“Umberto Ruggiero”学位奖授予三位年轻工程学毕业生
获选主题：《氢发动机中的燃烧》；《脱碳与氢能技术》；《混凝土：热能储存的原材料》。活动缅怀了Ruggiero教授。Ruggiero教授曾任ATI主席、巴里理工大学校长，是普利亚机械工程领域的先驱。
Emanuele Bartolomeo Porcelli, Nicola Misceo and Michele Gambacorta are the three young engineers awarded by the Commission (Chair, Prof. Nicola Laforgia) of the “Umberto Ruggiero” Degree Award, 1st edition.
The initiative, supported by the Italian Thermotechnical Association, Puglia and Basilicata section, created to commemorate the unforgettable national President of the Association, Prof. Umberto Ruggiero, as well as Rector of Poliba, aimed to reward and support young engineers and architects who, through their degree theses, stand out and approach the world of research and engineering with experimental proposals and solutions of unquestionable quality.
The award ceremony was held on Thursday, 11 December, in the “Attilio Alto” main hall of the Polytechnic. The recollections and testimonies of the speakers about Prof. Ruggiero preceded the presentation of the winners. At the opening, Prof. Antonio Ficarella, from UniSalento, President of ATI Puglia Basilicata, highlighted the ATI initiative in support of young graduates and recalled the figure of his mentor from whom he inherited the teaching subject: “Machines”. The Rector of Poliba, Umberto Fratino, mentioned the competence and humanity of his predecessor, the driving force behind the founding of the Polytechnic in Bari. The newly elected National President of ATI (in office from 1 January), Prof. Riccardo Amirante, emphasized the intention to continue Ruggiero’s legacy within ATI. Domenico Laforgia, his student and President of AQP, gave a passionate and precise account of Ruggiero’s professional path, also with the aid of excerpts from the “Testimonianze” format dedicated to the Poliba professor.
The winners (prize value: 1,500 euros each) had the opportunity to present their thesis work to those present with the aid of explanatory slides.
Here are their names and the awarded topics.
Nicola Misceo, from Cellamare (BA), graduated from the Polytechnic University of Bari in Energy Engineering with the thesis “Experimental investigation of hydrogen jet flames originating from leaks from pressurized tanks”. In the context of the energy transition, Misceo investigated hydrogen-based technologies. “These – he says – are considered fundamental for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. However, their use requires careful assessment of safety aspects, particularly in the event of leaks from pipelines and pressurized tanks. My thesis, carried out at the IMFT (Institute of Fluid Mechanics) in Toulouse (France), focused on the experimental study of the behavior of flames generated by hydrogen leaks and made it possible to highlight phenomena very different from those expected in the case of flames produced by conventional fuels, particularly with regard to flame length and ignition and extinction conditions. These observations now make it possible to better understand the risks associated with the use of hydrogen and represent an important step toward the development of safer and more reliable energy technologies”.
Emanuele Bartolomeo Porcelli from Trani (BT), Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering at Poliba (automotive curriculum), with the thesis “CFD simulations of an internal combustion engine with direct hydrogen injection” instead, investigated the fueling of traditional engines with hydrogen.
“In recent years – he premised – the transport sector has been experimenting with alternative fuels such as hydrogen. The work carried out, in collaboration with ITV (RWTH Aachen University, Germany), analyzes hydrogen combustion in a single-cylinder engine through simulations and proposes a new turbulent combustion model that includes the thermo-diffusive effects characteristic of hydrogen flames, improving predictions compared with the initial model with clear advantages”.
Michele Gambacorta 在巴里，随后于 Poliba 获得能源工程硕士学位，最终以论文 “混凝土中的热能储存：耦合的数值-实验设计方法”， 他围绕混凝土开展了一项研究，旨在探索其相较于传统建筑用途的全新且不同的应用。
“这篇论文——他解释道——研究了将混凝土作为蓄热材料用于高温热能领域应用的可能性。该工作围绕两种互补方法展开：实验方法和数值方法。通过整合实验数据与数值分析，本研究旨在确定有效策略，以提升热能储存系统的效率、可持续性和耐久性”。
此外，出席仪式的还有：福贾大学的Primiano Di Nauta教授；巴里市气候、生态转型与环境事务委员Elda Perlino博士；“新能源”区域集群主席Beppe Bratta博士；巴里—BAT工业联合会主席Mario Aprile博士；以及代表Ruggiero家族、缅怀父亲的Ettore Ruggiero博士。
ATI，意大利热工技术协会, 自1918年起开展活动，并于1947年正式成立。自成立以来，ATI在大学、生产界和公共行政部门中推动热工技术研究方面发挥了关键作用，并迅速成为活跃机构的汇聚中心。通过16个分会在全国范围内的广泛布局，ATI得以开展大规模的热能文化传播工作，并在短时间内获得了与公共机构进行权威对话所需的声望
该奖项由普利亚和巴西利卡塔ATI分会支持，面向普利亚、巴西利卡塔的青年工程师和建筑师，他们的学位论文涉及能源与环境系统以及技术物理领域的主题。