IPCF is strongly committed in the environmental matter, and several research activities are carried out within the field of Green Chemistry and Sustainability.
One of the main research lines is focused on the optimization of new materials and systems for the abatement of organic pollutants, for water disinfection from viruses and bacteria and for the decontamination of land from heavy metals. In this perimeter, new technologies have been proposed for water cleaning-up processes, thus contributing to the creation of pilot plants for the treatment of water with a flow rate up to 100 l/h. Moreover, some of the activities carried out at IPCF are contributing to the development of agri-voltaic systems that integrate environment, energy and nature.
Another topic largely investigated is related to the reuse of waste materials for energy production (also via eco-design approaches) and environmental clean-up, together with the design of materials for pollutant adsorption from food wastes, the production of photosynthetic hydrogen from food wastes and the development of new polymeric materials from agrifood and manifacture waste.
Through chemical-physical investigative approaches, the degradation of plastic materials in the environment is studied by means of in-situ experiments that allow the correlation of the effects induced by environmental conditions on the aging of the materials or on the concentration of microplastics present.
Laboratory for Environmental Photocatalysis – Bari
Laboratory of Production and Characterization of Biomaterials from Macro to Nanoscale – Pisa