Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Tuning electronic surface properties by molecular patterning (SURFPRO)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Physical and Analytical Chemical sciences
Countries involved: Netherlands
Call:  (ERC-2012-StG_20111012, 2012)
Start date: 2013-01-01
End date: 2017-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1486061.0
EU funding (EUR): 1486061.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Inspired by the possibility to create an artificial electronic band structure through the interplay of a molecular nanoporous network with the surface state electrons of a metallic substrate (recently reported by us), the utilization of this new concept for controlling the electronic surface properties of a material as well as establishing understanding of the underlying principles for the observed behavior is the overall aim of this project. The modification of the electronic surface properties also affects the material properties in general, such as conductivity, surface catalysis properties and reflectivity. Thus, the proposed concept has great potential for materials research and will ultimately result in the development of new materials with adjustable electronic properties. Such materials will find applications in e. g. (nano)electronic devices or sensors. The plan is to make use of supramolecular self-assembly and such, to fabricate nanoporous networks from specially designed molecular building blocks on either metallic substrates having a surface state or graphene. Since both the metallic substrates and graphene feature a quasi free 2D electron gas it is assumed that quantum confinement will appear in the pores of the network leading to confined states. Due to the coupling of these confined states, an artificial electronic band structure is expected to form. Moreover, in the case of graphene the opening of a band gap is expected to occur which is a prerequisite for the implementation of graphene in electronic devices. With the help of scanning tunneling microscopy and photoelectron spectroscopy measurements the confinement properties of different nanoporous networks will be studied with respect to pore to pore distance, pore diameter, effect of the interplay between intermolecular and molecule substrate interactions, effect of trapping guest molecules in the pores and coupling strength between graphene and its support layer.

Keywords: scanning tunneling microscopy,self-assembly,electronic confinement,photoelectron spectroscopy
Corrosion protection of Aluminium unpainted parts: development of an appropriated Cr free sealing process on thin SAA layer (≤5 µm) (SAA-SEAL)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Joint Technology Initiatives (Annex IV-SP1)
Theme: Public-private partnerships
Destination: Clean Sky
Action type: Article 171 of the Treaty
Partnership: CLEAN-SKY (Art-185)
Countries involved: Austria
Call:  (SP1-JTI-CS-2011-03, 2011)
Start date: 2012-05-01
End date: 2014-04-30
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 239981.2
EU funding (EUR): 179985.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Corrosion of Al has to be counteracted by first anodizing the Al parts and applying further protective coatings. During anodizing, Al reacts with the electrolyte and a layer of aluminium oxide is formed, which is highly porous and is subject to corrosive attack. Therefore, anodized Al is normally further processed with a sealing as a final step. Sealed SAA industrial processes providing thicker layers (~10 µm) are already in the market, but the missing step is to develop a well-suited process for thin layers (≤ 5 µm) that meets the corrosion resistance requirements. Hot water sealing is one of the widely used methods. However in order to close (seal) the pores in the anodized layer for corrosion protection a process involving boiling water containing chromate is still commonly used. Cr(VI)-based sealing solutions have been used for several decades, but remain one of the most effective and commonly-used methods to improve corrosion resistance of anodized Al. Alternative sealing methods have also been proposed, e.g. with Ni(II), Co(II), Ni(II) + Co(II), rare earth salts, alkali metal fluorides, alkanolamine phosphonates, Cr(III), fatty acids, silicates, etc. It should be noted that Ni(II), Co(II) and fluorides are not without health implications, whereas most organic molecules would be expected to have limited lifetimes under the extreme conditions (UV radiation, low pressure, large temperature range) experience by commercial aircraft during operation. Therefore, of the previously identified approaches Cr(III)-containing or silicate-forming sealing solutions are preferred options. Encouraging results were obtained with deposition of films of CeO2x2 H2O, though the performance still does not equal those of CCC. Characterization with methods such as SEM, EIS, AFM-SECM will lead to more detailed understanding of sealing and corrosion mechanisms and therefore optimizing sealing parameters with respect to corrosion resistance and minimized energy consumption.

