Department staff
Professor Gianluca Li Puma
Professor of Chemical and Environmental Engineering Environmental Nanocatalysis & Photoreaction Engineering
- Tel
- +44 (0)1509 222510
- G.Lipuma@lboro.ac.uk
Background
Gianluca Li Puma is Professor of Chemical and Environmental Engineering at Loughborough University. His academic qualification include: Laurea, Chemical Engineering (University of Palermo, Italy, 1992) MPhil, Chemical Engineering (University of Bath, 1993) PhD, Chemical Engineering (Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, 1996). This was followed by a three-year postdoctoral fellowship at HKUST on photocatalysis & photoreaction engineering research. From 2000-2010 he was Assistant and Associate Professor in the School of Chemical and Environmental Engineering at the University of Nottingham.
External appointments, memberships and affiliations
- Editor, Journal of Hazardous Materials (Elsevier, Impact Factor 4.173) Website
- Associate Editor, Journal of Advanced Oxidation Technologies Website
- Associate Editor, International Journal of Photoenergy Website
- Member of the American Chemical Society
- Member of the UK Semiconductor Photochemistry Network
- Member of COST (European Cooperation in Science and Technology) Action 636: Xenobiotics in the Urban Water Cycle.
- Member of the International Scientific Advisory Board, NIREAS International Water Research Center, Cyprus
- Expert of International Standing nominated by the Australian Research Council (ARC) College of Experts
Review panels
- ARC: Australian Research Council
- GACR: Czech Science Foundation, Czech Republic
- SNSF: Swiss National Science Foundation, Switzerland
- ISF: Israel Science Foundation
- NRF: National Research Foundation, Environment & Water Industry Development Council (EWI), Singapore
- EPSRC: UK Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council
- Research Committee, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR
- 37 international refereed journals in Catalysis, Environmental Science, Chemistry and Chemical Engineering
Research interests and activities
Gianluca Li Puma performs research in the fields of (i) environmental nanocatalysis (ii) semiconductor nanomaterials, (iii) heterogenous photocatalysis, (iv) photoreaction engineering design and modelling, (iv) advanced oxidation processes (Fenton, Photo-Fenton, Ozonation, Photo-Assisted AOTs) (v) photocatalytic indoor air purification, (vi) water treatment purification, (vii) solar energy conversion for renewable hydrogen production, (viii) solar engineering.
He holds a portfolio of research grants in photocatalysis including a 1 Million Euro grant from EON on production of green hydrogen from solar energy, EPSRC GR/R19427, EPSRC GR/S77875, NATO SfP-977986 "Preparation and performance of porous electro-and photo-catalytic coatings" (University of Sofia, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, University of Thessaloniki), NATO CBP.EAP.SFPP-982835 " Nanomaterials for photochemical and photoelectrochemical purification processes" (University of Sofia, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, University of Thessaloniki), Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Award " A novel commercial-scale photocatalytic reactor for purification of contaminated air" and a £700K EU 5th Framework project with Spain (University of Tarragona), Greece (University of Patras) and industrial partners: Innocuous, QLK1-CT-2002-01678.
At the University teaches undergraduate courses in the fields of (i) Chemical Reaction Engineering. He also supervises undergraduate and postgraduate taught students in the execution of design and R&D projects, and MPhil/PhD postgraduate research students.
