Professor Dongke Zhang FTSE

As the Director, UWA Centre for Petroleum, Fuels and Energy, Professor Dongke Zhang brings a depth of knowledge, research and innovation in energy conversion and utilisation to UWA and has strong industry links. His work in Bioenergy includes thermochemical conversion of biomass to hydrogen and synthetic petroleum, transesterification of vegetable oil to biodiesel, bioethanol and biobutanol, and biochar and chemicals. His other academic qualifications and undertakings include: Fellow of Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE); Fellow of Institution of Chemical Engineers; Fellow of Engineers Australia; Fellow of Australian Institute of Energy; Member of College of Experts of Australian Research Council; Member of DIISR International Science Linkage Program Expert Panel; UWA Foundation Professor of Chemical Engineering; John Curtin Distinguished Professor. He is also an Expert Advisor of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and Concurrent Research Professor of Qingdao Institute for Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT) and Shanxi Institute for Coal Chemistry of CAS.

Associate Professor Ross Kingwell

Associate Professor Ross Kingwell is employed by the Department of Agriculture and Food Western Australia (DAFWA) and UWA. He is a member of Biofuels Working Group and is DAFWA’s chief economist. He has collaborated in economic assessments of the use of oil mallees and canola as biofuels. Associate Professor Kingwell has presented a range of papers on the economics of biofuels and is investigating the impacts of the Emissions Trading Scheme on farming systems.

Professor Kadambot Siddique FTSE

Professor Kadambot Siddique FTSE holds a Chair in Agriculture and is the Director of The Institute of Agriculture. Professor Siddique has more than 24 years of experience in crop physiology, production agronomy, germplasm enhancement, breeding and industry development of grain crops in Australian and overseas and is recognised internationally as a leader in this field. Professor Siddique has contributed to the establishment and expansion of the pulse industries in Australia over many years and has developed and commercially released several pulse varieties that have superior yield, quality and disease resistance in Australia. Professor Siddique has research collaboration with various universities in China, India, North America, Europe and the Middle East.

Associate Professor Wallace Cowling

As a member of the School of Plant Biology, Associate Professor Cowling collaborates widely with world class researchers and shares his expertise between UWA and Canola Breeders Western Australia Pty Ltd. He is Research Director and CEO of CBWA and Deputy Director of the UWA International Centre for Plant Breeding Education and Research.

Professor Ian Small

Professor Ian Small in 2005 became a WA Premier’s Fellow and is renowned in the fields of molecular biology of plant organelles and the functional genomics of Arabidopsis. He was previously the Director-Adjoint of the Plant Genomics Laboratory at the Evry Genopole in France. He is the Director of the Australian Research Council’s Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology at UWA and Director of the Centre of Excellence in Computational Systems Biology.

Professor Steven Smith

Chief Investigator in the ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology, Professor Smith also sits on the Ministerial GMO Specialist Advisory Panel which advises the Minister for Agriculture and Food. His other academic qualifications and undertakings include: Australian Research Council Federation Fellow; Professor of Plant Genomics, School of Biomedical, Biomolecular and Chemical Sciences, UWA; Director of the Centre of Excellence for Plant Metabolomics; Co-Director, WA Node of Metabolomics Australia (part of BioPlatforms Australia Pty Ltd).

Professor William Erskine

Professor William Erskine is the Director, Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture (CLIMA) was previously the Assistant Director General (Research) at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), spending 27 years in Syria. He brings a depth and wealth of international experience to UWA’s endeavours in this field.

Professor Colin Raston

Professor Colin Raston brings expertise in chemical synthesis, green sustainable technologies, application of spinning disc processing (SDP) in the synthesis of nano-particles, modification of surfaces, self assembly processes, calixarene chemistry, supramolecular chemistry of fullerenes and carbon nano-tubes, synthesis of nano-functional materials, biopolymers, polymer functionalisation, X-ray diffraction. He is an Australian Research Council Professorial Fellow.

Professor A.G. (Tony) O’Donnell

An eminent international soil microbiologist leads The University of Western Australia’s Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences. Professor O’Donnell was previously the Director of the Institute for Research in Environment and Sustainability at Newcastle University in the United Kingdom and conducts research on the use of Jatropha for biodiesel production. He is also working with Graphite Resources (UK), a new company specializing in converting wastes into energy and other value added products, on the pre-treatment and microbial conversion of municipal solid waste (MSW) into methane.

