Sustainable Industry Design

Sustainable industry design concerns the process technologies and management of recovered waste materials including plastics, fibres and fly ashes. We develop cost effective manufacturing approaches for high value low carbon emission products.

 Core Projects

  1. NEW OPTIONS FOR WASTE AND SAVING THE ENVIRONMENT (NO WASTE) 2022 – 2025
  2. RAILWAY SLEEPERS FROM WASTE PLASTICS AND FIBRE COMPOSITES 2022 – 2025
  3. Sustainable Industry Manufacturing Planning for Long-term Ecosystems (SIMPLE) Hub 2022 – 2025
  4. GREEN GEOPOLYMER

Core Research Areas

Green Geoploymer

Australia only uses 10% of its annual fly ash waste as supplementary cementitious material for the cement industry. This project aims to develop a well-formulated geopolymer, utilising high volume coal waste streams fly
ash, as sustainable replacement of Portland cement.

 NEW OPTIONS FOR WASTE AND SAVING THE ENVIRONMENT (NO WASTE)

The purpose is to develop and demonstrate a novel regional multi-helix collaboration model involving entities with a shared purpose to divert waste from landfill, and increase jobs. NO WASTE precinct’s research will link education initiatives and technical advancement to convert waste into value-added material products. The precinct will commence with a focus on plastics, glass and fibres, and transition to sustainable design of advanced products (e.g. solar panels, fibre composites).

RAILWAY SLEEPERS FROM WASTE PLASTICS AND FIBRE COMPOSITES

This project develops next generation railway sleepers with waste materials. High volumes of landfill waste plastics will be processed and combined with fibre composites to create a durable, high-performance and cost-effective structural system. The project offers a unique solution to replace timber sleepers, transitions Australia into a circular economy, and contributes to Australia’s target to achieve
net zero emissions by 2050.

Sustainable Industry Manufacturing Planning for Long-term Ecosystems (SIMPLE) Hub

A tailored approach to developing manufacturing solutions specific to regional communities with waste materials. Our current external partners include Oilfield Piping Systems, Darling Downs Health, Jennmar, Impacts Renewable Energy, Venlo, Plungie and Australia Sunlight group, and we also have the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO) and CSIRO on the advisory committee.