Emeritus Professor
Graeme George
Administrative Division,
Campus Services,
Security & Emergency Management
Biography
Research theme: Health and FoodResearch Program: Tissue Repair & Regeneration
Research Areas
Controlled loading and release of therapeutics from hydrogels:
In an interdisciplinary program involving life scientists, burns surgeons and polymer chemists, the role of silicone oligomers in the remediation of burns scars has been determined. The migration of these oligomers through stratum corneum and the subsequent effect of these on collagen production has been demonstrated and the active agents patented. Hydrogels from functionalised polyethylene glycol adducts are being developed for delivery to scars.
Photo and thermally degradable polymers for agriculture:
In a program for the CRC for Polymers in collaboration with Australian Industry, the lifetime of ultra-thin polyolefin sheets for accelerated crop propagation is being controlled by the use of photoactive inorganic additives that are chosen to have no toxic effects. The research involves synthesis of the additives, masterbatching and blowing the film and determining both accelerated and field lifetimes.
Profluorescent nitroxides as probes of polymer degradation:
In a collaborative program with Associate Professor Bottle, the earliest stages of polymer degradation are being analysed and the effectiveness of stabilisation strategies assessed by forming fluorescent adducts with the radical species that degrade the polymer. This will also allow spatial imaging of the zones of degradation and highlight potential points of failure.
Areas of expertise
- Polymer degradation
- Environmental performance of plastics
- Biomedical polymers
- Polymer surface analysis
- Epoxy resins and composites.
- Co-operative Research Centre for Polymers: Polymers for sustainable development $410, 000 p.a.
- ARC Discovery: New fluorescent probes to elucidate complex oxidation mechanisms. (with S. Bottle) $130, 000 p.a.
- QUT Pioneer Fund and Tissue Therapies: Functionalized siloxanes for scar tissue treatment (with Z. Upton): $60, 000.
- Controlled loading and release of therapeutics from hydrogels
- Photo and thermally degradable polymers for agriculture
- Profluorescent nitroxides as probes of polymer degradation
- Fibre-optic spectroscopic monitoring of polymerisation and controlled degradation in reactive processing
- Silicone polymers in scar remediation.
Personal details
Positions
- Visitor
Administrative Division,
Campus Services,
Security & Emergency Management - Emeritus Professor
Administrative Division,
Human Resources
Keywords
Environmental issues of plastics, Plastics, rubbers & composite materials, Polymer degradation & stabilization, Polymer materials science, Polymer spectroscopy, Polymers (failure analysis of, surface analysis of)
Research field
Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry, Materials Engineering
Field of Research code, Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classification (ANZSRC), 2008
Qualifications
- PhD (University of Queensland)
- BSc(Hons) (University of Queensland)
Professional memberships and associations
- Royal Australian Chemical Institute
- Society for Applied Spectroscopy
- Polymer Division of American Chemical Society
Teaching
Teaching discipline: Chemistry
Teaching areas
- Polymer materials science.
Publications
- Musumeci, A., Silva, G., Liu, J., Rintoul, L., Waclawik, E. & George, G. (2007). MWNT Polymer Nanocomposites Based on P3HT. Advanced Materials Research, 29-30, 291–294. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/43036
- Blakey, I., George, G., Hill, D., Liu, H., Rasoul, F., Rintoul, L., Zimmerman, P. & Whittaker, A. (2007). Mechanism of 157 nm Photodegradation of Poly(4,5-Difluoro-2,2-bis(Trifluoromethyl)-1,3-Dioxole-co-Tetrafluoroethylene) (Teflon AF). Macromolecules, 40(25), 8954–8961. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/42782
- George, G., Blakey, I. & Billingham, N. (2007). Use of 9,10-Diphenylanthracene As a Contrast Agent in Chemiluminescence Imaging: The Observation of Spreading of Oxidative Degradation in Thin Polypropylene Films. Polymer Degradation and Stability, 92(11), 2102–2109. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/42922
- Trigueiro, J., Silva, G., Lavall, R., Furtado, C., Oliveira, S., Ferlauto, A., Lacerda, R., Ladeira, L., Liu, J., Frost, R. & George, G. (2007). Purity Evaluation of Carbon Nanotube Materials by Thermogravimetric, TEM, and SEM Methods. Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, 7(10), 3477–3486. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/10626
- George, G., Hynard, N., Cash, G., Rintoul, L. & O'Shea, M. (2006). Spectroscopic Probes For Real-Time Monitoring of Polymer Modification and Degradation Reactions. Comptes Rendus Chimie, 9(11-12), 1433–1443. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/23248
- Liu, H., Cash, G., Sovar, R., George, G. & Birtwhistle, D. (2006). Studies of The Diffusion of Low Molecular Weight Silicone Fluids on Polluted HV Silicone Insulators. I. Use of Diffuse Reflectance FTIR. IEEE Transactions on Dielectrics and Electrical Insulation, 13(4), 877–884. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/22576
- Silva, G., Calado, H., Musumeci, A., Martens, W., Waclawik, E., Frost, R. & George, G. (2006). Polymer Nanocomposites Based on P3OT, TPU and SWNT: Preparation and Characterization. Proceedings of the 2006 International Conference on Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, 182–185. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/23892
- Kaba, M., Essamri, A., Mas, A., Schue, F., George, G., Cardona, F., Rintoul, L. & Wood, B. (2006). Fluorinated-Plasma Modification of Polyetherimide Films. Journal of Applied Polymer Science, 100(5), 3579–3588. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/22761
- Blakey, I., Goss, B. & George, G. (2006). Chemiluminescence as a Probe of Polymer Oxidation. Australian Journal of Chemistry, 59(8), 485–498. https://eprints.qut.edu.au/14088
QUT ePrints
For more publications by Graeme, explore their research in QUT ePrints (our digital repository).
Supervision
Completed supervisions (Doctorate)
- Synthesis and Characterization of Poly Caprolactone on Functionalized Silica Substrates (2008)
- The Synthesis and Application of Novel Profluorescent Nitroxides as Probes for Polymer Degradation (2008)
- Vibrational Spectroscopic Investigation of Polymer Melt Processing (2008)
- In Vitro Mineralisation of Well-defined Polymers and Surfaces (2007)
- Investigation into the Proteolytic Activity in Chronic Wound Fluid and Development of a Remediation Strategy (2007)
- Synthesis of Polycaprolactone Polymers for Bone Tissue Repair (2007)
- Synthesis, Characterisation and In Vitro Evaluation of PLLA-co-SUCCINIC Anhydride Networks (2007)
- Elucidating the Role of Silicone in the Treatment of Burn Scars: an Essential Step in the Development of Improved Treatment Products (2006)
- Studies of Electronic and Structural Properties of Molecular Clusters of Prebiotic Importance (2006)
- Thermo-Oxidative Degradation of Polyamide 6 (2006)