A.Y. 2024/2025
On-site disciplinary training activities
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Modern Carbonylation Methods
Duration: 8 hours
Period: June-July
Delivery method: presence
Language: Italian
Contents: Carbonylations for obtaining bulk chemicals.
Carbonylations for obtaining fine chemicals.
Main carbonylation catalysts.
Carbon monoxide surrogates. -
Training course on Safety: chemical risk (mandatory in the first year)
Duration: 8 hours
Period: November
Delivery method: online
Language: Italian
Contents: Management system and safety procedures in the laboratories of the University of Parma.
Disciplinary reading of: flammability of chemical agents, fire risk, fire extinguishers.
Explosive compounds/mixtures and oxygen balance, NOEL, TLV, TLV-TWA, TLV-STEL, TLV-C.
Danger of explosion from peroxides, hints of incompatibility.
Organization and safety of the chemical laboratory.
Review of chemical agents, CLP regulation, pictograms, hazard phrases, safety data sheet, PPE and DPC.
Safety regulations: regulatory evolution.
Legislative Decree 81/08 part IX, (art. 221-242) and carcinogen directive (hints).
Operational Models for Chemical Risk Assessment.
Environmental regulations: structure of Legislative Decree 152/06.
Determination of BOD5 (Biochemical Oxygen Demand) and COD. -
Using the Cambridge Structural Database in Chemistry
Duration: 8 hours
Period: June-July
Delivery mode: presence
Language: Italian
Contents: Presentation of the data contained in the Cambridge Structural Database.
Introduction to the principles of structure correlation, the use of statistical tools in structural chemistry, the geometric analysis of supramolecular interactions.
Introduction to the contents of the data mining modules of the Cambridge Structural Database.
Use of research tools for materials science (CSD- Materials).
Practical exercises and examples. -
Portable sensing devices and rapid screening methods for point-of-care testing
Duration: 8 hours
Period: September
Delivery mode: presence
Language: English
Contents: The course aims to provide a general overview of biosensors and rapid screening techniques with applications in the diagnostic field and for Point-of-Care Testing. A peculiar aspect concerns the properties of nanostructured materials and their combination with biological receptors, which play a fundamental role in the development of high-performance devices, with portability and applicability characteristics in extra-laboratory and extra-hospital contexts.
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Visible light-driven processes
Duration: 8 hours
Period: January-February
Delivery mode: presence
Language: Italian
Contents: Presentation of the main physical phenomena (Single Electron Transfer vs Dexter Energy Transfer).
First and main examples of synthetic application of the strategy (Deronzier, Yoon, Stephenson).
Examples of literature of extension of the concept towards dual catalysis, combining organometallic catalysis and organocatalysis with photocatalytic processes (Macmillan, Sanford, Glorius).
Applications in total synthesis (Stephenson, Baran) and use of organo-photocatalysts (Bach, Konig). -
Theory and practice of X-ray diffraction for characterization of materials
Duration: 16 hours
Period: June-July
Delivery mode: presence
Language: Italian
Contents: Introduction to symmetries, elementary cells, space groups.
X-rays and their interaction with matter. Space groups, diffraction theory, Bragg's law. Direct space and reciprocal space. Structure factors.
Structural resolution and refinement. Structural analysis.
Powder diffraction
Exercise, single crystal X-ray diffraction
Exercise, microcrystalline powder X-ray diffraction. -
Mechanochemistry
Duration: 8 hours
Period: June-July
Delivery mode: presence
Language: Italian
Contents: The course shows some synthesis methods based on the use of mechanical energy to carry out chemical reactions. This mechanochemical approach is attracting increasing interest from synthetic chemists, not only for the possibility it offers to reduce, or completely eliminate the use of organic solvents, but also for the possibility of isolating species that are difficult to trace/obtain using “solution chemistry” methods. The course will have a synthetic approach, and after a brief historical introduction, a series of synthetic examples will be presented in the context of various types of inorganic, organic, organometallic compounds and two-component supramolecular systems such as organic cocrystals. For each example, we will try to highlight the advantages and disadvantages that characterize mechanochemistry compared to more classical synthesis methods.
