George Franks

Professor George Franks is a Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering within the Melbourne School of Engineering at the University of Melbourne, where he leads the Ceramics and Minerals Processing Group. He serves as Co-Deputy Director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Minerals. His academic background includes an undergraduate degree in Materials Science and Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1985, followed by seven years working in the ceramics industry. He earned his PhD in Materials from the University of California, Santa Barbara in 1997 and subsequently moved to Australia. Franks' research interests center on ceramics and minerals processing, encompassing suspension rheology, ceramic powder processing, materials modelling, and minerals processing. Key areas include the development of novel polymeric reagents for solid-liquid separation and froth flotation, processing of complex shaped ceramics and composites with unique microstructures such as multi-scale porous ceramics, 3D printing of ceramics for biomedical implants, ultra-high temperature ceramics for aerospace applications, lightweight ceramic armour, colloid and surface chemistry, alumina surfaces, and particle scale simulations.

Professor Franks has an extensive publication record with over 120 papers in international peer-reviewed journals, six book chapters, and four patents, accumulating more than 8,000 citations. He contributes to the academic community as Associate Editor of the Journal of the American Ceramic Society and Editor of Advanced Powder Technology. Additionally, he is a member of the Particulate Fluids Processing Centre and the Defence Materials Technology Centre. In 2024, he received the Australian Ceramic Society Award, the society's highest accolade, recognizing his contributions to the ceramics field and impact on both industry and academia.

Professional Email: gvfranks@unimelb.edu.au