Chemical and Process Engineering Department “G.B. Bonino” Head of Dpt. Prof. Eng. Mauro Rovatti

1. Chemical and Process Engineering Department “G.B. Bonino”Head of Dpt.Prof. Eng. Mauro Rovatti Faculty of Engineering University of Genoa

2. The Department The Department of Chemical and Process Engineering "G.B. Bonino" develops its research activities both on traditional and newest topics of Chemical Engineering, Biotechnologies and Environmental Engineering. The research is funded by a number of national and international agencies, including the MIUR (Ministry of Istruction, University and Research), the European Commission, national and overseas governments, and industry. The DICheP laboratory has met the ISO 9001:2000 quality standards and has received registration by CSQ- QNET in 2007. DICheP supports several PhD and Degree courses in Engineering Faculty, Mathematic, Physic and Chemical Science Faculty and Medicine and Surgery Faculty. Many of the staff represent Italy on national and international specialist committees, such as European Federation of Chemical Engineers working parties. At present time DICheP staff includes 26 Professors (7 Full Prof., 10 Associate Prof., 9 Assistant Prof.), 10 post-doc researchers, 12 PhD students and 15 people belonging to technical-administrative staff.

3. Research areas The Department maintains a strong research tradition that, at the moment, is focused on following areas: Analytical and Environmental Chemical Engineering     (Coor.: Prof. Mauro Rovatti)     Biotechnology and Food Technologies(Coor.: Prof. Attilio Converti – Prof. Patrizia Perego)     Surface chemistry and Industrial Catalisys(Coor.: Prof. Guido Busca)     Electrochemistry, Corrosion and Protection of Metals(Coor.: Prof. Giacomo Cerisola)     Chemical Reactor Engineering (Coor.: Prof. Renzo Di Felice)     Modeling and Plants for Industrial and Environmental Safety(Coor.: Prof. Emilio Palazzi)     Sustainable processes development(Coor.: Prof. Marco Del Borghi)

4. The research is funded by a number of national and international agencies, including the MIUR (Ministry of Istruction, University and Research), the European Commission, national and overseas governments, and industry. The research feeds into the undergraduate and taught postgraduate programmes, ensuring that our courses involve leading edge fields and that students leave with a taste of leading edge research. Many of the academic staff represent Italy on national and international specialist committees, such as the Working Parties on Loss Prevention and Environmental Protection of EFCE (European Federation of Chemical Engineering) and Environmental Biotechnology of EFB (European Federation of Biotechnology). Research activities

5. Analytical and Environmental Chemical Engineering Coor. Prof. Mauro Rovatti • LAICA has these main aims: • to provide students in Environmental Chemical Engineering and in Environmental Sanitary Engineering with a useful experimental support; • to do research and to give consultancy to public authorities and private organisations in the environmental field. The LAICA team works on these research fields: • Energetic valorization and disposal of solid wastes; • Gasification and pyrolysis processes in fixed bed reactors at medium scale for different materials; • Characterisation and treatment of first flush waters coming from running off processes in different urban and industrial areas; • Integrated processes for extraction and biodegradation of volatile organic compounds in wastewaters by membrane bioreactors; • Wastewater treatment with particulate biofilm air-lift reactors; • Air-lift photobioreactors for wastewaters treatment and for algae production.

6. LAICA Lab-scale plants Analytical and Environmental Chemical Engineering

7. Biotechnology and Food Technology Prof. Attilio Converti – Prof. Patrizia Perego • The Section of Biotechnology and Food Technology was created with the aim of setting up a network between national and international Universities and Industries working on agro-food research and environmental biotechnology. • It is made up of: • The Food Technology research-group • The Environmental Biotechnology research-group • About 10 researchers with different scientific backgrounds are working in synergistic collaboration in the multidisciplinary areas of food production and environmental biotechnology.

8. Food technology and biotechnologyRESEARCH ACTIVITY Environmental Biotechnology RESEARCH ACTIVITY • Exploitation of agro-industrial residues (starch hydrolysate, cellulose and hemicellulose hydrolysates, etc) for biotechnological production of xylitol, high fructose corn syrups (HFCS), food flavours and microalgal biomass using living and lyophilised cells of yeasts and bacteria, both in suspension and in biofilms, and immobilized enzymes as biocatalysts. • Nutraceutical and functional food development (olive oil, soil-bean germ, aromatic plants, wine industry). • Technology of food preservation. • Industrial process optimisation. • Exploitation of biotechnology to solve environmental problems. • Main research-fields: • Biofiltration of gaseous emission • Decontamination of polluted soils • Reduction of carbon dioxide emissions by microalgal cultivation • Metal removal from wastewater by biosorption Biotechnology and Food Technology

9. Surface chemistry and Industrial Catalisys Prof. Guido Busca • The main research fields are • Production of hydrogen via steam reforming of methanol, (bio)ethanol and propane. • Waste gas purification by catalytic methods: DeNOx, dioxin abatement • Purification of biogases via adsorption or catalytic abatement • Production of fuels: Fischer Tropsch reaction.

