Next generation ‘Fitbits’ to track the health of livestock, a device that will accurately identify mould spores in homes, and a technology that can potentially degrade the ‘forever chemical’ PFAS in water in just six minutes have secured funding in this year’s NSSN Grand Challenge Fund.  

Four collaborative teams across NSSN’s member universities will share $360,000 of NSSN funding, matched by a further $430,000 in industry partner funding, to develop impactful solutions in health and agriculture.  

The research and development projects which have secured funding this year are:   

Hearing impairment in Adults: Vitals, hEmodynamics, Neuroimaging and Sleep sensing (HAVENS) led by Macquarie University, partnering with University of Sydney and industry partner Cochlear Limited.

Remediation of PFAS Contaminated Water by Vacuum Ultraviolet Irradiation led by ANU, partnering with University of Sydney and industry partners Happy Soils, Royal Agricultural Society of NSW, PEGRAS Asia Pacific, SolidHydrogen, and Boswell Technologies.

Development of an automated spore monitoring and reporting technology led by UTS, partnering with Western Sydney University and industry partner BioScout.

Smart Electrochemical Nanosensors for Real-Time Animal Health Monitoring led by Macquarie University, in partnership with University of Sydney and industry partner VetChip.

(Clockwise from top left) The projects awarded Grand Challenge Funds will help track the health of livestock, advance understanding of the impact of hearing interventions on human health, demonstrate a scalable process for the complete degradation of PFAS in water in just six minutes, and develop a device for real-time mould spore detection. Credit: AdobeStock

The NSSN Grand Challenge Fund is now in its fifth year and allows member universities from across New South Wales and the ACT to compete for funding that fosters innovative research in collaboration with industry, government and other universities.  

The Fund promotes the development of innovative, collaborative research projects that advance smart sensing solutions to the five NSSN Priority Themes in human health, natural hazards, net zero, environment & agriculture, and smart places.

As part of the Fund, co-funded grants of up to $100,000 per project support the development of R&D projects that link industry or government partners with NSSN member universities to translate world-class research into impactful smart sensing solutions, either through commercialisation or operationalisation.   

NSSN Co-Director Professor Benjamin Eggleton congratulated this year’s successful teams.  

“The NSSN Grand Challenge Fund allows researchers in our network to respond to some of the most gripping challenges of our time using smart sensing,” Professor Eggleton said. 

“We are impressed by the high quality and innovative projects from within our network of universities and are excited about the impact these projects will have.” 

NSSN Co-Director Professor Julien Epps said the successful teams will each work collaboratively to provide answers to complex issues.  

“The successful projects epitomise the kind of groundbreaking R&D that can happen when you bring together the brightest minds across our state with innovative companies that are looking to make a difference,” Professor Epps said.  

“This is the kind of work that no one university or organisation can achieve working alone. These projects showcase the power of partnership.”  

“It is inspiring to watch these collaborative efforts between our university network, industry and government partners, which will ensure that the world-class research from our universities makes an impact on society.”  

(From L to R): NSSN Grand Challenges span across human health, natural hazards, clean tech, smart places, and environment & agriculture. Photos: Adobe Stock and Shutterstock.

The successful teams 

Human Health 
 
Hearing impairment in Adults: Vitals, hEmodynamics, Neuroimaging and Sleep sensing (HAVENS) is being led by Dr Mariano Cabezas Grebol, a Research Fellow in the Department of Health Sciences at Macquarie University. The link between hearing device use, cognitive decline and sleep is poorly understood. Dr Cabezas Grebol will partner with University of Sydney to address a knowledge-gap in an Australian-first prospective study which will advance understanding of the impact of hearing interventions on human health. The HAVENS project will use a combination of innovative sensing techniques to assess cognition, brain health, sleep, and physiological measures in adults using hearing devices. The team’s industry partner is Cochlear Limited.

Development of an automated spore monitoring and reporting technology led by Associate Professor Nic Surawski, who is A/Prof in Environmental Engineering in the School of Civil and Environmental Engineering at UTS. Moulds are a significant bioaerosol of concern that are common in indoor environments and are responsible for a range of toxic, allergenic, and infectious diseases. In partnership with Western Sydney University, this project aims to develop a device for real-time mould spore detection, enabling evidence-based health decisions in indoor environments. By leveraging machine learning and high-quality training data, the technology will accurately identify mould spores and differentiate them from common interferences. A beta prototype will be validated in at-risk environments, demonstrating its advantages over traditional methods and paving the way for commercialisation. BioScout is the team’s industry partner.

Environment & Agriculture

Remediation of PFAS Contaminated Water by Vacuum Ultraviolet Irradiation will be led by Professor Christine Charles from the Department of Nuclear Physics and Accelerator Applications at ANU. PFAS, or "forever chemicals", are toxic pollutants that persist in the environment, posing significant public health risks due to ineffective treatment methods. Professor Charles will partner with University of Sydney to demonstrate a scalable process for the complete degradation of PFAS in water in just six minutes. The method involves a new technology developed at ANU, which uses a green hydrogen-fuelled plasma to generate vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) radiation. The team’s industry partners include Happy Soils, Royal Agricultural Society of NSW, PEGRAS Asia Pacific, SolidHydrogen, and Boswell Technologies.

Smart Electrochemical Nanosensors for Real-Time Animal Health Monitoring is being led by Dr Joe Lin, a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Faculty of Science and Engineering at Macquarie University. Animal health is a critical pillar of Australia's agricultural economy, biosafety, and public health. The project – in partnership with the University of Sydney, and industry partner VetChip – aims to develop a next-generation electrochemical sensing platform for real-time, non-invasive monitoring of key animal health biomarkers. It integrates materials engineering, electrochemistry, and veterinary science to enhance early detection of physiological stress and metabolic imbalances. This innovation will improve veterinary diagnostics, optimise livestock management, and strengthen Australia's biosafety and agricultural sustainability.

The next round of the NSSN Grand Challenges Fund will be offered in November 2025. 

Mould detectors, livestock ‘Fitbits’ and PFAS remediation: Grand Challenge projects awarded NSSN grants