International School of Advanced Studies

The Curriculum in Chemical Sciences aims to train professionals to be integrated into strategic sectors of scientific research, both in the public and private sectors. Specifically, the future Doctor of Research will study chemical problems through an interdisciplinary approach, employing advanced techniques from organic, inorganic, analytical, environmental, food, and physical chemistry. The acquisition of important cross-cutting skills, with a focus on environmental sustainability and circular economy, will be fundamental in the development of new synthetic and analytical methodologies.

The PhD program in Chemical Sciences is open to applicants who hold an Italian Laurea or Laurea Magistrale diploma or an equivalent second-level degree (generally equivalent to a Master Degree) obtained abroad.

The main objective of the PhD Course in Chemical Sciences is to offer the opportunity of being part of scientifically stimulating research teams in order to train professionals prepared for research activities in all the innovative fields involving chemical processes, ranging from organic synthesis to material development, from applications to analyses, and from chemical characterizations to assessment of food quality.

During the three years PhD Course the students will have personal mentors who educate them to follow research topics, with the goal to allow the students to become able to formulate a scientific problem independently, propose hypotheses and procedures leading to its solving on an experimental or theoretical level in the different fields of Chemical Sciences. The main research topics are in analytical and environmental chemistry, food chemistry, inorganic chemistry, and organic chemistry:

• The research in analytical and environmental chemistry includes the feasibility of CH₄-CO₂ replacement in marine Natural Gas Hydrate sediments, the synthesis and characterization of nanocomposite functional materials for Li-ion and Na-ion batteries and absorbent/photoactive nanomaterials for energy and environmental applications. Further researches are related to diagnostic methods for characterization, conservation and restoration of cultural heritage, the immobilization technics of dangerous wastes in inorganic polymeric matrices, the chemometric data sets elaboration, and the samples preparation and analysis for the speciation of particular pollutants and analytes in different environmental matrices.
• The primary field of food chemistry research is the assessment of food quality by means of development and application of new methods to identify and quantify both new and classical chemical markers and investigating reactions and compositional changes occurring in food during cooking, processing and storage.
• The research in inorganic chemistry covers several important areas of chemistry such as coordination chemistry, organometallic chemistry, metal-based drugs, metals in medicine and in biological processes, catalysis, porous coordination polymers, MOFs, and functionalized nano-materials. The main topics focus on: a) design and synthesis of new ligands characterized by the presence of C-, N-, O-, P- and S-donor groups; b) evaluation of their coordination capabilities with main group and late transition metal ions; c) applications in medicinal inorganic chemistry, in the field of composite materials, in catalysis and as materials for optoelectronics.
• The research in organic chemistry is organized around the following areas: catalytic processes for organic reactions; synthetic organic chemistry, focusing on key reactions in the synthesis of a variety of bioactive compounds including organic molecules having pharmacological importance; organic transformations using new sustainable processes by the use of unconventional methods for preparing highly functionalized organic molecules; organic surface chemistry focusing on modification of surfaces using organic molecules to create coatings and materials with controllable properties.

Due to the active scientific collaborations present in the Chemistry Center of the University of Camerino, the PhD students are strongly encouraged to attend part of their activities in other research groups in Italy and abroad. For this reason, the ability to communicate in English, both verbally and in written form, is a mandatory requirement for PhD students.

At the end of each academic year, the PhD students should also present their annual activities to the PhD Committee (Collegio dei Docenti), for the continuation of study. The Research Doctorate title is awarded after three years of study and the completion of assigned research activities. In order to complete the Chemical Sciences PhD program, students must present and discuss a dissertation (PhD Thesis-Tesi di Dottorato) to a Committee for the final approval.