Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Self-contracting vascular networks: From fluid transport to autonomous locomotion of soft materials (Self-Flow)

Framework: Horizon Europe — 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: France
Call: ERC STARTING GRANTS (ERC-2023-STG, 2023)
Start date: 2023-11-01
End date: 2028-10-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1499179.0
EU funding (EUR): 1499179.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Liquid flows in vascular networks are among the most effective ways to transport matter and information for life. Artificial vascular networks have mimicked this strategy without reproducing the same level of autonomy and adaptability. From animals to fungi, the most adaptable organisms control fluid transport with vessels that actively contract upon local sensing of stimuli. This adaptative fluid transport enables functionalities in organisms such as autonomous locomotion toward objectives. How are the orientation and rate of fluid flows controlled by self-contractions? How do these self-contracting networks tailor autonomous functionalities? So far, we do not know. Studies on organisms are limited to observations and lack the systematical characterizations required to apply these observations to artificial materials. Self-Flow hypothesizes that artificial vascular networks containing distributed sensors and actuators can decipher how self-contractions enable adaptable fluid transport. From there, materials containing self-contracting artificial vascular networks will enable systematical studies on the emergence of autonomous functionalities. With this experimental asset reinforced by theoretical and numerical models, my group and I will address the following questions: • Q1 DELIVER: How do self-contractions transport fluids across networks? • Q2 ADAPT: How do self-contractions autonomously adapt to the need of the network? • Q3 BEHAVE: How do self-contractions enable living matter functionalities? Self-Flow will combine active matter and mechanistic approaches to model fluid transport in self-contracting vascular networks. I will use these results to design active vascularized materials that use fluid transfer to autonomously locomote towards objectives and exchange information with their pairs. This will open the way to autonomous robots that can change shape, split or recombine like soft materials and develop functionalities beyond locomotion.

Keywords: mechanics of active materials,fluid structure interactions,soft matter,bio inspiration
Geothermal Source Thermal Energy for Cooling and Heating in Industries with Steam (GeoS-TECHIS)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness
Programme: Climate, Energy and Mobility
Theme: Energy
Destination: Sustainable, secure and competitive energy supply
Action type: Research and Innovation actions
Countries involved: Italy,Spain,Norway,Germany,Slovenia,Luxembourg
Call: Innovative applications/integration of geothermal heating and cooling in industry (HORIZON-CL5-2024-D3-01, 2024)
Start date: 2024-10-01
End date: 2027-09-30
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 3020432.5
EU funding (EUR): 3020432.5
Participants: 11
Project status: SIGNED

The GeoS-TECHIS project targets the decarbonization of industrial thermal processes, which currently account for approximately 20% of global energy consumption and predominantly depend on fossil fuels. The project introduces an innovative thermal system, combining a high temperature heat pump and a heat-driven cooling unit, which leverages geothermal resources as heat source, sink and storage. GeoS-TECHIS focuses on industries with sub-200 °C process heating needs and modest cooling requirements above 0 °C, aiming to reduce their carbon footprint by 60 - 75% compared to current fossil fuel-dependent solutions. The project will achieve these goals through several key initiatives: • Developing and field-testing an advanced thermal system using water (R718) as the working medium, designed for versatility across industrial applications and efficiently utilizing geothermal sources, industrial excess heat, and renewables like solar thermal. • Exploring cutting-edge concepts for high-temperature thermal energy storage (TES), focusing on operational flexibility in industrial contexts with sustainable thermal fluids. • Devising hybrid digital modelling tools to optimize industrial thermal processes and guide industries in decarbonization through tailored roadmaps. • Promoting societal and environmental acceptance through safe operational practices, comprehensive impact assessments, and advanced methodologies for geothermal energy potential mapping. GeoS TECHIS involves 10 partners and 1 affiliated: four private industry and technology providers, two universities, four research organizations and a specialised Communication and exploitation SME all committed and experienced within thermal research, innovation, manufacturing, testing and dissemination, thus a full complementary partnership for promoting the binomial geothermal energy & industry as a key pillar.