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Hydrogen from Solar Energy and Biomass Waste (Sponsor: EON, Germany - 1 M Euro, project coordinator, in collaboration with University of Patras, Greece)
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Nanomaterials for Photochemical and Photoelectrochemical Purification Processes (NATO CBP.EAP.SFPP 982835 - 300,000 Euro: in collaboration with the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Bulgaria; University of Sofia, Bulgaria; Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece)
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Nano-Sized Photocatalysts for Utilization of Solar Light (National Science Fund, Bulgaria - 200,000 BGN: in collaboration with the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Bulgaria; University of Sofia, Bulgaria; Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece)
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A Novel Commercial-Scale Photocatalytic Reactor for Purification of Contaminated Indoor Air (in collaboration with Prof. Destaillats, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories, USA)
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TiO2/Carbon Nanotubes Composites for Environmental Applications (in collaboration with Prof. Chen and Prof. Mokaya at the University of Nottingham)
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Synthesis, Characterization and Evaluation of Immobilized Nanostructured Oxides Photocatalysts for Indoor Air Purification (in collaboration with Prof. Dionysiou, University of Cincinnati, USA)
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Treatment of Wastewater by Ultrasound and Photocatalysis (in collaboration with Prof. Awang and Prof. Duduku, University of Malaysia Sabah)
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Treatment of Wastewater by Solar Photocatalysis (in collaboration with Prof. Rao, National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, India)
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Pilot Plant Ozonation of Cork Manufacturing Wastewater (EU FP5 QLK1-CT-2002-01678 INNOCUOUS - 979,664 Euro: in collaboration with the Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Spain; University of Patras, Greece; Alvaro Coelho & Irmaos, Portugal; Ampeloniki, Greece) INNOCUOUS website
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Preparation and Performance of Porous Electro-and Photo-Catalytic Coatings for Application on Indoor Air Purification and Water Detoxification (NATO SfP-977986 - 247,000 Euro: in collaboration with Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Bulgaria; University of Sofia, Bulgaria; Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece)
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A Photocatalytic Mop Fan for Air Cleaning (EPSRC GR/S77875 - £ 269,390: in collaboration with Prof. Riffat, Dr Etheridge, The University of Nottingham)
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Destruction of Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals (Pesticides, Oestrogens, Pharmaceuticals) by Advanced Oxidation Processes (Photocatalysis, Fenton, Photo-Fenton, UV-Peroxidation, UV-Ozonation) (EPSRC GR/R19427/01 - £60,677)
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Degradation of Endocrine Disrupting Substances in Water by Heterogenous Photocatalysis (UoN Research Committee NLF 1755 - £20,000)
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Photo-assisted Fenton Oxidation: Process and Process Economics Assessment (QinetiQ)
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Photocatalytic Destruction of Toxic Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in Indoor Air by Thin Film Nanostructured Photocatalysts and Visible Solar Radiation (British Council)
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Flooding in Co-Current Two-Phase Flow (Avecia, UK)
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Solar-Powered Fountain Photocatalytic Reactor for Water Purification (in collaboration with Prof. Yue, Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, China) Research TV: Fountain in action
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Flow-Through, Flat-Plate, Gas Phase Photocatalytic Reactor for Reaction Kinetics Studies (EPSRC GR/S77875; NATO SFP SfP-977986)
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Design and Modelling of Pilot-Plant Heterogeneous Photocatalytic Reactors (Annular, Falling Film, Fountain) for Water Purification (in collaboration with Prof. Yue, The Hong Kong University of Science & Technology, China; Prof. Brucato, Universita' degli Studi di Palermo, Italy)
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Design and Modelling of Heterogeneous Photocatalytic Reactors (Flat-Plate, Monoliths, Waveguide) for Indoor Air Purification (in collaboration with Prof. Brucato, Universita' degli Studi di Palermo, Italy)
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Monte Carlo Radiation Field Optimization in Photocatalytic Monolith Reactors for Air Treatment (in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India) AIChE J. 2007
- Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Modelling of Photocatalytic Air Purifiers (in collaboration with Dr Hargreaves, The University of Nottingham) Environ. Sci. Technol. 2007
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Li Puma, G., Puddu, V., Tsang, H.K., Gora, A., Toepfer, B.
Photocatalytic oxidation of multicomponent mixtures of estrogens (estrone (E1), 17β-estradiol (E2), 17α-ethynylestradiol (EE2) and estriol (E3)) under UVA and UVC radiation: Photon absorption, quantum yields and rate constants independent of photon absorption Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 99 (2010) 388-397. -
Daskalaki, V.M., Antoniadou, M., Li Puma, G., Kondarides, D.I., Lianos, P.
Solar light-responsive Pt/CdS/TiO2 photocatalysts for hydrogen production and simultaneous degradation of inorganic or organic sacrificial agents in wastewater Environmental Science and Technology, 44 (2010) 7200-7205. -
Colina-Márquez, J., Machuca-Martínez, F., Li Puma, G.
Radiation absorption and optimization of solar photocatalytic reactors for environmental applications Environmental Science and Technology, 44 (2010) 5112-5120. -
Quici, N., Vera, M.L., Choi, H., Li Puma, G., Dionysiou, D.D., Litter, M.I., Destaillats, H.
Effect of key parameters on the photocatalytic oxidation of toluene at low concentrations in air under 254 + 185 nm UV irradiation Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 95 (2010) 312-319. -
Puddu, V., Choi, H., Dionysiou, D.D., Li Puma, G.
