Archaeological Materials Science

This course aims to provide students coming from a Humanities academic background (archaeology, Conservation, Art History) with the basic principles in Chemistry (including Biochemistry), Geology (Petrography and Mineralogy), Physics (Properties of the Matter, Electromagnetic Radiation) needed for them to understand the scientific methodologies and techniques used in archaeometry research field. Syllabus - Basic concepts of chemistry and biochemistry: Atoms and molecules; chemical nomenclature and states. Atomic Orbitals. Electronic configuration. Elements, compounds and mixtures: classification of matter. Chemical equilibria and bonding. Introduction to Periodic Table of elements. - Chemical reactions: Acid/base, Redox reactions. Introduction to chemical kinetics. Principles of organic chemistry. Proteins and Carbohydrates. Fermentation Processes.

No specific pre-requisetes are required.

Teaching materials, including handouts, thematic websites and scientific articles will be distributed in class and posted on a dedicated Moodle page.

Time schedule - 15 weeks/2 h per week - general concepts: 4 h - topics mentioned in the syllabus: 6 h - Laboratory of chemical techniques: 20 h

Attendance is mandatory

final examination: written assignments

Time schedule - 15 weeks/2 h per week - general concepts: 4 h - topics mentioned in the syllabus: 6 h - Laboratory of chemical techniques: 20 h