QUT offers a diverse range of student topics for Honours, Masters and PhD study. Search to find a topic that interests you or propose your own research topic to a prospective QUT supervisor. You may also ask a prospective supervisor to help you identify or refine a research topic.
Found 31 matching student topics
Displaying 1–12 of 31 results
Spider silk: self-healing in a super fibre
Spider silks possess a range of qualities that are rarely found simultaneously in one material. Its outstanding toughness, extensibility and strength are only a few of the desirable traits that make spider silk of such interest. It is biodegradable, biocompatible, and extremely lightweight.A further advantage lies in its processing conditions and requirements. Whereas production of Kevlar and other synthetics comes at a high monetary and environmental cost, spiders spin recyclable fibres on demand, under ambient conditions using water as a …
- Study level
- Vacation research experience scheme
- Faculty
- Faculty of Engineering
- School
- School of Mechanical, Medical and Process Engineering
A physics-guided deep learning-based framework for computational mechanics
Computational mechanics is an essential discipline that uses numerical schemes to approximately solve mechanics problems. It provides engineers with precious knowledge about the structures to identify the at-risk area and further guide the structural design and optimisation process.Deep learning (DL) is an important branch of machine learning (ML). The great success of the DL techniques has been witnessed in the past decade. Now, various fields have benefited from the DL techniques, including computer vision, financial prediction, and bioinformatics. Therefore, it …
- Study level
- Vacation research experience scheme
- Faculty
- Faculty of Engineering
- School
- School of Mechanical, Medical and Process Engineering
Optimising bone shape with memory networks
Bone is a dynamic tissue that optimises its shape to the mechanical loads that it carries. Bone mass is accrued where loads are high, and reduced where loads are low. This adaptation of bone tissue to mechanical loads is well-known and observed in many instances. However, what serves as a reference mechanical state in this shape optimisation remains largely unknown.
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours, Vacation research experience scheme
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Mathematical Sciences
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Biomedical Technologies
Optimisation of piezoelectric materials for robotics applications
Piezoelectricity, which translates to “pressure electricity”, is the phenomenon in which certain materials convert mechanical energy to electrical energy, and vice versa. Such materials are common-place and are used in a variety of applications including sensor, actuator, and energy harvesting technologies. The capabilities of such piezoelectric materials have not yet been fully realised. We plan to use computational structural optimisation to design new piezoelectric materials and components that may contribute to novel sensing technologies for robotics applications. Essentially, robots need …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours, Vacation research experience scheme
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Mathematical Sciences
Unlocking cartilage mechanics
When engineers design bearing surfaces, they aim for the hardest, smoothest surfaces they can find. When a bearing surface evolves in nature, however, a different approach is taken.Articular cartilage, the material covering the ends of our joints and letting them articulate, combines a tough network of collagen, entrapping water and a high-swelling proteoglycan matrix. Young’s modulus is only ~10 MPa, and its surface is intentionally rough, yet it can out-perform engineering bearings in terms of lifetime and coefficient of friction, …
- Study level
- Vacation research experience scheme
- Faculty
- Faculty of Engineering
- School
- School of Mechanical, Medical and Process Engineering
How do healthy people sleep? Biomechanics, physiology, and environment - what matters most?
In the Westernized world a person typically spends one third of their life in bed, with more time spent sleeping in a bed than in any other single activity. Sleep amount and quality of sleep have a direct impact on mood, behaviour, motor skills and overall quality of life. Yet, despite how important restful sleep is for the body to maintain good health, there is a comparatively small amount of studies evaluating key multi-factorial and biomechanical determinants of restful sleep …
- Study level
- PhD
- Faculty
- Faculty of Engineering
- School
- School of Mechanical, Medical and Process Engineering
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Biomedical Technologies
Predicting good sleep using computer science: Can we use machine learning to find out 'what's the best bed?'
In the Westernised world a person typically spends one third of their life in bed, with more time spent sleeping in a bed than in any other single activity. Sleep amount and quality of sleep have a direct impact on mood, behaviour, motor skills and overall quality of life. Yet, despite how important restful sleep is for the body to maintain good health, there is a comparatively small amount of studies evaluating key multi-factorial determinants of restful sleep in non-pathological, …
- Study level
- PhD
- Faculty
- Faculty of Engineering
- School
- School of Mechanical, Medical and Process Engineering
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Biomedical Technologies
Image-based computational model to predict intracranial aneurysm rupture
Intracranial aneurysms are bulging, weak areas of an artery that supply blood to the brain which are relatively common. While most aneurysms do not show symptoms, 1% spontaneously rupture which can be fatal or it can leave the survivor with permanent disabilities. This catastrophic outcome has motivated surgeons to operate on approximately 30% of aneurysms despite their rate of complications arising and cost of operation.The impact of aneurysm morphology on blood flow shear stress and rupture could educate surgical decision-making …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Engineering
- School
- School of Mechanical, Medical and Process Engineering
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Biomedical Technologies
Developing models of failure for porous materials
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, Vacation research experience scheme
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Mathematical Sciences
Computational methods for multi-scale structural optimisation
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, Vacation research experience scheme
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Mathematical Sciences
Image-based computational model to predict intracranial aneurysm rupture (VRES)
Intracranial aneurysms are bulging, weak areas of an artery that supply blood to the brain which are relatively common. While most aneurysms do not show symptoms, 1% spontaneously rupture which can be fatal or it can leave the survivor with permanent disabilities. This catastrophic outcome has motivated surgeons to operate on approximately 30% of aneurysms despite their rate of complications arising and cost of operation.The impact of aneurysm morphology on blood flow shear stress and rupture could educate surgical decision-making …
- Study level
- Vacation research experience scheme
- Faculty
- Faculty of Engineering
- School
- School of Mechanical, Medical and Process Engineering
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Biomedical Technologies
Computer modelling of water infiltration into soils
This project involves investigations of the process of water infiltration into soils using the computational modeling method (numerical simulation). This problem is very important in agriculture, where an understanding of how water is distributed within the soil after rainfall is essential.
- Study level
- Vacation research experience scheme
- Faculty
- Faculty of Engineering
- School
- School of Mechanical, Medical and Process Engineering
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