Professor Debra Bernhardt
Professor

Debra Bernhardt

Email: 
Phone: 
+61 7 334 63939

Background

Professor Debra Bernhardt is internationally recognised for her contributions to the development of nonequilibrium statistical mechanics and thermodynamics including far-from-equilibrium fluids and confined fluids. She is a Fellow of Australian Academy of Science and the Royal Australian Chemical Institute and an ARC Australian Laureate Fellow. Professor Bernhardt’s 30 years of research experience includes appointments at the University of Basel, Switzerland; the Australian National University; and Griffith University, where she was founding director of the Queensland Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre. Professor Bernhardt's research interests focus on the use of a range of theoretical and computational approaches to develop a fundamental understanding of the behaviour of matter, and application of these approaches to a wide range of problems including transport in nanopores, fluctuation phenomena, design of materials, gas separation, energy storage and conversion.

Availability

Professor Debra Bernhardt is:
Available for supervision
Media expert

Qualifications

  • Bachelor (Honours) of Science (Advanced), University of Newcastle
  • Doctor of Philosophy, University of Newcastle

Research impacts

Research:

Theoretical and computational molecular science: nonequilibrium systems, fluids and materials.

Professor Bernhardt has played a lead role in the development of the statistical mechanics of nonequilibrium fluids including the fluctuation theorems, that lead to many results including the fact that transport coefficients are positive. Predictions from the theories developed have been validated using nonequilibrium molecular dynamics simulations and experiment and the work has had international impact. For example, her work with the Evans and Sevick groups at the Australian National University resulted in the theoretical development of a fluctuation theorem that could be experimentally verified. This result was verified using computer simulations and experiment, providing the first experimental verification of any fluctuation theorem (Phys Rev Lett, 2002) which has been over 700 times (Scopus) and was listed by the American Institute of Physics as one of 19 notable physics developments in 2002.

Since that time fluctuation theorems have become well established area of research and is applied in a wide range of fields.

Search Professor Debra Bernhardt’s works on UQ eSpace

225 works between 1987 and 2024
All (225) Journal Article (203) Book Chapter (4) Conference Publication (12) Book (2) Other Outputs (4)

81 - 100 of 225 works

2016

Journal Article

Ion-responsive 19F MRI contrast agents for the detection of cancer cells

Zhang, Cheng, Moonshi, Shehzahdi Shebbrin, Peng, Hui, Puttick, Simon, Reid, James, Bernardi, Stefano, Bernhardt, Debra J. and Whittaker, Andrew K. (2016). Ion-responsive 19F MRI contrast agents for the detection of cancer cells. ACS Sensors, 1 (6), 757-765. doi: 10.1021/acssensors.6b00216

Ion-responsive 19F MRI contrast agents for the detection of cancer cells

2016

Journal Article

Effect of carbon chain length of organic salts on the thermodynamic stability of methane hydrate

Su, Yuan, Bernardi, Stefano, Searles, Debra J. and Wang, Liguang (2016). Effect of carbon chain length of organic salts on the thermodynamic stability of methane hydrate. Journal of Chemical and Engineering Data, 61 (5), 1952-1960. doi: 10.1021/acs.jced.6b00185

Effect of carbon chain length of organic salts on the thermodynamic stability of methane hydrate

2016

Journal Article

Reversible hydrogen uptake by BN and BC3 monolayers functionalized with small Fe clusters: a route to effective energy storage

Hussain, Tanveer, Searles, Debra J. and Takahashi, Keisuke (2016). Reversible hydrogen uptake by BN and BC3 monolayers functionalized with small Fe clusters: a route to effective energy storage. Journal of Physical Chemistry A, 120 (12), 2009-2013. doi: 10.1021/acs.jpca.5b12739

Reversible hydrogen uptake by BN and BC3 monolayers functionalized with small Fe clusters: a route to effective energy storage

2016

Journal Article

Interaction of Al, Ti, and Cu atoms with boron nitride nanotubes: a computational investigation

Rohmann, Christoph, Sun, Qiao and Searles, Debra J. (2016). Interaction of Al, Ti, and Cu atoms with boron nitride nanotubes: a computational investigation. Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 120 (6), 3509-3518. doi: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.5b10698

