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ASTech

ASTech

The ARC Training Centre for Portable Analytical Separation Technologies (ASTech) aims to develop new capabilities and technologies that have the potential to progress the deployment of portable separation science systems into society, as well as training the next generation of industry-ready researchers.

Research themes

ASTech encompasses research under three themes:

    • Microsampling
    • Enzyme reactors and trap technology
    • Micro SPE (solid phase extraction)
    • Lab-in-a-syringe
    • Multidimensional strategies
    • Packed micro-channels
    • Microchip columns
    • Bio-selective phases
    • Interfaces for miniaturized MS
    • Optical biosensors
    • Platform integration

Collaborators

ASTech was established as a $5.2M program over 3 years, including funding awarded by the Australian Research Council. Trajan was the sole commercial collaborator, in partnership with the University of Tasmania (UTAS), University of South Australia (UniSA) and La Trobe University; combining research and industry knowledge to innovate in product design, development and manufacturing techniques.

  • ASTech (Analytical Separation Technologies) is the ARC Training Centre for Portable Analytical Separation Technologies. Like the Aztec Empire which began as an alliance of three Nahua city-states, Tenochtitlan, Texcoco, and Tlacopan, ASTech is a triple alliance of academia, industry and government.

    ASTech Goals

    Transforming Research, Education and Knowledge

    ASTech keeps the end-user in mind, driving research innovations into industry production, ultimately for use by the scientific community and society – transforming research.

    ASTech embodies a sustainable collaboration concept, a research partnership establishing a critical mass of HDR candidates, post-doctoral researchers, university-based and industry-based researchers, and business professionals to execute a research and development program with unique industry opportunities that crosses borders between academic and commercial worlds – transforming education.

    Our focus is on developing new capabilities and technologies, looking for solutions that don’t exist in what we know now – transforming knowledge.

    This will lead to the development of technologies that will drive the development of new, portable and affordable analytical separation systems, through transformation of analytical innovations into real-world applications, such as point-of-care diagnostics and environmental monitoring.

  • University of Tasmania

    The University of Tasmania (UTAS) is Trajan's founding academic partner in ASTech. 

    UTAS has a growing reputation as one of Australia’s foremost teaching and research institutions. With a history spanning 125 years, the university is ranked in the top ten research universities in Australia and in the top two per cent of universities in the world and has excellent facilities for research in separation science.

  • The University of South Australia (UniSA) became an ASTech academic partner in 2016. 

    UniSA has an outstanding track record in end-user driven research, and through the Future Industries Institute continues a commitment to conducting research that is deeply engaged with industry. UniSA is committed to solving complex, real-world problems in collaboration with government, industry, commerce, the professions and other community groups.

  • La Trobe University (La Trobe) became an ASTech academic partner in 2017. 

    La Trobe University is home to the La Trobe Institute for Molecular Science (LIMS) and Centre for Materials and Surface Science (CMSS); with a commitment to solving global problems and improving the welfare of human societies.

  • Australian Research Council

    The Australian Research Council (ARC) is committed to providing funding under the National Competitive Grants Program Industrial Transformation Training Centres Scheme to foster close partnerships between university-based researchers and industry to provide innovative training for young researchers vital to Australia’s future industry.

    This includes ASTech, established by Trajan and UTAS.

  • Governance and Management

    The governance and management of ASTech consists of the Training Centre Director and the Steering Committee.

    Training Centre Director

    Steering Committee

    Investigators

    ASTech Investigators are responsible for the intellectual conduct of the Project and for any strategic decisions called for in its pursuit and the communication of results.

    Industry Supervisors

    ASTech Industry Supervisors are experts in the field of the subject matter and provide support from technical and commercial perspectives.

    Past Postdoctoral Research Fellows

    ASTech Postdoctoral Research Fellows undertake research and assist with the supervision of HDR candidates.

