IChemE announces Australasia Awards 2026 winners
30th September 2026
Projects advancing battery safety, critical minerals recovery, sustainable manufacturing and process safety were among the winning entries recognised at the IChemE Australasia Awards 2026, highlighting the significant contribution chemical engineers are making to industry and society across Australia and New Zealand.
The awards were presented at the Chemeca 2026 and Hazards Australasia Awards of Excellence Gala Dinner in Melbourne on 29 September, bringing together engineering professionals from across Australia, New Zealand and beyond to celebrate excellence and innovation in the profession.
Winners included: MK Pro Products & Services Pty Ltd and Alamcor Australia Pty Ltd, RMIT University and Green Li-ion Australia, BOC Limited, IPMF Technologies Pty Ltd and City of Gold Coast (Queensland), Australian Gas Infrastructure Group and Coregas New Zealand.
Now in its third year, the IChemE Australasia Awards recognise excellence across a range of categories reflecting the profession's key priorities, including energy transition, process safety, research excellence, health and wellbeing, sustainable systems and entrepreneurship.
Speaking at the awards, IChemE President Dr Ollie Folayan said: “This year’s award winners demonstrate that the future of chemical engineering is already taking shape. Through their leadership and innovation, they are advancing many of the key themes identified in the recent Presidential Inquiry, including artificial intelligence and machine learning, decarbonisation and climate adaptation and resilience, the materials revolution and the circular economy, bio-integration, and modular manufacturing.
“These award-winning projects and initiatives are delivering real benefits to industry and society. By inspiring curiosity, innovation and continuous learning, chemical and process engineers are helping society better understand what we do and how we are contributing to a more sustainable future.”
Australasia Awards winners will automatically progress as finalists in the IChemE Global Awards 2026, one of the world's leading awards programs recognising excellence and innovation in chemical and process engineering.
The evening also recognised emerging engineering talent through the IChemE Student Design Prize for 2026. This award recognises an outstanding final year chemical engineering design project from across Australia and New Zealand. The entries are judged by a panel of industry professionals across key criteria covering process and equipment design, safety, environmental and technical and commercial feasibility. The team from University of New South Wales received the award for their project, Production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
In addition to the IChemE Australasia Awards, the event recognised Australian and New Zealand recipients of the 2026 IChemE Medals and Prizes, including the Hutchison Medal and Hanson Medal. Among IChemE's most prestigious honours, the Medals and Prizes celebrate outstanding achievements by individuals, organisations and universities.
Winners of the 2026 Young Engineers Awards for Innovation and Sustainability (YEAIS) from the Australasian region were also recognised across the Water and Sanitation, Materials, Mining and Minerals, and Early Careers categories. The awards celebrate innovation and emerging talent, supporting IChemE's vision of engineering a more sustainable world.
For more information about the IChemE Australasian Awards, visit https://www.icheme.org/training-events/awards/australasia-awards/
For more information about IChemE Medals and Prizes, visit https://www.icheme.org/knowledge-networks/medals-prizes-and-awards/medals-and-prizes/
For more information about Young Engineers Awards for Innovation and Sustainability (YEAIS), visit https://www.icheme.org/training-events/awards/young-engineers-awards-for-innovation-and-sustainability/
Full 2026 winners list
IChemE Australasia Awards 2026 winners and highly commended entries.
Business Start-up
Winner: IPMF Technologies Pty Ltd & City of Gold Coast (Queensland), Australia - 3D-AeroDry®: World-first Ambient-air Vertical Sludge Drying Technology
Highly commended: Birra Technologies, Australia - Shipping Without the Green Premium: Methanol from Waste Biogas
Energy
Winner: Coregas New Zealand, New Zealand - A Circular Manufacturing Model for Zero-Discharge Acetylene Production and Byproduct Recovery
Highly commended:
- Transpower New Zealand Limited & Fonterra Co-Operative Limited, New Zealand - Ōhangai Substation – Collaboration enabling electrification at pace
- University of New South Wales & ARC Training Centre for the Global Hydrogen Economy, Australia - HySupply and SuSteel: Research and Evidence Building the Australia-Germany Green Trade Bridge
- Adelaide University, Australia: Scalable Dry-Electrode Manufacturing for High-Mass-Loading Zinc–Iodine Batteries
Excellence in Knowledge Exchange and Research
Winner: MK Pro Products & Services Pty Ltd & Alamcor Australia Pty Ltd, Australia - Translating research into lithium battery fire prevention
Highly commended: RMIT University & Green Li-ion, Australia - Solvent-Free Recovery of Critical Minerals from Lithium-Ion Battery Waste
Health, Wellbeing and Food
Winner: BOC Limited, Australia - Innovating traditional beef trim chilling processes with liquid nitrogen
Highly commended: All Energy Pty Ltd, Pelleton Renewables Pty Ltd, Australian Meat Processing Corporation & JBS Australia, Australia - True Circular Economy: Renewable Energy Boiler Fuel from Within Supply Chain By-Products
Sustainable Systems
Winner: RMIT University & Green Li-ion Australia, Australia - Solvent-Free Recovery of Critical Minerals from Lithium-Ion Battery Waste
Highly commended: Gaiatech Limited, New Zealand - Gaiatech: Anaesthetic Gas Capture for Low-Carbon Surgery
Process Safety
Winner: Australian Gas Infrastructure Group, Australia - Process Safety in Gas Distribution
Highly commended: Origin Energy, Australia - Improving Management of Change: the power of Industry Collaboration
Student Design Prize 2026 winner
UNSW
Aaron Lillis
Julina Limcom
Emma Linfoot
Corinne Riley
Callum Wainwright
IChemE Medals and Prizes 2026: Hutchinson Medal and the Hanson Medal Australasian winners
Hutchinson Medal for literature that has stimulated debate:
Kylie Goodwin
Hanson Medal for best article in The Chemical Engineer:
Glen McClea
Campbell Tiffin
2026 Young Engineers Awards for Innovation and Sustainability Australasian winners
Early Career
Sajid Hassan, High Pressure Dewatering Rolls (HPDR) Mk-II: A Step-Change Technology for Sustainable Mineral Tailings Dewatering and Water Recovery, The University of Melbourne.
Materials, Mining and Minerals
Sajid Hassan, High Pressure Dewatering Rolls (HPDR) Mk-II: A Step-Change Technology for Sustainable Mineral Tailings Dewatering and Water Recovery, The University of Melbourne.
Water and Sanitation
Australasia: Sela Maka & Emma Cross, A Year in Action - Hybrid MABR-MBR WWTP in Te Kauwhata New Zealand, Watercare Services Limited.
What is chemical engineering?
Chemical, biochemical and process engineering is the application of science, mathematics and economics in the process of turning raw materials into everyday, and more specialist, products. Professional chemical engineers design, construct and manage process operations all over the world. Energy, pharmaceuticals, food and drink, synthetic fibres and clean drinking water are just some of the industry sectors and products where chemical engineering plays a central role.
IChemE
The Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) advances chemical engineering's contribution for the benefit of society. We facilitate the development of chemical engineering professionals and provide connections to a powerful network of around 32,000 members in more than 100 countries.
We support our members in applying their expertise and experience to make an influential contribution to solving major global challenges, and are the only organisation permitted to award Chartered Chemical Engineer status and Professional Process Safety Engineer registration.