Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Structural energy harvesting composite materials (STEM)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Products and processes engineering
Panel description: Product and process design, chemical, civil, environmental, mechanical, vehicle engineering, energy processes and relevant computational methods
Countries involved: Spain
Call: ERC Starting Grant (ERC-2015-STG, 2015)
Start date: 2016-06-01
End date: 2021-05-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1448786.56
EU funding (EUR): 1448786.56
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The purpose of this project is the development of new multifunctional structural composite materials that combine high-performance mechanical properties and the possibility to harvest energy. The multifunctional composites are based on a continuous macroscopic fibre made up of highly aligned carbon nanotubes that has bulk mechanical, electrical and thermal properties already superior to carbon fibre and the mesoporosity and chemical resistance of an activated carbon; which will be combined with nanostructured semiconductors that can transfer charge/energy when subjected to external stimuli (piezoelectric, photovoltaic) and integrated in a polymer matrix to form composite ply structures. Such composites will be fabricated from bottom to top, resulting in a 3-component hierarchical structure. Load, charge and energy transfer processes at the nanocarbon/inorganic interface, for example, will be carefully controlled through tailoring the structure and optoelectronic properties of the two components during their synthesis, and by exploiting the role of the fibre surface to template the growth of inorganic semiconductors and form an electronic junction. The project comprises a detailed multiscale study of materials synthesis and properties, including in-situ spectroscopy, electron microscopy and synchrotron XRD during mechanical testing, junction characterisation (emission/absorption spectroscopy, impedance) and photocurrent measurements. The uniqueness of the proposal lies in exploiting advanced optoelectronic processes in macroscopic strong composites on a composite ply length-scale, in the quest for a new generation of light-weight multifunctional structural materials.

Keywords: energy harvesting
Comparing the Predictive Ability of Forecasting Models (Competing Forecasts)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Standard European Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Economic Sciences
Countries involved: Netherlands
Call: Individual Fellowships (H2020-MSCA-IF-2017, 2017)
Start date: 2018-09-01
End date: 2020-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 165598.8
EU funding (EUR): 165598.8
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Constructing accurate predictions on different macroeconomic variables is a key issue for any central bank and other policy making institutions. For example, obtaining accurate inflation forecasts is important for setting interest rates. These institutions typically rely on a set of models to construct their forecasts and the question that often arises is which of these models performs the best in terms of predictive ability. The purpose of this project is to show that, when strong identification on these models is lost (an issue that is prevalent in many models used for prediction), our inference based on standard tests, that compare these models' predictive accuracy, can be misleading. A policy maker could thus falsely conclude that a particular model outperforms some other models in her set of competing models. This project will answer thus the question of how to perform correct inference about predictions in the setting in which the models are affected by identification deficiencies. To this end, I propose methods that make the standard predictive ability tests robust to this issue, while appropriately accounting for the parameter estimation error. The asymptotic distribution of the statistic will be derived under loss of strong identification. Bootstrap inference will be developed in order to obtain correct critical values. Monte Carlo simulations will analyze the finite sample properties of bootstrap critical values. Empirical studies will illustrate the consequences of using a standard vs. a bootstrap critical value. Results emerging from this project, will be of interest to a large academic community, central banks and other governmental organizations - that could take-up the new knowledge for policy making, as well as businesses that produce predictions - that could improve their forecast evaluation methodologies.

Keywords: predictive ability assessment,identification,forecasting,robust inference
Theory, Computation and Application of Characteristics Modes (TECAM)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Standard European Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Information Science and Engineering
Countries involved: Sweden
Call: Individual Fellowships (H2020-MSCA-IF-2016, 2016)
Start date: 2018-03-26
End date: 2020-03-25
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 173857.2
EU funding (EUR): 173857.2
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

