Franco Berruti, Western University

Research

Read how they describe their research on their Western University profile.

Anaerobic digestion Bio-char Biochemicals Biomass Bio-oil Fluidized beds Mixed plastics Pyrolysis

Latest papers

Survival and transmission fitness of SARS-CoV-2 over the time-of-flight in an aerosolization chamber.
Npj viruses · 2025
Adsorption of Organic Pollutants From Wastewater Using Biochar: A Mechanistic Study on Competitive Adsorption Behavior.
Water environment research : a research publication of the Water Environment Federation · 2025
Fate of biosolids-bound PFAS through pyrolysis coupled with thermal oxidation for air emissions control.
Water environment research : a research publication of the Water Environment Federation · 2024

All 15 publications

Latest funding

Detecting and treating per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in Canadian water systems
NSERC · 2021 · Co-investigator
$1,018,400
Experimental and Modelling Investigation on the Impact of Engineered Biochars on the Abiotic and Biotic Removal of Hydrogen Sulfide in Sewer Systems
NSERC · 2021 · Principal investigator
$90,000
Evidence-based guidance for mitigating COVID-19 virus droplet transmission and surface contamination_x000d_ _x000d_
NSERC · 2020 · Co-investigator
$50,000

All 24 grants and awards

15 publications.

01

Survival and transmission fitness of SARS-CoV-2 over the time-of-flight in an aerosolization chamber.

Zhang Y, Donovan JM, Weninger DW, Lam V, Gibson R, Renaud S, Paquette D, Lescanec A, Hird C, DeGroot CT, Prodger JL, Berruti F, Savory E, Arts EJ

Npj viruses2025

DOI: 10.1038/s44298-025-00143-8 PMID: 40826280

02

Adsorption of Organic Pollutants From Wastewater Using Biochar: A Mechanistic Study on Competitive Adsorption Behavior.

Loebsack G, Yeung KK, Berruti F, Klinghoffer NB

Water environment research : a research publication of the Water Environment Federation2025

DOI: 10.1002/wer.70164 PMID: 40847631

03

Fate of biosolids-bound PFAS through pyrolysis coupled with thermal oxidation for air emissions control.

Winchell LJ, Cullen J, Ross JJ, Seidel A, Romero ML, Kakar F, Bronstad E, Wells MJM, Klinghoffer NB, Berruti F, Miot A, Bell KY

Water environment research : a research publication of the Water Environment Federation2024

DOI: 10.1002/wer.11149 PMID: 39533490

04

Production of a bio-magnetic adsorbent via co-pyrolysis of pine wood waste and red mud.

Kang K, Loebsack G, Sarchami T, Klinghoffer NB, Papari S, Yeung KK, Berruti F

Waste management (New York, N.Y.)2022Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.wasman.2022.06.009 PMID: 35728476

05

Semi-continuous anaerobic digestion of mixed wastewater sludge with biochar addition.

Chiappero M, Berruti F, Mašek O, Fiore S

Bioresource technology2021

DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.125664 PMID: 34358988

06

Pyrolytic Conversion of Plastic Waste to Value-Added Products and Fuels: A Review.

Papari S, Bamdad H, Berruti F

Materials (Basel, Switzerland)2021Senior author

DOI: 10.3390/ma14102586 PMID: 34065677

07

A technical review of bioenergy and resource recovery from municipal solid waste.

Nanda S, Berruti F

Journal of hazardous materials2021Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.123970 PMID: 33265011

08

Feasibility of anaerobic digestion as a treatment for the aqueous pyrolysis condensate (APC) of birch bark.

Wen C, Moreira CM, Rehmann L, Berruti F

Bioresource technology2020Senior author

DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2020.123199 PMID: 32220821

09

Antioxidant Activity of the Lignins Derived from Fluidized-Bed Fast Pyrolysis.

Qazi SS, Li D, Briens C, Berruti F, Abou-Zaid MM

Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)2017

DOI: 10.3390/molecules22030372 PMID: 28257062

10

Application of 1D and 2D MFR reactor technology for the isolation of insecticidal and anti-microbial properties from pyrolysis bio-oils.

