73244 -  Organic Compounds and Environmental Monitoring

Academic Year 2018/2019

  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
  • Campus: Bologna
  • Corso: First cycle degree programme (L) in Environmental Engineering (cod. 9198)

Learning outcomes

To provide basic knowledge about the structure of the main priority organic pollutants occurring in the air, waters and soils, and elements about related monitoring techniques

Course contents

Environmental Measures

The environment: definitions, its importance and the necessity of its preservation.

Pollution: definitions, origin, effects, and toxicological evaluation of quality and quantitative measurements.

The effects of air pollution:

-Ozone and the ozone layer

-Photochemical smog

-The greenhouse effect and international protocols

-Acid rain

-The dust in the air

-Energy production and its consequences.

Engineering and technological vision of the environmental problem. Pollution prevention and clean-up: the importance of technology. Environmental ethics.

The measurements of pollution from chemicals and physical agents: general criteria.

-Sampling and its importance.

-Sampling scheme.

-Standardized methods of analysis.

-The measurement of pollution in closed environments, air, water and

soils: sampling techniques, analytical methodologies and introduction to

legislation.

-Waste: analysis and waste management.

Disposal: the landfills and waste destruction.

Chemical analysis: qualitative and quantitative, elemental and structural.

Gravimetric, volumetric and instrumental chemical analyses (nods): principles, applications, limitations and examples.

Spectroscopic, chromatographic and electrochemical analytical methods (nods).

Analytical data processing and evaluation of results for the formulation of environmental quality indices, verification of quality standards and definition of the modalities of intervention in the territory.

The toxicity of chemicals. The classification of toxicity, its effects and the factors affecting toxicity. Assessment and quantification of toxicity.

The REACH legislation.

The General principles of health protection

Organic Compounds

The industrial and scientific importance of organic compounds, their role in the food industry and biotechnology.

The formulas of organic compounds and their graphical representation.

The classification of organic compounds. The conventional and rational IUPAC nomenclature of organic compounds.

The aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons: structure, nomenclature, physical properties, preparation and reactivity.

The isomerism in organic chemistry: structural isomerism and stereoisomerism; the R, S and E, Z classifications.

Organic reactions and their yealds. The mechanism of organic reactions: General principles and thermodynamic and kinetic aspects. The inductive, steric and resonance effects.

Heterocyclic compounds, aromatic and non aromatic (basics).

Halogenated organic compounds. Alcohols and phenols. Ethers and epoxides. Thioethers, thiols and other sulfur organic derivatives. Amines and other organic fertilizers. Aldehydes and ketones. Carboxylic acids and their derivatives. Functional organic compounds.

The transposition reactions.

Readings/Bibliography

Suggested texts:

J. McMurray - Fondamenti di Chimica Organica - Ed. Zanichelli, Bologna.

Appunti e Schemi su argomenti specifici, distribuiti o indicati a lezione.

reference texts:

N. L. Allinger et al. - Chimica Organica - Ed. Zanichelli, Bologna,or similar texts

A. L. Lehninger, D. L. Nelson e M. M. Cox - Introduzione alla Biochimica - Ed. Zanichelli, Bologna

-any university level text related to analytical chemistry

- analytical methods of Structures which are interested to industrial analyses (ISS, UNICHIM, IRSA-CNR, EPA, OSHA, NIOSH, ISO, VDI, …) and national and regional laws about pollution.

- L. Bruzzi - Prevenzione e controllo dell'impatto ambientale – Ed. CLUEB, Bologna, Cap.1-3-10

- Rapporti dell'Istituto Superiore di Sanità: Emissioni Atmosferiche - Qualità dell'aria e dei suoli:

http://www.iss.it/publ/rapp/index.php?lang=1&tipo=5

- IRSA-CNR: Manuale di analisi delle acque: http://www.irsa.cnr.it/Metodi/capitoli/1040.pdf

-Notes and schemes provided during the lectures.


Teaching methods

The Course consists of 60 hours of frontal lectures.

a visit of the labs will be organized, with the aim of showing the main chemical analytical tools

Assessment methods

the examination consists in an oral test.

the students will be asked to reply to at least three questions, about the topics proposed in aulas. Among them, at least a question per course section (organic chemistry and environmental measures) will be proposed.


Teaching tools

frontal lectures will be supported by power point presentations.

Office hours

See the website of Lorenzo Bertin

SDGs

Quality education Industry, innovation and infrastructure Sustainable cities Climate Action

This teaching activity contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.