Outcomes

  • Work programs

    ◄1a. Micro‐sampling of whole blood and plasma-like fraction collection using porous Polymer Monolith Technology

    • Ricardo Neto
      HDR Candidate

    • Emily Hilder
      Academic Supervisor

    • Dario Arrua
      Academic Supervisor

    • Paul Haddad
      Academic Supervisor

    • Jason (Wei Boon) Hon
      Trajan Supervisor

    • Andrew Gooley
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄1b. Micro-sampling of whole blood and plasma-like fraction collection of an accurate volume for PoCT

    • Florian Lapierre
      Post-doctoral Research Fellow

    • Michael Breadmore
      Academic Supervisor

    • Andrew Gooley
      Trajan Supervisor

    • David Bailey
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄3. in vivo sampling strategies – development of a robust equilibrium approach

    • Neeraj Verma
      HDR Candidate

    • Emily Hilder
      Academic Supervisor

    • Michael Breadmore
      Academic Supervisor

    • Andrew Gooley
      Trajan Supervisor

    • Hans-Jürgen Wirth
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄5a. For mixing and/or separation: Liquid- Liquid Extraction

    • Masoomeh Tehrani-Rokh
      Post-doctoral Research Fellow

    • Michael Breadmore
      Academic Supervisor

    • Brett Paull
      Academic Supervisor

    • Andrew Uhe
      Trajan Supervisor

    • Robert Shellie
      Academic Supervisor
    ◄5b. Electroseparations in a syringe

    • Ibraam Mikhail
      HDR Candidate

    • Masoomeh Tehrani-Rokh
      Post-doctoral Research Fellow

    • Michael Breadmore
      Academic Supervisor

    • Rosanne Guijt
      Academic Supervisor

    • Andrew Gooley
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄5c. Hand-held full blood count with differentiation

    • James Chan
      HDR Candidate

    • Emily Hilder
      Academic Supervisor

    • Michael Breadmore
      Academic Supervisor

    • Rick Barber
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄6. Smart Filters: Porous glass and composite biocompatible materials for frits, separation and extraction

    • Chowdhury Kamrul Hasan
      HDR Candidate

    • Pavel Nesterenko
      Academic Supervisor

    • Brett Paull
      Academic Supervisor

    • Mike Bailey
      Trajan Supervisor

    • Hans-Jürgen Wirth
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄7. Multi-dimensional chromatography: 2DLC

    • Elisenda Fornells Vernet
      HDR Candidate

    • Michael Breadmore
      Academic Supervisor

    • Emily Hilder
      Academic Supervisor

    • Mike Bailey
      Trajan Supervisor

    • Robert Shellie
      Academic Supervisor
    ◄8a. Portable and capillary HPLC for biopharmaceutical analysis (I)

    • John (Shing Chung) Lam
      HDR Candidate

    • Estrella Sanz-Rodriguez
      Post-doctoral Research Fellow

    • Brett Paull
      Academic Supervisor

    • Paul Haddad
      Academic Supervisor

    • Andrew Gooley
      Trajan Supervisor

    • Hans-Jürgen Wirth
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄8b. Portable and capillary HPLC for biopharmaceutical analysis (II)

    • Lewellwyn Coates
      HDR Candidate

    • Brett Paull
      Academic Supervisor

    • Paul Haddad
      Academic Supervisor

    • Andrew Gooley
      Trajan Supervisor

    • Hans-Jürgen Wirth
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄9. Novel mesoporous polymer phases for sample preparation

    • Sara Thomas
      HDR Candidate

    • Emily Hilder
      Academic Supervisor

    • Dario Arrua
      Academic Supervisor

    • Pavel Nesterenko
      Academic Supervisor

    • Rick Barber
      Trajan Supervisor

    • Hans-Jürgen Wirth
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄11. The development of affordable biosensors

    • Gregory Barbante
      Post-doctoral Research Fellow

    • Emily Hilder
      Academic Supervisor

    • Hans-Jürgen Wirth
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄11a. Raspberry Pi‐sensors: A new concept for low‐cost, portable sensing technology

    • Conor Hogan
      Academic Supervisor

    • Andrew Gooley
      Trajan Supervisor
    ◄16. Reduction Gas Detection for elemental mercury

