Professor Jason Stokes

Professor

School of Chemical Engineering
Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology
jason.stokes@uq.edu.au
+61 7 336 54361

Overview

Jason Stokes is a Professor in the School of Chemical Engineering and leads the Premium Food and Beverages Program in Australia’s Food and Beverage Accelerator. The Premium Food and Beverages Program undertakes industry-driven research that builds capability and expertise for industry to value-add onshore and grow business opportunities.

He has been the Deputy Associate Dean of Research (Research Training) for the Faculty of Engineering, Architecture and Information Technology (2020-2023). His formal qualifications include a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical) and PhD from The University of Melbourne, Australia. He spent 10 years (1999 – 2008) as a research scientist at Unilever’s corporate research laboratory in the United Kingdom and joined The University of Queensland in October 2008.

Jason’s research principally concerns the rheology, tribology and interfacial properties and structure of complex fluids and soft materials encompassing nanocrystalline cellulose, microgels, biopolymers, dairy, colloids, emulsions, soft matter systems, soft materials, gels, foams, biofluids, saliva, mucin, plant cells, bacterial cellulose hydrogels, liquid crystals, plant proteins and polysaccarides, and seed mucilage. In partnership with industry, his research is applied to diverse research areas such as food oral processing and sensory science, food structure design and food engineering for dairy and plant-based foods as well as beverages.. He also examines the flow and pumping of non-Newtonian fluids and suspensions for a range of industries including waste and fire fighting foams. Fundamental research activities include developing new principals in viscoelastic lubrication of complex fluids incorporating studies in soft-tribology and biotribology, as well as development of soft materials with programmable anisotropy using aqueous suspensions of nanocellulose.

Awards include the British Society of Rheology Annual Award 2013 for contributions to the field of rheology, and the 2012 Capt. Alfred E. Hunt Memorial Award from Society of Tribology Lubrication Engineers (STLE) for authoring "the best paper dealing with the field of lubrication". He is an Elected Delegate of the Individual Members for the European Society of Rheology Committee (2018– 2022), Associate editor for the Korea-Australia Rheology Journal, and member of the editorial boards for the Journal of Texture Studies and Journal of Biotribology. Recognising his contribution to the training Higher Degree by Research students, including PhD students, he was awarded a Special Commendation for Industry Engagement in Graduate Research from 2020 Australian Council of Graduate Research Excellence.

Research Interests

  • Development of responsive soft materials with programmable anisotropy and to mimic structural hierarchy found in nature.
    The project aims to use nanocrystalline cellulose and charge-directed polymer self-assembly to form a unique liquid crystal glass phase.
  • New principals of viscoelastic lubrication for complex fluids and soft matter.
    The project aims to redefine the complex fluid-substrate interactions in soft tribological contacts that is beneficial to diverse fields including advanced materials and complex fluids, engineering tribology, biolubrication and food structure design.
  • Rational food structure design and food oral processing
    Projects are closely aligned and sponsored by industry to uncover the mysteries of how food structure and material properties relate to sensory and consumer perception.

Research Impacts

Jason has established substantial partnerships with industry, which has included pioneering totally new measurement techniques and approaches in tribology, rheology and surface sciences to study the physics of food oral processing and sensory science to enable rational food-structure design. His research is having a substantive impact in gaining a deeper scientific understanding of food oral processing and outputs from his research are used directly by industry to improve the nutritional quality of food and beverages that benefits quality of life and health, and processes that deliver to sustainability and job-creation.

His impact and long term partnership with industry was recognised by a UQ Partners in Research Excellence Award in 2014.

Recognising his contribution to the training Higher Degree by Research students, including PhD students, he was awarded a Special Commendation for Industry Engagement in Graduate Research from 2020 Australian Council of Graduate Research Excellence.

Qualifications

  • Doctor of Philosophy, University of Melbourne
  • Bachelor (Honours) of Engineering, University of Melbourne

Publications

View all Publications

Supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy

  • Doctor Philosophy

  • Doctor Philosophy

View all Supervision

Available Projects

  • The project aims to develop new principles of viscoelastic lubrication in soft contacts. New insights into friction behaviour arising from complex fluid-substrate interactions are expected to be generated using techniques and interdisciplinary approaches that bridge rheology, tribology and surface science. Outcomes from the research should provide significant benefits to diverse fields including advanced materials and complex fluids, engineering tribology, biolubrication and food structure design.

