Ester Marotta graduated in Chemistry in 2000 at the University of Padova with full marks and laude. In 2004 she achieved the Ph.D. in Chemistry at the Department of Organic Chemistry of the University of Padova. For her Ph.D. thesis she received the prize “DSM-SCI 2004”. During her Ph.D. studies she spent a period at Purdue University in Lafayette (IN, USA), where she worked with Prof. R.G. Cooks, and in Bremen (Germany) at the research laboratories of Bruker Daltonics.

From March 2006 to June 2016 she was researcher and from June 2016 she is associate professor in Organic Chemistry at the Department of Chemical Sciences of the University of Padova.

She is author of seventyseven scientific publications on international journals, 3 book chapters, 1 patent and one patent application. She is and has been the principal investigator of various projects and contracts. She has organized two international conferences in Italy (CESPC-6, Bressanone 2015 and ISNTP-11, Montegrotto Terme 2018) and given 7 invited lectures at international conferences (ISPC24, Naples, Italy, 2019; 2016 MRS Fall Meeting & Exhibit, Boston, USA 2016; ISNTP-10, Florianopolis, Brasil, 2016; COST TD1208 2nd Annual Meeting, Barcelona 2015; ESCAMPIG 2012, Viana do Castelo, Portugal, 2012; III CESPC, Kiev, Ukraine, 2009; Massa 2004, Bari, Italy).

Her main research activity deals with the study of processes activated by non thermal plasma, with particular attention for the oxidative degradation mechanisms of organic pollutants in plasma generated in air or dissolved in water in contact with plasma. The research is based on kinetic studies, intermediates and products identification, carried out by mass spectrometry techniques, detection and quantification of the long and short-lived plasma reactive species, the possibility to investigate plasma produced by different sources, thanks to the collaboration with physicists and engineers of Padova University. Participation to COST Action TD1208 "Electrical Discharges with Liquids for Future Applications" (2013-2017) has given a big contribution to the development of this project and, through student exchanges, schools and conferences organization, has promoted collaborations with various international research groups. The most recent and promising application of these studies concerns PFAS degradation. Current studies aim at investigating the degradation mechanism of these compounds in water in contact with air and argon plasma. Prof. Marotta has investigated atmospheric plasma applications also to other processes and, in particular, dry reforming of methane and fruit juices decontamination. Plasma applications to agrifood is one of the new frontiers in the research on plasma and prof. Marotta is management committee member of COST Action CA19110 “Plasma applications for smart and sustainable agriculture" (2020 - 2024).

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