GEOMEDICINE AND HARMFUL PARTICULATES
Academic year and teacher
If you can't find the course description that you're looking for in the above list,
please see the following instructions >>
- Versione italiana
- Academic year
- 2022/2023
- Teacher
- FRANCESCO DI BENEDETTO
- Credits
- 6
- Didactic period
- Secondo Semestre
- SSD
- GEO/09
Training objectives
- The course will define the relationships between exposure to mineral pathogens and health effects. Surface properties of inorganic solids and interphasal reactivity will be proposed as ground for the interpretation of the most common mineral pathogens: airborne dusts, asbestos, crystalline silica. THe most relevant analytical techniques able to identify and characterise the mineral dusts will be presented. The main national and international regulatory actions will be reviewed.
Prerequisites
- Skills achieved in the Courses of Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics, Geochemistry, Mineralogy and Petrography.
Course programme
- Introduction to Geomedicine. Surface properties of inorganic solids. Interphasal reactivity. Airborne dusts, asbestos, crystalline silica: definition, environmental and health problems. Perspectives. Analytical techniques in the study of the toxic particulates. Regolatory framework.
Didactic methods
- Class lectures using blackboard and powerpoint presentation.
Laboratory activities at research structures and/or in campaign.
Classroom exercises using conventional softwares. Learning assessment procedures
- Oral examination, which may include the discussion of a scientific article, provided by the teacher, or the dissertation of
a short report on a subject belonging to the course program. Reference texts
- Mineralogia / Cornelis Klein. Bologna : Zanichelli, 2004
Health Effects of Mineral Dust. George D. Guthrie, Jr. and B. T. Mossman, editors. Mineralogical Society of America.