The proposal focuses on Theory of Characteristic Modes(TCM), a reasonably general methodology to systematically design and analyse arbitrary antennas in wireless communication systems by providing accurate physical insights of the working mechanism. With the rise of the diverse and complex requirements of modern antenna systems, the existing TCM is not sufficiently effective to handle critical design problems such as multi-scale vehicular antenna systems and large-scale massive MIMO base station arrays, which leads to an urgent need for further improvement of TCM. Firstly, for the theoretical aspect, with the help of volume integral equations and appropriate basis functions, characteristic modes(CMs) of inhomogeneous anisotropic dielectric bodies based on the method of moments will be extracted for the first time. The novel theory will be used to design practical antennas coated by the inhomogeneous anisotropic materials. Secondly, concerning CM computation, CMs are planned to be established on special non-uniform meshes through an effective Discontinuous Galerkin method. The novel strategy is fully dependent on the detailed features of the physical structure and scales of the target, which will lead to a wider range of targeted applications. Finally, for the application aspect, quasi-entire domain basis functions will be constructed based on specific CMs of an arbitrary antenna element in the array to enhance the efficiency of electromagnetic computation for extremely large-scale periodic arrays without loss of accuracy. Through the strict execution of the jointly conceived career development plan, the fellow's competencies will be enhanced in all aspects during the project, including leadership and cooperation skills, teaching and supervisory skills, professional network development as well as professional skills in scientific research. Additionally, mutually beneficial long-term collaborations will be developed and established between the host and the fellow.

Keywords: theory of characteristic modes,antenna design and analysis,computational electromagnetics,anisotropic material,multi scale system,large scale array
Correlating the 3D atomic structure of metal anisotropic nanoparticles with their optical properties (SOPMEN)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Standard European Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Physics
Countries involved: Belgium
Call: Individual Fellowships (H2020-MSCA-IF-2017, 2017)
Start date: 2018-06-01
End date: 2020-05-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 160800.0
EU funding (EUR): 160800.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Metal nanoparticles (NPs) are intriguing systems due to their efficient interactions with light stemming from localized surface plasmon resonances (LSPRs), a phenomenon which is exploited in many applications in fields ranging from physics to biology and medicine. In particular, anisotropic shapes are interesting because of strong electromagnetic field enhancements at corners and tips. Next to monometallic NPs, bimetallic NPs offer an additional way of tuning the functionality and plasmon resonance and are advantageous for applications such as photocatalysis. Understanding the delicate interplay between particle morphology, composition and optical properties is of utmost importance in optimizing particle design for the desired applications. While optical properties of metal NPs have been related to structure by using surface imaging techniques like scanning electron microscopy (SEM), a complete connection to the atomically resolved 3D structure has never been accomplished. Here, I propose to investigate the correlation of the full atomic morphology (including composition) and optical properties of (bi)metallic NPs by single-particle optical experiments and electron microscopy techniques such as atomically resolved electron tomography. I will furthermore study the correspondence and differences between electronically-excited and optically-excited plasmon modes. The key aspect of the proposed research is that the correlated measurements will be performed, for the first time, on the same particle allowing for a full understanding of how the morphology and composition of a metal NP is related to its optical properties.

Keywords: anisotropic metal nanoparticles,bimetallic metal nanoparticles,optical properties,atomic resolution electron tomography,eels
From Timbre Perception to the Creative Exploration of Musical Instrument Sound Morphing (MORPH)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Global Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Information Science and Engineering
Countries involved: France,Canada
Call: Individual Fellowships (H2020-MSCA-IF-2018, 2018)
Start date: 2020-10-01
End date: 2023-09-30
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 244385.28
EU funding (EUR): 244385.28
Participants: 2
Project status: SIGNED

Sound morphing has the potential to provide critical new insight into our understanding of timbre perception, and to deliver innovative virtual hybrid musical instruments for the creative exploration of the sonic gap which exists between traditional musical instrument sounds. Timbre, a highly complex perceptual phenomenon traditionally associated with musical instruments, is considered one of the last frontiers of auditory science. Sound morphing holds enormous promise for the investigation of timbre perception because it can gradually blur the categorical distinction between sounds by blending their sensory attributes. In this groundbreaking multidisciplinary project that fuses signal processing, experimental psychology, and music technology, I propose to use sound morphing to create continuous timbre spaces by filling the gaps between traditional musical instruments and therefore breaking the categorical perception of musical instrument timbre by the auditory illusion of hybrid musical instruments. This radically novel approach will integrate a touch user interface to enable the creative exploration of sound morphing with original virtual hybrid musical instruments that push the creative boundaries of musical expression by moving beyond the physical limitations of acoustic musical instruments and the traditional digital musical instruments that rely on them. The impact of this project will be felt across three prominent, complementary research domains, namely: signal processing; timbre perception; and musical interaction. First, this project will advance music signal processing by developing new modeling techniques specifically tailored for musical instrument sounds. Second, it will provide powerful analysis tools to further our understanding of musical timbre perception. Finally, the project aims to revolutionize musical expression by fostering new musical results through the creative exploration of continuous timbre spaces and hybrid musical instrument sounds.

