PhD Candidate Stories

Making more green power more affordable

Sahand Karimi Arpanahi
PhD candidate in power systems engineering

Sahand’s PhD research could help make possible a critical step in Australia’s efforts to achieve its Net Zero target: cost-effectively adding more clean, renewable energy to the grid, while simultaneously lowering households’ electricity costs.

He’s developing novel methods for battery storage sizing and operation that reduce the unpredictable fluctuations in solar and wind power generation, enabling higher profit for renewable power stations and lower bills for consumers.

The CSIRO is now closely involved, and AEMO’s also interested. "I’ve really enjoyed the University’s research-focused environment," says Sahand, "and my supervisors’ focus on research quality, rather than quantity."

Advancing industry toward zero emissions

Xiaopeng Bi
PhD candidate in mechanical engineering

With heavy industry accounting for around 30% of global carbon emissions, the race is on to develop clean energy technology capable of providing the extreme heat required by industrial processes.

Particle-based energy sources, such as concentrated solar thermal energy, show promise. But upscaling and optimising them to meet real-world industrial demands has proven difficult. Enter Xiaopeng.

Through his PhD research—conducted in collaboration with US-based Sandia National Laboratories—Xiaopeng has developed a world-first, laser-based method for understanding the complex behavioural characteristics of particle-laden flows. More accurate and affordable than any existing technology, it promises to help make green heavy industry processes a reality.

"I’m driven by the sense of achievement in making a change for the future," he says.

Predicting orbiting objects’ paths

Chee-Kheng Chng
PhD candidate in machine learning

Things are getting pretty crowded up there; the US Space Command now tracks almost 35,000 objects in low Earth orbit. So in the interests of keeping valuable items safe, such as satellites, it pays to be able to accurately calculate their path, as quickly and easily as possible.

Through his PhD project Al4SPACE, Chee-Kheng is finding an answer. With support from defence prime Lockheed Martin, he’s developing a novel algorithm that can accurately estimate a satellite’s orbit simply by evaluating a long-exposure digital image of it.

Chee-Kheng is also exploring the use of various techniques to help identify distant stars, and reconstruct the shape of objects in space. "I love learning new stuff," he says. "The privilege of being able to sit down and ponder every day is something I don’t take for granted."

Improving quantum capabilities 

Thomas Kong
MPhil candidate in applied physics, engineering and material science

Chances are you’re familiar with ocean-going squid. You may even know of Netflix’s hit Squid Game. But nanotech SQUIDs? The latter stands for ‘superconducting quantum interference devices’, a class of ultra-high-precision magnetic field sensors—and they can do amazing things.

The defence sector is interested in their remote border-protection capabilities; they’re used in medical imaging to detect tiny signals generated by the brain; and they may one day play a central role in establishing communication between Earth and Mars!

To the delight of MPhil candidate Thomas—and the Department of Defence—his project on improving SQUID computer modelling has resulted in simulations that are more accurate, more realistic, applicable to a broader range of devices, and 10x faster. 

"Working with the defence industry has been an invaluable experience," he says. "They’ve provided me with significant professional development and leads for potential future career opportunities."

Detecting hypersonic hardware

David Mcafee
PhD candidate in physical sciences 

Hypersonic weapons and vehicles travel at extreme speeds and are highly manoeuvrable. Unsurprisingly, developing countermeasures for them is a huge area of interest for national security. 

David’s PhD surrounds the use, prototyping, and packaging of lasers for deployment in this cutting-edge area. While the lasers he works with are designed for hypersonic vehicle detection, the work will likely also be useful for 3D mapping and LiDAR (light detection and ranging) technology. A large part of his team’s vision is having multiple purposes and applications for anything they develop. 

High-level collaboration on this project—specifically with the Defence Science and Technology Group—means that field testing is anticipated to occur within just a few years. 

"Experimenting with the latest lasers—some of the most advanced technology out there—is a huge privilege", David says, "not to mention a lot of fun."

Making sustainable agriculture attainable

Sara Qanti
PhD candidate in global food and resources

Government policy has a critical role to play in soil and water conservation. But its impact can be minimal if gender’s influence on farming household decision-making isn’t well understood.

Sara’s PhD research is filling that gap. She’s analysing the decision-making process within smallholder agricultural households in rural Indonesia—and particularly women’s role in that process—to gauge how it affects the adoption of conservation practices.

Sara’s work is part of an umbrella project funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research, and also involves Indonesia’s Ministry of Agriculture, and non-government Indonesian research agencies. "I love learning new things outside my comfort zone," she says, "and meeting new people from all kinds of backgrounds."

Mapping vino’s many moods

Claire Armstrong
PhD candidate in wine chemistry

So many factors influence the final product from a grapevine. Fruit left to mature for just one extra week can produce different aromas, flavours, colours, mouthfeels, and tastes. 

Managing variance in grape metabolites can vastly improve a drop of "cab sav"—and that’s precisely what Claire aims to achieve through her PhD. By developing an index that rapidly determines variability within vineyards, she’s supporting the wine industry to make more informed viticulture and winemaking decisions. 

"I love the diversity of experience in this field; one day I’m indoors in the lab, the next I’m out and about in a vineyard,” Claire says. “It’s also really rewarding to share research and watch real people apply my learnings and benefit from them."