“Prof. Ștefan Atanasie Pătrașcu-Surlari” didactic and research facility

“Prof. Ștefan Atanasie Pătrașcu-Surlari” didactic and research facility of the Faculty of Physics was established in 1975 with the aim of hosting the first palaeomagnetism laboratory in the country.

Further on, research laboratories have been organized within the station, meant to monitor the quality of the air. Starting with 2010, the station is part of the Gradistea – Caldarusani – Dridu area, which was declared a protected zone and which is part of the Natura 2000 European ecological network.

The station is surrounded on two sides by forest and on one side by the Caldarusani Lake. In the area there is the Geomagnetic Observatory of the Institute of Geodynamics, the Caldarusani Monastery (Founded by Voivode Matei Basarab).

The area where the station is situated is a “clean” area from the point of view of air pollution, as it is monitored with instruments found within the station (integrating nephelometer, automated meteorological station, gravimetric systems, radiometers etc.) At the same time, there is a development of systems meant to monitor the quality of the lake water, various prototypes of alternative energy sources are tested, suggested by master students and Ph.D. students of the Faculty of Physics.

Within the station, there are students who carry out laboratory and research activities, coming from MA programmes such as “Alternative and regenerating energy sources”, “The physics of the environment and of ecological polymers”, students in the third year of their BA programme and Ph.D. students within the Doctoral School of the Faculty of Physics. Summer schools are also organized for BA/MA students and researchers interested in these research fields.

Laboratories:

The air quality monitoring laboratory

The water quality monitoring laboratory in the Natura 200 protected area
Currently under ongoing facility services, as it is being equipped with equipment specific for the actuation of pollutants and for the monitoring of the waters in the neighbouring areas.

Renewable energies laboratory (project)
Equipping with the results and equipment of the research projects FC-Farm – Stationary energy sources with fuel cells for bio-organic agriculture in greenhouses; IPOIDEN – Hybrid installation for the purification of water through low pressure reverse osmosis and for the de-nitrification with biofuel cells of residual water;