Topic: Food technology
Title: Effect of antioxidants on food quality and shelf-life
Scientific Group: M. Scampicchio, G. Ferrentino, K. Morozova
Summary: Thesis projects may be developed around the general topic of antioxidants, food quality and shelf-life. All lab activities will be performed at the NOI Tech Park in Bolzano within 6 months of work. Cooperation with local industries is strongly encouraged (internships, group meetings, stages, presentations, etc.). Examples of Companies collaborating on yearly basis with the group include: DSM Nutritional Products (Vasel Switzerland), DrSchär (Bolzano), Loacker(Bolzano), Mila Latte Montagna alto Adige (Bolzano), Flavorchimica (Trento), Naturalsalus (Bolzano), Ca’ de Bezzi (Bolzano), Cereal Docks (Camisano Vicentino), VOG Products (Bolzano), Fruitservice (Bolzano), Fructus Meran (Vilpiano), Bauerbund (Bolzano) and many small farms and family enterprises.

List of available thesis topics for 2022:

• Extraction of non- extractable polyphenols from food by-products.
• Microencapsulation of natural actives into powder ingredients.
• Interaction of vitamins and polyphenols to enhance their antioxidant activity.
• Extraction of bioactives from apple by-products.
• Protein extraction from vegetable matrix.
• Lipid oxidation monitoring by NMR.
• Hay milk authenticity by NMR.
• Antioxidant activity of apple extracts.
• Innoprodukte (Bauerbund project). Development of novel receipts from traditional ingredients from South Tyrolean farmers.
• Quality control of traditional foods by physical methods.
• Statistical design, method validation and process control.
• Determination of the authenticity of meat products by NIR analysis.
• Uncertainty in analytical chemistry.

Duration: 6 months of lab activity (33 ECTS)
Skills: Students will gain knowledge on food manufacturing, formulation design and analytical equipment.

Topic: Food Chemistry
Title: A study on the migration of polyolefin oligomersfrom “ovenable” plastic containers.
Scientific Group: Prof. Sabrina Moret
Summary: Theresearch willfocus on “ovenable” polyolefincontainer(PP)available on the market.Afteroptimizingextraction of oligomers, a preliminary survey onselectedproducts available on the market will be carried outby on-line HPLC-GC-FID analysis. Migration testing will be carried outunder different temperature and time conditionswithsimplemodelfoodsin order to study the effect of the different food composition. Comparative trials withdifferentfood simulantswill be also performedin order to identify a good simulant for the plastic material.All lab activities will be carried outatthe Laboratory of Food Chemistry of the Department of Agri-Food, Environmental and Animal Sciences.
Duration: 6 months of lab activity (33 ECTS)
Skills: Students will gain knowledge on packaging materials, analytical methods for sample preparation and analysis of food contaminants, and migration testing

Topic: food economics, management and marketing
Scientific Group: Christian Fischer
Summary: Thesis topics in the field of food economics, management and marketing are available during the year based on incoming requests of partner organizations and companies. Available topics must match the existing knowledge, skills and interests of students to assure successful completion of the thesis projects. Moreover, a minimum level of German language skills are often required for a thesis collaboration with local external organizations.

Topic: Food technology
Title: Shelf life prediction of foods by the application of accelerated testing methodologies
Scientific Group: Prof.ssa Sonia CalligarisSummary: The shelf life of foods suffering oxidation can be defined as the length of time after production and packaging during which the food retains an acceptable oxidation level under well-defined storage conditions. The correct management of lipid containing products during storage could have a remarkable impact on the consumer acceptance. The research will be focused on the application of accelerated shelf life testing (ASLT) methodologies for the assessmentofthe shelf life of aselected food product. The final aim will be to develop a mathematical equation able to predict the product shelflife. All lab activities will be performed in the Department of Agriculture, Food, environmental and Animal Sciences of the University of Udine within 6 months of work.
Duration: 6 months of lab activity
Skills: Students will gain knowledge on food structure design.

