Doctoral theses

Through various research programs, IFP Energies nouvelles is strongly involved in the development of bioprocesses to produce biofuels and bio-based chemical intermediates. In particular, the Biotechnology department focuses on biological pathways trough the use of micro-organisms, such as Clostridium acetobutylicum.

The development of new technologies in the field of energy requires the implementation of high-capacity heat exchangers. More specifically, IFPEN is now involved in research and innovation related to the desire to decarbonize industrial processes.

The Li-ion battery is the technology selected by all car manufacturers to provide the energy storage required for electrified vehicle deployment. A battery, during its lifecycle, can encounter a wide range of operating conditions. Some of those operating conditions can accelerate battery degradation and can lead to safety issues.

The PhD project is proposed in the context of the transformation of sugars into fine chemicals, more specifically fructose into platform molecules for the chemical industry. The goal of the project is to understand and rationalize the reaction mechanisms of sugars by combined experimental and theoretical approaches.

The interest in bimetallic nanoparticles (NPs) from both a scientific and a technological point of view is continuously growing, and extensive studies in this field have been published during the last two decades.

Catalyst deactivation is the loss of catalytic activity and/or selectivity with time. This is a major and recurring problem in industrial-scale processes. Catalyst deactivation is unavoidable and has a major impact on the reactor technology used and therefore on the process design.

Since 2016, a partnership was initiated between IFP Energies Nouvelles and the Centre National de Recherche en Météorologie (CNRM – Météo France), to study the interactions between wind turbines and the Atmospheric Boundary Layer (ABL).

Polyvinyl chloride called PVC is the third most produced synthetic polymer in the world. This economic success is explained not only by its low production cost, the excellence of its properties but also by its versatility. This omnipresence results in the abundant generation of waste, the burial and incineration of which remain problematic.

When simulating the transport of pollutants in the subsurface or in the context of water remediation, special attention should be paid to the specific adsorption behavior of complex pollutants.

X-band navigational radars are promising instruments for ocean wave measurements, since the images they provide can be processed to obtain a wave-by-wave reconstruction of the sea surface, within a range of up to several kms.

The PHD project is placed in the context of recycling and recovery of hydrocarbon products such as tires and used plastics. A possible way of reprocessing concerns the py-oils resulting from these products.

The PhD project is proposed in the context of PET waste chemical recycling into PET, via depolymerization. Chemical recycling is needed when plastic feedstocks cannot be mechanically processed, usually for non-transparent PET.