Ms Margaret Cambell

Ms Margaret Cambell is developing new applications for alternative oilseeds for food and fuel as an integral member of the Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture (CLIMA). Widely respected throughout the WA agricultural community, she brings an extensive field of industry, academic and agricultural networks to UWA.

“Population growth, rising incomes, the declining rate of agricultural productivity trends, climate change, and the increased use of grain and sugar crops for biofuel production are leading to a surge in food commodity demand. This is in an environment where land and water constraints will limit agricultural production growth. Food, nutrition, bio-energy, the environment, and livelihood are global concerns. Food and bioenergy production offers exciting challenges and opportunities in the future.”

Professor Kadambot Siddique

“No fuel. No food” Ms Margaret Cambell

Leadership in academic excellence

Bioenergy Fuelling the future

ContactMr Tim Shanahan Director, Energy and Minerals Initiative T: +61 (8) 6488 4608

Professor Alistar Robertson Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Initiatives)T: +61 (8) 6488 2698

The University of Western Australia Stirling Highway, Crawley WA 6009 www.uwa.edu.au

CRICOS Provider Code: 00126G

Novel research for global visionThe University of Western Australia has recognised the importance of bioenergy as the world moves into a future of rising energy prices, declining fossil fuel supplies and an ever increased focus on renewable, sustainable and environmentally acceptable alternatives.

Bioenergy – that is, biofuels of biological and renewable origin, like bioethanol, biodiesel, and biomass for energy – is the subject of increasing attention around the world. Bioenergy is renewable energy derived from solar energy through biological processes.

Bioenergy research at The University of Western Australia is driven by the highest calibre of multi-disciplinary academic professionals. They are committed to the discovery and implementation of exciting new approaches to alternative energy, and to better understanding the economic, social and business repercussions and opportunities which this ‘new world order’ will present.

The University of Western Australia has a vision to develop innovative solutions of world-wide importance in bioenergy research and development. Energy provision is a global-scale challenge in which activities in one part of the globe have direct impact upon the lives and environment of people elsewhere.

Within the context of this global vision, we recognise that our researchers, land managers and farmers have particular expertise in a wide range of climates and environments from the sub-tropical north through the arid centre to the Mediterranean south. We have had to constantly adapt crop growing methods, re-interpret climatic conditions and particularly develop crops and pastures tolerant to drought and hostile soil conditions and evolving farming systems to ensure survival on much of the land. At the same time, the stunning richness of Western Australia’s biodiversity has ensured that we have developed a strong sense of responsibility to preserve the natural eco-system.

Western Australia has sunshine in abundance. The challenge that we have taken up is to invent novel approaches to convert solar energy into bioenergy and high value products in environmentally-friendly ways. These solutions may be based in rural, urban or marine environments. The University of Western Australia is leading the way in capturing this knowledge and harnessing it to make rapid advances in bioenergy.

Bioenergy Research at UWAGene discovery, plant biotechnology, genetics and breeding for improved production of biomass and biofuels.

ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology; Institute of Agriculture

Development of energy crops that can grow in marginal environments and do not compete with food crops. ‘Super Canola/mustard’ is the major current target but Moringa, another oil species, and Jatropha (in collaboration with India, Thailand and the Philippines) are also being evaluated.

Institute of Agriculture; Centre for Petroleum, Fuels and Energy in collaboration with CBWA and DAFWA

Process intensification for biodiesel and hydrogen production, and generating benign chemical feedstocks.

Centre for Strategic Nano-Fabrication

Advanced process technology for production of fuels and materials from biomass including pyrolysis, gasification and liquefaction.

Centre for Petroleum, Fuels and Energy

Development of fully self-contained systems for production of renewable energy and materials, particularly making use of degraded land (mine sites and saline soils) and marginal environments in rural communities.

Centre for Petroleum, Fuels and Energy

Optimisation of biogas production (methane) from municipal solid waste.

Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences

School of Agricultural and Research Economics

The School of Agricultural and Research Economics is actively contributing to the debates on the economics of on-farm energy use, carbon emission/sequestration, biodiesel production, and economic evaluations of oilseed crops for food and biofuel. The School has a national and international reputation in the areas of natural resource management; bioeconomic modelling; agricultural risk management; and policy analysis. An emerging area of research is in the design of effective and efficient economic policies to manage natural resource use.

