Adelaide Research & Scholarship
Adelaide Research & Scholarship (AR&S) is Adelaide University’s research repository and provides online access to research outputs and theses of Adelaide University, University of Adelaide, and University of South Australia.
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Recent Submissions
Impact of authigenic clay formation on marine trace element cycling
(Nature Portfolio, 2026) Löhr, S.C.; Abbott, A.N.; Baldermann, A.; Farkaš, J.
The impact of marine authigenic clay formation on oceanic trace element cycling remains poorly constrained. Here we report a comprehensive trace and major element dataset for authigenic green clays (Fe-smectite and glauconite series). Our results show that these clays are consistently depleted in Cu, Ba, REEs, Nb, Ti and Al compared to detrital precursor phases, suggesting that systematic exclusion during authigenic clay formation provides a source of these elements to seawater via the porewater. Furthermore, authigenic clays inherit both their REE pattern and Nd isotope composition from their detrital precursor, demonstrating that dissolution-reprecipitation processes control porewater REE chemistry. B, Fe, Cs, K, Mg, Rb, Be, Cr, V, Zn, Co, Sc and Ga are consistently enriched in authigenic clays, requiring uptake from porewater. Global flux estimates constrained by these results confirm that clay authigenesis represents an important sink or source term in the oceanic cycles of many more trace elements than previously recognized.
Linking the benthic and planktonic realms: A year survey with implications for the routine monitoring of cyanobacteria
(Oxford University Press, 2026) Gaget, V.; Hobson, P.; Keneally, C.C.; Monis, P.; Tan, X.; Humpage, A.R.; van der Linden, L.; Kildea, T.; Weyrich, L.S.; Brookes, J.D.
Aims Cyanobacteria produce and release secondary metabolites in waterways, challenging drinking water treatment plants. Benthic Cyanobacteria, a group of species living at the bottom of waterbodies, have been identified as potential Taste and Odour (T&O) compound and toxin producers. Following an increase in customer T&O complaints about water produced from the SA-L1 Reservoir, this study was conducted to better understand benthic cyanobacetria growth patterns and establish whether the source of detrimental metabolites was pelagic or benthic. Methods and results A field-survey was performed from December 2014 to December 2015, during which physical samplers were deployed across a transect (1 m, 2 m, 6 m, and 14 m depth). Biofilm and water samples were analysed for microbial community composition, chlorophyll-a (Chl-a), nutrients, T&O and toxins and their associated genes. Seasons and sampling depths impacted benthic communities, Chl-a concentrations and biofilm growth. Spring and autumn were established as peak growth periods for benthic Cyanobacteria. Water geosmin concentrations significantly correlated with the abundance of benthic Cyanobacteria. The potential for cylindrospermopsin and saxitoxin production was detected in this reservoir. Mat detachment mid-spring contributed to T&O dispersion. Conclusions Benthic Cyanobacteria are major geosmin contributors in this reservoir. The potential cylindrospermopsin-producer was demonstrated to be benthic, while the saxitoxin producer was identified as pelagic Dolichospermum circinale, which is recruited from bentic mats in spring. Utilities should consider regular monitoring of benthic mats, which provides the necessary evidence to better anticipate benthic and pelagic events, to in turn provide safe and palatable drinking water.
Measuring the muon content of inclined air showers using AERA and the water-Cherenkov detectors of the Pierre Auger Observatory
(American Physical Society, 2025) Halim, A.A.; Abreu, P.; Aglietta, M.; Allekotte, I.; Cheminant, K.A.; Almela, A.; Aloisio, R.; Alvarez-Muniz, J.; Ambrosone, A.; Yebra, J.A.; Anastasi, G.A.; Anchordoqui, L.; Andrada, B.; Dourado, L.A.; Andringa, S.; Apollonio, L.; Aramo, C.; Arnone, E.; Velazquez, J.C.A.; Assis, P.; et al.
