Project Description
RK Collective has co-developed a novel material made from 100% recycled LDPE and 100% recycled textiles. The material was originally created for a social-impact project, through which we produced stadium seating that we exhibited internationally. The response was strongly positive, with the fully recycled composition resonating particularly well with the market. We now see a commercial opportunity to apply this material in the construction and furniture sectors, both of which rely heavily on plywood (construction for concrete formwork, furniture as the structural base for upholstered pieces). Plywood carries significant environmental and supply-chain drawbacks. It drives deforestation, involves harmful chemicals in manufacturing, and is largely produced overseas and imported into Australia, adding a substantial carbon footprint. We believe a material mix derived from recycled plastic and recycled textiles could replace conventional plywood while drawing on local waste streams for its raw inputs, keeping both the sourcing and processing onshore.
The challenge is that realising this opportunity depends on resolving several technical uncertainties, including:
the optimal material composition to match plywood's performance which types of recycled plastics are suitable
what limitations apply to the recycled textile inputs
what end-of-life scenarios the material can support (ideally a closed loop where the material can be fed back into manufacturing)
The internship project would therefore centre on material exploration and development (of recycled plastics and recycled textiles) with the objective of establishing a material recipe that achieves mechanical properties equal or comparable to plywood, produced from locally sourced recycled feedstock.
Industry: Technology
Study area: Engineering
Partner: RK Collective
Suburb: Remote/in person: Ultimo, Sydney
Why:
Driven by a shared passion for design and social impact, Nila Rezaei and Christopher Krainer founded RK Collective in 2023, in Sydney, Australia. Together, we’ve worked across a variety of industries, including consumer goods, medical devices, public art, mobility, solar technology and material innovation.
Their first initiative, Crafted Liberation, exemplifies our vision. This participatory, non-profit project uses material innovation and storytelling to celebrate Iranian women's collective action and resilience. It garnered international attention at Dutch Design Week and won an Australian Good Design Award, highlighting the potential of design to inspire change.
In solidarity with the Women, Life, Movement, they invited Iranian women around the world to donate their unwanted headscarves and transformed them into stadium seats. RK Collective created a unique material by combining the donated headscarves with recycled polymers, while honouring the composite materials traditionally used in stadium seat construction.
Paid
Yes
Selection Criteria
Skills wish list:
- Background in materials science or polymer science, with an understanding of thermoplastics, recycled polymers, polymer processing methods (e.g. compression moulding, thermoforming, extrusion), and the combination of a polymer matrix with fibre or textile reinforcement.
- Mechanical testing and characterisation skills (e.g. tensile and compression testing), with the ability to interpret results to benchmark a material against an existing product such as plywood.
- A methodical, experiment-driven research approach, comfortable with design of experiments and systematic iteration. Hands-on workshop experience (e.g. operating a heat press, material preparation).
- Optional: An interest in circular-economy and sustainability principles (recycling, waste-stream feedstocks, and end-of-life/closed-loop design.)
Research Outcomes
- Materials exploration and development, to establish a recipe that achieves mechanical properties equal or comparable to plywood, produced from locally sourced recycled feedstock
- Technical analysis and optimisation of the material composition for structural integrity
- Research into the limitations and end-of-life recycling scenarios for the optimised material, delivered as a report
Other Information
RK Collective's strengths lie in product design and commercialisation. What we currently lack is deep scientific understanding of polymers, textiles, and the processes involved in combining them. Our work to date has been experimental, driven by iteration rather than underlying material science, and to take the next step we need to build that foundation.
A UOW-supported internship would give us access to exactly the expertise and resources we're missing, which is a researcher with the scientific grounding to understand and characterise material behaviour, a more rigorous and methodical approach to development, and access to the specialised workshop facilities and measurement tools required to test and validate our material properly.
This combination would allow us to move from experimental trial-and-error to structured, evidence-based material development. That’s a step we cannot realistically make on our own.
Duration
6 months
Application closing date
14 September 2026
Contact information
Any questions before applying? Contact Georgia Watson