Research Area
Active Research fields
The research activities are finalized at green industrial technologies; control technologies for gaseous atmospheric pollutants; design, environmental impact assessment, construction, management of treatment plants for wastewater, liquid and solid waste, gaseous emission from civil and industrial sites; treatment of drinking water; reactors and bioreactors; soil remediation technologies; safety, environmental and quality certification systems.
Research projects of the last 5 years
- PRIN 2012: Energy consumption and GreenHouse Gas (GHG) emissions in the wastewater treatment plants: a decision support system for planning and management
- PRIN 2010 - 2011: Emerging contaminants in air, soil, and water: from source to the marine environment
- PRIN 2009: Microbiological, chemical, physical and kinetical characterisation of biomasses in wastewater treatment plant using Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) units, aimed at simulating removal processes and optimising plant management and exercise
- INTEP: Innovazione Tecnologica e di Processo per il settore manifatturiero
- PON02_00153_2849085: Ricerca e competitività 20072013, asse 1''. Titolo progetto: STI-TAM: Sviluppo di Tecnologie Innovative per il trattamento dei rifiuti liquidi della navigazione finalizzate alla Tutela dell 'Ambiente Marino
- PON SIGLOD - SIstema intelligente di supporto alla Gestione e alla LOcalizzazione delle Discariche e di Impianti di gestione dei rifiuti 2012-NAZ-0053
- Linea di intervento 4.1.1.2 del PO-FESR 2007-2013, PURA. Processi di depurazione rifiuti e acque
Collaborations
Peter Vanrolleghem, Laval University
Mark van Loosdrecht, Delft University
George Ekama, Cape Town University
Hallvar Odegard, NTNU University, Norway
Gustaf Olsson, Lund Univesity Sweeden
Active research
The laboratory of Sanitary and Environmental Engineering (ISA-LAB) comprises:
- a laboratory for conventional chemical physical and biological analysis;
- a laboratory for advanced analysis (respirometry, microscopy, fluorescence);
- pilot station for the treatment of water and wastewater, waste sludge, solid waste, waste biomasses, demonstrative pilot plants installed at Palermo wastewater treatment plant.
Services delivered under the right of third parties
The Sanitary and Environmental Engineering Group of Palermo University (ISA-UNIPA) provides several services on commission, looking in particular to public authorities, consulting engineers and plant managers that operates in the field of water and wastewater treatment, solid waste management, contaminated soils remediation.
The main services are listed below:
- Specialist consultancy for the design of complex/advanced wastewater treatment plants;
- Evaluation of the actual purification capacity of wastewater treatment plants;
- Specialist consultancy for cause identification and remediation of activated sludge disturbances (bulking sludge, foaming, pin-point sludge, bacterial dispersed growth);
- Specialist consultancy for the drawing up of intervention strategies in the field of Municipal Solid Waste Management;
- Specialist consultancy and assistance in the management of quality compost production;
- Measurement of gaseous emissions from wastewater treatment plants, landfills and contaminated soils;
- Soil sampling activities for the analysis of organic compounds and biological activity;
- Use of mathematical models for the dynamic simulation of wastewater treatment plants, contaminated soil remediation and landfill for municipal solid waste;
- Specialist consultancy for the drawing up of intervention strategies for environmental protection.