Keywords: musical instruments,musical timbre,timbre perception,musical interaction
Penetrating microjets in soft substrates: towards controlled needle-free injections (BuBble Gun)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Products and processes engineering
Panel description: Product and process design, chemical, civil, environmental, mechanical, vehicle engineering, energy processes and relevant computational methods
Countries involved: Netherlands
Call: ERC Starting Grant (ERC-2019-STG, 2019)
Start date: 2020-01-01
End date: 2024-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1500000.0
EU funding (EUR): 1500000.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

The needle-free delivery of liquid jets into soft and heterogeneous substrates, e.g. human tissue, has been hindered by (1) the need to reach specific penetration depths with energy efficient means, (2) the break-up of jets that impedes control over the dose delivery, and (3) liquid splash-back after impacting the substrate that cause cross-contamination between injections. BuBble Gun is aimed at overcoming these challenges. My team and I have recently uncovered new operational regimes of cavitation with continuous-wave lasers. My next goal is to study the energy partition between the creation of bubbles, the formation of liquid jets, and the penetration of these jets into soft substrates. Fundamental insights on energy partitioning will then be applied to achieve major breakthroughs in jet injection, by (1) controlling cavitation within microfluidic confinement, (2) tuning the rheology of jets emerging from confined cavitation, and (3) deriving the relationships between fluid dynamics and material properties governing jet injection into soft substrates. I expect to advance the knowledge at the intersection of microfluidics, physics, and bioengineering, to enable unprecedented control over cavitation, jetting, and injection phenomena. We will develop a portable energy- efficient injection platform by using ultra-high-speed imaging, and quantifying injections with experimental resolutions below the microsecond and micrometer scales. The rheological properties of the jets will be tuned with biocompatible additives to ensure cohesion, before injecting them into in-vitro targets and ex-vivo skin. Numerical models will assist untangling the influence of microfluidic configuration and material properties on the injection outcomes. The ultimate result will be the predictable, reproducible, and efficient injection of liquids that will enable a wide-range of technologies, such as additive manufacturing, coating modifications, the delivery of drugs and vaccinations.

Keywords: microfluidics,bubble,cavitation,rheology,needle free transdermal delivery,drop impact,splashing,reynolds number,weber number,ohnesorge number,viscoelasticity,biodegradable polymers,skin surrogates,ex vivo skin,vaccinations,jet break up,jet splash back,permanent make up,medical tattooing,continous wave lasers,thermocavitation
Nest building in birds: cognitive, neural and molecular basis of an overlooked behaviour (NEURONESt)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie-Sklodowska-Curie Actions
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Individual Fellowships (IF)-Standard European Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Environment and Geosciences
Countries involved: United Kingdom
Call: Individual Fellowships (H2020-MSCA-IF-2020, 2020)
Start date: 2021-09-13
End date: 2023-09-12
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 212933.76
EU funding (EUR): 212933.76
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Bird nests may be the most familiar of the animal-made objects, but still we don't know much about how birds actually make them. Using zebra finches as a model system, Healy and Meddle have overturned the folk wisdom that bird nests are the results of an instinctive behaviour, showing that birds learn about the physical nature of the world when building. Using the immediate early gene (IEG) c-Fos, a marker of neuronal activity, they have also begun to identify the key neuronal structures active during nest building (NB), including among others the cerebellum (CB). Interestingly, across bird species, as the complexity of the nest increases so does the degree of folding of the CB, a brain region traditionally associated with motor control, but more recently with cognition. In the first part of the project, I will thus test whether this reported pattern of cerebellar activation relates to cognitive aspects of NB (such as planning or problem solving) and/or to a purely manipulative component. In addition of being a building activity, NB is also a key behaviour for birds' reproduction and fitness. Interestingly, most of the brain areas involved during NB are sex-steroid sensitive. I will thus determine in a second experiment whether and how sex hormones play a role in NB, as they do for so many other behaviours. To do this I will test the involvement of sex steroids, their receptors and traditional effectors in NB, using a combination of molecular biology, IEG studies and experimental manipulation of sex hormone levels. This work will lead to the first major synthesis of the cognitive, neurobiological and molecular mechanisms underlying NB by birds. It will also provide significant insights into the neural bases of other building behaviours, such as tool manufacture, and will open new avenues of research about the role(s) environmental pollutants acting as endocrine disruptors play on brain functioning, and how they interfere with birds’ reproduction and fitness.