Keywords: decarbonization,geothermal heat,high temperature heat pumps,ejector refrigeration,natural refrigerants,thermal energy storage,digitalization,environmental assessment,energy efficiency
Cold antiProtons for Better Antimatter Research (ColdPbar)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Physics
Countries involved: Switzerland
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2022 (HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01, 2022)
Start date: 2023-09-01
End date: 2025-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 210789.12
EU funding (EUR): 210789.12
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

The matter-antimatter asymmetry is a major unsolved problem in physics: Why do we live in a universe dominated by matter although physics tells us that equal amounts of matter and antimatter have been created at the Big Bang? The AEgIS project at CERN studies this problem by measurements of antihydrogen. Just last year, AEgIS achieved the pulsed formation of antihydrogen and enters now a new era of antimatter research, measuring the gravitational acceleration of antihydrogen and forming new, more complex antiprotonic atoms for spectroscopic investigation. However, the sensitivity of these measurements is limited by the thermal motion of antiprotons, in the case of pulsed formation of a neutral antihydrogen beam. The antiproton temperature could be lowered drastically by thermalization with laser-cooled ions. Laser-cooling, however, has never been realized with negative ions, as needed for cooling antiprotons, because almost no atomic anions do have strong optical transitions suitable for laser cooling. The goal of this project is to demonstrate laser cooling of the diatomic carbon anion – making it the first negative ion and the first molecular ion to be laser cooled. To reach this challenging goal, we will use an interdisciplinary approach, making use of the complementary backgrounds of the applicant (molecular physics) and the host (elementary particle physics). The impact of this project goes beyond antimatter research. Laser-cooled diatomic carbon anions can cool any other negative ion, thus enabling new experiments in atomic and molecular physics or physical chemistry. Furthermore, the transdisciplinary knowledge transfer between the host and the applicant, and the bridges built between atomic/molecular physics and antimatter research will lead to new research initiatives, keeping Europe at the forefront of this emerging, interdisciplinary field.

Keywords: antimatter research,antihydrogen,laser cooling,sympathetic cooling,cold molecular ions
Control of Instabilities in Rotating flows Conducting Electricity: dynamo seeds and subcritical transition to MHD turbulence in stellar objects. (CIRCE)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: European Research Council (ERC)
Theme: European research council
Destination: Starting grants
Action type: ERC actions
Panel: Universe Sciences
Panel description: Astro -physics/ -chemistry/ -biology; solar system; planetary systems; stellar, galactic and extragalactic astronomy; cosmology; space sciences; astronomical instrumentation and data
Countries involved: France
Call: ERC STARTING GRANTS (ERC-2023-STG, 2023)
Start date: 2024-01-01
End date: 2028-12-31
Duration (months): 60.0
Total project cost (EUR): 972875.0
EU funding (EUR): 972875.0
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Modeling magnetic field generation by dynamo instability in stellar objects is a long-standing challenge with far-reaching implications for stellar evolution theory. Underlying motivations are exemplified by the need to understand stellar spin-down and accretion rates in protostellar discs, which are known to be dynamically impacted by magnetic fields. The interest sparked by recurring discrepancies between predictive evolution models and rapidly-progressing observations drives the current research into the characterization of dynamo mechanisms in stellar objects. This important challenge cannot be solved analytically due to the strong nonlinearities of the magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) equations. Solving it therefore requires the development of innovative numerical approaches. In many astrophysical flows, infinitesimal magnetic seeds cannot be amplified by the flow, whereas finite-amplitude magnetic seeds with a favourable spatial structure can drive, through the Lorentz force nonlinear feedback, the very flow motions on which they subsequently feed by subcritical dynamo instability. This situation is particularly relevant for radiative stellar layers or for the innermost regions of protostellar discs, where the history of perturbations can thus define the magnetic fate of the object. Yet, classical stability methods fail to systematically characterize subcritical dynamo solutions and identify their critical dynamo seeds. The CIRCE project will tackle this theoretical obstacle by developing the recent mathematical tools of nonlinear stability analysis, based on adjoint-based optimal control, for MHD flows. The aim of CIRCE is to identify the least-energy perturbations that can trigger subcritical dynamos and transition to MHD turbulence in models of (a) radiative zones and (b) protostellar discs, and to predict how the resulting transitions determine rotational dynamics and accretion rates.

