College of Science & Engineering

Sophia Love

Sophia Love

Romain Vaucher

Romain Vaucher

Jenny Fisher

Jenny Fisher

Ambili Narayanan

Ambili Narayanan

Sarfaraz Ali

Sarfaraz Ali

Mikaeylah Davidson

Mikaeylah Davidson

Liuxin Chen

Liuxin Chen

Rafael Cabral Carvalho

Rafael Cabral Carvalho

Tom Lloyd

Tom Lloyd

Mohamadreza Chalak Qazani

Mohamadreza Chalak Qazani

Field-Deployable Chemical Sensors for Water Quality Monitoring in the Great Barrier Reef (Old ID 30054)
Yang Liu
17 Jul 2023 - 01 Sep 2024
Field-deployable chemical sensors are increasingly necessary for high resolution in situ monitoring of water pollutants across the freshwater and marine ecosystems of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) - the world’s largest coral reef system. Currently, the chemical sensors deployed in the GBR regions rely heavily on optical principles that encounter reliability and robustness issues when used in complex aquatic environments. This project will establish a collaboration with the world-leading research group in chemical sensor design and field deployment to address this current scientific challenge in Australia. The collaboration proposed here will provide significant benefits for better management of the GBR.
Deciphering the molecular and environmental determinants of sex-change in barramundi (Old ID 20663)
Dean Jerry
19 Nov 2013 - 31 Dec 2017
Barramundi breeding programs to boost productivity and international competitiveness are hindered by a lack of reproductive control. Barramundi change sex from male to emale at 3-5 years of age, requiring hatcheries to maintain male broodstock for several years before they can be bred as females. This increases required infrastructure and decreases the rate of genetic improvement that can be achieved. This project will elucidate genetic mechanisms regulating barramundi sex change and will develop approaches allowing hatcheries to efficiently control broodstock sex. The ability to obtain reproductive control
Mitigation of Losses in Community from Extreme Wind Events (Old ID 22387)
David Henderson
01 Jul 2015 - 30 Jun 2016
The objective of the project is to investigate and inform on aspects of building codes/standards and implementation to mitigate losses from extreme wind events including Cyclones.
The impact of increasing ocean temperatures on the movement and behaviour of the iconic Indo-Pacific fisheries species, coral trout (Old ID 22898)
Morgan Pratchett
01 Jan 2017 - 30 Sep 2019
Ocean warming is the most pervasive aspect of climate change, which impacts directly on the distribution, abundance, and population structure of fishes, as well as the viability and sustainability of fisheries. Tropical marine fishes are particularly vulnerable to ocean warming, because species are already exposed to summer temperatures that may have negative consequences for individual condition and fitness. Coral trout are among the most important tropical marine fisheries species, targeted by commercial and artisanal fishers throughout the Indo-Pacific. This study will explore if, and how coral trout mediate or acclimate to extreme temperatures, with a view to better understand the impacts of climate change on wild stocks of these important fishes.
ARC Centre of Excellence for Australian Biodiversity and Heritage (Old ID 22972)
Michael Bird
30 Jun 2017 - 30 Apr 2025
This Centre will create a world-class interdisciplinary research programme to understand Australia's unique biodiversity and heritage. The Centre will track the changes to Australia's environment to examine the processes responsible for the changes and the lessons that can be used to continue to adapt to Australia's changing environment. The Centre will support connections between the sciences and humanities and train future generations of researchers to deal with future global challenges and inform policy in an interdisciplinary context.
Architecture of the hanging wall shear zone and faults affecting the ore zone at Dugald River Mine (Old ID 26246)
Paul Dirks
15 Feb 2019 - 14 Aug 2022
This is a PhD project to develop a better understanding of the larger scale geometry of the shear zone and fault system that occur within the immediate hanging wall of the zinc-sulphide ore body in Dugald River Mine, near Cloncurry, NW Queensland. We aim to understand how shear controls the distribution of the ore zone both from a genetic and mechanical (displacement and remobilization) perspective, to optimize ore recovery in a predictive manner.
Vibration analysis of mining industry conveyor belt systems: validation of method and pathways to improvement (Old ID 26579)