    This project is associated with an Australian Research Council Discovery Project.

    (Updated July 2021)

  • The project aims to address the need for engineering plant-based food products to deliver a sensory experience akin to meat. The project expects to generate new knowledge on the structural drivers for emulating meat-like texture and taste within burger products. Expected outcomes of this project include new ingredients and food characterisation methodologies, including rheology and sensory, which can be employed in rational food structure design. This should provide significant benefits in enhancing the consumer acceptance of plant-based foods that is required to support the rapidly growing market opportunity for them and sustainable food production. The specific focus here will be on developing a fundamental understanding of the different types of proteins, their confirmation, purity etc., and structural anisotropy obtained using different methodologies including processing, contribute to the overall mechanical response (linear and nonlinear) of mixed-biopolymer gels. It is anticipated the project will utilise a newly acquired lab and pilot-scale extruders to enable translation of fundamental knowledged into product-related outcomes.

    This project is associated with industrial partnership with a plant-based foods start-up company out of Boston, USA.

    (Updated July 2021)

  • Projects seek to relate physical measurements such as rheology and tribology to the flow and deformation of foods during consumption that affects sensory perception and consumer preferences. We are particularly interested in connecting chemical engineering, physiology, and food sensory science. These studies are used to assist industry to rationally design processed foods and beverages with consideration for formulating consumer acceptable healthy & nutritious foods and sustainable process engineering. One area of interest is in designing food systems using plant based ingredients.

    This project is associated with on-going partnerships with industry.

    (Updated July 2021)

View all Available Projects

Publications

Book Chapter

  • Shewan, H. M. and Stokes, J. R. (2020). Food structure development for rheological/tribological performance. Handbook of food structure development. (pp. 175-198) edited by Fotis Spyropoulos, Aris Lazidis and Ian Norton. Cambridge, United Kingdom: Royal Society of Chemistry. doi: 10.1039/9781788016155-00173

  • Stokes, Jason R. and Xu, Yuan (2019). Rheology of food materials: impact on and relevance in food processing. Reference module in food science. London, United Kingdom: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/b978-0-08-100596-5.21076-7

  • Dolan, Grace K., Yakubov, Gleb E. and Stokes, Jason R. (2018). Bio-tribology and bio-lubrication of plant cell walls. Annual plant reviews online. (pp. 1-42) Chichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom: Wiley-Blackwell. doi: 10.1002/9781119312994.apr0607

  • Stokes, Jason R. (2014). Aqueous lubrication and food emulsions. Aqueous lubrication: natural and biomimetic approaches. (pp. 73-102) edited by Nicholas D. Spencer. Singapore: World Scientific Publishing Company. doi: 10.1142/9789814313773_0003

  • Stokes, Jason R. (2013). Saliva lubrication. Encyclopedia of Tribology. (pp. 2971-2977) edited by Jane Wang and Yip-Wah Chung. New York, NY, USA: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-0-387-92897-5

  • Stokes, Jason R. (2012). 'Oral' Rheology. Food oral processing : fundamentals of eating and sensory perception. (pp. 225-263) edited by Jianshe Chen and Lina Engelen. Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. doi: 10.1002/9781444360943.ch11

  • Stokes, Jason R. (2012). 'Oral' Tribology. Food oral processing : fundamentals of eating and sensory perception. (pp. 265-287) edited by Jianshe Chen and Lina Engelen. Chichester, West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell. doi: 10.1002/9781444360943.ch12

  • Stokes, Jason R. (2012). Food biopolymer gels, microgel and nanogel structures, formation and rheology. Food materials science and engineering. (pp. 151-176) edited by Bhesh Bhandari and Yrjo H Roos. West Sussex, United Kingdom: Wiley - Blackwell. doi: 10.1002/9781118373903.ch6

  • Kravchuk, Olena, Torley, Peter and Stokes, Jason R. (2012). Food texture is only partly rheology. Food materials science and engineering. (pp. 349-368) edited by Bhesh Bhandari and Yrjo H Roos. Chichester, West Sussex, United Kingdom: Wiley-Blackwell.