    • Ronda Gras
      HDR Candidate

    • Paul Haddad
      Academic Supervisor

    • Robert Shellie
      Academic Supervisor

    • Andrew Gooley
      Trajan Supervisor

    • Andrew Uhe
      Trajan Supervisor

  • Find in table:

    Publication title Authors Publication Year
    Capillary gap flow cell as capillary-end electrochemical detector in flow-based analysis Islam, M.A., Lam, S.C., Li, Y.,, Atia, M.A., Mahbub, P., Nesterenko, P.N., Paull, B., Macka, M. Electrochimica Acta, 303, pp. 85-93 2019
    Selective capillary electrophoresis separation of mono and divalent cations within a high-surface area-to-volume ratio multi-lumen capillary Nakatani, N., Cabot, J.M., Lam, S.C., Rodriguez, E.S., Paull, B. Analytica Chimica Acta, 1051, pp. 41-4 2019
    On-line solvent exchange system: Automation from extraction to analysis Fornells, E., Hilder, E.F., Shellie, R.A., Breadmore, M.C. Analytica Chimica Acta, 1047, pp. 231-237 2019
    Reversed-Phase Functionalised Multi-lumen Capillary as Combined Concentrator, Separation Column, and ESI Emitter in Capillary-LC–MS Rodriguez, E.S., Lam, S.C., Haddad, P.R., Paull, B. Chromatographia, 82(1), pp. 197-209 2019
    Miniaturized micromachined gas chromatography with universal and selective detectors for targeted volatile compounds analysis Gras, R., Luong, J., Shellie, R.A. Journal of Chromatography A, 1573, pp. 151-155 2018
    Low-Cost Passive Sampling Device with Integrated Porous Membrane Produced Using Multimaterial 3D Printing Kalsoom, U., Hasan, C.K., Tedone, L., Desire, C., Li, F., Breadmore, M.C., Nesterenko, P.N., Paull, B. Analytical Chemistry Volume 90(20), pp. 12081-12089 2018
    Comparison of cation-exchange capillary columns used for ion chromatographic separation of biogenic amines Li, Y., Nesterenko, P.N., Stanley, R., Paull, B., Macka, M. Journal of Chromatography A, 2018, 1571, pp. 193-200 2018
    Miniaturized capillary ion chromatograph with UV light-emitting diode based indirect absorbance detection for anion analysis in potable and environmental waters Murray, E., Li, Y., Currivan, S.A., Moore, B., Morrin, A., Diamond, D., Macka, M., Paull, B. Journal of Separation Science, 2018, 41(16), pp 3224-3231 2018
    Flow injection gas chromatography with sulfur chemiluminescence detection for the analysis of total sulfur in complex hydrocarbon matrixes Hua, Y., Hawryluk, M., Gras, R., Shearer, R., Luong, J. Journal of Separation Science, 2018, 41(2), pp. 469-474 2018
    Evaporative membrane modulation for comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography Fornells, E, Barnett, B., Bailey, M., Hilder, E.F, Shellie, R.A., Breadmore, M.C. Analytica Chimica Acta, 2018, 1000, pp. 303-309 2018
    In situ methanation with flame ionization detection for the determination of carbon dioxide in various matrices Luong, J., Hua, Y., Gras, R., Hawryluk, M. Analytical Methods, 2018, 10(10), pp. 1275-1279 2018
    Precise, accurate and user-independent blood collection system for dried blood spot sample preparation Neto, R., Gooley, A., Breadmore, M.C., Hilder, E.F., Lapierre, F., Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, 2018, 410(14), pp. 3315-3323 2018
    Multi-channel capillaries and photonic crystal fibres for separation sciences Currivan, S., Upadhyay, N., Paull, B. TrAC – Trends in Analytical Chemistry, 2018, 102, pp. 322-331 2018
    Direct Measurement of Elemental Mercury Using Multidimensional Gas Chromatography with Microwave-Induced Helium Plasma Atomic Emission Spectroscopy Gras, R., Luong, J., Shellie, R.A. ACS Earth and Space Chemistry, 2018, 2(5), pp. 471-478 2018
    Positive Temperature Coefficient Compensating Heating for Analytical Devices  Gras, R, Luong, J., Pursch, M., Shellie, R.A. Analytical Chemistry, 2018, 90(11), pp. 6426-6430 2018
    Gas chromatography with simultaneous detection: Ultraviolet spectroscopy, flame ionization, and mass spectrometry Gras, R., Luong, J., Haddad, P.R., Shellie, R.A. Journal of Chromatography A, 2018, 1563, pp. 171-179 2018