Bronson Philippa
19 Aug 2019 - 19 Feb 2020
Equipment failures in the mining industry can cause serious safety hazards and substantial financial losses. An automated, cost-effective monitoring system that could be retrofitted to existing equipment would provide advance warning to operators and reduce the likelihood of unscheduled outages. This project will test and validate a vibration-based monitoring system for conveyor belts and associated equipment. It will also identify improved methods to analyse the vibration data to increase the sensitivity and/or accuracy of the alerts that are generated.
Implementing artificial intelligence for the quantitative assessment of abalone in production systems (Old ID 26800)
Phoebe Arbon
01 Apr 2020 - 07 Feb 2022
This project will aim to develop, train, validate and implement an artificial intelligence model to identify and count abalone and measure quantitative abalone traits in production systems from an image. Currently, stock assessment is conducted manually, with large costs associated for the farms. This solution would reduce the cost of stock assessments and would greatly improve data quantity and quality using a “hands-off” approach. The model would also provide an advanced platform for further R & D improvements above and beyond basic assessments (e.g. growth monitoring in feeding trials).
Mix Designs for Paste Aggregate Fills (Old ID 22395)
Siva Sivakugan
27 Dec 2015 - 30 Apr 2016
JCU is requested to prepare the paste aggregate fill (PAF) samples, mixed with tailings in three different proportions. The samples are approximately 200mm diameter and 400mm in length, and the PAF should exclude fractions larger than 20mm and those less than 1.18mm. In all three mixes, UCS tests will be carried out after 7, 14, 28, 56 and 100 days and strength and Young's modulus will be determined. In addition, the grain size distribution, specific gravity, bulk density, and moisture content will be determined. In addition, it is also required to carry out slump tests on the different mixes using the standard slump cone.
Ecological influences on biodiverse morphology in climbing geckos (Old ID 27210)
Lin Schwarzkopf
15 Apr 2021 - 30 Apr 2025
Ecological interactions are one of the main drivers of biodiversity generation. The influence of ecology on the morphology of organisms is one such interaction that influences the generation of biodiversity. Australian Diplodactyline geckos are some of the most morphologically and ecologically diverse systems in the world. They occupy a diverse range of habitats and have evolved unique toe pads enable the exploitation of several substrates within the habitats they occupy. Therefore, my project will investigate how toe pads have evolved in response to habitat use in Diplodactyline geckos. We will examine these relationships by studying habitat use and morphology, with locomotor performance as an intermediary link.
Title: JCU reef scientist goes global after plumbing the depths, Townsville Bulletin
Reseracher: Gemma Galbraith (AIMS@JCU Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Reef Connectivity)
Start Date: 10 Nov 2024
Title: Deep dive: How I use robots to survey coral reefs, Nature
Reseracher: Gemma Galbraith (AIMS@JCU Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Reef Connectivity)
Start Date: 31 Mar 2025
Title: Bengali
Reseracher: Khandakar Faisal Ibn Murad (Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering and Related Technologies))
Title: English
Reseracher: Khandakar Faisal Ibn Murad (Doctor of Philosophy (Engineering and Related Technologies))
Title: Wet Tropics Management Authority - Scientific Advisory Committee
Reseracher: Nathan Waltham (Associate Professor, Blue Carbon)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2024
Title: Aquaculture without Frontiers (AwF), Australia
Reseracher: Simon Das (Research Fellow - Grouper Nutrition)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2024
End Date: 01 Jan 2027
Title: ARC Future Fellow ($680,000), Global Change: Rainforest responses to experimental drought
Reseracher: Susan Laurance (Professor, Personal Chair)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2014
Title: American Society of Naturalists
Reseracher: Megan Higgie (Associate Professor)
Start Date: 01 Jan 2003
Title: PhD, James Cook University
Reseracher: Alana Grech (Professor)
End Date: 01 Jan 2010
Title: Bachelor of Environmental Science (Honours), The University of Adelaide
Reseracher: Alana Grech (Professor)
End Date: 01 Jan 2003