Interaction of Al, Ti, and Cu atoms with boron nitride nanotubes: a computational investigation

2016

Journal Article

Conformation transitions of thermoresponsive dendronized polymers across the lower critical solution temperature

Zhang, Cheng, Peng, Hui, Li, Wen, Liu, Lianxiao, Puttick, Simon, Reid, James, Bernardi, Stefano, Searles, Debra J., Zhang, Afang and Whittaker, Andrew K. (2016). Conformation transitions of thermoresponsive dendronized polymers across the lower critical solution temperature. Macromolecules, 49 (3), 900-908. doi: 10.1021/acs.macromol.5b02414

Conformation transitions of thermoresponsive dendronized polymers across the lower critical solution temperature

2016

Journal Article

Anion assisted synthesis of large pore hollow dendritic mesoporous organosilica nanoparticles: understanding the composition gradient

Yang, Yannan, Bernardi, Stefano, Song, Hao, Zhang, Jun, Yu, Meihua, Reid, James C., Strounina, Ekaterina, Searles, Debra J. and Yu, Chengzhong (2016). Anion assisted synthesis of large pore hollow dendritic mesoporous organosilica nanoparticles: understanding the composition gradient. Chemistry of Materials, 28 (3), 704-707. doi: 10.1021/acs.chemmater.5b03963

Anion assisted synthesis of large pore hollow dendritic mesoporous organosilica nanoparticles: understanding the composition gradient

2016

Book

Fundamentals of Classical Statistical Thermodynamics: Dissipation, Relaxation, and Fluctuation Theorems

Evans, Denis James, Searles, Debra Joy and Williams, Stephen Rodney (2016). Fundamentals of Classical Statistical Thermodynamics: Dissipation, Relaxation, and Fluctuation Theorems. Weinheim, Germany: Wiley-VCH.

Fundamentals of Classical Statistical Thermodynamics: Dissipation, Relaxation, and Fluctuation Theorems

2016

Journal Article

Local response in nanopores

Bernardi, Stefano and Searles, Debra J. (2016). Local response in nanopores. Molecular Simulation, 42 (6-7), 463-473. doi: 10.1080/08927022.2015.1049174

Local response in nanopores

2016

Conference Publication

Phase Equilibria and Gas Storage Capacity of Clathrate Hydrates of Methane + Quaternary Ammonium Salts

Su, Yuan, Bernardi, Stefano, Searles, Debra J. and Wang, Liguang (2016). Phase Equilibria and Gas Storage Capacity of Clathrate Hydrates of Methane + Quaternary Ammonium Salts. Chemeca Conference, Adelaide, Australia, 25-28 September 2016. Melbourne, Australia: Engineers Australia.

Phase Equilibria and Gas Storage Capacity of Clathrate Hydrates of Methane + Quaternary Ammonium Salts

2016

Journal Article

Lithium storage on carbon nitride, graphenylene and inorganic graphenylene

Hankel, Marlies and Searles, Debra J. (2016). Lithium storage on carbon nitride, graphenylene and inorganic graphenylene. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 18 (21), 14205-14215. doi: 10.1039/c5cp07356a

Lithium storage on carbon nitride, graphenylene and inorganic graphenylene

2015

Journal Article

Computational Studies of the Interaction of Carbon Dioxide with Graphene-Supported Titanium Dioxide

Fischer, Julia M.T.A., Hankel, Marlies and Searles, Debra J. (2015). Computational Studies of the Interaction of Carbon Dioxide with Graphene-Supported Titanium Dioxide. Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 119 (52), 29044-29051. doi: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.5b10692

Computational Studies of the Interaction of Carbon Dioxide with Graphene-Supported Titanium Dioxide

2015

Journal Article

Understanding the Origin of Li2MnO3 Activation in Li-Rich Cathode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries

Ye, Delai, Zeng, Guang, Nogita, Kazuhiro, Ozawa, Kiyoshi, Hankel, Marlies, Searles, Debra J and Wang, Lianzhou (2015). Understanding the Origin of Li2MnO3 Activation in Li-Rich Cathode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries. Advanced Functional Materials, 25 (48), 7488-7496. doi: 10.1002/adfm.201503276

Understanding the Origin of Li2MnO3 Activation in Li-Rich Cathode Materials for Lithium-Ion Batteries

