Student topics

Classical fracture mechanics accurately predicts the failure strength of samples with sharp flaws such as pre-existing cracks. However, to predict the failure of porous materials we need to develop an understanding of how stresses are concentrated around smooth flaws in the material such as rounded pores, and how these stress concentrations contribute to failure.Finite fracture mechanics combines the energy criterion for failure from classical fracture mechanics with a stress criterion from macroscopic failure theory. The coupled criterion has by now …

Study level

PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours

Faculty

Faculty of Science

School

School of Mathematical Sciences

Structural optimisation is a powerful computational methodology for finding high-performing designs for structural components or material architectures. For example, what periodic scaffold would provide the highest possible stiffness for its weight?Solving such a problem computationally requires an understanding of the relevant equations required to model the physical properties of interest, as well as efficient implementation of a range of numerical methods including finite elements, finite differences and optimisation.With recent developments in 3D printing technologies it is now becoming possible to …

Study level

PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours

Faculty

Faculty of Science

School

School of Mathematical Sciences

Faecal contamination is one of the most consequential water hazards because it directly affects public health. Beach closures, do-not-drink advisories, and waterway warnings all depend on detecting microbial contamination quickly and reliably. Today, monitoring still depends largely on infrequent sampling and laboratory turnaround times that arrive long after the contamination has come and gone.Direct microbial sensing has advanced through biosensors and microfluidics, but most concepts remain at low technology readiness and are rarely demonstrated as field-usable systems. Reliability in the …

Study level

PhD

Faculty

Faculty of Engineering

School

School of Civil and Environmental Engineering

With the emergence of the Internet of Things (IoT) and Industry 4.0, there is a trend for applying these services and applications to a large-scale industrial area. The IoT paradigm has changed the way of interactions with the things that surround us. In essence, the IoT promises ubiquitous connection to the Internet, turning common objects into connected devices. It is predicted that there will be 50 billion connected devices at the end of the year 2022.Over the last few years, …

Study level

Master of Philosophy, Honours

Faculty

Faculty of Science

School

School of Computer Science

The adage “united we stand, divided we fall” has frequently guided leadership practice – that is, for one to lead others effectively, one first needs to unite them. However, large groups of people often comprise smaller subgroups with distinct identities. How, then, does the leadership process look like when these smaller subgroups are polarised into conflicting factions that cannot simply be united under a common superordinate identity?This research broadly examines the process of leadership within teams and organisations where there …

Study level

PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours

Faculty

Faculty of Business and Law

School

School of Management

Broadly, this research theme looks into the effects of leader transgressions (e.g., misconduct, misbehaviour, deviance) on workers within organisations.More specifically, adopting a social identity approach, projects within this theme may examine the following questions:How does the organisational level of the leader influence the effects of their transgression on workers?How do workers'  identity configurations affect whether they respond to leader transgressions?How does the type and target of the leader transgression influence the way workers respond to the transgression?

Study level

PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours

Faculty

Faculty of Business and Law

School

School of Management

Melanoma is a very aggressive cancer due to its metastatic potential, and the third most common in Australia. Many patients with metastatic melanoma have strong side effects, do not respond, or develop resistance to current therapies, which results in low survival rate (26% in 5-years). This project aims at developing a new class of therapeutic leads to tackle drug-resistance in metastatic melanoma.Currently, the preferred first-line regimen given to patients with metastatic melanoma is immunotherapy with antibodies (i.e. ipilimumab and nivolumab), …

Study level

PhD

Faculty

Faculty of Health

School

School of Biomedical Sciences

Construction workers are at an increased risk of suicide and experience higher rates of poor psychological health. This research investigates the many psychosocial factors that can contribute to worker psychological (and general) wellbeing. This includes social support, social capital, personal networks, work-related conditions, and work-life-balance. Managing the psychosocial wellbeing of workers is as critical to addressing physical risks associated with construction work.

Study level

PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours

Faculty

Faculty of Business and Law

School

School of Management

This project explores how pre-service teachers experience and reconcile competing conceptions of mathematics, such as mathematics as a formal discipline versus a pedagogical practice. These tensions can shape teaching approaches and classroom environments.The project will investigate how teacher education programs influence these perspectives and how pre-service teachers develop coherent professional identities.

Study level

PhD

Faculty

Faculty of Creative Industries, Education and Social Justice

School

1043176

Bromine and iodine are suspected to be responsible for most of the halogen-induced ozone loss in the stratosphere but are not currently included in atmospheric models due to a paucity of knowledge of the gas-phase chemistry and photochemistry of their anions and radicals.This project will develop and deploy advanced mass spectrometry and laser spectroscopy techniques to enable precision measurements of the reactions and photo- reactions of gas-phase iodide and bromide anions and their oxides.These state-of-the-art measurements of reaction kinetics and …

Study level

PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours

Faculty

Faculty of Science

School

School of Chemistry and Physics

Research centre(s)

Centre for Materials Science

There are limited funds available for saving threatened species globally. Investing that money wisely can help ecologists and the government achieve more bang for their buck, and help more species and ecosystems.We can use many approaches  to help guide those investment decisions, including mathematical optimisation and operations research. However better considerations of economic factors are needed in order to reflect the complexity of real ecosystems and governments.

Study level

PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours

Faculty

Faculty of Science

School

School of Mathematical Sciences

Research centre(s)

Centre for Data Science

Project Reference: #4MPQC-NATP3Preferred Project Start: Late 2026/Early 2027How does a newly formed bone matrix develop into a mineralised tissue containing a functional osteocyte network, and how does this transformation affect the movement of nutrients and signals?During bone formation, osteoblasts produce a soft, initially unmineralised extracellular matrix known as osteoid. Some osteoblasts gradually become embedded within this matrix and transition into osteocytes, extending dendritic processes that connect them into an intricate three-dimensional network. As the osteoid matures and mineralises, its architecture, …

Study level

PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours

Faculty

Faculty of Health

School

School of Biomedical Sciences

Research centre(s)

Centre for Biomedical Technologies