ID:
502156
Duration (hours):
48
CFU:
6
SSD:
CHIMICA FISICA
FONDAMENTI CHIMICI DELLE TECNOLOGIE
Year:
2025
Overview
Date/time interval
Primo Semestre (29/09/2025 - 16/01/2026)
Syllabus
Course Objectives
The course describes and analyzes the chemical, physical and environmental aspects of energy conversion and storage.
The course aims to provide students with knowledge and skills on:
1. Nature and characteristics of primary sources and the contribution made by each of them to global energy consumption;
2. The issues associated with the different primary sources, in particular as regards the availability in the medium term (nonrenewable sources), the use of land (renewable sources) and the environmental effects (fossil fuel and greenhouse effect);
3. Awareness of the need to implement appropriate storage systems, particularly in view of the welcome forthcoming increasing use of intermittent renewable sources;
4. Knowledge of the order of magnitude of the national and planetary energy needs and of the potential of technologies proposed to satisfy them with reference to both production and storage;
5. Awareness of the unbreakable bond existing between energetic and environmental issues;
6. Knowledge of the state-of-the-art methodologies for the storage and conversion of energy and of their potentialities.
The course aims to provide students with knowledge and skills on:
1. Nature and characteristics of primary sources and the contribution made by each of them to global energy consumption;
2. The issues associated with the different primary sources, in particular as regards the availability in the medium term (nonrenewable sources), the use of land (renewable sources) and the environmental effects (fossil fuel and greenhouse effect);
3. Awareness of the need to implement appropriate storage systems, particularly in view of the welcome forthcoming increasing use of intermittent renewable sources;
4. Knowledge of the order of magnitude of the national and planetary energy needs and of the potential of technologies proposed to satisfy them with reference to both production and storage;
5. Awareness of the unbreakable bond existing between energetic and environmental issues;
6. Knowledge of the state-of-the-art methodologies for the storage and conversion of energy and of their potentialities.
Course Prerequisites
Mathematical, physical and chemical skills are requested. The needed knowledge are those of a three-year degree in scientific disciplines.
Teaching Methods
Interactive lessons with power point slides.
The interaction, stimulated and mediated by the teacher, creates topics worthy of debate, and allows to verify and level out the knowledge for a proper understanding of some of the specialized topics covered by the course. Students, indeed, come from different advanced-degree programs (Chemistry and Electrical Engineering) and their basic preparation on the aspects that are more properly of chemical or electrical engineering type is obviously different.
During lessons, particular attention shall be given to the quantitative aspects of the issues addressed to ensure that students get confidence with orders of magnitude, units of measurement and their conversion.
The interaction, stimulated and mediated by the teacher, creates topics worthy of debate, and allows to verify and level out the knowledge for a proper understanding of some of the specialized topics covered by the course. Students, indeed, come from different advanced-degree programs (Chemistry and Electrical Engineering) and their basic preparation on the aspects that are more properly of chemical or electrical engineering type is obviously different.
During lessons, particular attention shall be given to the quantitative aspects of the issues addressed to ensure that students get confidence with orders of magnitude, units of measurement and their conversion.
Assessment Methods
The final learning assessment is based on an oral examination. The exam will start with a presentation done by the student on a scientific paper on hot topics related to the program of the course. The paper will be chosen by the student himself or from a list suggested by the teachers.
Subsequent questions will aim to verify if and in which extent students reached the expected learning and developed the expected skills.
In all cases questions will concern both production-related and storage-related issues.
In the evaluation, more weight is given to the overall view of the subjects, to their adequate rating in the national and international scene, to the ability to detect and discuss the technical/scientific aspects, together with the problems and the foreseeable prospects of the different energy generation and storage technologies.
Subsequent questions will aim to verify if and in which extent students reached the expected learning and developed the expected skills.
In all cases questions will concern both production-related and storage-related issues.
In the evaluation, more weight is given to the overall view of the subjects, to their adequate rating in the national and international scene, to the ability to detect and discuss the technical/scientific aspects, together with the problems and the foreseeable prospects of the different energy generation and storage technologies.
Texts
Lectures notes provided by the teacher in digital form on Kiro platform.
Contents
Brief historical introduction to the term “energy” and to the development of its meaning.
The orders of magnitude and the measure of energy.
Fossil fuels: proved reserves, resources, production, consumptions. Carbon footprint of the different fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide and greenhouse effect.
The role of greenhouse gases on the Earth energy balance.
Renewable sources: hydroelectricity, wind energy, solar energy, geothermal energy. Issues, current role and prospects for the future.
Energy consumption analysis: how much energy does daily, a European citizen consume? What kind of energy source are used to produce that energy?
Chemical energy storage: hydrogen as energy vector and energy accumulator. Advantages, scientific and safety issues related to the use of hydrogen, particularly in the transport sector. Materials and methodologies for the storage. Innovative methodologies for the characterization of the materials and the evaluation of their performance.
Batteries and rechargeable batteries. Thermodynamics of batteries. Thermodynamics of electrolysis.
Primary batteries.
Rechargeable batteries: lead acid, Ni-Cd, Ni-MH, ZEBRA, lithium and lithium ion.
Chemical composition, characteristics and performance of different types of rechargeable batteries.
Fuel cells: principles of operation, physico-chemical characteristics, performance.
Supercapacitors. Smart grids.
The orders of magnitude and the measure of energy.
Fossil fuels: proved reserves, resources, production, consumptions. Carbon footprint of the different fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide and greenhouse effect.
The role of greenhouse gases on the Earth energy balance.
Renewable sources: hydroelectricity, wind energy, solar energy, geothermal energy. Issues, current role and prospects for the future.
Energy consumption analysis: how much energy does daily, a European citizen consume? What kind of energy source are used to produce that energy?
Chemical energy storage: hydrogen as energy vector and energy accumulator. Advantages, scientific and safety issues related to the use of hydrogen, particularly in the transport sector. Materials and methodologies for the storage. Innovative methodologies for the characterization of the materials and the evaluation of their performance.
Batteries and rechargeable batteries. Thermodynamics of batteries. Thermodynamics of electrolysis.
Primary batteries.
Rechargeable batteries: lead acid, Ni-Cd, Ni-MH, ZEBRA, lithium and lithium ion.
Chemical composition, characteristics and performance of different types of rechargeable batteries.
Fuel cells: principles of operation, physico-chemical characteristics, performance.
Supercapacitors. Smart grids.
Course Language
Italian
Degrees
Degrees (3)
CHEMISTRY
Master’s Degree
2 years
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING
Master’s Degree
2 years
ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING
Master’s Degree
2 years
No Results Found
People
People (2)
No Results Found