Topic: Enology
Title: Effects of winemaking variables on wines from South Tyrol
Scientific Group: Prof. E. Boselli / Dr. E. Longo
Summary: the research group in enology has already planned and is supervising the flow charts for the winemaking strategies of Pinot blanc, Pinot noir and eventually other grape varieties in collaboration with external wineries at a small enterprise scale. The aim is to monitor all the steps of the production chain in the winery from the harvest to the bottling to build a fingerprinting database related to the different viticultural variables or winemaking procedures, such as different vineyards, grafted/non grafted vines, cold maceration, partial destemming and others. The evaluation of the samples will be performed using a multiparametric wine analyzer, gas chromatography (GC) and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled to mass spectrometry, and ancillary tecniques such as solid phase microextraction (SPME) and others. The sensory evaluation of selected samples could also be part of the activity to correlate the chemical variables with sensory perceptions. The outcomes of the project will contribute to the development of guidelines in winemaking practices to help the decisions of the winemakers and to study the authenticity of wines with quality mentions. The lab activities will be mostly performed at the NOI Tech Park in Bolzano. The student will also be in contact and will collaborate with private wineries
Duration: one semester including lab activity, work on data analysis (obtained from wine basic analysis, chromatography, mass spectrometry, sensory, statistics data treatment) from home (33 ECTS)
Skills: Students will gain knowledge and practical skills on winemaking practices, chemical instrumental analysis, sensory evaluation, statistical data treatment

Topic: Enology
Title: as described below in the ‘summary’
Scientific Group: Prof. E. Boselli / Dr. E. Longo Summary: the research group in enology has started a partnership with Fruitservice GmbH / Srl, a private company located in the area of Bolzano and dealing with the trading of food commodities including wines. One of the following thesis subjects may be developed in collaboration between the enology group and Fruitservice: - Analytical proof of origin of the wine, especially from Italy - Variety-specific indicators – Italy and worldwide - Influence of vineyards closeness to the sea – increased NaCl levels in wine - Sustainability – bulk wines from overseas vs. finished goods from overseas - Environmental balance / market potential for alternatives to traditional wine – low alcohol or de-alcoholized wines The methodologies and time schedule of the thesis project will be agreed between Oenolab and Fruitservice. The lab activities will be mostly performed at the NOI Tech Park in Bolzano. A period of internship at Fruitservice can be agreed.
Duration: one semester including lab activity and work on data analysis (obtained from wine basic analysis, chromatography, mass spectrometry, sensory, statistics data treatment) from home; contacts and collaboration with Fruitservice or other private companies (33 ECTS)
Skills: Students will gain knowledge on the subjects related to the thesis project and may include winemaking practices, chemical analytical methods to evaluate the quality and authenticity of wines, sensory evaluation and consumers’ preferences, statistical data treatment.

Topic: Innovative sensing technologies and solutions for agri-food applications
Title: Development of innovative (bio)sensing technologies and solutions for food quality and safety monitoring throughout the whole agri-food chain
Scientific Group: Prof. Paolo Lugli and Dr. Luisa Petti (Sensing Technologies Laboratory)
Summary: The research line is dedicated to the development of sensors, biosensors, and complete monitoring systems based on innovative technologies, able to monitor real-time food quality and safety from farm to fork. The main aim of the thesis projects in this area is the realization of novel, low-cost, and fast methods to monitor specific compounds/analytes that are frequently used as indicators of food spoilage, adulteration and/or quality change or ripening (e.g. hazards, toxicants, additives). The thesis will focus on the practical realization of sensors/biosensors based on nanomaterials (e.g. carbon nanotubes) and on the evaluation of the sensor/biosensor performance in terms of selectivity, reproducibility and reliability for the targeted application. Further possible directions include the use of electrical impedance spectroscopy methods and machine learning algorithms for the low-cost on-site fruit ripeness monitoring or the integration of sensors in food packaging. State-of-the-art laboratories oriented and designed to the realization of sensors and biosensors with different fabrication (printing, microfabrication) and characterization techniques are available in the unibz main building (in the center) and at NOI Techpark (see link). During the thesis, you will work on the optimization of sensor design (focusing on the selection of the sensitive material and of the substrate) and on their characterization, in view of the control condition and target application throughout the food chain.
Duration: 6 months of lab activity (33 ECTS)
Skills: Students will gain knowledge and practical experience on innovative sensing and biosensing technologies for agri-food applications.

Topic: Applied sensing technologies for agri-food applications
Title: Development and testing of (bio)sensing technologies and solutions for food quality and safety monitoring throughout the whole agri-food chain in an industrial environment
Scientific Group: Prof. Paolo Lugli and Dr. Luisa Petti (Sensing Technologies Laboratory)
Summary: The research line is dedicated to the development and testing of sensors, biosensors, and complete monitoring systems based on innovative technologies, able to monitor real-time food quality and safety from farm to fork. The thesis will be carried out directly at a company or in close contact with it and will aim at realizing and testing fast methods that can be used in an industrial environment and on the field to monitor specific compounds/analytes that are frequently used as indicators of food spoilage, adulteration and/or quality change or ripening. Placements are for instance possible at BIOMETIC (for application of optical advances techniques for the evaluation of quality and ripeness of fruits and for food safety).
Duration: 6 months of industrial placement in potential combination with lab activity (33 ECTS)
Skills: Students will gain knowledge and practical experience in a company on advanced sensing and biosensing technologies applied to agri-food applications.

