A MICROBIOLOGIST who is researching the possibility of producing electricity from bacteria has become the latest member of an exclusive Kelso High club.
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Dr Ashley Franks, who graduated from the school in 1993, has been named as the newest recipient of the Kelso High Campus Decade Award.
The annual award recognises a student who has completed their secondary education at Kelso High more than 10 years ago and has gone on to achieve outstanding success or has excelled in their chosen field.
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Dr Franks, who was vice captain at Kelso High, was awarded a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology, with first class honours, at the University of NSW in 1999, went on to gain his Ph.D. from the UNSW in 2004 and was further recognised with the Australian Society of Microbiology’s highest award.
He worked overseas from 2004 to 2011 in Cork, Ireland, and Massachusetts, USA as a postdoctoral fellow, then research associate professor.
While there, his research earned him the 2011 Centre for Biofilm Engineering Young Investigator Award.
Dr Franks has been at La Trobe University since 2011, first as senior lecturer in microbiology and then associate professor.
His research articles have been cited by more than 7000 science researchers and his research projects have attracted more than $1.5 million in grants and funding from local and international sources.
Now, as the associate professor in the Franks Lab of Applied and Environmental Microbiology at La Trobe, he is researching the real possibility of producing electricity from bacteria.
Dr Franks’ research is showing that some bacteria can create more fertile land for farmers by eliminating pollution and waste and improving the health of plants and electric bacteria have the ability to eat and breathe electricity, producing small-scale ‘batteries’ that could assist remote communities without renewable energy sources.
His research is also shining a light on the role bacteria play in keeping the human body fit and healthy.
Dr Franks has recently been made a member of the Australian Research Council College of Experts.
This is the 22nd year of the Kelso High Campus Decade Award.
