Dr Sergio Vernuccio, University of Southampton / DSM-Firmenich

Industrial Fellowships 2024

Dr Sergio Vernuccio is Associate Professor in Chemical Engineering at the University of Southampton and is a Chartered Chemical Engineer with a wealth of industrial experience as a Process Engineer. 

Dr Vernuccio’s research activity spans from macroscopic reaction engineering to first-principle studies by employing a combination of experimental and computational approaches. By modelling the kinetics of complex reacting processes at the mechanistic level, Dr Vernuccio’s research group develops novel engineering strategies towards rational catalyst design, optimisation and intensification of chemical processes for sustainable development. He developed mechanistic models to describe a range of reacting systems, including gas–liquid hydrogenation, acid-catalysed oligomerisation and alkylation, photochemical transformations, Li-ion battery electrolyte thermal decompositions and runaway processes. 

The Royal Academy of Engineering Industrial Fellowship will support the establishment of a partnership between the University of Southampton and DSM-Firmenich, the largest global producer of vitamins for the feed, food and pharma industries. With volumes ranging from 1,000 to 100,000 tonnes per year, the industrial production of several vitamins relies heavily on semihydrogenation processes. Traditionally, these reactions have been carried out in semi-batch reactors resulting in discontinuous and inefficient industrial operations. Additionally, the use of the lead-based Lindlar catalyst, since its discovery approximately 70 years ago, strongly limits the sustainability of the process. To address these pressing challenges, this Fellowship aims to integrate more environmentally friendly catalysts with a recently patented structured reactor to help transition the vitamin industry from batch to continuous. Combining theory and experiment, Dr Vernuccio will screen bimetallic catalyst architectures to identify nontoxic, efficient, and selective catalysts and ultimately unlock the dream of a sustainable and efficient semihydrogenation chemistry. 

 

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