We present a novel approach for assessing the muon content of air showers with large zenith angles on a combined analysis of their radio emission and particle footprint. We use the radiation energy reconstructed by the Auger engineering radio array (AERA) as an energy estimator and determine the muon number independently with the water-Cherenkov detector array of the Pierre Auger Observatory, deployed on a 1500 m grid. We focus our analysis on air showers with primary energy above 4 EeV to ensure full detection efficiency. Over approximately ten years of accumulated data, we identify a set of 40 high-quality events that are used in the analysis. The estimated muon contents in data are compatible with those for iron primaries as predicted by current-generation hadronic interaction models. This result can be interpreted as a deficit of muons in simulations as a lighter mass composition has been established from X-max measurements. This muon deficit was already observed in previous analyses of the Auger Collaboration and is confirmed using hybrid events that include radio measurements for the first time.
Membrane‐Free Water Electrolysis for Hydrogen Generation with Low Cost
(Wiley, 2025) Gao, X.; Wang, P.; Sun, X.; Jaroniec, M.; Zheng, Y.; Qiao, S.
Conventional water electrolysis relies on expensive membrane-electrode assemblies and sluggish oxygen evolution reaction (OER) at the anode, which makes the cost of green hydrogen (H2) generation much higher than that of grey H2. Here, we develop an innovative and efficient membrane-free water electrolysis system to overcome these two obstacles simultaneously. This system utilizes the thermodynamically more favorable urea oxidation reaction (UOR) to generate clean N2 over a new class of Cu-based catalyst (CuXO) for replacing OER, fundamentally eliminating the explosion risk of H2 and O2 mixing while removing the need for membranes. Notably, this membrane-free electrolysis system exhibits the highest H2 Faradaic efficiency among reported membrane-free electrolysis work. In situ spectroscopic studies reveal that the new N2Hy intermediate-mediated UOR mechanism on the CuXO catalyst ensures its unique N2 selectivity and OER inertness. More importantly, an industrial-type membrane-free water electrolyser (MFE) based on this system successfully reduces electricity consumption to only 3.78 kWh Nm−3, significantly lower than the 5.17 kWh Nm−3 of commercial alkaline water electrolyzers (AWE). Comprehensive techno-economic analysis (TEA) suggests that the membrane-free design and reduced electricity input of the MFE plants reduce the green H2 production cost to US$1.81 kg−1, which is lower than those of grey H2 while meeting the technical target (US$2.00–2.50 kg−1) set by European Commission and United States Department of Energy.
Model organism futures in precision toxicology: tracking the emergence of a research repertoire
(Springer, 2026) Ankeny, R.A.; Leonelli, S.
This paper considers the continued use of simpler model organisms in newer forms of toxicological research in order to inform philosophical understandings of the epistemic roles played by such organisms in the contemporary life sciences. We focus on the emerging domain of ‘precision toxicology’ and consider three uses of model organisms within it, namely as (1) models of toxic effects and other forms of environmental exposures; (2) indicator species; and (3) bioremediators. We analyze the epistemic implications of these uses, arguing that they represent hybrid forms of modelling in comparison to traditional uses of model organisms, and identify similarities and differences between these emerging research practices and the model organism repertoire being adapted for use in this domain. Model organisms are simultaneously viewed as tools for intervention and representation within precision toxicology, in ways that differ from the model organism repertoire both in terms of the extent to which the models fit applied research goals and how they foster evolutionary and developmental understanding. Hence we argue that model organisms remain highly influential models in the life sciences but are being used in research more closely associated with the concept of ‘precision,’ and characterized by an ethos of intervention particularly in response to the environmental challenges associated to climate change and attention to the evolutionary and developmental grounding of health and disease. In closing, we reflect on the ways in which using the analytic framing associated with the repertoires approach facilitates the tracking of these developments in the contemporary life sciences. We also assess how they may affect the construction and significance of model systems over coming decades particularly in relation to precision-related research