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Melbourne School of Engineering
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Geopolymer & Mineral Processing Group

The Geopolymer and Mineral Processing Group (GMPG) is led by Professor Jannie van Deventer, with Group Manager and Senior Research Fellow Dr John Provis, Senior Research Fellow Dr Dingwu Feng, and Research Fellow Dr Laura Gordon.

The fundamental research interests of the Group include the following areas:


The Geopolymer and Mineral Processing Group is an internationally acknowledged leader in the study of the formation, molecular structure, and performance properties of novel advanced geopolymeric materials.

Members of the Group undertake active multidisciplinary collaborations with Zeobond Pty. Ltd., academic collaborators around Australia and internationally including USA, Colombia, Spain, South Africa and Ukraine, and with various Departments within the University of Melbourne.

The research activities of the Group are primarily funded by Industry and the Australian Research Council (ARC). We are also funded in part by the United States Air Force Asian Office of Aerospace Research and Development, as well as projects through the ANSTO Access to Major Research Facilities Program and the Australian Synchrotron Research Program. The Geopolymer and Minerals Processing Group is a member of the Particulate Fluids Processing Centre, a Special Research Centre of the Australian Research Council, and contributes significantly to the research outcomes of this Centre. We also collaborate with the CO2CRC on carbon dioxide reduction issues, and with the CSRP via our involvement in the Geopolymer Alliance.

Ph.D. projects are currently available, and can be tailored to fit the interests and expertise of qualified applicants. If you are interested in conducting Ph.D. research in the GMPG, please email us (attaching a CV/resume) to discuss the available research topics and opportunities for funding. We are particularly interested in recruiting high-quality students to work in the field of geopolymer technology - so we'd love to hear from you. Whether you're looking for a career in academia or in industry, a Ph.D. in the GMPG will provide a solid background in research as well as the opportunity to publish cutting-edge work in top international journals in Chemical Engineering and Materials Science.

More information can be obtained from the following links:


News...

The book "Geopolymers: Structures, processing, properties and industrial applications", edited by J.L. Provis and J.S.J. van Deventer, has been published. This book contains 19 chapters written by international experts in the field of geopolymer technology, and covers all aspects of the chemistry and engineering properties of geopolymers. The book is available directly from the publisher, or from your favourite online bookseller (Amazon, Maruzen, Taylor & Francis, and there are bound to be more...)

The GMPG paper "Correlating mechanical and thermal properties of sodium silicate-fly ash geopolymers" by J.L. Provis, C.Z. Yong, P. Duxson and J.S.J. van Deventer, Colloids and Surfaces A - Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects, 2009, 336(1-3), 57-63 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:

  • #5, Jan-Mar 2009

Congratulations to Susan Bernal, who recently visited the GMPG for 9 months as part of her Ph.D. studies at Universidad del Valle, Colombia. Susan's Ph.D. degree has now been awarded, and her time in Melbourne is discussed in an article in the Universidad del Valle Faculty of Engineering newspaper.

Dr John Provis has been awarded the 2009 Brian Robinson Fellowship, administered by the Banksia Foundation. John will spend approximately 2 months in 2010 working with collaborators at the University of California, Berkeley, on a project involving synchrotron X-ray microscopy of geopolymer materials.

We welcome Mr Ebrahim Najafi Kani, who is visiting the GMPG from Iran University of Science and Technology for approximately 9 months to work on his Ph.D.

GMPG student Claire White has been awarded an internship to spend 6-9 months working at Los Alamos National Laboratory, USA

The GMPG paper "Carbonate mineral addition to metakaolin-based geopolymers" by C.K. Yip, J.L. Provis, G.C. Lukey and J.S.J. van Deventer, Cement and Concrete Composites , 2008, 30(10), 979-985 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:

  • #8, Jan-Mar 2009
  • #10, Oct-Dec 2008

The GMPG paper "Interactions between sulphides and manganese dioxide in thiosulphate leaching of gold ores" by D. Feng and J.S.J. van Deventer, Minerals Engineering, 2007, 20(6), 534-540 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:

  • #19, Jul-Sep 2008

Congratulations to Redmond Lloyd and to Louise Keyte, who have both had their PhD theses passed by the examiners.

The GMPG paper "Effect of calcium silicate sources on geopolymerisation" by C.K. Yip, G.C. Lukey, J.L. Provis, and J.S.J. van Deventer, Cement and Concrete Research, 2008, 38(4), 554-564 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:

  • #15, Jul-Sep 2008
  • #21, Apr-Jun 2008
  • #14, Jan-Mar 2008

We welcome Dr Laura Gordon, who has recently joined the GMPG from the University of Sheffield as a postdoc.

Congratulations to Dr Peter Duxson, who was awarded the INNOVIC Next Big Thing Award for 2008, for his work on geopolymers. This is a statewide competition showcasing the best inventions developed in Victoria each year, and is a very prestigious honour.

GMPG research was featured in the May-June 2008 issue of Materials Australia, in an article entitled "Going green with geopolymer concrete."

The work of the GMPG and our industrial collaborators at Zeobond Pty Ltd was featured on the ABC TV Catalyst program in May 2008. The full segment is available (as transcript and as a streaming video) here.

We are now part of the Geopolymer Alliance, in conjunction with our geopolymer-related friends and colleagues around Australia

The GMPG paper "Reaction mechanisms in the geopolymeric conversion of inorganic waste to useful products," by J.S.J. van Deventer, J.L. Provis, P. Duxson and G.C. Lukey, Journal of Hazardous Materials, 2007, A139(3): 506-513 [link to paper], was listed as an ISI Hot Paper for March 2008, ranked #88 out of 148 papers listed in Engineering, and also as an ISI Highly Cited Paper in September 2008.

