INDUSTRIAL CHEMESTRY AND TECHNOLOGIES
Academic Year 2026/2027 - Teacher: LUIGI GURRERIExpected Learning Outcomes
Knowledge and Understanding: The course introduces students to the knowledge and understanding of the most common industrial chemical processes, providing the fundamental elements for understanding and choosing the optimal placement of individual units in complex schemes with a view to maximizing sustainability.
Ability to Apply Knowledge and Understanding: at the end of the course, students will be able to understand the operating principles and basic technical specifications of each plant within the typologies studied, critically evaluate design choices to ensure the most complete sustainability of the plant, and evaluate which process schemes can guarantee full economic, managerial, and environmental sustainability.
Making Independent Judgments: Students will acquire independent judgment through the analysis of the layouts of real, complex industrial plants. This will enable them to critically analyze the choices to be made to maximize the overall sustainability of the plant in question, taking into account criteria such as economy, energy savings, reduction of individual emissions and overall impact, and acceptance of the plant by the local community.
Communication skills: Through the layout analysis of real and complex industrial plants, initiated through group discussion in the classroom and followed by technical visits to local plants, students will acquire the ability to communicate and convey information, design criteria, and related effects, both in written form—through graphs and tables—and orally.
Learning skills: Conducting the layout analysis of complex plants in a free-form and completely autonomous manner will develop the ability to independently and proactively address any further approach to layout definition, while maintaining the ability to engage openly and constructively with colleagues and team leaders.
Course Structure
The course comprises a total of 60 hours of activities, including 21 hours of lectures and 39 hours of interactive teaching activities, covering applied aspects, calculation examples, practical activities, case-study analysis, and the preparation of a report through collaborative work carried out by the class divided into groups. The course may also include one or more seminars delivered by researchers and designers from companies operating in the chemical industry sector. Should the course be delivered in blended or distance-learning mode, the necessary changes may be introduced with respect to what is stated above, in order to comply with the planned programme reported in the syllabus.
Required Prerequisites
Attendance of Lessons
Detailed Course Content
Textbook Information
2. Lecture notes (ppt)
For further information, you can consult:
A. Principi della chimica industriale vol. 1 and 2 (Natta, Pasquon, Centola) http://www.giulionatta.it/pdf/pubblicazioni/00537.pdf, http://www.giulionatta.it/pdf/pubblicazioni/00615.pdf
B. Satterfield, Heterogeneous catalysis in practice, McGraw-Hill.
C. Jens Hagen, Industrial Catalysis – A Practical Approach, Wiley-VCH 2015
D. Giavarini, Guida allo studio dei Processi di Raffinazione e Petrolchimici, Edizioni Efesto
E. Levenspiel, Chemical Reaction Engineering, John Wiley & Sons 1999
F. Ullmann’s Encyclopedia of Industrial ChemistryWiley‐VCH.
Course Planning
| Subjects | Text References | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Introduction - The chemical industry | 1,2 |
| 2 | Thermodynamics | 2 |
| 3 | Kinetics | 2 |
| 4 | Catalysis | 2 |
| 5 | Processes in the oil refinery | 1,2 |
| 6 | Light alkenes | 1,2 |
| 7 | Synthesis gas and derived products | 1,2 |
| 8 | Inorganic chemicals | 1,2 |
| 9 | Polymers | 1,2 |
| 10 | Chemical reactors | 2 |
| 11 | Biotechnology | 2 |
Learning Assessment
Learning Assessment Procedures
Midterm exam: A two-hour written midterm exam covering approximately half the program is scheduled. A successful exam eliminates the need to take the final exam covering the first part of the program. A passing grade is valid for eight months.
Final exam: After the end of the course, a second written exam will be held covering the remaining portion of the program (two hours) for those who took the previous midterm exam, or covering the entire program (four hours) for those who did not take/pass the midterm exam. If the instructor deems the overall evaluation of the two exams insufficient, or if the student wishes to improve their grade, they may request a supplementary oral exam and/or repeat the written exam.
Evaluation criteria: relevance of answers to the questions asked, quality of content, ability to connect with other topics covered in the program, ability to provide examples, mastery of technical language, and the student's overall ability to express themselves.
To ensure equal opportunities and in compliance with applicable laws, interested students may request an interview to plan any compensatory and/or dispensatory measures, based on their learning objectives and specific needs. In this case, it is recommended to contact the CInAP (Center for Active and Participatory Integration - Services for Disabilities and/or DSA) contact professor in the Department where the degree program is located.
The following criteria will be taken into account when assigning the final grade:
Failed exam: The student does not possess the minimum required knowledge of the core content of the Chemistry and Industrial Technologies course. The ability to use specific language is poor or nonexistent, and the student is unable to independently apply the acquired knowledge.
Grade 18–21: The student has minimal knowledge of the criteria and technologies underlying the operation of chemical industry processes, demonstrating a modest ability to integrate and critically analyze the situations presented, and presents the topics sufficiently clearly, although planning skills and command of language are poorly developed.
Grade 22–25: The student has a fair knowledge of the criteria and technologies underlying the operation of chemical industry processes, although limited to the main topics. The student is able to integrate and critically analyze the situations presented, but not always linearly and correctly, and presents the topics relatively clearly with reasonable command of language.
Grade 26–28: The student has a good understanding of the criteria and technologies underlying the operation of chemical industry processes, is able to integrate and critically and consistently analyze the situations presented, is able to solve complex problems fairly independently, and presents the topics clearly using appropriate language;
Grade 29–30 with honors: The student has a thorough understanding of the criteria and technologies underlying the operation of chemical industry processes, is able to promptly and correctly integrate and critically analyze the situations presented, independently solving even highly complex problems; has excellent communication skills and command of language.