Scholarship opportunities

Every drop counts: ensuring water security in a changing climate in southwest Australia

This project investigates the impacts of climate change and land use change on water availability and quality in Southwest Australia. The expected outcome is to develop and assess management strategies to increase water yield and reduce sedimentation and evaporation losses. The project will support long-term water security for local communities and ecosystems. 

Smartphone for triage to detect stroke

This project will focus on AI based voice analysis to assess patients in the emergency departments to assist in early detection of stroke conditions. The expected outcome is to develop interactive software and AI modelling focusing on responsible AI, overcoming gender, ethnicity and age-related biases. The potential benefit of this project is to reduce misdiagnosis that takes place in hospitals due to differences in gender, age and ethnicity.

Investigating interactions between sulfide minerals and in-situ recovery fluids for copper mining

In-situ recovery (ISR) is emerging as a transformative technique for the extraction of copper (Cu) from Australian sediment-hosted deposits and reprocessing of mine tailings. In contrast to conventional hard-rock mining, ISR offers a non-invasive, environmentally sustainable and economically viable alternative, with the potential to unlock copper resources from low-grade or marginal deposits. As Cu is essential for the electrification of transport and renewable energy systems, ISR technologies hold significant potential to contribute to the global development and deployment of low-carbon energy and transport infrastructure in a manner that minimise impacts on the environment and local communities. This project, in collaboration with EnviroCopper Ltd, will investigate the mineralogical, geochemical, biological and kinetic aspects of fluid-rock interactions during ISR of the Kapunda Cu deposit, South Australia. By addressing these aspects, it will advance our understanding of ISR processes and support its broader adoption at both national and global scale.

Quantum-AI for food security and student wellbeing

This project develops quantum-AI tools to optimise urban hydroponic food systems and evaluate their therapeutic impact on student well-being. The expected outcome is to create quantum-reinforced AI algorithms for resource-efficient hydroponics and evidence-based frameworks for integrating green space exposure for improved student wellbeing. This project will potentially enhance urban food resilience, reduce resource waste, and create scalable mental health interventions, advancing national sustainability and education priorities. 

Distributed trust AI for solar energy sustainability in commercial settings

This project develops a scheme and prototype for utilising advanced AI technologies to manage and efficient utilise of solar energy. The expected outcomes is an energy sharing trustworthy framework that enables commercial customers reducing energy bills. The project will lead to a sustainable solution for SMEs and contribute to environment protection.

AI-empowered visual recognition system for dairy cow identification, health and behaviour monitoring

This project develops an AI-driven system to identify individual cows, and monitor and detect their health and behaviour, through the use of facial recognition, posture analysis, and thermal imaging. The expected outcome is early detection of illness and abnormal activity of cows. This project will support productivity, reduce losses, and improve animal welfare in the dairy industry.

Dark web analytics for ransomware threat actor profiling

This project investigates active ransomware groups and attempts to identify their key characteristics, attack signatures, victims, and stolen data. The expected outcome is development of a dataset to serve as an essential resource. The project will potentially provide more knowledge on ransomware groups, their tactics, techniques, and procedures for launching attacks.

Fermented plant protein peptides in development of functional elderly milk formulations

This project explores using fermented plant protein peptides in milk formulas for the elderly with potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. The expected outcome is to ferment plant protein peptides, analyse their bioactive compounds, and assess their in vitro bioactivities. The project aims to develop nutritious, easily digestible, novel dairy formulas, potentially reducing the burden of age-related health concerns on individuals and healthcare systems.

Building responsible AI: Co-designing knowledge transfer solutions using generative AI

This project will bridge the gap between the principles of responsible AI and their measurable practice, by developing AI knowledge tools to empower end-user community groups. The expected outcomes are to build insights and develop AI tools for information dissemination and knowledge transfer. The potential benefit is to produce responsible AI solutions to help disability groups connect, communicate, share and learn.

Real-time quality assurance and machine validation for ultra precision manufacturing

This project is developing a real-time quality assurance system to detect precision assembly errors and validate CNC machine performance using quantitative data. The expected outcome is an intelligent, data-driven quality control method that improves the accuracy and reliability of ultra-precision manufacturing. This technology will potentially result in improved product traceability, reduced defects, and increased compliance with medical and military standard for the advanced manufacturing industry.