2015

Journal Article

Lithium and sodium storage on graphitic carbon nitride

Hankel, Marlies, Ye, Delai, Wang, Lianzhou and Searles, Debra J. (2015). Lithium and sodium storage on graphitic carbon nitride. Journal of Physical Chemistry C, 119 (38), 21921-21927. doi: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.5b07572

Lithium and sodium storage on graphitic carbon nitride

2015

Journal Article

Water diffusion in zeolite membranes: molecular dynamics studies on effects of water loading and thermostat

Han, Kuk Nam, Bernardi, Stefano, Wang, Lianzhou and Searles, Debra J. (2015). Water diffusion in zeolite membranes: molecular dynamics studies on effects of water loading and thermostat. Journal of Membrane Science, 495, 322-333. doi: 10.1016/j.memsci.2015.08.033

Water diffusion in zeolite membranes: molecular dynamics studies on effects of water loading and thermostat

2015

Journal Article

Conformation of Hydrophobically Modified Thermoresponsive Poly(OEGMA-co-TFEA) across the LCST Revealed by NMR and Molecular Dynamics Studies

Zhang, Cheng, Peng, Hui, Puttick, Simon, Reid, James, Bernardi, Stefano, Searles, Debra J. and Whittaker, Andrew K. (2015). Conformation of Hydrophobically Modified Thermoresponsive Poly(OEGMA-co-TFEA) across the LCST Revealed by NMR and Molecular Dynamics Studies. Macromolecules, 48 (10), 3310-3317. doi: 10.1021/acs.macromol.5b00641

Conformation of Hydrophobically Modified Thermoresponsive Poly(OEGMA-co-TFEA) across the LCST Revealed by NMR and Molecular Dynamics Studies

2015

Journal Article

System size effects on calculation of the viscosity of extended molecules

Bernardi, Stefano, Brookes, Sarah J. and Searles, Debra J. (2015). System size effects on calculation of the viscosity of extended molecules. Chemical Engineering Science, 121, 236-244. doi: 10.1016/j.ces.2014.08.040

System size effects on calculation of the viscosity of extended molecules

2015

Conference Publication

The Conformation of Hydrophobically-Modified Thermo-responsive Polymers of Poly (OEGMA-co-TFEA)

Zhang, Cheng , Reid, James , Bernardi, Stefano , Bernhardt, Debra , Peng, Hui and Whittaker, Andrew (2015). The Conformation of Hydrophobically-Modified Thermo-responsive Polymers of Poly (OEGMA-co-TFEA). 35th Australasian Polymer Symposium, Gold Coast, QLD, Australia, 12-15 July 2015.

The Conformation of Hydrophobically-Modified Thermo-responsive Polymers of Poly (OEGMA-co-TFEA)

2014

Journal Article

Sieving of H2 and D2 through end-to-end nanotubes

Dasgupta, Devagnik, Searles, Debra J., Rondoni, Lamberto and Bernardi, Stefano (2014). Sieving of H2 and D2 through end-to-end nanotubes. Communications in Theoretical Physics, 62 (4), 541-549. doi: 10.1088/0253-6102/62/4/11

Sieving of H2 and D2 through end-to-end nanotubes

2014

Journal Article

Electronic coupling and catalytic effect on H 2 evolution of MoS 2 /graphene nanocatalyst

Liao, Ting, Sun, Ziqi, Sun, Chenghua, Dou, Shi Xue and Searles, Debra J. (2014). Electronic coupling and catalytic effect on H 2 evolution of MoS 2 /graphene nanocatalyst. Scientific Reports, 4 (1) 6256, 6256.1-6256.7. doi: 10.1038/srep06256

Electronic coupling and catalytic effect on H 2 evolution of MoS 2 /graphene nanocatalyst

2014

Journal Article

A computational study of carbon dioxide adsorption on solid boron

Sun, Qiao, Wang, Meng, Li, Zhen, Du, Aijun and Searles, Debra J. (2014). A computational study of carbon dioxide adsorption on solid boron. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics, 16 (25), 12695-12702. doi: 10.1039/c4cp00044g

