News and Events

Shared challenges, shared solutions
Sustainable energy and water
Date: June 4, 2008 – 8.00 am for 8.30 start
Venue: The Theatrette, NSW Parliament House
The ‘Shared challenges, shared solutions - Sustainable energy and water’ Symposium is organised by the
Institution of Chemical Engineers in Australia and the Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Foundation of The University of Sydney
and is hosted by the Hon Verity Firth MP, NSW Minister for Climate Change and the Environment.

For further information please see ENERGY AND WATER SYMPOSIUM PROGRAM 4th JUNE or contact Skender Bregu, Executive Officer, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering Foundation, The University of Sydney
Tel 02 9351 5284 Fax 02 9351 2854 Email: s.bregu@usyd.edu.au
For information on Registration contact Tania Graham, IChemE
Tel 03 9642 4494 Fax 03 9642 4495 Email: austmembers@icheme.org

The School was successful in the latest round of Australian Research Council Linkage Projects winning two large Linkage projects, which are for research undertaken with an industrial partner. Professor Geoff Barton and Mankin Research Fellow Dr Daniel Ryan were awarded $420k over three years to investigate electrocoagulation as a low-cost option for the continuous treatment of highly polluted wastewater. This work is being undertaken in collaboration with AB Mauri Ltd. Professor Brian Haynes and Professor Thomas Maschmeyer in the School of Chemistry were awarded $605k over four years to develop a new, highly-integrated, and modular, process for manufacturing biodiesel from plant and animal feedstocks. This research will be undertaken in collaboration with the Australian Biodiesel Group.

Applications now open
Australian Postgraduate Awards (Industry) (2)

Two APAI scholarships funded by ARC Linkage-Projects grants are available for up to 3 years on a full-time basis for a research projects leading to a PhD. The first scholarship is for a collaborative project between Lang Technologies and the University of Sydney. This project will address the overall themes of assessing, measuring, modelling and minimizing the extent of thermal degradation during the processing of functional foods in spray dryers. It will compare spray dryers with other drying equipment, such as freeze dryers, vacuum dryers and tray dryers. The project is relevant to a diverse range of functional food applications, including the drying of extracts from chicken stock, sugar cane extracts, hibiscus and grapes. The project is a key component of a technical development program that has the potential to make a very large contribution to the processing of functional foods resulting in products of high value for nutritional use. The second scholarship is for a collaborative project between Australian Choice Timber Supplies and the University of Sydney to improve the productivity and quality of timber drying by cyclic drying techniques, particularly in solar kilns. The project will position Australia at the leading edge of applying solar energy directly to the processing of materials. Applicants should have an Honours 1 or 2A degree in physical sciences or chemical, civil or mechanical engineering. Applicants must be Australian citizens, Australian permanent residents or New Zealand citizens. The scholarship stipends are $26,140 p.a. in 2008 (tax exempt). For further information, contact Associate Professor Tim Langrish (Phone: 02 9351 4568; Fax: 02 9351 2854; Email: t.langrish@usyd.edu.au). Applications, including a curriculum vitae, copy of an academic transcript, proof of citizenship or permanent residency, the names and contact details of at least two referees should be sent to Associate Professor Tim Langrish, School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The University of Sydney NSW 2006.

Closing Date: 20 February 2008

Congratulations to Dr. Andrew Harris on being named one of Cosmos Magazine's "Bright Sparks" for 2007, awarded to Australia's top ten scientists under age 40. The profiles of Andrew and the other winners are in issue 17 of Cosmos Magazine. Dr Harris has also been nominated for the GSK Young Engineer of the Year 2007.


Read more about Dr Harris from the following article taken from the University's 'Science and Technology' news and events.

Andrew Harris's glittering career

Ms Susie Wood and Mr Nicholas Florin, both from the Laboratory for Sustainable Technology, won first and second place respectively in the "Achieving More with Less" category of the Australian Institute of Energy NSW Awards for Postgraduate Research.

In the category "Energy in Society", Ruud Kempener won second place. All awardees are now invited to represent NSW at the national AIE meeting in Melbourne in November. The School congratulates Susie, Nic and Ruud for their achievements.

Research being undertaken by Dr Andrew Harris, a Lecturer in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and Head of the School’s Laboratory for Sustainable Technology, on the uptake of precious metals by plants was recently highlighted in The Australian and Sydney Morning Herald newspapers.

The process is known as phytomining and works by enhancing the natural tendency of some plants to extract metals from ore rich soils – to the point the plants could actually be used to recover valuable metals in commercial quantities. The plants are then harvested and the valuable metal particles recovered, intact and ready for use. In the past few months Dr Harris and his colleagues on the project, Ms Roza Bali and Mr Guarin Owen have developed a technique that enables plants to take up to 5% of their dry weight in gold, when grown hydroponically. The next step is to adapt the plants to do the same in metal rich soils.

"Wouldn’t it be better if you could just grow some plants on the ore, have them do the ‘mining’, harvest them and recover the gold? If you could do this, at some stage in the future a gold mine might look like a forest or a farmers field instead of a waste dump." says Dr Harris. He is intent on taking his work from the research stage and turning it into a commercially viable option for consumers and is already making plans to license the technology to mining companies across Australia.

The phytomining process is one of many examples of "green engineering" that he and his colleagues are developing in the University’s research Laboratory for Sustainable Technology. He is a strong believer that the scientific breakthroughs of the future will come about because of multidisciplinary research - chemists, physics, biologists and engineers working together to solve problems, and he cites his phytomining research as a good example. "Today the sustainability of mining is questionable". But by embracing new ideas it is possible for the mining and agricultural industries to become more sustainable and more profitable".

Dr Andrew Harris, head of the Laboratory for Sustainable Technology has been awarded the 2006 The Shedden Uhde Medal of Excellence and Prize which recognizes practical services to the profession and to the practice of chemical engineering in Australia and New Zealand. The Shedden Uhde medal is the top award for chemical engineers under the age of 40 in Australia and New Zealand.

The Australian Academy of Technology, Science and Engineering have recently elected Professor Hans Coster as a Fellow. This is a significant achievement. Professor Coster is an eminent and entrepreneurial biophysicist, with a track record in developing applications and commercial innovations. The Academy (ATSE) is an independent, non-government organisation dedicated to the promotion in Australia of scientific and engineering knowledge to practical purposes.

Visit the ATSE website for more information.

The School would like to congratulate Don on his recent appointment. The Nature Conservation Council of NSW is the State's peak environmental organisation with over 120 member groups, and individual supporters from across the state. NCC works closely with local communities and businesses, co-ordinates action groups across the state and advises the key decision-makers at a local, state and national level to protect and promote the NSW environment.

Visit the NCC website or Adj A/Prof Don White's Bio page for more information.