    Review of the structural characterization, quality evaluation, and industrial application of Lycium barbarum polysaccharides Wu, D.-T., Guo, H., Lin, S., Lam, S.-C, Zhao, L, Lin, D.-R., Qin, W. Trends in Food Science and Technology, 2018, 79, pp. 171-183 2018
    High sensitivity deep-UV LED-based z-cell photometric detector for capillary liquid chromatography Li, Y., Nesterenko, P.N., Stanley, R., Paull, B., Macka, M. Analytica Chimica Acta, 2018, 1032, pp. 197-202 2018
    Evaporative membrane modulation for comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography Fornells, E., Barnett, B., Bailey, M., (…), Shellie, R.A., Breadmore, M.C. Analytica Chimica Acta, 2018, 1000, pp. 303-309 2018
    Recent advances in enhancing the sensitivity of electrophoresis and electrochromatography in capillaries and microchips (2014–2016) Breadmore, M.C., Wuethrich, A., Li, F., Phung, S.C., Kalsoom, U., Cabot, J.M., Tehranirokh, M., Shallan, A.I., Abdul Keyon, A.S., See, H.H., Dawod, M., Quirino, J.P. Electrophoresis, 2017, 38, 33-59 2017
    Principles around Accurate Blood Volume Collection Using Capillary Action Lapierre, F., Gooley, A., Breadmore, M. Langmuir, 2017, 33(50), pp. 14220-14225 2017
    The evolution of 3D printing Paull, B. LC-GC Europe, 2017, 30(11), pp. 611-612 2017
    Membrane assisted and temperature controlled on-line evaporative concentration for microfluidics Fornells, E., Barnett, B., Bailey, M., Hilder, E.F., Shellie, R.A., Breadmore, M.C. Journal of Chromatography A, 2017, 1486, pp. 110-116 2017
    High-throughput gas chromatography for volatile compounds analysis by fast temperature programming and adsorption chromatography Gras, R., Hua, Y., Luong, J. Journal of Separation Science, 2017, 40(9), pp. 1979-1984 2017
    A simplified approach in flow controlled multi-dimensional gas chromatography Luong, J., Gras, R., Shellie, R.A. Analytical Methods, 2017, 9(19), pp. 2835-2839 2017
    Gas chromatography with diode array detection in series with flame ionisation detection Gras, R., Luong, J., Shellie, R.A. Journal of Chromatography A, 2017, 1500, pp. 153-159 2017
    Gas chromatography and diode array detection for the direct measurement of carbon disulfide in challenging matrices Gras, R., Luong, J., Shellie, R.A. Analytical Methods, 2017, 9(26), pp. 3908-3913 2017
    Differential ion mobility spectrometry with temperature programmable micromachined gas chromatography for the determination of bis(chloromethyl)ether Luong, J., Gras, R., Shellie, R.A. Analytical Methods, 2017, 9(34), pp. 5003-5008 2017
    A brief history and recent advances in ozone induced chemiluminescence detection for the determination of sulfur compounds by gas chromatography Luong, J., Gras, R., Hawryluk, M., Shearer, R. Analytical Methods, 2016, 8, 7014-7024 2016
    Trace-level screening of dichlorophenols in processed dairy milk by headspace gas chromatography Gras, K., Luong, J., Gras, R., Shellie, R.A. Journal of Separation Science, 2016, 39, 3957-3963 2016
    Thermal Independent Modulator for Comprehensive Two-Dimensional Gas Chromatography Luong, J., Guan, X., Xu, S., Gras, R., Shellie, R.A. Analytical Chemistry, 2016, 88, 8428-8432 2016
    Membrane assisted and temperature controlled on-line evaporative concentration for microfluidics Fornells, E., Barnett, B., Bailey, M., Shellie, R.A., Hilder, E.F., Breadmore, M.C. Journal of Chromatography A, 2016, 1486, 110-116 2016
    New perspectives on the annihilation electrogenerated chemiluminescence of mixed metal complexes in solution Kerr, E., Doeven, E.H., Barbante, G.J., Hogan, C.F., Hayne, D.J., Donnelly, P.S., Francis, P.S. Chemical Science, 2016, 7, 5271-5279 2016
    Cheers: Cracking open the bottleneck of extraction in bioanalysis Breadmore, M.C. Bioanalysis, 2015, 7, 3053-3055 2015
    Direct Measurement of Trace Elemental Mercury in Hydrocarbon Matrices by Gas Chromatography with Ultraviolet Photometric Detection Gras, R., Luong, J., Shellie, R.A. Analytical Chemistry, 2015, 87, 11429-11432 2015
  • ACROSS Annual Reports (includes highlights for ASTech)
    Citations of ASTech affiliated papers

