July 30, 2014
$25 million for science research and innovation in the Illawarra
A research vision for the next generation of batteries, solar cells and medical implants launched at UOW.
ACES' 2020 vision for a Wollongong-based science research and innovation centre was launched by Senator The Hon Concetta Fierravanti-Wells (middle) and ARC CEO Professor Aidan Byrne (left).
Senator The Hon Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Social Services and Senator for New South Wales, officially launched the new Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science (ACES), which has received $25 million in funding to make Wollongong the global headquarters of an international materials research effort.
In officially opening the new ACES, Senator Fierravanti-Wells congratulated the ACES team and said she was “certain it would be another seven years of cutting-edge research at the centre”.
"The Federal Government is supporting innovation in research around the country. As an Illawarra-based Senator, I am particularly proud of and congratulate the University of Wollongong for yet again demonstrating its ability to lead a global partnership with the ACES program," the Senator said.
ACES and its five international partner organisations will embark on an ambitious program that will take materials science research, training, commercialisation and engagement programs into new dimensions through to 2020.
The centre will build on more than a decade of internationally recognised fundamental research to fast track development of new industries and manufacturing opportunities around the next generation of batteries, solar cells and medical implants.
Including partner and associate investigators, the new centre will combine research strengths from across nine countries, bringing together leading experts in materials, modelling, fabrication and device development.
ACES outstanding research outcomes to date include the development of nanotube yarn to power implantable biomedical devices; the manipulation of fishing line to produce artificial muscles with super human strength; and the acceleration of 3D printing to deliver solutions to a number of medical challenges.
The new centre will support the ongoing development of new industries including the spin-out renewable energy company AquaHydrex as it moves toward prototype manufacturing.
New education opportunities will be created through the commencement of a master degree in biofabrication in partnership with Australian and international institutions.
With the support of the Australian National Fabrication Facility (ANFF) and NSW Government funding, ACES will take advantage of advanced customised 3D fabrication equipment and engineering expertise to provide the transition from fundamental research to a workable 3D product.
All applications will be supported by an ethics, policy and public engagement program to ensure the community is an integral part new and rapidly emerging technologies.
ACES Director Professor Gordon Wallace said transformative research would be supported by the right people to forge ahead and position the centre as a global leader in 3D electromaterials science.
“I would like to say a sincere thank you to our host organisations, especially UOW, to the Australian Research Council, to the Australian government and to the communities for who we work. Thank you for entrusting us with the challenge to develop a new frontier in science and engineering,” he said.
“ACES will be a cauldron of research activity that would challenge the most gifted researchers attracted from around the globe as well as provide an excellent training ground for students,” he said.
“Our holistic approach will ensure that fundamental discoveries can be translated into practical devices. Our commercialisation focus will be on creating new industries, and equipping our graduates to lead them.
“We already see opportunities in nanostructured carbon synthesis and processing, energy storage and wearable diagnostics. Other opportunities, including 3D bioprinting, will undoubtedly emerge. All of this can only be achieved with amazing people, and we have some of the best.”
Australian Research Council CEO Professor Aidan Byrne said ACES was an example of how the Centres of Excellence scheme allowed research groups to tackle large-scale challenges and provide funding surety to undertake that work.
“ACES received the additional funding, not just because they did a good job previously, but because they put forward a great case for what they can still do. ACES is meeting all the objectives of the ARC: they are undertaking highly innovative and translational research; they are engaged in collaborations linking research strengths in Australia and internationally; they are building human capacity and they are fostering interactions between academia and the community.”