Keywords: cr(vi) free sealing,saa,thin layer,anodization
Visual Learning and Inference in Joint Scene Models (VISLIM)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Computer science and informatics
Countries involved: Germany
Call:  (ERC-2012-StG_20111012, 2012)
Start date: 2013-06-01
End date: 2018-05-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1374030.0
EU funding (EUR): 1374030.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

One of the principal difficulties in processing, analyzing, and interpreting digital images is that many attributes of visual scenes relate in complex manners. Despite that, the vast majority of today's top-performing computer vision approaches estimate a particular attribute (e.g., motion, scene segmentation, restored image, object presence, etc.) in isolation; other pertinent attributes are either ignored or crudely pre-computed by ignoring any mutual relation. But since estimating a singular attribute of a visual scene from images is often highly ambiguous, there is substantial potential benefit in estimating several attributes jointly. The goal of this project is to develop the foundations of modeling, learning and inference in rich, joint representations of visual scenes that naturally encompass several of the pertinent scene attributes. Importantly, this goes beyond combining multiple cues, but rather aims at modeling and inferring multiple scene attributes jointly to take advantage of their interplay and their mutual reinforcement, ultimately working toward a full(er) understanding of visual scenes. While the basic idea of using joint representations of visual scenes has a long history, it has only rarely come to fruition. VISLIM aims to significantly push the current state of the art by developing a more general and versatile toolbox for joint scene modeling that addresses heterogeneous visual representations (discrete and continuous, dense and sparse) as well as a wide range of levels of abstractions (from the pixel level to high-level abstractions). This is expected to lead joint scene models beyond conceptual appeal to practical impact and top-level application performance. No other endeavor in computer vision has attempted to develop a similarly broad foundation for joint scene modeling. In doing so we aim to move closer to image understanding, with significant potential impact in other disciplines of science, technology and humanities.

Keywords: computer vision,visual learning,joint scene models,scene understanding,motion estimation,segmentation,machine learning,graphical models,structured learning,probabilistic inference
Fast and Sound Cryptography: From Theoretical Foundations to Practical Constructions (FSC)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Computer science and informatics
Countries involved: Israel,Germany,Germany
Call:  (ERC-2012-StG_20111012, 2012)
Start date: 2012-10-01
End date: 2017-09-30
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1498214.4
EU funding (EUR): 1498214.4
Participants: 3
Project status: CLOSED

Much currently deployed cryptography is designed using more “art'” than “science,” and most of the schemes used in practice lack rigorous justification for their security. While theoretically sound designs do exist, they tend to be quite a bit slower to run and hence are not realistic from a practical point of view. This gap is especially evident in “low-level” cryptographic primitives, which are the building blocks that ultimately process the largest quantities of data. Recent years have witnessed dramatic progress in the understanding of highly-parallelizable (local) cryptography, and in the construction of schemes based on the mathematics of geometric objects called lattices. Besides being based on firm theoretical foundations, these schemes also allow for very efficient implementations, especially on modern microprocessors. Yet despite all this recent progress, there has not yet been a major effort specifically focused on bringing the efficiency of such constructions as close as possible to practicality; this project will do exactly that. The main goal of the Fast and Sound Cryptography project is to develop new tools and techniques that would lead to practical and theoretically sound implementations of cryptographic primitives. We plan to draw ideas from both theory and practice, and expect their combination to generate new questions, conjectures, and insights. A considerable fraction of our efforts will be devoted to demonstrating the efficiency of our constructions. This will be achieved by a concrete setting of parameters, allowing for cryptanalysis and direct performance comparison to popular designs. While our initial focus will be on low-level primitives, we expect our research to also have direct impact on the practical efficiency of higher-level cryptographic tasks. Indeed, many of the recent improvements in the efficiency of lattice-based public-key cryptography can be traced back to research on the efficiency of lattice-based hash functions.

Keywords: symmetric-key,public-key,lattice,local function,small-bias,hash function,pseudorandom function,block cipher,one-way function,pseudorandom generator
Seismology in the ionosphere? This is REAL! Ionosphere as a natural indicator of numerous geophysical events (SIREAL)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Earth system science
Countries involved: France
Call:  (ERC-2012-StG_20111012, 2012)
Start date: 2012-10-01
End date: 2018-06-30
Duration (months): 69.0
Total project cost (EUR): 858000.0
EU funding (EUR): 858000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

We propose to perform a wide spectrum of ionosphere-related research, from ionosphere seismology to ionospheric storms and GNSS/GPS performance during extreme ionospheric and space weather events. The main focus will be made on such rare subject as ionosphere seismology that aims to study ionosphere response to large earthquakes, to investigate the main properties of different kinds of ionospheric disturbances occurred due to seismic and seismic-like events, including tsunamis, volcano eruptions and explosions. The 11/03/2011 Tohoku megaquake has opened new challenges for modeling of co-seismic effects and has indicated new directions for further research. In particular, we found that the ionosphere is able of showing images of a seismic fault slip rupturing about ~8 minutes after an earthquake, which opens new opportunities for short-time tsunami warnings. In addition to the ionosphere seismology, the project includes fundamental multi-instrumental studies of the global dynamics of the ionosphere under geomagnetically disturbed and quiet conditions. Great attention will be paid on investigation of features of traveling ionospheric disturbances and on the ionosphere behavior during variations of interplanetary parameters such as magnetic field (IMF) and electric field (IEF). The latter is directly connected to the last subject of our proposal - solar- and ionosphere-induced GPS -failures. The main advantages for Europe coming with this project are: 1) a highly interdisciplinary project on a sufficiently new branch of the science and with rare applications; 2) extension of the fundamental ionosphere studies in Europe that will increase the competitiveness of Europe among other world-famous research schools on the Earth’s ionosphere; 3) the results of our work on GNSS operation quality will be useful for the future Galileo mission as well, and would help to improve the system.