Keywords: nest building,birds,physical cognition,neuroethology,neuroendocrinology,cerebellum,cognition,sex steroids
Novel inland waterway transport concepts for moving freight effectively (NOVIMOVE)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Societal Challenges
Programme: Smart, green and integrated transport
Action type: Research and Innovation actions
Countries involved: Germany,Belgium,Norway,Switzerland,Belgium,Norway,Sweden,Netherlands,Netherlands,Netherlands,Netherlands,Netherlands,Netherlands,Netherlands
Call: Moving freight by Water: Sustainable Infrastructure and Innovative Vessels (H2020-MG-2019-TwoStages, 2019)
Start date: 2020-06-01
End date: 2024-05-31
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 8916378.75
EU funding (EUR): 8916378.75
Participants: 21
Project status: SIGNED

Inland Waterborne Transport (IWT) advantages as low-energy and low CO2 emitting transport mode are not fully exploited today due to gaps in the logistics system. Inland container vessels pay 6-8 calls at seaport terminals with long waiting times. More time is lost by sub-optimal navigation on rivers and waiting at bridges and locks. In addition, low load factors of containers and vessels impact the logistics systems with unnecessary high numbers of containers being transported and trips being made. NOVIMOVE strategy is to “condense” the logistics system by improving container load factors and by reducing waiting times in seaports, by improved river voyage planning and execution, and by facilitating smooth passages through bridges and locks. NOVIMOVE’s innovations are: (1) cargo reconstruction to raise container load factors, (2) mobile terminals feeding inland barges, (3) smart river navigation by merging satellite (Galileo) and real time river water depths data, (4) smooth passage through bridges/locks by dynamic scheduling system for better corridor management along the TEN-T Rhine-Alpine (R-A) route, (5) concepts for innovative vessels that can adapt to low water condition while maintaining a full payload, and (6) close cooperation with logistic stakeholders, ports and water authorities along the R-A route: Antwerp, Rotterdam, Duisburg, Basel. NOVIMOVE technology developments will be demonstrated by virtual simulation, scaled model tests and full-scale demonstrations. NOVIMOVE innovations will impact the quantity of freight moved by IWT along the R-A corridor by 30% with respect to 2010 baseline data. The NOVIMOVE 21-members consortium combines logistics operators, ports, system-developers and research organisations from 4 EU member states and two associate countries. The work plan contains 4 technical Work Packages. The project duration is four years; the requested funding is 8,9 MIO.

Keywords: logistics system,port feeder,vessel train,cross docking,smart bridge,locks scheduling,galileo,real time river data,smart innovative vessels,system resilience
Fast Data Acquisition and Servo Technologies (ServoTec)

Framework: Horizon 2020 — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Proof of concept grants
Action type: ERC actions
Countries involved: Spain
Call: ERC Proof of Concept Grant (ERC-2014-PoC, 2014)
Start date: 2015-05-01
End date: 2016-10-31
Duration (months): 18.0
Total project cost (EUR): 149897.5
EU funding (EUR): 149897.5
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Fast data acquisition devices and servo technologies are essential in multiple processes that require a fast response to a sensor input. They are present in multiple automatic procedures for the accurate functioning of trains, planes, and robotic systems either for domestic or industrial activities. As a result of the research performed in the SM-DNA-Repair project (ERC-206117), we have developed a fully digital acquisition board superior in most specifications to current technology because it combines, in a single board, high speed, high channels count, easy integration and development, and is cost effective. The new board has already been validated in a relevant Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) environment (TRL5, Technology Readiness Level 5), being able to reproduce results obtained with analogue devices. Now, I aim to turn the output of the SM-DNA-Repair project into a commercial proposition by exploring the commercial potential of the device and by eventually attract capital for its further development. The ServoTec Proof of Concept project aims are three-fold. First, to perform a market feasibility study of the fast digital servo board developed, in order to exploit the technology integrated into AFM commercial systems for high-speed applications. Second, to make commercially available the technology and to explore other added-value services for wide range applications and customised solutions. Third, to establish the IP position strategy, including the possibility to license the technology to a company that already commercialises data acquisition boards for the general market. These three commercialisation formats will address a global market. Exploratory work regarding competitive analysis, IPR position and strategy and contacts with the industrial sector has been already initiated. The commercial exploitation route, to be defined along the project, will be either through a spin-off or SME, through patent license or agreement for technology exploitation.

Keywords: atomic force microscopy,digital signal processing,data acquisition board,servo technology