ENgineering LIGHT-activated materials for the abatement of ENvironmentally hazardous and pollutING substances. The ENLIGHTENING project aims to create a new type of fully organic materials to degrade hazardous chemicals in water using visible light. These materials will be made by attaching chromophores to polymers, activated by visible light in order to break down water pollutants like herbicides and pesticides. Unlike current photocatalysts that require UV light, these materials will be more sustainable, as they use visible sunlight, are easily recoverable for reuse, and can trigger both oxidation and reduction processes. The project is a collaborative effort among research teams (UNITO, UNIBO and UNIPR) with expertise in photochemistry, polymer chemistry, and environmental chemistry.  

The general objective of ACCORDs is to develop a reliable and practical imaging-based characterization framework for the holistic correlative assessment of 2D nanomaterials belonging to Graphene Family Materials (GFMs), as produced and in complex environmental matrices, to support their safe and sustainable utilisation, and therefore to contribute to destination, Digital and emerging technologies for competitiveness and fit for the Green Deal, by addressing a topic: “Graphene: Europe in the lead.” These tools will support decisions regarding health and environmental safety based on quantitative information that considers the full product / material life cycle and will improve globally competitive and resilient industries. ACCORDs outcomes will be aligned with the recent EU Commission’s new Standardisation Strategy (February 2022) that aims to strengthen the EU's global competitiveness as well as expand business opportunities.

NATtA project will investigate the potential effect of small microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs) on freshwater environments and on wastewater treatment. The project will focus on the release of chemicals from plastic particles, under environmentally significant conditions and during wastewater treatment. Moreover, the study of pollutant adsorption on plastics will suggest how and to what extent plastics may act as contaminant carriers in water environments. Eco-toxicity tests will be carried out on chemicals released by MPs and NPs, to assess the potential risk associated to plastic pollution. This project will help elucidate the effect of small MPs and NPs on the aquatic environment, improving our knowledge on the way plastic particles and organic pollutants interact, and how they affect their respective fates in both environmental waters and water treatment.

The main focus of this project is to investigate the potential impacts of micro and nanoplastics (MNPs) on surface waters and on wastewaters. In particulars, the degradation of MNPs during advanced oxidation processes (AOP) will be evaluated, the degradation products will be characterized and the potential toxicity of these products released in the aqueous phase will be tested. The potential effect of the presence of MNPs on the degradation of pollutants (such as drugs) during the advanced oxidation processes will be also studied; indeed, MNPs could interact directly with the pollutants or with the oxidants used in the process, potentially leading to a decrease of the efficiency of the AOP. 

Plastic pollution of the world’s oceans is unfortunately a familiar picture to many of us. You may also have heard of the very small plastic pieces polluting the environment, which none of us can see. These miniscule plastic pieces can be found everywhere, from the Alps to the Antarctica, and even the atmosphere and the oceans. The tiniest plastic particles (so called nanoplastics) are produced through the degradation of larger plastic pieces or can enter the environment by incorrect disposal of waste. Monica Passananti from the University of Turin and the University of Helsinki wants to find out more. With an ERC Starting Grant, she will assess the environmental consequences related to nanoplastics as their impact might be significantly different to that of larger pieces visibly present in our environment. By looking at the reactivity and transformation mechanisms of these small fragments, she will  help develop strategies to solve many problems related to plastic pollution. 

This project aims to face the complex challenge of the production of safe and clean water by applying different levels of action, which include the synthesis of green materials for the removal of pollutants, the development of enhanced water treatment technologies, the implementation of effective legal tools against water pollution and the correct management of the present water treatment facilities.In particular a pilot WWTP (in URJC, Spain) and two aquaculture sites located in Italy and Thailand will be studied for (i) monitoring the water quality by employing new methods based on green analytical approaches, with the development of portable instrumentation for on-site analysis and (ii) for application of the methodologies developed in laboratory for removal of inorganic and organic pollutants. 

This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement no. 776528.

Referent: Paola Calza

Project duration: from June 2018 until 2023.

Improving resilience and food security in 2050 climate through soilless precise agricultural techniques and irrigation with wastewater properly treated by innovative technologies to ensure food safety.

Agriculture is facing challenges related to a large demographical explosion, which in 2050 should lead the world population to exceed 9 billion people. Furthermore, agriculture is already and will be still more affected by climate change, which is likely to cause a reduction in natural resources, in particular freshwater (FW) and fertile soil. Hence, our experimental approaches aim at contributing to the mitigation of the impact of climate changes by using innovative technologies for (i) increasing the availability of water suitable for agriculture irrigation, carrying out a soilless precision agriculture, thus (ii) reducing the water use and demand and (iii) the dependence from fertile land in countries predominantly characterized by sandy soils . The SECUREFOOD2050 proposal will also investigate the social acceptability of the application of treated wastewater for agricultural purposes, aiming at increasing the willingness of farmers and consumers to use reclaimed water for irrigation and to purchase the obtained agricultural products, respectively.

The aims of PLASTISOIL project are mainly focused on microplastics (MPs) pollution in urban and agricultural soils. In particular, within this project, the following targets will be achieved: i) optimization of a protocol for the extraction, quantification and identification of MPs in soils; ii)  monitoring of the MPs contamination in agricultural and urban soils of the Piedmont Region, to produce the first Regional database; iii) evaluation of the adsorption/release capacity of MPs towards organic and inorganic micropollutants and of their propagation to adjacent environmental compartments; iv) evaluation of the impact of MPs on the main physicochemical characteristics of soils; v) assessment of the impact of agricultural practices on the MPs’ production and drafting of a "good practices" technical guide, to be applied in the primary sector.

The laboratory was born with a vision on all the fundamental aspects of the friction phenomena, wear and environmental impact. It has been estimated that more than 20% of energy consumption worldwide is due to friction and wear. The problems of friction and wear pervade a large number of application fields, from microelectromechanical devices, to machine tools, to the biomechanical field (e.g. prostheses).

The activities of the Joint Lab will be organized in research groups, and this will allow an agile management of projects and resources, in order to start new research lines, aligned with the business strategy and inspired by macro trends in the automotive field.