Keywords: ionosphere seismology,coseismic ionospheric disturbances,gps,earthquakes and tsunamis in the ionosphere,modeling,ionosphere,geomagnetic storms,mstids,gnss quality
Light-controlled and Light-driven Molecular Action (LIGHT4FUNCTION)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Materials and Synthesis
Countries involved: Germany
Call:  (ERC-2012-StG_20111012, 2012)
Start date: 2013-01-01
End date: 2017-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1494000.0
EU funding (EUR): 1494000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Important processes carried out by Nature’s machinery rely on proper regulation mechanisms. To achieve such control over various functions in man-made materials and devices light offers a superior advantage as an external stimulus and beyond as energy source. Photoswitchable entities provide an ideal platform to interface light with matter and therefore the proposed research program “Light 4 Function” aims at designing and developing new functional photochromic systems. Building on the PI’s previous achievements and expertise, this broad program will be developing photochromic systems in four project areas for: i) light-gated ligation, i.e. photocontrolling reversible attachment to complementary molecules, (bio)scaffolds, and surfaces to construct “smart” tags; ii) light-controlled catalysis, i.e. phototuning the activity and selectivity in living polymerization processes to obtain remote-controlled catalysts; iii) light-gated charge transport, i.e. photocontrolling current flow in single molecular junctions as well as in thin film organic transistors to create photoadressable organic devices; iv) light-driven molecular motion, i.e. photoswitching macromolecules to generate maximum geometry changes in order to create sensitive optomechanic materials and devices. The four project areas will be supported by efforts to further develop and optimize the utilized azobenzene and diarylethene photochromic components. The photochromic systems will be designed such that they allow for optimal control over the chosen physico-chemical processes by light. Therefore, photons will be exploited to stimulate and drive molecular “action” at specific locations and/or at defined times. This superior control will enable complicated molecular processes to be orchestrated with the “flip of a light switch” and should lead to the development of light-responsive “smart” tags, catalysts, materials, and devices.

Keywords: supramolecular and macromolecular chemistry,organic synthesis,photochromism,azobenzenes,diarylethenes,catalysis,polymerization,charge transport,actuation,self-assembly
Advanced Low Noise Landing (Main and Nose) Gear For Regional Aircraft (ALLEGRA)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Joint Technology Initiatives (Annex IV-SP1)
Theme: Public-private partnerships
Destination: Clean Sky
Action type: Article 171 of the Treaty
Partnership: CLEAN-SKY (Art-185)
Countries involved: Ireland,Sweden,Italy,Italy
Call:  (SP1-JTI-CS-2011-03, 2011)
Start date: 2013-01-01
End date: 2015-05-31
Duration (months): 29.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1970955.47
EU funding (EUR): 1339466.2
Participants: 6
Project status: CLOSED

Aviation has delivered immense social and economic benefits to mankind. In Europe, turnover in the aeronautics sector exceeded €65 billion in 1999 and 400,000 people are directly employed in the industry. In response to our environmental responsibilities, the Advisory Council for Aeronautics Research in Europe (ACARE) has set strict objectives regarding noise reduction, fuel efficiency and emissions reduction. In parallel, EU directives have been put in place to control these parameters. If the EU aeronautics sector cannot meet these challenges, market share will be lost to US manufacturers. The outputs of ALLEGRA will result in pragmatic, validated solutions which will reduce noise, emissions and improve fuel consumption. These solutions will be developed in conjunction with an EU aircraft manufacturer (Alenia) to ensure feasibility and to reduce time to implementation. During landing approach, when engines are operating at low thrust, the noise of the airframe contributes strongly to the overall noise signature of modern aircraft. Airframe noise is generated by airflow around components of the aircraft. The main sources of airframe noise are therefore the high drag elements such as landing gears and also the high lift devices on the wings. For larger aircraft, it is the landing gear noise that dominates. This project will therefore focus on the design and test of Main and Nose Landing Gear noise reduction concepts. ALLEGRA has put together a consortium which comprises of a well known aeroacoustic wind tunnel company and some SME’s from around Europe with specific competence on landing gear design, manufacturing and structural analysis. In addition two of the EU’s most distinguished universities will take the lead in computational aeroacoustics, noise measurements and data analysis. All partners have participated and delivered in EU projects, in some cases extensively including coordination.