The GMPG/IETCC collaborative paper Geopolymer technology: The current state of the art," by P. Duxson, A. Fernandez-Jimenez, J.L. Provis, G.C. Lukey, A. Palomo and J.S.J. van Deventer, Journal of Materials Science, 2007, 42(9), 2917-2933 [link to paper], was listed as an ISI Highly Cited paper in March 2008.

The GMPG paper ""The role of inorganic polymer technology in the development of 'Green Concrete'," by P. Duxson, J.L. Provis, G.C. Lukey and J.S.J. van Deventer, Cement and Concrete Research, 2007, 37(12), 1590-1597 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:

  • #14, Jan-Mar 2009
  • #10, Oct-Dec 2008
  • #1, Jul-Sep 2008
  • #8, Apr-Jun 2008
  • #5, Jan-Mar 2008
  • #1, Oct-Dec 2007

Geopolymers, and Dr Peter Duxson, were featured on the Channnel 10 Melbourne news in February. [link to YouTube video]

GMPG work on aged slag cements, in collaboration with Prof. Krivenko in Kiev, was highlighted in the 26 Jan 2008 issue of New Scientist, in an article about geopolymers entitled "Build 'em high, and make them green". [link to article]

Congratulations to Dr Catherine Rees, who graduated with a Ph.D. in December 2007. Catherine's thesis is entitled "Mechanisms and Kinetics of Gel Formation in Geopolymers"

The GMPG/UIUC collaborative paper "Do geopolymers actually contain nanocrystalline zeolites? A re-examination of existing results," by J.L. Provis, G.C. Lukey and J.S.J. van Deventer, Chemistry of Materials , 2005, 17(12), pp. 3075-3085 [link to paper] was listed as an ISI Hot Paper for September 2007, ranked #42 of 77 articles listed in the field of Materials Science.

The GMPG/UIUC collaborative paper "Understanding the relationship between geopolymer composition, microstructure and mechanical properties," by P. Duxson, J.L. Provis, G.C. Lukey, S.W. Mallicoat, W.M. Kriven and J.S.J. van Deventer, Colloids and Surfaces A, 2005, 269(1-3), pp. 47-58 [link to paper] was listed as an ISI Hot Paper for September 2007, ranked #140 of 211 articles listed in the field of Chemistry.

The GMPG paper "The thermal evolution of metakaolin geopolymers: Part 2 Phase stability and structural development," by P. Duxson, G.C. Lukey and J.S.J. van Deventer, Journal of Non-Crystalline Solids, 2007, 353(22-23), pp. 2186-2200 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:

  • #22, Jul-Sep 2007
  • #13, Apr-Jun 2007


The PhD work of Catherine Rees, using novel in situ FTIR techniques to characterise geopolymer formation, received coverage in the September 2007 issue of the magazine Photonics Spectra

The Special Edition of the Journal of Materials Science on Advances in Geopolymer Science and Technology, co-Guest edited by GMPG members G.C. Lukey, J.L. Provis and J.S.J van Deventer, along with collaborator Prof. Palomo from Spain, is now available: [link]

The GMPG/UoM Civil Engineering collaborative paper "Engineering properties of inorganic polymer concretes (IPCs)", by M. Sofi, J.S.J. van Deventer, G.C. Lukey and P.A. Mendis, Cement and Concrete Research 2007, 37(2), pp. 251-257 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:

  • #16, Apr-Jun 2007
  • #4, Jan-Mar 2007

The GMPG paper "Geopolymerisation kinetics. 1. In situ energy dispersive X-ray diffractometry," by J.L. Provis and J.S.J. van Deventer, Chemical Engineering Science, 2007, 62(9), pp. 2309-2317 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:
  • #13, Apr-Jun 2007

The GMPG paper "Geopolymerisation kinetics. 2. Reaction kinetic modelling," by J.L. Provis and J.S.J. van Deventer, Chemical Engineering Science, 2007, 62(9), pp. 2318-2329 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:
  • #17, Apr-Jun 2007

The GMPG/UIUC collaborative paper "The effect of alkali and Si/Al ratio on the development of mechanical properties of metakaolin-based geopolymers," by P. Duxson, S.W. Mallicoat, G.C. Lukey, W.M. Kriven and J.S.J. van Deventer, Colloids and Surfaces A, 2007, 292(1), pp. 8-20 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:
  • #3, Apr-Jun 2007
  • #22, Jan-Mar 2007

The GMPG paper "The geopolymerisation of alumino-silicate minerals," by H. Xu and J.S.J. van Deventer, International Journal of Mineral Processing, 2000, 59(3), pp. 247-266 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal (and has now accumulated more than 130 citations in Scopus):
  • #10, Jan-Mar 2009
  • #6, Oct-Dec 2008
  • #6, Jul-Sep 2008
  • #10, Apr-Jun 2008
  • #7, Jan-Mar 2008
  • #9, Oct-Dec 2007
  • #4, Jul-Sep 2007
  • #3, Apr-Jun 2007
  • #7, Jan-Mar 2007
  • #21, Oct-Dec 2006
  • #20, Apr-Jun 2006
  • #14, Jan-Mar 2006
  • #16, Jul-Sep 2005
  • #11, Apr-Jun 2005
  • #10, Jan-Mar 2005

The GMPG paper "Effect of hematite on thiosulphate leaching of gold," by D. Feng and J.S.J. van Deventer, International Journal of Mineral Processing, 2007, 82(3), pp. 138-147 [link to paper] was in the Top 25 Hottest Papers for that Journal:
  • #15, Apr-Jun 2007

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