The Department of Thermophysics and Applied Ecology is one of the most well-known departments in the field of ecology and energy in Ukraine. The department is a graduate of two specialties – “Teploenergetika” and “Ecology”. The main scientific directions of the department are connected with the complex experimental and theoretical studies of the thermophysical properties of various substances: refrigerants, heat carriers, petroleum products, rocket fuels, nanofluids, food raw materials and products. Research is aimed at the rational use of energy resources and raw materials and to reduce the human impact on the environment.
Significant is the contribution of the staff of the Department of Thermophysics and Applied Ecology to the development of thermodynamics of cold cycles, computer technologies in thermodynamic studies, methods for studying the thermophysical properties of alternative refrigerants, their solutions with compressor oils and nanofluids.
A harmonious combination of experimental and calculated methods for studying the properties of substances provides a wide range of possibilities for improving the methods for searching substances with pre-set characteristics, the development of modern technologies for obtaining technically important substances and products for the chemical, food and pharmaceutical industries.
The employees of the department perform the study of the properties of cryocrystals, including the polymeric phases of solid nitrogen, study the properties of nanofluids promising for use in refrigeration, modern methods of thermodynamic modeling are developed.
An equally important direction of the department’s activity is the training of specialists in the field of environmental protection, rational use of natural resources and environmental safety. The history of the specialty “Ecology and Environmental Protection” in Ukraine dates back to the Odessa State Academy of Colds. ONATH, Institute of Cold, Cryotechnologies and Energy. VS Martynovsky, the Department of Thermophysics and Applied Ecology has been training specialists for this specialty for about 30 years, which has enabled the provision of various industries, agriculture, research organizations, and state environmental authorities with highly skilled specialists.
The concept of training environmentalists, developed by the Department of Thermophysics and Applied Ecology, focuses on training specialists who are capable of solving the tasks of conducting environmental and energy audits and management at enterprises in various sectors of the Ukrainian economy. Graduates of the Department of Thermophysics and Applied Ecology can work in the bodies of environmental safety, ecology and natural resources management, in environmental services of enterprises, in design and research organizations on issues of operation and design of equipment, technology and environmental protection technology.
The Department of Thermophysics and Applied Ecology organizes practical training of specialists in the framework of educational, technological, industrial, research and pre-diploma practice in the laboratories of the academy, leading enterprises, scientific research organizations, state bodies of Odessa, Odessa region and others. regions of Ukraine, which allows to prepare specialists taking into account real needs of the labor market of Ukraine.
Involving students in their activities, the department conducts scientific research on environmental problems in the energy, chemical industry, transport, and non-traditional energy systems. Equally important are the scientific work of the teachers of the department devoted to methods of ecological energy audit and management in industry, rational use of raw materials and energy resources in food technologies, development of physico-chemical models of development of atherosclerosis.