National Institute of Chemistry is a public non-profit research organization, which is committed to the acquirement of a new knowledge. Science of the Institute excels in the field of theoretical and structural chemistry, materials science, biochemistry and biotechnology, analytical chemistry and environment as well as chemical engineering. Research topics of the Institute are particularly relevant for pharmaceutical, chemical, food and rubber industries. Topics that attract many researchers are healthcare, food, novel materials and alternative sources of energy.New chemical processes and related products, which have been developed in basic research laboratories and which are of industrial or commercial interest are further investigated in the process laboratory. Its main aim is to study scale-up methods for critical steps of chemical reaction and separation processes, and to prepare the engineering data needed for process design on an industrial scale. Critical process steps, including multi-phase reactions at elevated temperatures and pressures and difficult multi-component separations, are most often studied and developed in this Laboratory. The data needed for mass and energy balances, the optimisation of process conditions, the elaboration of flow charts and control instrumentation diagrams, safety measures, waste minimisation and effluent treatment are the main activities in process development.

Primary activities of the Institute are basic and applied research, training and education of students as well as activities connected to the industry. Research and development activities at the Institute are organised within 14 laboratories and six centres. The Quality Assurance System plays an important role in supervising the quality of work at the Institute.

Through the years of Institute's operation, it maintains a close connection to faculties of both Slovenian Universities. The Institute is actively engaged in education of young researchers, with numerous diplomas, master and Ph.D. thesis carried out at the Institute.

Considerable share of funds for applied research and development work is obtained through joint programmes with industry and other organisations. In co-operation with Slovenian pharmaceutical, chemical and related industry, more than 50 projects are currently underway and contribute to 20-25 % of the Institutes budget. The Institute has 180 employees: 150 of them are working in research and more than 80 have PhDs.

• Ljudmila Fele Zilnik, Research Fellow, basic and applied research in chemical engineering,
• Dr Viktor Grilc, Head of the Department, basic and applied research in chemical engineering