TiO2 photocatalyst for indoor air remediation: Influence of crystallinity, crystal phase, and UV radiation intensity on trichloroethylene degradation Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 94 (2010) 211-218. -
Colina-Márquez, J., Machuca-Martínez, F., Li Puma, G.
Photocatalytic mineralization of commercial herbicides in a pilot-scale solar CPC reactor: Photoreactor modeling and reaction kinetics constants independent of radiation field Environmental Science and Technology, 43 (2009) 8953-8960. -
Gao, B., Chen, G.Z., Li Puma, G.
Carbon nanotubes/titanium dioxide (CNTs/TiO2) nanocomposites prepared by conventional and novel surfactant wrapping sol-gel methods exhibiting enhanced photocatalytic activity Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 89 (2009) 503-509. -
Gao, B., Peng, C., Chen, G.Z., Li Puma, G.
Photo-electro-catalysis enhancement on carbon nanotubes/titanium dioxide (CNTs/TiO2) composite prepared by a novel surfactant wrapping sol-gel method Applied Catalysis B: Environmental, 85 (2008) 17-23. -
Puddu, V., Mokaya, R., Li Puma, G.
Novel one step hydrothermal synthesis of TiO2/WO3 nanocomposites with enhanced photocatalytic activity Chemical Communications, 45 (2007) 4749-4751. -
Li Puma, G., Brucato, A.
Dimensionless analysis of slurry photocatalytic reactors using two-flux and six-flux radiation absorption-scattering models Catalysis Today, 122 (2007) 78-90. -
Singh, M., Salvadó-Estivill, I., Li Puma, G.
Radiation field optimization in photocatalytic monolith reactors for air treatment AIChE Journal, 53 (2007) 678-686.
Invited and keynote lectures (since 2007)
- Plenary - Li Puma G., 2012, ‘Semiconductor Photocatalysis & Photoreaction Engineering for Environmental and Renewable Energy Applications’ in XVIII Encontro Luso-Galego de Química, Vila Real, Portugal, 28-30 Nov, 2012
- Plenary - Li Puma G., 2012, ‘Treatment of contaminants of emerging concern by solar photocatalysis’ in 1st Latin-American Congress of Photocatalysis (LACP 2012), Morelia, Mexico, 25-28 Sept, 2012
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Plenary - Li Puma G., 2010, ‘New Trends in the Modelling of Photocatalytic Processes’ in SPEA-6: 6th European Meeting on Solar Chemistry and Photocatalysis: Environmental Applications, Prague, Czech Republic, 13-16 Jun, 2010
Plenary - Li Puma G., 2010, ‘Environmental Nanocatalysis for Water Remediation and Production of Renewable Energy from Solar Light’ in NanoAqua, Cairo, Egypt, 11-12 Apr 2010
Plenary - Li Puma G., Kondaridis D., 2009, ‘Solar-Hydrogen - Development and Pilot Plant Demonstration of Hydrogen Production from Solar Energy and Biomass (Waste) Compounds and Derivatives at Ambient Conditions Mediated by Nanostructured Photocatalysts’ in 2009 E.ON AG Research Awards, Dusseldorf, Germany, 28 Apr 2009
Plenary - Li Puma G., 2008, ‘Solar-Powered Photocatalytic Reactors for Water Purification’ in IX Congreso Internacional de Ingenieria Quimica, Monterrey, Mexico, 21-23 Feb 2008
- Keynote - Li Puma G., 2012, ‘Solar Photocatalytic Treatment of Emerging Environmental Water Contaminants’ in Fourth International Conference on Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering (ICCBPE 2012), Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, 21-23 Nov, 2012
- Keynote - Li Puma G., 2012, ‘Hydrogen Production by Solar Photocatalytic Reforming of Biomass Waste’ in R&R 2012: International Conference on Recycling and Reuse, 3-6 Jun, 2012, Istanbul, Turkey
- Keynote - Lam, H.K., Jones, S., Quici, N., Li Puma, G., 2011, ‘Poly(dimethylsiloxane) modified Nafion/silica/iron composites for heterogeneous photo-Fenton oxidation reactions’, in AOT-17 17th International Conference on Advanced Oxidation Technologies for Treatment of Water, Air and Soil, San Diego, USA, 7-10 Nov 2011
