Biofuels and Bioenergy

Biography

Carlo Perego (Carnate, Milan, Italy, 1954), Director of the Centre for Renewable Energy and Environmental R&D (eni SpA, Istituto Donegani, Novara), has been carrying out research activities in chemical and oil companies for nearly 37 years. Carlo received the laurea in Industrial Chemistry in 1978 from the State University of Milan and a Post-Degree Specialization Certificate in R&D Management at the Bocconi University of Milan. He started working in catalysis during his laurea thesis, with pioneering experiments on the insertion of CO2 in butadiene catalyzed by Pd(0) complexes. Those researches draw the attention of Montedipe SpA , the petrochemical company of Montedison Group, the largest Italian chemical company. So Carlo was hired at the R&D Center of Montedipe in Bollate, when he began his professional career in industrial research and development (1980). During the stay in Montedipe, Carlo contributed to the optimization of several catalytic processes, including the phenol and styrene processes. After a further experience as pilot plant manager in a small chemical company (3V Sigma, 1989), Carlo moved to Eniricerche, the R&D Corporate Company of the Eni Group (1990), as Group Leader for Catalytic Processes and Catalyst Preparation. He was then appointed Manager of the Physical Chemistry Department and in 2005 he became Manager of the R&D Process Technology Department in Eni Refining and Marketing Division. In January 2007 he had the responsibility of setting up and organizing a new R&D group focused on renewable energy and environmental technologies. Since 2008 he is the Director of Eni Renewable Energy and Environmental R&D Center (Novara, Italy). The research studies carried on by Carlo have been the basis for important technologies, which have been industrialized in the petrochemistry and refinery fields. His main technical-scientific discipline is heterogeneous catalysis: in this area, Carlo has led several activities about innovative processes and innovative catalysts, especially for applications like alkylation of aromatic substrates, hydroconversion, valorization of heavy refinery residues, advanced biofuels. These R&D activities in different scientific areas have all the common feature of aiming at technologies, which can be more sustainable in terms of increasing energy efficiency, decreasing the yields of unwanted by-products, ensuring a better use of energy sources. Particularly relevant is the replacement of the old catalysts based on mineral acids with a new generation of zeolite-based catalysts in the processes for the production of important intermediates like cumene and ethyl-benzene. Besides Carlo contributed to the development of the eni/UOP EcofiningTM process for the production of greendiesel from triglycerides. More recently, under the direction of Carlo, the Renewable Energy and Environmental R&D Centre is carring out different reseach programmes devoted to the development of new process and products for the exploitation of solar energy, the transformation of biomass into biofuels, the enviroment protection.

Research Interest