  • Stokes, Jason R. (2011). Rheology of industrial microgels. Microgel suspensions: Fundamentals and applications. (pp. 327-354) edited by Alberto Fernandez-Nieves, Hans M. Wyss, Johan Mattsson and David A. Weitz. Weinheim, Germany: Wiley-VCH Verlag. doi: 10.1002/9783527632992.ch13

Journal Article

Conference Publication

Other Outputs

Grants (Administered at UQ)

PhD and MPhil Supervision

Current Supervision

  • Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy — Principal Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor

    Other advisors:

  • Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor

  • Doctor Philosophy — Associate Advisor

Completed Supervision

Possible Research Projects

Note for students: The possible research projects listed on this page may not be comprehensive or up to date. Always feel free to contact the staff for more information, and also with your own research ideas.

  • The project aims to develop new principles of viscoelastic lubrication in soft contacts. New insights into friction behaviour arising from complex fluid-substrate interactions are expected to be generated using techniques and interdisciplinary approaches that bridge rheology, tribology and surface science. Outcomes from the research should provide significant benefits to diverse fields including advanced materials and complex fluids, engineering tribology, biolubrication and food structure design.

    This project is associated with an Australian Research Council Discovery Project.

    (Updated July 2021)

  • The project aims to address the need for engineering plant-based food products to deliver a sensory experience akin to meat. The project expects to generate new knowledge on the structural drivers for emulating meat-like texture and taste within burger products. Expected outcomes of this project include new ingredients and food characterisation methodologies, including rheology and sensory, which can be employed in rational food structure design. This should provide significant benefits in enhancing the consumer acceptance of plant-based foods that is required to support the rapidly growing market opportunity for them and sustainable food production. The specific focus here will be on developing a fundamental understanding of the different types of proteins, their confirmation, purity etc., and structural anisotropy obtained using different methodologies including processing, contribute to the overall mechanical response (linear and nonlinear) of mixed-biopolymer gels. It is anticipated the project will utilise a newly acquired lab and pilot-scale extruders to enable translation of fundamental knowledged into product-related outcomes.

    This project is associated with industrial partnership with a plant-based foods start-up company out of Boston, USA.

    (Updated July 2021)

  • Projects seek to relate physical measurements such as rheology and tribology to the flow and deformation of foods during consumption that affects sensory perception and consumer preferences. We are particularly interested in connecting chemical engineering, physiology, and food sensory science. These studies are used to assist industry to rationally design processed foods and beverages with consideration for formulating consumer acceptable healthy & nutritious foods and sustainable process engineering. One area of interest is in designing food systems using plant based ingredients.

    This project is associated with on-going partnerships with industry.

    (Updated July 2021)

  • Project in the area of Food and Soft Matter Engineering are available with specific details to be discussed with prospective students. The research group has many associations with industry and projects needs to be designed specifically. Our industry partners are international and national companies spaning foods, personal care, and pharmaceuticals.

    (Updated July 2021)

  • Our recent discovery of using nanocrystalline cellulose colloidal rods to contstruct a Liquid crystal hydroglass (LCH) provides an exciting avenue to control the structural hierarchy and hence properties of soft materials. LCH is a biphasic soft material with flow programmable anisotropy that forms via phase separation in suspensions of charged colloidal rods upon increases in ionic strength. This project aims to expand on the materials space for LCH materials in order to create viscoelastic materials with complex rheology as well as structural, mechanical and optical heterogeneity. The intended outcome is enabling the creation of anisotropic materials with shape-memory and shape-restoring features for the realization of artificial muscles, novel biomedical devices, soft robotics and morphing structures. .

    This project is associated with an ARC Discovery Project.

    (Updated July 2021)

  • The Stokes group financially supports research consumables and equipment access required for projects, as well as research training activities including participation in national and international conferences. Living allowance stipends and tuition fees are usually supported by the Research Training Program via UQ's domestic and international scholarship rounds (see UQ Graduate School www-site), or directly through grant funds or industry partnerships as well as various other avenues including government support from a students home country. Stokes may also support top-up scholarships on a case-by-case basis. Different projects to those listed here can also be designed as long as they fit within the expertise of the group, Interested students should contact Prof Jason Stokes.