Machines – History

The group of “Fluid machines and energy systems” was born in the eighties thanks to Prof. Carlo Maria Bartolini who, after graduating from the University of Ancona, in 1975, entered the faculty in 1979 with the assignment of Complements of Machines.
Full Professor since 2000 in the disciplinary grouping ING-IND/09 “Systems for energy and environment”, Carlo Maria Bartolini was, among other things, President of the Council of University Degree Course in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Ancona, in Fabriano. Board’s President of the Degree Course in Mechanical Engineering at the Faculty of Engineering of the Polytechnic University of Marche, Master’s Coordinator in “Engineering and Management of Production Systems and Engineering and Management of Innovation” at the Polytechnic University of Marche.
At the beginning, the fluid machines sector in Ancona has seen the commitment of some eminent professors from the University of Bologna, especially Prof. Piero Pelloni and the late Prof. Giorgio Negri of Montenegro.
In that period Gilberto Vincenzi joined the group, who with his teaching and research activity left an indelible mark on those who knew him. In particular, he was a life and science mentor to Leonardo Pelagalli and Flavio Caresana who joined the group in the late 1980s and early 1990s, first as Phd students and then as researchers in the field of ING-IND/08, and currently as associate professors in the ING-IND/09 sector.
In the 90’s professors Sandro Sandrolini and Francesco Bassi gave prestige to the group, the first especially from the educational point of view – his famous texts on turbomachine that are still cornerstones in all Italian universities, were written when he was in Ancona – and the second one with regards to the research in the field of machine fluid dynamics, by also being the mentor of the colleague of the current department colleague Prof. Andrea Crivellini of the field ING-IND/06.
There have been numerous research topics undertaken by Prof. Bartolini and then handed down to his disciples, among others those on the Stirling Machine have been undertaken with passion and have contributed significantly to the international scientific discussion on the subject, but also in other topics such as peripheral channel machines, micro-cogeneration with micro-turbogas…. the contribution was significant.
Also thanks to the presence of prof. Giancarlo Chiatti, from the University of Rome, studies on internal combustion engines were then begun and then continued both from a theoretical and experimental point of view, first in the engines test lab and then in a new one set up thanks to the researchers Leonardo Pelagalli and Flavio Caresana. In the labs, in particular, original direct injection solutions in 2T engines were tested, first at low pressure and then at high pressure with an original water hammer method. As part of the laboratory activities significant contributions have also come from the technical body of the former Department of Energy which then merged into the current department of Industrial Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, in particular, Gabriele Gabrielli and Giuliano Giuliani are to be remembered.
Numerous contributions have been received over time by PhD students and research fellows, remember at the beginning Guerriero Romani, Rosalino Usci, Antonio Ranalli and then high school professors Andrea Pesaresi and Giorgio Tombari, PhD students Sandro Vagni, Caterina Brandoni, Anselmo Pallotta, Michele Bilancia, Massimiliano Renzi, Luca Cioccolanti, Alessio Nardini and Claudio Campana some of which, although now brilliantly framed in other industrial or academic realities, still remain an integral part of the group as external collaborators.
In the 2000s Gabriele Comodi, who was the last to enter the permanent staff, becoming firstly researcher and then Associate Professor, gave new impetus and vitality to the research … giving national and international visibility to the research group and expanding it through collaborations that have led to the availability of funding both at national and European level, especially in the fields of economic policies, smart energies storage …