Keywords: dynamo theory,nonlinear stability,optimal control,stellar mhd flows,turbulent transport,rotational dynamics
Demonstration of Digital twins for a Green Steel value chain (DiGreeS)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness
Programme: Digital, Industry and Space
Theme: Industry
Destination: Climate neutral, Circular and Digitised Production
Action type: Innovation actions
Partnership: Clean Steel (co-programmed)
Countries involved: Germany,Austria,Hungary,Netherlands,Belgium
Call: Digital transformation and ensuring a better use of industrial data, which can optimise steel supply chains (Clean Steel Partnership) (IA) (HORIZON-CL4-2024-TWIN-TRANSITION-01, 2024)
Start date: 2024-11-01
End date: 2028-04-30
Duration (months): 42.0
Total project cost (EUR): 5859408.7
EU funding (EUR): 4998217.45
Participants: 11
Project status: SIGNED

In context of the transition to low-carbon, green and sustainable steel production in Europe, disruptive technologies to reduce the environmental footprint as close to zero as possible, seamless digitalisation of production processes, and skilled people to co-design and understand the transformation process are necessary. DiGreeS will address these needs by implementing an integrated digitalisation approach across the steel value chain, enabling better use of process data collected and ensuring the involvement of human experience for easier industrial integration. The aim of DiGreeS is to develop a user-friendly digital platform for networked production based on novel and soft sensors and related approaches and models to support efficient feedstock verification and real-time control of electric arc furnace crude steel production, increasing process yield while improving the quality of intermediate and final steel products. In this context, the potential of artificial intelligence techniques will be fully exploited to support the optimal use of industrial data, and different scenarios specific to each use case will be modelled. The digital platform will be implemented and verified in industrial process lines of the three use cases: scrap/secondary raw material verification, optimisation of the electric arc furnace processes and optimisation of the levelling of steel sheets. DiGreeS aims to improve the quality of crude steel and finished products, optimize scrap usage, and improve energy efficiency in the steel production process. DiGreeS has the potential to save up to €800 million in costs annually and reduce CO2 emissions from the steelmaking industry by up to 6 million tonnes per year.

Keywords: steel production electric arc furnace heavy melting scrap steel sheets novel sensors digitalization
State functionaries in Byzantium: a social and cultural study (7th-9th c.) (SCIBOS)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Social Sciences and Humanities
Countries involved: France,Bulgaria,Greece
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2022 (HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01, 2022)
Start date: 2024-09-01
End date: 2026-08-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 195914.88
EU funding (EUR): 195914.88
Participants: 3
Project status: SIGNED

This research project will study the career prospects (geographical and institutional mobility, communication networks, length of tenures) of state functionaries in Byzantium between the 7th and the 9th c., and their social and cultural identity through their self-representation, their professional choices, piety, and ethnic origin. Next to the admittedly limited narrative and archival sources, this project will rely as its main source on Byzantine lead seals, a source material that only few scholars in the field of Byzantine Studies have the ability to analyse. One of the primary objectives of the project is to move beyond traditional approaches in the study of Byzantine lead seals. This will be accomplished, first, by demonstrating the potential of this material for the study of a past medieval society and particularly for the fields of social and cultural history. Second, by the introduction of tools from the Digital Humanities, such as SigiDoc that has been developed through another past MCSA project by a scholar of my host institution. There will be a thorough research for relevant material which will be recorded in a standard database that will serve as basis for the further process of the material in order to answer our research questions and to complete all the products of the project. The main products of this study will consist of: 1) an online database on the career of officials; 2) an article on the career and communication networks of officials; 3) online publication of a corpus of unpublished lead seals; 4) a list of decorative and iconographic motifs on lead seals; 5) a monograph with the final overall research results. Several targeted training and research activities (the application of digital tools in Byzantine sigillography, research in Bulgarian archaeological archives, seminars, and courses) have been already planned, aiming at the successful completion of the project and the enhancement of the prospects of my future career.

