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USQ Researcher Develops Sensors to Boost Mining Safety

A researcher at the University of Queensland has designed sensors to help prevent injury and death on mining sites by detecting early mechanical issues in oil and gas pipelines. The sensors’ extraordinary ability to withstand harsh and corrosive environments has even caught the attention of NASA.

Dr Dinh, a mechanical engineer at the University of Southern Queensland, has spent the past six years developing the sensors, which are made of silicon carbide. He said they are five to 100 times smaller than the width of a single human hair and perform a thousand times better than conventional sensors.

He noted that the current silicon technology can’t be used in harsh environments because it can’t survive a long time in conditions of high temperature and corrosion. The sensors he has developed can operate in up to 600 degrees Celsius for a wide range of applications, including oil and gas industries and aerospace technologies.

Oil and gas exploration and production sites are some of the most dangerous workplaces on the planet due to the risk of fires and explosions. It is critically important that working conditions are made safer for miners as well as more efficient, Dr Dinh said. He noted that the sensors can detect and measure the tiniest of movements in the environment, as well as monitor, in real-time, the structural health of a system, such as a pipeline, in case there is any changes or faults. This can help prevent a major system failure from occurring, not only reducing maintenance costs but potentially averting a catastrophic situation that could lead to injury or death.

Dr Dinh recently received a $440,675 grant under the Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Early Career Researcher Award scheme to further develop his research. It will also enable him to travel to California where he will collaborate with researchers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory to look at how the sensors could be used in space exploration. “It’s a very exciting opportunity and a great chance to focus on improving the technology’s performance so it can operate in more environments and applications,” Dr Dinh said.

His goal is to start testing the sensors in real industry conditions as early as this year before they are ready for commercialisation. The ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Award scheme provides more focused support for researchers and creates more opportunities for early-career researchers in both teaching and research, and research-only positions in Australia.

The Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) scheme is a separate element of the Discovery Program. The DECRA scheme provides focused research support for early career researchers in both teaching and research and research-only positions.

It is anticipated that up to 200 three-year Discovery Early Career Researcher Awards, including up to $50,000 per annum in project funds, may be awarded each year. Project funding may be used for: personnel, postdoctoral research associates and research assistants, technicians and laboratory attendants; access to research and infrastructure facilities and technical workshop services; essential field research; expert third party services; equipment and consumables; publication and dissemination of project research outputs and outreach activities; specialised computer equipment and software; travel costs essential to the project for up to $50,000 over the project activity period; web hosting and development; workshops, focus groups and conferences; and reasonable essential costs for researchers who are carers or whom themselves require care.

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Qlik’s vision is a data-literate world, where everyone can use data and analytics to improve decision-making and solve their most challenging problems. A private company, Qlik offers real-time data integration and analytics solutions, powered by Qlik Cloud, to close the gaps between data, insights and action. By transforming data into Active Intelligence, businesses can drive better decisions, improve revenue and profitability, and optimize customer relationships. Qlik serves more than 38,000 active customers in over 100 countries.

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CTC Global Singapore, a premier end-to-end IT solutions provider, is a fully owned subsidiary of ITOCHU Techno-Solutions Corporation (CTC) and ITOCHU Corporation.

Since 1972, CTC has established itself as one of the country’s top IT solutions providers. With 50 years of experience, headed by an experienced management team and staffed by over 200 qualified IT professionals, we support organizations with integrated IT solutions expertise in Autonomous IT, Cyber Security, Digital Transformation, Enterprise Cloud Infrastructure, Workplace Modernization and Professional Services.

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Planview has one mission: to build the future of connected work. Our solutions enable organizations to connect the business from ideas to impact, empowering companies to accelerate the achievement of what matters most. Planview’s full spectrum of Portfolio Management and Work Management solutions creates an organizational focus on the strategic outcomes that matter and empowers teams to deliver their best work, no matter how they work. The comprehensive Planview platform and enterprise success model enables customers to deliver innovative, competitive products, services, and customer experiences. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, with locations around the world, Planview has more than 1,300 employees supporting 4,500 customers and 2.6 million users worldwide. For more information, visit www.planview.com.

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SIRIM is a premier industrial research and technology organisation in Malaysia, wholly-owned by the Minister​ of Finance Incorporated. With over forty years of experience and expertise, SIRIM is mandated as the machinery for research and technology development, and the national champion of quality. SIRIM has always played a major role in the development of the country’s private sector. By tapping into our expertise and knowledge base, we focus on developing new technologies and improvements in the manufacturing, technology and services sectors. We nurture Small Medium Enterprises (SME) growth with solutions for technology penetration and upgrading, making it an ideal technology partner for SMEs.

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HashiCorp provides infrastructure automation software for multi-cloud environments, enabling enterprises to unlock a common cloud operating model to provision, secure, connect, and run any application on any infrastructure. HashiCorp tools allow organizations to deliver applications faster by helping enterprises transition from manual processes and ITIL practices to self-service automation and DevOps practices. 

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IBM is a leading global hybrid cloud and AI, and business services provider. We help clients in more than 175 countries capitalize on insights from their data, streamline business processes, reduce costs and gain the competitive edge in their industries. Nearly 3,000 government and corporate entities in critical infrastructure areas such as financial services, telecommunications and healthcare rely on IBM’s hybrid cloud platform and Red Hat OpenShift to affect their digital transformations quickly, efficiently and securely. IBM’s breakthrough innovations in AI, quantum computing, industry-specific cloud solutions and business services deliver open and flexible options to our clients. All of this is backed by IBM’s legendary commitment to trust, transparency, responsibility, inclusivity and service.

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