Topic: Applied sensing technologies for agri-food applications
Title: Development and testing of (bio)sensing technologies and solutions for food quality and safety monitoring throughout the whole agri-food chain in an industrial environment
Scientific Group: Prof. Paolo Lugli and Dr. Luisa Petti (Sensing Technologies Laboratory)
Summary: The research line is dedicated to the development and testing of sensors, biosensors, and complete monitoring systems based on innovative technologies, able to monitor real-time food quality and safety from farm to fork. The thesis will be carried out directly at a company or in close contact with it and will aim at realizing and testing fast methods that can be used in an industrial environment and on the field to monitor specific compounds/analytes that are frequently used as indicators of food spoilage, adulteration and/or quality change or ripening. Placements are for instance possible at BIOMETIC (for application of optical advances techniques for the evaluation of quality and ripeness of fruits and for food safety).
Duration: 6 months of industrial placement in potential combination with lab activity (33 ECTS)
Skills: Students will gain knowledge and practical experience in a company on advanced sensing and biosensing technologies applied to agri-food applications.

Topic: Innovative sensing technologies and solutions for agri-food applications
Title: Development of innovative (bio)sensing technologies and solutions for food quality and safety monitoring throughout the whole agri-food chain
Scientific Group: Prof. Paolo Lugli and Dr. Luisa Petti (Sensing Technologies Laboratory)
Summary: The research line is dedicated to the development of sensors, biosensors, and complete monitoring systems based on innovative technologies, able to monitor real-time food quality and safety from farm to fork. The main aim of the thesis projects in this area is the realization of novel, low-cost, and fast methods to monitor specific compounds/analytes that are frequently used as indicators of food spoilage, adulteration and/or quality change or ripening (e.g. hazards, toxicants, additives). The thesis will focus on the practical realization of sensors/biosensors based on nanomaterials (e.g. carbon nanotubes) and on the evaluation of the sensor/biosensor performance in terms of selectivity, reproducibility and reliability for the targeted application. Further possible directions include the use of electrical impedance spectroscopy methods and machine learning algorithms for the low-cost on-site fruit ripeness monitoring or the integration of sensors in food packaging. State-of-the-art laboratories oriented and designed to the realization of sensors and biosensors with different fabrication (printing, microfabrication) and characterization techniques are available in the unibz main building (in the center) and at NOI Techpark (see link). During the thesis, you will work on the optimization of sensor design (focusing on the selection of the sensitive material and of the substrate) and on their characterization, in view of the control condition and target application throughout the food chain.
Duration: 6 months of lab activity (33 ECTS)
Skills: Students will gain knowledge and practical experience on innovative sensing and biosensing technologies for agri-food applications.

Topic: Insect pests of agricultural importance
Title: Investigating factors that influence phytoplasma transmission by insects
Scientific Leader: Prof. Hannes Schuler
Summary: Phytoplasmas are bacterial pathogens responsible for a wide range of plant diseases. The most important phytoplasma diseases in South Tyrol are the Apple proliferation and Grapevine yellows such as Bois noir and Flavescence doreé. These diseases are responsible for high yield losses and great economic impact and are transmitted by sap-sucking insects. Although the biology of the vector and the phytoplasma are well-studied, factors affection the vector capacity of the insects are currently less understood. In this project we aim to perform a genetic characterization of different insect populations across Europe and assess their potential influence in the vector competence of phytoplasma.
Duration: 6 months
Skills Collections and taxonomic identification of insects; extraction, sequencing and characterization of the DNA; analysis of the data.
 
Title: Population genetics of invasive insect pests
Scientific Leader: Prof. Hannes Schuler
Summary: Invasive species are a common threat of agriculture worldwide and have a vast impact in fruit production in South Tyrol. In this project we investigate the population structure of various invasive insect species. A specific focus of the project will be Tephritid fruit flies such as the eastern cherry fruit fly Rhagoletis cingulate and the walnut fruit flies Rhagoletis complete. Moreover, we aim to study other invasive species such as the Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Halyomorpha halys as well as quarantine pest species such as the apple maggot Rhagoletis pomonella and the western cherry fruit fly Rhagoletis indifferens. The aim of the project will be to assess the genetic diversity of specific insect populations. An additional focus of this project is on the association of insects with symbiotic bacteria as a potential novel tool for biological control.
Duration: 6 months
Skills: Collections and taxonomic identification of insects; extraction, sequencing and characterization of the DNA; analysis of the data.