PhD profile and research themes
The course deals with subjects on Mechanical Engineering and Vehicle, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Materials Engineering. Also in the present Cycle, the course is structured in three curricula: the first one has the same name of the entire PhD, the second one is named Vehicle Engineering, the third one is named Industry 4.0. This characterization of the territory responds to a specific need, and in particular industrial interests (local but not exclusively) aimed at deepening the research topics related to design and development of all vehicle components and to modern industrial management from a general point of view. The educational objectives, common to all students, are: advanced training in the disciplines of the industrial and environmental engineering; education to the scientific and technological research; development of the attitude to international scientific cooperation; ability to interact with the industrial and economical district. The particular Industry 4.0 curriculum characterizes the transversality of the themes that distinguish the Doctoral School E4E (Engineering for Economics, Economics for Engineering), of which this Course is part. In particular, the PhD issues fall into the specific areas provided below.
For the Curriculum on Industrial and Environmental Engineering:
- Civil and Environmental Engineering; issues on topics related to seismic design, energy efficiency, dynamics of pollutants, hydraulics, geomatics, waste management, etc..
- Materials Engineering; issues on aspects related to the design and characterization of new and high-performance materials, study of materials and technologies related to Biomechanics and Bioengineering, etc.
For the Curriculum on Vehicle Engineering:
- Issues on all aspects related to the design, optimization and testing of components of the vehicle and of their ensemble.
- Theoretical, numerical and experimental analysis of motor-related issues, chassis, power supply, transmission, etc. Detailed studies on side issues such as vibration, mechanical stress, comfort in the vehicle, etc.
For the Curriculum on Industry 4.0:
- Mechanical Engineering; issues on aspects related to the design of machines and systems, with particular reference to the skills associated with the thermodynamic, structural, technological, and functional aspects, and with thermal and structural optimization of the machines.
- Issues on all industrial aspects of interdisciplinary skills related to Operations and the analysis of industrial costs enabled by the evolved and intensive use of advanced PLM, MES and ERP systems.
- Data analytics and lifecycle management platforms.
- The training and research path will focus on industrial robotics, integrated design and advanced simulation, on the design, development and management of product-process-service platforms enabled by IoT and User Centered Design technologies, on advanced cognitive and intelligent manufacturing systems Based on digital twin, energy efficiency and sustainability.
This doctorate course aims at becoming a regional reference with regard to the research activities in Industrial and Environmental engineering within the Emilia Romagna county.
Concerning its formation activity, it is aimed to form highly specialized engineers, constituting the final level of technical knowledge, in three main Research Programs: Mechanical and Road Vehicle Engineering, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Design of High Performance Materials and Biomaterials
Mechanical and Road Vehicle Engineering
This program aims at performing research in the field of mechanical design, developing innovative solutions in the advanced mechanics and automotive field. Applied research topics covered include technological structuring, thermal fluids, the design of innovative internal combustion engines and vehicle dynamics. Great attention is devoted to the research in light-weight frames, thermal structural problems including thermal fatigue, heat transfer enhancing devices, vehicle dynamics, optimization methods.
Civil and Environmental Engineering
The research topics covered by the program in Civil and Environmental Engineering are antiseismic design, geomatics, hydraulics, hydrology and water resource engineering, waste management, low impact building design, building services engineering with the addition of specific energy consideration.
Design of High Performance Materials and Biomaterials
The program in Design of High Performance Materials addresses questions related to the design and the employment of metals, ceramic materials, polymers and biomaterials for different mechanical and medical applications. Great attention is paid to advanced lightweight materials to be applied in the automotive industry and bone replacement materials.