin our information based society. Research at liquid helium temperatures (below 270 ºC) is an essential step in developing new electronic devices, and has resulted in
Researchers: Prof AR Hamilton; Dr AP Micolich; Prof R Newbury; Dr OV Klochan; Dr T Martin; Dr L Taskinen.
LIEF grants are administered by the Australian Research Council. Full details can be found here: http://www.arc.
Media contact:
UNSW Faculty of Science - Bob Beale mobile 0411 705 435 bbeale@unsw.edu