- Keynote – Loo Zazueta, A. L., Destaillats, H., Li Puma G., 2011, ‘Modeling and Optimization of a Multi-Plate Photocatalytic Air Cleaner for Indoor Air Purification’, in TiO2-16 16th International Conference on TiO2 Photocatalysis: Fundamentals & Applications, San Diego, USA, 7-10 Nov 2011
Keynote - Li Puma G., Daskalaki, V.M., Antoniadou, M., Kondarides, D.I., Lianos, P., 2010, ‘Hydrogen Production from Solar Light and Wastewater’, in AOT-16 16th International Conference on Advanced Oxidation Technologies for Treatment of Water, Air and Soil, San Diego, USA, 15-18 Nov 2010
Keynote - Li Puma, G., 2010 ‘Advances in Design and Modeling of Photocatalytic Reactors for Environmental Applications’ in TiO2-15 15th International Conference on TiO2 Photocatalysis: Fundamentals & Applications, San Diego, USA, 15-18 Nov 2010
Keynote - Li Puma G., Puddu V., Tsang H. K., Gora A., Toepfer B., 2009, ‘Photodegradation of estrone (E1), 17β-estradiol (E2), 17α-ethynylestradiol (EE2) and estriol (E3) by advanced oxidation’, in AOT-15 15th International Conference on Advanced Oxidation Technologies for Treatment of Water, Air and Soil, Niagara Falls, USA, 5-8 Oct, 2009
Keynote - Li Puma G., 2009, ‘Solar Photocatalysis for Sustainable Environmental Remediation and Production of Renewable Energy’ in Third International Conference on Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering (ICCBPE 2009), Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, 12-14 Aug, 2009
Keynote - Li Puma, G., Gao, B., Li Z.M., Chen G.Z., Mokaya, R., 2009, ‘Self-Supporting Carbon Nanotubes Titanium Dioxide (CNTs/TiO2) Nanostructures for Environmental and Renewable Energy Applications’ in TiO2-14 14th International Conference on TiO2 Photocatalysis: Fundamentals & Applications, Niagara Falls, USA, USA, 5-8 Oct, 2009
Keynote - Li Puma G., 2008, “Engineering and modeling of TiO2 photocatalysis” in 25 Years of TiO2 Photocatalysis– Retrospective and Prospective Views, San Diego, California, USA, 22-25 Sept 2008
Keynote - Li Puma, G., 2007, ‘Estimating photocalytic oxidation of herbicides at plant-scale beginning from laboratory kinetics rate data’ in TiO2-12 12th International Conference on TiO2 Photocatalysis: Fundamentals & Applications, Niagara Falls, USA, 24-27 Sept 2007
Keynote - Li Puma, G., Salvado-Estivill, I., Brucato, A., 2007, ‘Two dimensional analysis of a narrow slit photocatalytic reactor for oxidation of VOC over TiO2 coatings’ in TiO2-12 12th International Conference on TiO2 Photocatalysis: Fundamentals & Applications, Niagara Falls, USA, 24-27 Sept 2007
Keynote - Li Puma G., Salvado-Estivill, I., Obee, T. N., Hay, S. O., 2007, ‘Kinetics of photocatalytic oxidation of trichloroethylene in air over TiO2 thin-films’ in Advanced Technologies for Environmental Remediation, Hong Kong, China, 15 June 2007
- Invited - Li Puma G., 2012, ‘Advanced oxidation of estrogens, antibiotics and other water emerging contaminants and the potential for solar detoxification and water reuse ’ in Wastewater Reuse Applications and Contaminants of Emerging Concern, Limassol, Cyprus, 13-14 Sept 2012
Invited - Li Puma G., 2010, ‘Modelling and Design of Solar Photocatalytic Reactors for Environmental Applications and Production of Renewable Energy’ in Photocatalysis for Renewable Energy and Clean Environment - IChemE, London, UK, 7 Sept 2010
Invited - Li Puma G., 2009, ‘Photocatalysis & Photoreaction Engineering for Environmental Remediation and Production of Renewable Energy’ University of Palermo, Palermo, Italy, 29 Jun 2009
Invited - Li Puma G., 2009, ‘Applications of Photocatalysis & Photoreaction Engineering to Environmental Remediation and Production of Renewable Energy’ Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, USA, 5 Jun 2009
Invited - Li Puma G., 2009, ‘Photocatalysis & Photoreaction Engineering: Novel Nanostructured Photocatalysts and Applications’ Leibniz University, Hannover, Germany, 29 Apr 2009