Keywords: main landing gear,nose landing gear,regional aircraft,aeroacoustic,wind tunnel tests,low noise,fairings
Morphing Locally and Globally Structures with Multiscale Intelligence by Mimicking Nature (MORPHOSIS)

Framework: FP7 — Ideas
Programme: European Research Council
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: Support for frontier research (ERC)
Panel: Products and process engineering
Countries involved: Italy
Call:  (ERC-2012-StG_20111012, 2012)
Start date: 2013-01-01
End date: 2018-12-31
Duration (months): 72.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1664600.0
EU funding (EUR): 1664600.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The objective of the proposed research is to engineer novel multifunctional morphing materials drawing inspiration from biological systems that are known to possess distributed sensing capabilities which in turn guide their local and global morphing. This will be achieved through the development of novel multi-scale technologies (nano- to macro) and materials that, once integrated, will allow distributed local/global sensing and morphing capabilities that can be exploited for structural as well as for eminently flexible applications. The distributed local/global morphing and sensing will be delivered by fabricating at the microscale a non-invasive, light-weight, flexible and highly expandable active network with enhanced actuation capabilities and a neurological sensor network. The networks are then expanded to the macro-scale prior being integrated in a flexible material or in an innovative multi-stable shape memory carbon-fiber composite. The sensor network has to monitor environmental and loading conditions. These data are then used to control the deformation of the active network which can deliver local (roughness changes as in dolphins skin for instance for drag reduction) or global morphing (e.g. for deformable textiles as in insect wings) in flexible materials. The multi-stable carbon-fiber composite can be used in conjunction with these two functions so as to achieve advanced morphing in structural applications (e.g., birds wings vs. aircrafts wings). The composite, with a shape memory resin as hosting matrix, due to its rigidity and sensitivity to temperature variations, can snap from one configuration to the other. The speed of the purposefully-introduced snapping-through process will be tuned with the help of the integrated active network. This research has the potential to pave the way toward the development of new multidisciplinary research fields and could revolutionarize the design and production of future structures in a variety of fields.

Keywords: morphing,sensor network,smart materials,multifunctional structures,multifunctional materials,adaptive structures
Zero-impact innovative technology in forest plant production (ZEPHYR)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Environment (including Climate Change)
Destination: Improving resource efficiency
Action type: Collaborative project
Countries involved: Italy,Greece,France,Germany,Sweden,Sweden,Italy,Spain,United Kingdom,Finland,Belgium,Portugal
Call:  (FP7-ENV-2012-two-stage, 2012)
Start date: 2012-10-01
End date: 2015-11-30
Duration (months): 38.0
Total project cost (EUR): 4284275.0
EU funding (EUR): 3438252.0
Participants: 14
Project status: CLOSED

The UN General Assembly has proclaimed 2011 as the International Year of Forests, since they play a crucial role in regulating the global climate and are also a vital resource for many countries By the European side, the Commission Green Paper “On forest protection and information in the EU: preparing forests for climate change” [COM(2010)66] underlines that forests serve multiple and interrelated social, economic and environmental functions, often at the same time and place”; forests are one of the main natural resources in the world. Zephyr aims to introduce an innovative technology build on pre-cultivation of forest regeneration materials in a zero-impact and cost friendly production unit, not affected by outdoor climate and with LED lights providing an optimal spectrum for the photosynthesis. Light intensity, photo-period and further parameters will be automatically regulated by a control system that receives data from several sensors, while the energy will be provided by solar panels The project will integrate these technologies into a functional system for large scale production of pre-cultivated forest regeneration materials adapted to transplanting and further growth at forest nurseries all over Europe The new integrated technology will make a drastic change to state-of-the-art in forest nursery production for reforestation purposes: apart from being more resource-efficient, it will also contribute to the environmental protection through: biodiversity defending, water recycling, strong reduction of fertilizers and avoidance of pesticides. Moreover, it will allow a CERTIFIED and STANDARDISED production of reforestation materials, with a noticeable increasing of the efficiency of the reforestation operations. Zephyr will focus on the interplay between several different innovative technologies, models and procedures. The exploitation of the results will strongly improve the competitiveness of the participating SMEs

Keywords: forest,natural resources,zero impact,efficiency,biodiversity,led lamps,wireless sensors,solar panels,reforestation,robotics.