Doctor Szufa will go for two years for a postdoctoral internship to a renowned scientific centre - the National Institute of Chemistry in Ljubljana, Slovenia. He will conduct research under the supervision of Prof. Blaz Likozar from the Department of Catalysis and Chemical Reaction Engineering and carry out a project entitled: "BioGainValue - Investigation of biomass torrefaction process using superheated steam and properties of new bio-materials". He will start his fellowship this summer and finish in 2024.
Professor Blaz Likozar is a world-renowned scientist, he directs research and implements projects primarily in the area of chemical and process engineering, designs and builds reactors and unit plants, and implements large-scale modelling of catalytic processes.
The research in the first stage of the BioGainValue project work will allow me to determine the kinetics parameters of the biomass torrefaction process, using a high-pressure thermogravimeter coupled to a gas chromatograph compressed with mass spectrometry (GCMS), located at the Institute in Ljubljana. The obtained results will be used for the reconstruction of a semi-technical installation used for the production of new bio-products and compounds at my department at Lodz University of Technology. The research planned for the stay in Slovenia will result in results constituting an important contribution to knowledge in the field of biomass torrefaction - not only due to the chemistry and kinetics of the process, but also to its safety and economics, explains Dr. Szymon Szufa.
Bekker NAWA is one of the flagship programmes of the National Agency for Academic Exchange. During their stays - lasting from 3 to 24 months - scholarship holders will be able to carry out scientific projects or postdoctoral internships together with foreign scientists and develop international cooperation.