MURDOCH has been more successful than ever before in the latest funding round of Australian Research Grant (ARC) applications - receiving 22 Large Grants and SPIRT Grants and one postdoctoral fellowship in the 2000 round.

The success rate in both areas was above the national average.

Large Grants and SPIRT (Strategic Partnership with Industry, Research and Training) grants totalled approximately $1.8 million and $888,000 respectively over three years.

Projects included studies into marine algae and its ability to trap carbon dioxide from the atmosphere to improve the environment, and the ability of legumes to help decrease salinity in acid soils.

Murdoch also received three awards in electrical engineering, which will lead to major economic savings to mining processing plants through software control.

Per academic staff member, Murdoch received the third highest number of SPIRT grants and the fourth highest number of Large ARC grants in Australia.

In Western Australia, Murdoch was awarded the highest number of SPIRT grants and the second highest number of Large ARC grants using this measure.

Grants were awarded in a broad range of fields including psychology, chemistry, veterinary and biological sciences, physics, engineering, law, sociology, education, agricultural biotechnology, IT, media and sustainable development.

Physics researchers excelled in the application round, with 100 per cent success for Large ARC and SPIRT grants in theoretical and experimental atomic and surface physics, as well as an Australian Postdoctoral Research Fellowship awarded to Dr Steven Jones.

Collaborative RIEFS (Research Infrastructure Equipment and Facilities Scheme) grants involving Murdoch totalled more than $2.4 million.

Pro Vice Chancellor (Research) Val Alder congratulated all successful recipients, saying the wide spread of disciplines in the results showed that Murdoch had both breadth and depth in quality research.