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Protein design
Duration: 8 hours
Period: June-July
Delivery method: presence
Language: English
Contents: Metalloproteins promote some of the most complex molecular processes in Nature. Approximately 40% of proteins have a metal cofactor (either structural or catalytic) in their active site. Although confined for a long time within the fences of structural biology, recent advances demonstrate how protein design is now accessible to chemists. The course will illustrate how the structural and functional features of metalloproteins and metalloenzymes were deciphered using few chemical principles. More, during the course it will be described how the same chemical principles were used to design new active sites into proteins. Along with examples form the literature and from the real Nature's world, during the course the Protein Data Bank, the PyMol software (proteins and nucleic acids analysis and visualization) and the FoldIt software (protein modeling) will be presented by means of practical lectures in the computer's room.
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Introduction to Fluorescence Spectroscopy
Duration: 8 hours
Period: to be agreed
Delivery method: presence
Language: Italian
Contents: Theoretical introduction to fluorescence spectroscopy: Perrin-Jablonski diagram; definition of radiative and non-radiative decay rates and quantum yield; the “mirror image” rule.
Description of the instrument for measuring fluorescence.
How to measure a fluorescence spectrum: importance of concentration (inner filter phenomena); contribution of scattering and stray light; choice of excitation wavelength; choice of slit aperture; correction of spectra for the detector sensitivity curve; excitation spectra; use of filters for samples that scatter light (suspensions, powders, solids).
How to measure the fluorescence quantum yield: good practices; choice of reference.
Laboratory: measurement of the emission and excitation spectrum of anthracene at different concentrations (verification of the “mirror image” rule, verification of inner filter effects); measurement of the emission quantum yield of anthracene vs one or more reference standards. -
Basic technical-scientific Chinese
Duration: 16 hours
Period: to be agreed
Delivery method: presence
Language: Italian
Contents: Three teaching units:
The writing system (6 hours).
Basic grammar (6 hours).
Scientific vocabulary: translation exercises from original material (6 hours). -
NMR spectroscopy through experiments
Duration: 8 hours
Period: to be agreed
Delivery method: presence
Language: Italian
Contents: Setup, acquisition and processing, using Topspin software, of a set of basic NMR experiments (1H, 13C-APT, COSY, NOESY, HSQC and HMBC).
Setup, acquisition and processing, using Topspin software, of a set of advanced NMR experiments including selective methods (sel-TOCSY, sel-NOESY, sel-ROESY), relaxation time measurement, diffusion measurement (DOSY), solvent suppression methods (WET, 1D-NOESY) -
CO2 capture and valorization
Duration: 8 hours
Period: to be agreed
Delivery mode: presence
Language: Italian
Contents: Carbon dioxide capture methods
Carbon dioxide storage strategies
CO2 valorization and its transformation into bulk/fine chemicals
CO2 conversion into fuels and mineralization process -
Chirality and chiral discrimination
Duration: 12 hours
Period: to be agreed
Delivery mode: presence
Language: English
Contents: Life, the Universe and… Chirality.
Chiral separations.
Chiral analysis by non-chromatographic methods.
The quest for absolute asymmetric synthesis.
Chirality in supramolecular systems.
Chirality in biomolecular systems. -
Training in the use of instruments by technicians of the Interdepartmental Center for Measurements (CIM)
Duration: tbd
Period: to be agreed
Delivery method: presence
Language: Italian
Contents: The course, divided into several modules, illustrates with practical activities the use of advanced instrumentation at the CIM
Transversal training activities
The University of Parma has activated, also for the academic year 2024/2025, over 50 freely chosen training activities with transversal and multidisciplinary value, called Soft Skills, which can be chosen by all PhD students enrolled in the University's study courses. These are added to the list below, and can be consulted at the link https://www.unipr.it/node/30327
- Language improvement: English language courses for PhD students organized by the University
Study skills: English for Academic Purposes (36 hours) -
Management of research and knowledge of European and international research systems:
The University regularly organizes seminars and meetings dedicated to all researchers and open to PhD students to illustrate the opportunities and methods of access to national, European and international funds: the list can be consulted at the website https://www.unipr.it/ricerca/opportunita-di-finanziamento/ricerca-internazionale/news
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Promotion and dissemination of results, intellectual property and open access to data and research products
Publishing in an academic environment: Open Science, Open Access, FAIR Data - (2 hours)
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Fundamental principles of ethics, equality of gender and integrity
See the list of Soft skills courses at the link https://www.unipr.it/node/30327
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Computer specialization
See the list of Soft skills courses at the link https://www.unipr.it/node/30327
The syllabi of the courses listed can be consulted on the Elly page of the doctorate for the academic year 2024/25, where you can register to attend. For information on the actual dates of the courses, contact the professors.
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