Invited - Li Puma G., 2008, ‘Photocatalysis & Photoreaction Engineering: Nanostructured Photocatalysts, Photoreactors, Modeling and Environmental Applications’ Rice University, Houston, USA, 26 Sept 2008
Invited - Li Puma G., 2008, ‘Photocatalysis & Photoreaction Engineering: Water Treatment and Industrial Applications’ BASF, Ludwigshafen, Germany, 24 Apr 2008
Invited - Li Puma G., 2008, ‘Photocatalysis & Photoreaction Engineering: Nanomaterials, Reactors, Modeling and Applications’ NASA Stennis Space Center, Mississippi, USA, 11 Apr 2008
Organising / Scientific Committee of International Conferences
- American Chemical Society, ACS– 245th Meeting & Exposition (Division of Environmental Chemistry, Chemistry and Applications of Advanced Oxidation Processes for Removal of Contaminants of Emerging Concern, New Orleans, USA, 7-12 Apr, 2013)
American Chemical Society, ACS – 243rd Meeting & Exposition (Division of Environmental Chemistry, Environmental Applications and Ecological Implications of Nanotubes, Nanowires and Fullerenes, San Diego, USA, 2012)
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Co-Chairman, Advanced Oxidation Technologies for Treatment of Water, Air and Soil (AOTs-18, Jacksonville, USA 2012 Download conference information; AOT-17, San Diego, USA, 2011; AOTs-16, San Diego, USA, 2010 AOTs-15, Niagara Falls, USA, 2009; AOTs-14, San Diego, USA, 2008; AOTs-13, Niagara Falls, USA, 2007)
IWA (International Water Association) Symposium on “Waste Management Problems in the Agro-Industries (AGRO’2014, Kochi, Japan, 24,-26 Nov 2014 Download conference information; AGRO’2011, Cesme, Izmir, Turkey, 2011)
- Semiconductor Photocatalysis and Solar Energy Conversion (SPASEC-17, Jacksonville, USA, 2012 Download conference information)
TiO2 Photocatalysis: Fundamentals and Applications TiO2-16, San Diego, USA, 2011; TiO2-15, San Diego, USA, 2010; TiO2-14, Niagara Falls, USA, 2009; TiO2-13, San Diego, USA, 2008; TiO2-12, Niagara Falls, USA, 2007; TiO2-11, Pittsburgh, USA, 2006; TiO2-10, Chicago, USA, 2005)
Solar Chemistry and Photocatalysis: Environmental Applications (SPEA 7, Porto , 2012 Download conference information; SPEA 6, Prague, 2010 SPEA 5, Palermo, Italy, 2008)
Advanced Oxidation Technologies for Treatment of Water, Air and Soil (AOTs-12, Pittsburgh, USA, 2006; AOTs-11, Chicago, 2005; AOTs-10, San Diego, USA, 2004)
- XVIII Encontro Luso-Galego de Química (Vila Real, Portugal, 2012)
- Second International Conference on Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOP-2012, Kottayam, Kerala, India, 2012)
- R&R 2012: International Conference on Recycling and Reuse (R&R 2012, Istanbul, Turkey, 2012)
- The 1st World congress of Environmental Biotechnology-2011 (WCEB-2011, Dalian, China, 2011)
- 3rd International Symposium on Environmental Management, SEM – Towards Sustainable Technologies (SEM 2011, Zagreb, Croatia, 2011)
- International Workshop on Urbanisation, Land Use, Land Degradation, and Environment (ULE2009, Denizli, Turkey, 2009)
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International Conference on Xenobiotics in the Urban Environment (XENOWAC 2009, Paphos, Cyprus, 11-13, Mar 2009) Download conference information
Environmental Applications of Advanced Oxidation Processes (EAAOP-2, Nicosia, Greece, 9-11, Sept 2009; EAAOP-1, Chania, Greece, 2006) Download conference information
First International Workshop on Application of Redox Technologies in the Environment (ARTE'2009, Instabul, Turkey, 14-15 Sept 2009) Download conference information
Third International Conference on Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering (ICCBPE 2009, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, 12-14, Aug 2009) Download conference information
25 Years of TiO2 photocatalysis - Retrospective and Prospective Views (San Diego, USA, 2008)
World Congress of Chemical Engineering (7th edition, Glasgow, UK, 2005)