Hossain MM, Scott IM, Berruti F, Briens C

Journal of environmental science and health. Part. B, Pesticides, food contaminants, and agricultural wastes2016

DOI: 10.1080/03601234.2016.1211908 PMID: 27715497

Detecting and treating per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in Canadian water systems

Co-investigatorNSERC2021Alliance Grants

Principal investigators: Hopkins, Scott WS

Keywords: analytical chemistry; chemical engineering; ion mobility; machine learning; mass spectrometry; polyfluoroalkly substances (pfas); pyrolysis; vacuum ultraviolet (vuv); wastewater; water

$1,018,400

Experimental and Modelling Investigation on the Impact of Engineered Biochars on the Abiotic and Biotic Removal of Hydrogen Sulfide in Sewer Systems

Principal investigatorNSERC2021Alliance Grants

Principal investigators: Berruti, Franco F

Keywords: abiotic treatment; biochar; biotic treatment; hydrogen sulfide; kinetic modelling; pilot plant; techno-economic assessment; wastewater treatment; water

$90,000

Evidence-based guidance for mitigating COVID-19 virus droplet transmission and surface contamination_x000d_ _x000d_

Co-investigatorNSERC2020Alliance Grants

Principal investigators: Savory, Eric

$50,000

Waste-to-Resource: Pyrolytic Biochar as a key contributor to the Circular Economy

Principal investigatorNSERC2019Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Principal investigators: Berruti, Franco

Keywords: pyrolysis; biomass; waste; bio-char; bio-oil; thermal cracking; fluidized beds; mixed plastics; anaerobic digestion; biochemicals

$276,000

Rapid in-situ real-time process monitoring by Raman spectroscopy

Principal investigatorNSERC2019Engage Grants Program

Principal investigators: Berruti, Franco

$25,000

NSERC Industrial Research Chair in Thermochemical Conversion of Biomass and Waste to Bioindustrial Resources

Principal investigatorNSERC2018Industrial Research Chairs

Principal investigators: Berruti, Franco F

$1,422,000

Charcrete: incorporation of bio-char in concrete for carbon sequestration and improved physical and acoustic properties

Principal investigatorNSERC2016Engage Grants Program

Principal investigators: Berruti, Franco

$25,000

Academic-Industry Networking Workshop for the Development of Major NSERC CRD Proposal for ""Waste-to-Resources"" R&D Program

Principal investigatorNSERC2016Connect Grants Level 2

Principal investigators: Berruti, Franco

$10,000

Multipurpose Jiggled Bed Reactor (JBR)

Co-investigatorNSERC2016Research Tools and Instruments

Principal investigators: Briens, Cedric

$41,757

Production of adhesives and activated carbon from BioChoice lignin via fast pyrolysis

Principal investigatorNSERC2015Engage Grants Program

Principal investigators: Berruti, Franco

$25,000

From CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC funding decisions: CIHR since 2008, NSERC since 1991 and SSHRC since 1998, including their latest published competition results.

Frequent collaborators

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering
Mechanical and Materials Engineering

Co-authors at Western University, colored by department. Thicker lines mean more shared papers; select anyone to open their profile and their own map.

Cedric Briens

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering

4 shared papers, latest 2017

Lars Rehmann

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering

4 shared papers, latest 2020

Lauren Briens

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering

1 shared papers, latest 2006

Eric Savory

Mechanical and Materials Engineering

1 shared papers, latest 2025

Write to this professor

A short, specific email works best. This draft uses one of their recent papers; replace the parts in brackets with your own details before sending.

Applying for

Paper to mentionMention their NSERC grant from 2021

Subject: Prospective PhD student: Anaerobic digestion Dear Professor Berruti, My name is [your name], and I am a [your current degree or role] at [your institution]. I am applying for a PhD position starting in [term and year]. I read your paper "Survival and transmission fitness of SARS-CoV-2 over the time-of-flight in an aerosolization chamber." (2025), and it connects closely to my own work on [your research topic]. [One or two sentences on what you did and what you learned.] I also saw your NSERC-funded project "Experimental and Modelling Investigation on the Impact of Engineered Biochars on the Abiotic and Biotic Removal of Hydrogen Sulfide in Sewer Systems" (2021), and I would be glad to contribute to work in that direction. Are you accepting new PhD students for [term and year]? I have attached my CV and transcripts, and I would be glad to talk at a time that suits you. Thank you for your time. Kind regards, [your name]