Centre for Mining, Energy and Natural Resources Law

The Centre for Mining, Energy and Natural Resources Law aims to stimulate education and research on legal issues arising in relation to mining, energy and natural resources sectors of the Western Australian economy, with particular emphasis on collaborative projects, conferences, seminars and workshops conducted in cooperation with private sector professional and industrial organisations and public sector agencies. Located within the UWA Faculty of Law which has a long tradition of providing high quality legal education and undertaking progressive, high impact research, the Centre is active in research relating to the climate change and environmental law.

Centre for Transport and Logistics Research

The decisions of ordinary car buyers and fleet managers are being researched within the UWA Business School by the UWA Transport Research Group to better understand the choice factors in the adoption of alternative fuels and new technology vehicles.

The Business of Bioenergy The University of Western Australia has access to a number of state-of-the-art, world class facilities to further research and development in the bioenergy sphere. Facilities include:

- Functional genomics technology

- Microarray platform

- Mass Spectrometers for proteomics and metabolomics

- Low-Temp Pyrolysis Process System

- TGA-MS/FTIR

- Fixed-bed Reactor System

- High T & P Batch Reactor

- Rotary Hearth Kiln

- Drop-tube Furnace

- Hydrothermal Reactor System

- ChemBet Surface Analyser

- Bio-diesel plant

- Bio-reactor

- Spinning Disc Process Intensification Reactor

- Tissue culture and plant genetic transformation laboratories

- Controlled environment and glasshouse facilities

- Physical Containment Category 2 and Quarantine facilities

- Crop evaluation field sites

- High performance computing facilities

- Microscopy and microanalysis equipment (e.g. nano-SIMS, confocal, EM).

Visionary research and partnerships

UWA Centre for Petroleum, Fuels and Energy

The Centre for Petroleum, Fuels and Energy is an exciting and dynamic operation at UWA in partnership with global energy company Chevron. In the bioenergy sphere, the Centre is conducting fundamental research and testing, and has infrastructure to support identification of high-value products with biofuels (both gas and liquid) as sole or by-products. The Centre sits within the UWA School of Mechanical Engineering and is a partner of the WA Centre of Excellence for Research into Energy for Sustainable Transport (CREST). Through this collaboration it leads the research programs on hydrogen and liquid transport fuels from biomass and waste oils.

Western Australian Energy Research Alliance (WA:ERA)

The Western Australian Energy Research Alliance is rapidly developing into one of the world’s leading and easily accessible, oil, gas, and alternative and renewable energy research organisations. A significant focus of WA:ERA’s research is in the development of biofuels such as bio-hydrogen, bio-ethanol, bio-butanol and biodiesel from biomass. Working in partnership with companies and government as part of Western Australia’s expanding energy sector, WA:ERA credits The University of Western Australia as one of its valued founding partners.

UWA Institute of Agriculture

Agriculture around the world is a potential instrument for reducing carbon and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Crops and trees naturally sequester carbon as part of the planet’s growth cycle. This carbon can become an energy source for humans and animals or can be converted into bioenergy, which can be substituted for fossil fuel.

But much more can be done to bring agriculture into the centre of climate change mitigation and to encourage a greater role for sustainable bioenergy production. The results could be not only a better global environment, but increased revenues for farmers, more energy self-sufficiency for rural communities, and preservation of natural forests and biodiversity.

Bioenergy research at The University of Western Australia is a multi-disciplinary and highly collaborative effort in the quest for Achieving International Excellence. The University’s strong partnerships with highly skilled, experienced individuals and Centres of Excellence ensure that its research is producing leading edge, innovative and creative solutions.

More than $30 million has been invested at UWA in recent years to expand our research capability and expertise in bioenergy and alternative energy solutions.

- Establishment of ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology- Appointment of ARC Federation Fellow Professor Steven Smith to Chair of Plant Genomics

2005

- Award of Premier’s Fellowship Professor Ian Small and appointment as Director of Plant Energy Biology- Establishment of Centres of Excellence for Plant Metabolomics and Computational Systems Biology

2006

- Launch of Institute of Agriculture and appointment of Professor Kadambot Siddique as Director- Establishment of Centre for Strategic Nano-Fabrication under Professor Colin Raston- Establishment of UWA Energy and Minerals Initiative under Director Mr Tim Shanahan

2007

- Establishment of Centre for Petroleum Fuels and Energy with the appointment of Director Professor Dongke Zhang- Establishment of UWA International Centre for Plant Breeding Education and Research under the Directorship of

Professor William Erskine and Associate Professor Wallace Cowling

2008

The Science of Bioenergy

Biofuel production poses a major new challenge for crop improvement and sustainable management of cropping systems. Basic research on plant biofuels and training of next generation graduates and post graduates are urgently required and UWA has a significant role to play in this regard.