A computational study of carbon dioxide adsorption on solid boron

Current funding

  • 2024 - 2029
    ARC Research Hub in Zero-emission Power Generation for Carbon Neutrality (ARC ITRP grant administered by QUT)
    Queensland University of Technology
    Open grant
  • 2023 - 2030
    ARC Centre of Excellence for Green Electrochemical Transformation of Carbon Dioxide
    ARC Centres of Excellence
    Open grant
  • 2023 - 2026
    Integrated solar to chemical production and membrane concentration system
    ARC Linkage Projects
    Open grant

Past funding

  • 2021 - 2023
    Towards a molecular level understanding of flow-induced physical and chemical reactions
    Pawsey Centre for Extreme Scale Readiness
    Open grant
  • 2020 - 2022
    Strategic Design of Nanoarchitectured Porous Carbon and Investigation of Charging/Discharging Mechanisms in Supercapacitors for Future Energy Storage Systems
    Foundation for Australia-Japan Studies
    Open grant
  • 2020 - 2024
    New frontiers for nonequilibrium systems
    ARC Australian Laureate Fellowships
    Open grant
  • 2019 - 2022
    Sustaining and enhancing merit-based research access to the National Computational Infrastructure (ARC LIEF project administered by ANU)
    Australian National University
    Open grant
  • 2019 - 2024
    Promoting new reaction pathways with nonequilibrium flow
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2017 - 2019
    Design of Polymers for 3D Printing via Non-equilibrium Molecular Dynamics Simulation
    United States Asian Office of Aerospace Research and Development
    Open grant
  • 2016 - 2018
    Maintaining and enhancing merit-based access to the NCI National Facility (ARC LIEF project administered by The Australian National University)
    Australian National University
    Open grant
  • 2014 - 2015
    FlashLite: A High Performance Machine for Data Intensive Science
    ARC Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment and Facilities
    Open grant
  • 2014
    A parallel computer facility for modelling and simulation
    UQ Major Equipment and Infrastructure
    Open grant
  • 2014 - 2016
    Properties of nonequilibrium steady states
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2014 - 2018
    Understanding dissipation, thermal conduction and diffusion in superionic conductors using ab initio nonequilibrium molecular dynamics simulation
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2013 - 2016
    Composite Reinforcement using Boron Nitride Nanotubes
    United States Asian Office of Aerospace Research and Development
    Open grant
  • 2012 - 2013
    Computational studies of melting and the solvation properties of ionic liquids
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant
  • 2012 - 2013
    Dissipation and Relaxation in Statistical Mechanics
    ARC Discovery Projects
    Open grant

Availability

Professor Debra Bernhardt is:
Available for supervision

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Supervision history

Current supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Insight into Nonequilibrium Behaviour from Molecular Simulations

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Krenske

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Identification of New Clean Energy Storage Systems Using Molecular Simulations

    Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Insight into Nonequilibrium Behaviour from Molecular Simulations

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Krenske

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Rational Design of Materials for Energy Applications using Computational Methods

    Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Electrolytes and Interfaces in Rechargeable Batteries

    Principal Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Cheng Zhang, Dr Stephen Sanderson

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Identification of New Clean Energy Storage Systems Using Molecular Simulations

    Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Chemical Reactions in Confined Systems

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Matt Trau

  • Doctor Philosophy

    The effect of membrane composition on protein-ligand interactions in drug design and delivery

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Megan O'Mara

  • Doctor Philosophy

    New technology for computational prediction of chemical reaction outcomes

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Krenske

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Next-generation polymer-based solid electrolytes for advanced batteries

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Cheng Zhang

  • Doctor Philosophy

    New technology for computational prediction of chemical reaction outcomes

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Krenske

  • Doctor Philosophy

    New technology for computational prediction of chemical reaction outcomes

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Krenske

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Prediction of new electrolytes for improved electrical energy storage.

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Tim Duignan

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Effectively predicting the properties of aqueous electrolyte solutions

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Dr Tim Duignan

  • Doctor Philosophy

    New technology for computational prediction of chemical reaction outcomes

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Elizabeth Krenske

  • Doctor Philosophy

    Investigation of pH-dependent bacterial transporters

    Associate Advisor

    Other advisors: Professor Alan Mark

Completed supervision

Enquiries

Contact Professor Debra Bernhardt directly for media enquiries about:

  • Computational science
  • Molecular science
  • Theoretical science
  • Thermodynamics

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