10. INDUSTRIAL PARTNERS: • ENItecnologie: Study of deactivation of Fischer Tropsch catalysts • ECODECO: purification of biogases • Ansaldo Fuel Cells: purification of biogases • Pirelli: mixing of elastomers with silicates for tyres • CESI-ENEL: dioxin abatement MAIN ACTIVITIES Catalysts preparation: full inorganic preparation lab. Catalysts characterization: XRD, BET, FT-IR, Raman, UV-vis, SEM, TEM Catalyst and adsorbent testing: full flow lines with fixed and / or fluid bed reactors, analysis by GC, GCMS, IR on line. Studies on reaction mechanisms: spectroscopic and transient methods Surface chemistry and Industrial Catalisys

11. Laboratory of Electrochemistry Corrosion and Protection of Metals Coor. Prof. Giacomo Cerisola RESEARCH ACTIVITY (1 of 2) 1. CORROSION 2. ENVIRONMENTAL ELECTROCHEMISTRY Study of the corrosion of passivable metals and protection by organic coatings Study of the electro-catalytic materials for the complete oxidation of organic pollutants in wastewaters: Pollutant – ze- CO2 + H2O

12. RESEARCH ACTIVITY (2 of 2) 3. FUEL CELL Study of the materials and electrocatalytic proces of high temperature fuel cells Anode supported fuel cells (LSM-YSZ/YSZ/NI-YSZ) Laboratory for MCFC study and characterisation Laboratory for SOFC study and characterisation SOFC rig Electrochemistry, Corrosion and Protection of Metals

13. Chemical Reactor Engineering Prof. Renzo Di Felice – Prof. Paola Costamagna + some 10 people (research assistant and PhD student) Activities related to Rolls-Royce Fuel Cell Systems Modeling and Simulation of SOFCs Fuel Processing for SOFCs

14. BASIC RESEARCH Transport Phenomena in Porous Media Fluid Dynamic Studies of Multiphase Systems • Fluidization • Sedimentation • Air-lift reactor • Food packaging • Catalytic membrane reactors Chemical Reactor Engineering

15. Modeling and Plants for Industrial and Environmental Safety Prof. Emilio Palazzi – Prof. Renato Pastorino Prof. Bruno Fabiano – Eng. Fabio Currò RESEARCH ACTIVITY • The main research topics are • Accidental and environmental risk analysis, • Road and Railway Tunnel fires: forced ventilation and mitigation systems, • Releases of dangerous substances, modeling and mitigation systems: water barriers, chemical curtains, • Risk assessment in dangerous good transportation by road, railway and water, • Occupational accidents.

16. Sustainable Processes Development Coor. Prof. Marco Del Borghi The research group “Sustainable Processes Development” provides research, teaching and support for enterprises and companies activities in the fields related to Sustainable Development of processes and products. The research group focuses its activity on the environmental impacts assessment with an approach considering the whole life cycle. At present, the research group develops the following threads: • Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). • Eco-design. • Implementation of studies for the achievement of Environmental System (ISO 14001; EMAS) and Product (EPD) Certifications. • Environmental Impact Studies. • IPPC and BAT. • Calculation and Compensation of GHG emissions. • Emission Trading (EU-ETS; CDM; JI). • Statistical Analysis of process and environmental data. • Solid waste treatment. • Wastewaters treatment. • Atmospheric dispersion and treatment of gaseous emissions. • Remediation of polluted soils.

17. Degree courses DICheP supports several PhD and Degree courses in Engineering Faculty, Mathematic, Physic and Chemical Science Faculty and Medicine and Surgery Faculty. Chemical Engineering (Postgraduate degree) Chemical and Process Engineering often involves close collaboration of engineers and scientists from a variety of disciplines. The recent advances in process design and the increase in awareness of safety and environmental issues have reinforced the importance of this type of collaboration. The second level course in Chemical Engineering is specifically designed to address this issue and allows first level graduate graduates with advanced training for entering the chemical or biochemical process industries. Specifically, four different specialisation are offered: Safety and Environment, Biotechnology and Food, Electrochemistry and Energy, Design.

18. Chemical Engineering (Undergraduate degree) Chemical engineering is a branch of industrial engineering: it relates to the activity involved in the production of chemical products and in the preparation of material and substances to be used in the production of goods or in the transformation industry. Chemical engineers can utilize their knowledge and expertise not only in the classical chemical industry, such as that concerning oil and its derivates, but more in general in all the industrial processes of production and transformation of matters. Thanks to their wide basic cultural preparation, their are often employed not only by large, multinational, companies but also by medium size and small enterprises, where strong national and international competition has made now necessary the presence of highly qualified technician. It is also quite common, during the development of a chemical engineer working carrier, the involvement in project management, financial and sales aspects. Outside the process industry, chemical engineers find occupation in banking, insurance, finance and marketing sectors. Finally, a not negligible share of former University of Genova Chemical Engineering students are employed in the public sector, with preference in area involving environment protection problems, and those who have interest and capability, in University Institutions, both in Italy and abroad.