QUT offers a diverse range of student topics for Honours, Masters and PhD study. Search to find a topic that interests you or propose your own research topic to a prospective QUT supervisor. You may also ask a prospective supervisor to help you identify or refine a research topic.
Found 239 matching student topics
Displaying 13–24 of 239 results
Smoke and mirrors: intercepting the elusive molecular precursors of soot
Soot formation occurs via a complex network of chemical reactions leading from simple gases to macromolecular aggregates. Despite being central to our understanding of extreme environments ranging from engines, to bushfires and interstellar clouds, the critical steps and intermediates in these reactions are poorly described.This project will deploy advanced mass spectrometry and laser-based methods to generate, isolate and interrogate gas phase free radical intermediates and elucidate their role in molecular weight growth processes.Through these chemical insights, advanced computational models will …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Chemistry and Physics
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Materials Science
Elucidating the gas-phase reactivity and photochemistry of halide anions
Bromine and iodine are suspected to be responsible for most of the halogen-induced ozone loss in the stratosphere but are not currently included in atmospheric models due to a paucity of knowledge of the gas-phase chemistry and photochemistry of their anions and radicals.This project will develop and deploy advanced mass spectrometry and laser spectroscopy techniques to enable precision measurements of the reactions and photo- reactions of gas-phase iodide and bromide anions and their oxides.These state-of-the-art measurements of reaction kinetics and …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Chemistry and Physics
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Materials Science
Branching processes, stochastic simulations and travelling waves
Branching processes are stochastic mathematical models used to study a range of biological processes, including tissue growth and disease transmission.This project will implement a simple stochastic branching process to generate simulations of biological growth, and then consider differential equation-based description of the stochastic model.Using computation we will compare the two models, and use phase plane and perturbation analysis to analyze the resulting traveling wave solutions.
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Mathematical Sciences
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Data Science
Artificial Intelligence for collaborative and intelligent user interfaces
This project seeks to leverage recent advances in machine vision and natural language processing algorithms to support the design and development of knowledge-driven applications that support communication and collaborations with their users.One particular area where this will be investigated is in workplaces for supported employment, that is employment opportunities for people with intellectual disability. One of the questions to address is how machines could respond to what a user shows them in order to assist with decision making in a …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Computer Science
Analysing the oceanographic variables that generate and mobilise coral rubble on the GBR
There is increasing concern on the effects of global warming and how it is increasing the frequency and severity of disturbance events on the Great Barrier Reef (GBR), an enduring living structure on our planet. For example, the intensity and frequency of tropical cyclones is likely to increase and this will also reduce the time available for coral reefs to recover.Moreover, there are other factors that contribute to the vulnerability of coral to mechanical breakage, such as crown of thorns …
- Study level
- Master of Philosophy
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
Building metallo-supramolecular cages for sensing and catalytic applications
The concept of creating molecular electronic devices has resulted in the development and rapid advance of the field of supramolecular chemistry.In this project we are particularly interested in how we can use simple building blocks to self-assemble into complex, functional structures both in solution and at the solution:surface interface.These types of structures have shown great promise in applications such as catalysis, sensing, drug delivery and even in the development of molecular machines.AimsThis project aims to:design, synthesise and characterise complex metallo-supramolecular …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Chemistry and Physics
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Materials Science
Advanced electron microscopy for sustainable nanocatalysis
The systematic and detailed characterisation of heterogeneous catalysts is critical for design of effective and stable catalytic materials, since it allows one to understand the correlation between their structure and physicochemical properties.Especially, it is important to monitor the structural evolution of catalytic materials and their active sites in a controllable environment and under realistic reaction conditions.Thus, we propose to use a powerful combination of aberration-corrected high-resolution TEM and in situ TEM experiments which allow us to gain extensive knowledge about …
- Study level
- PhD
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Chemistry and Physics
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Materials Science
Plasmonic metal application
Developing “light controllable product selectivity switches” is of great interest in cross-coupling reactions based chemical synthesis. On an environmentally friendly plasmonic metal nano-particle surface, light irradiation can change the reactants adsorption on the surface, and thus change the relative ratio of the reactants for reaction. Different wavelengths contribute to tune this selectivity more accurately in a molecular level.
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Chemistry and Physics
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Materials Science
Exploding shallow marine volcanoes: investigating the petrology of the 2019 pumice raft-producing eruption from Volcano 0403-091, Tonga
More than 21,000 km of submarine volcanoes front subduction zones, many of which lie in shallow water close to inhabited areas. Eruptions at these volcanoes can be explosive and may have significant impacts on nearby communities, or generate pumice rafts that prolong impact at remote locations. For the first time, samples of a shallow marine explosive eruption have been collected from the buoyant pumice raft and from the seafloor at the vent of Volcano 0403-091, Tonga.
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Materials Science
Centre for the Environment
Ecological interactions in Antarctic ecosystems
Antarctic and sub-Antarctic terrestrial ecosystems are dominated by mosses, lichens, invertebrates and some vascular plants. Marine vertebrates (penguins, seals, seabirds) also play an important role in driving terrestrial processes. All these species are influenced by many environmental and biotic factors, including interactions between species. Determining the impacts of climatic and environmental change on Antarctic and sub-Antarctic biodiversity requires greater understanding of these interactions.Ecological data on species interactions and the drivers of these interactions are an essential part of Antarctic and …
- Study level
- PhD
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Biology and Environmental Science
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Data Science
Centre for the Environment
Statistical methods for detecting Antarctic ecosystems from space
Satellite images are a frequent and free source of global data which can be used to effectively monitor the environment. We can see how the land is being used, how it’s being changed, what’s there – even where animals are in the landscape. Using these images is essential, particularly for regions where data is expensive to collect or difficult to physically access, like Antarctica. In Antarctica and the sub-Antarctic islands, satellite images can be an easy and quick way to …
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Mathematical Sciences
- Research centre(s)
- Centre for Data Science
Centre for the Environment
What do ancient granitic rocks tell about the formation of Earth's crust
The Earth is a dynamic evolving planet that has continually changed throughout its history. This change is recorded in the different rock types preserved in the continental crust and is paralleled by the evolution of life. Study of Archean granitic terranes (4.0-2.5 billion years ago) provides invaluable information on the early Earth when 50% of the present day volume of continental crust was generated. You will help work out how Earth's earliest crust formed through:potential field workpetrographygeochemical analysis.
- Study level
- PhD, Master of Philosophy, Honours
- Faculty
- Faculty of Science
- School
- School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
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