The UWA Institute of Agriculture has emerged therefore as an integral player by consolidating education, training and research in agriculture and resource management in light of our changing world and specifically in the realms of land and water management, rural economy, policy and development, food and health.

The UWA Institute of Agriculture plays a pivotal role by collaborating with and coordinating research activities of several partner organisations:

Canola Breeders Western Australia Pty Ltd (CBWA)

Canola oil is the most widely used feedstock for biodiesel in WA and hence presents an excellent opportunity for further research and attention. UWA has invested in this growth opportunity through the Canola Breeders Western Australia Pty Ltd which is located on campus within the Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences. A prominent canola breeder, CBWA has released leading canola varieties for medium-low rainfall conditions – providing biofuel options for growers in these regions that were previously unavailable.

UWA School of Plant Biology

Like CLIMA, the UWA School of Plant Biology has recognised the potential of the humble mustard seed. The School is developing super Brassica (genus of plants from the mustard family) species through wide crossing to improve its production of biofuel and food. Researchers are working in collaboration with key universities in China (including Huazhong Agricultural University and Zhejiang University), Indonesia and India.

UWA Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture (CLIMA)

Enquiries from across the globe are received at the UWA Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture where decades of experience have made it an internationally recognised centre of expertise in legumes and their diverse adaptations.

CLIMA is focussing its strong research talents on bioenergy and sustainable

agricultural solutions particularly through alternative oilseed species suitable for cropping in the wheat growing regions of Australia. Mustards have successfully trialled as high yielding, low input crops with the potential to be an economically viable option for the sustainable production of oil for fuel. Also being researched is Camelina (Camelina sativa). Integral to the Alternative Oilseeds program at CLIMA is the pursuit of developing lines tolerant of selected herbicides.

UWA International Centre for Plant Breeding Education and Research (ICPBER)

World attention is only now acknowledging the deteriorating supply-demand balance for major staple food crops. At the same time, demand for energy crops provides new challenges for agriculture. World food security and biomass production is acknowledged as an emerging threat by the UWA International Centre for Plant Breeding Education and Research which is helping to set the national agenda through its work and expertise in this field. The development of new energy crops will require innovation in genetics and plant breeding.

The interdisciplinary nature of plant breeding is reflected in the Centre through the understanding that the plant breeder is an assembler and user of technology from a wide range of disciplines including genomics and molecular genetics, data management and bioinformatics, population and quantitative genetics, plant pathology, genetic resources and many others. Collaboration across these disciplines will ensure the Centre contributes to future demands for food and fuel.

ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology

A principal aim of the ARC Centre of Excellence in Plant Energy Biology is the discovery of the control mechanisms that regulate energy metabolism in plant cells. The Centre’s fundamental studies in plant energy systems at the cellular and molecular level are revealing how changes in energy metabolism help plants cope with environmental stresses. Research discoveries are leading to new approaches for improving plant growth and increasing tolerance to hot, dry and sunny conditions.

The Centre also encompasses the Centre of Excellence for Computational Systems Biology which has ambitious goals to model energy metabolism leading to the rational design of cellular processes for optimal bioenergy solutions.

Centre of Excellence for Plant Metabolomics

The Centre of Excellence for Plant Metabolomics is funded by the Government of Western Australia to explore energy metabolism in plants and the potential to engineer metabolism for improved crop productivity or synthesis of novel products. The work of the Centre includes researching new ideas on the production of starch, oil and biomass, and the use of microalgae to make hydrocarbons, alcohols and biodiesel.

Centre for Strategic Nano-Fabrication

Research in the Centre for Strategic Nano-Fabrication focuses on continuous flow processing technologies based on rotating surfaces. The Centre is able

to prepare nano-particles of uniform size distribution for a diverse range of materials, tailored to meet industry and consumer specifications. The materials include metals, inorganics, organics, and composites of these. The size of the nano-particles can be controlled along with their shape, surface, agglomeration, phase and defects. In addition, the technology allows the coating of nano-particles with other material. The technology allows more efficient processes, minimising energy usage and simplifies scale up requirements. Process intensification is also being used for processing biomass as a benign chemical feedstock.

The Centre has as its core business nano-toxicology and the impact of nano-technology on the environment, making products attractive to industry, and safe and acceptable to the community.

Key Facilities and Resources