    ASTech papers have been cited 142 times to-date so far, with 74 of those citations in 2018, and 37 to-date in 2019.

    Co-authors on ASTech affiliated papers include:

    • Abdul Keyon, A.S.
    • Atia, M.A.
    • Bailey, M.
    • Barbante, G.J.
    • Barnett, B.
    • Breadmore, M.C.
    • Cabot, J.M.
    • Chen, W.Q.
    • Connolly, D.
    • Currivan, S.A.
    • Dawod, M.
    • Fornells, E.
    • Gooley, A.
    • Gras, R.
    • Haddad, P.R.
    • Hawryluk, M.
    • Hilder, E.F.
    • Hua, Y.
    • Kalsoon, U.
    • Lam, S.C.
    • Lapierre, F.
    • Li, F.
    • Li, Y.
    • Luong, J.
    • Macka, M.
    • Nesterenko, P.N.
    • Neto, R.
    • Paull, B.
    • Rodriguez, E.S.
    • Shearer, R.
    • Shellie, R.A.
    • Stanley, R.
    • Upadhyay, N.

    International affiliations of ASTech affiliated papers include:

    • Australia
    • Canada
    • China
    • Czech Republic
    • Bangladesh
    • Egypt
    • Germany
    • Ireland
    • Japan
    • Malaysia
    • Russian Federation
    • United States of America

    Source titles for ASTech affiliated papers include:

    • ACS Earth and Space Chemistry
    • Analyst
    • Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry
    • Analytical Chemistry
    • Analytica Chimica Acta
    • Analytical Methods
    • Bioanalysis
    • Chemical Science
    • Chromatographia
    • Electrochimica Acta
    • Electrophoresis
    • Journal of Chromatography A
    • Journal of Separation Science
    • Langmuir
    • LC GC Europe
    • Trac Trends in Analytical Chemistry
    • Trends in Food Science and Technology
  • Research

    11 Higher Degree by Research (HDR) Scholarships and 3 Post-doctoral Research Fellowships (3 years funding) were recruited on a global basis, with research primarily undertaken at University of Tasmania and University of South Australia. Candidates and post-doctoral researchers also spent a minimum of one of the three years within industry, at Trajan and/or Trajan’s partner organizations around the world.

    Partnerships

    ASTech played an important part in Trajan’s mission to develop collaborative partnerships. Trajan engaged global business partners in some specific research themes. Supplemental agreements included exclusive engagement in a specific project element, deployment of a Centre research candidate within partner organization.

    To discuss partnership opportunities please contact us.

    Commercialization

    Explore our website to browse our product range, or learn more about specific innovations such as hemaPEN®(initial product concept developed through ASTech, with further development by Trajan).

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