Keywords: byzantine studies,sigillography,social identity,cultural identity,digital humanities
Novel AI-based system for orthopedic surgery to help surgeons fully automate the pre-operative planning of knee osteotomy (PeekMedAuto)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Innovative Europe
Programme: The European Innovation Council (EIC)
Theme: EIC Accelerator
Destination: Open to supporting projects in all areas of science, technology,...
Action type: EIC actions
Countries involved: Portugal
Call: EIC Accelerator Open (HORIZON-EIC-2022-ACCELERATOR-01, 2022)
Start date: 2022-11-01
End date: 2024-10-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 3268460.0
EU funding (EUR): 2287922.0
Participants: 1
Project status: CLOSED

Peek Health S.A.’s overall mission is to develop innovative technological solutions for pre-operative planning of orthopedic surgeries; increasing the quality of healthcare services, decreasing the overall cost of care, and providing added value to surgeons, patients, and partners. Based on a successful manual version with significant market traction -PeekMed®- Peek Health introduces the innovative AI-based PeekMed-Auto, the first system that fully automates pre-operative planning for osteotomies around the knee (correcting bowlegs or knock knees); a surgery allowing patients to postpone knee replacement for several years, or avoid it altogether. The need for this innovation became apparent by the reported difficulty of planning osteotomies by surgeons due to its complexity and limitations of tools available. Through significant and disruptive impact, PeekMed-Auto will establish Peek Health’s position in the market, generating >€40M in revenue by 2026, and a cumulative profit of ~€40M.

Keywords: machine learning,statistical data processing and,data analysis,deep learning,automation,software tools,surgery,ai system,orthopedics,system integration,preoperative planning
Selective Membrane-Binding Peptides: Computational Design and Experimental Validation for Advanced Biotechnological Applications (SELPEP)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Life Sciences
Countries involved: Czechia
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2024 (HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01, 2024)
Start date: 2025-08-01
End date: 2027-07-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 207758.16
EU funding (EUR): 207758.16
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

Membrane-binding peptides have significant potential applications, such as antimicrobials, biosensors and in the purification of extracellular vesicles. However, to ensure the effective implementation of these peptides in biotechnological applications, it is essential to prioritize their selectivity. The Opi1 peptide has previously been shown to exhibit a high affinity for phosphatidic acid (PA)-containing membranes. Given the analogous structure of cardiolipin (CL), this proposal posits that it may be possible to develop an Opi1 variant that interacts selectively with CL-containing membranes with diverse CL proportions. Cardiolipin (CL) is exclusively found in the inner membrane of mitochondria and bacteria, making this phospholipid an interesting candidate for the design of selective peptides. The project will entail the implementation of in silico mutations of the Opi1 sequence, in order to identify novel sequences with different affinity to model membranes. The optimization and analysis of peptide-membrane interactions will be conducted through the use of atomic-resolution molecular simulations, alchemical transformations, and experimental biophysical techniques, such as liposome flotation methods and quartz crystal microbalance assay. This interdisciplinary project integrates biology, physics, and chemistry, leveraging advanced computational and experimental techniques to achieve the objectives. The interdisciplinary integration ensures robust outcomes, with potential applications in targeted drug delivery, and diagnostics, ultimately advancing our understanding of peptide-membrane interactions.

Keywords: membrane binding peptides,antimicrobial peptide,molecular simulations,peptide design,membrane specific activity
Exploring diversity in wild wheat relatives and their septoria pathogens to unveil determinants of specificity, effector dynamics, and resistance gene composition host (SPECIFY)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Excellent Science
Programme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
Theme: Marie Skłodowska-Curie
Destination: Postdoctoral Fellowships
Action type: Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions
Panel: Environment and Geosciences
Countries involved: Germany
Call: MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2024 (HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01, 2024)
Start date: 2026-08-01
End date: 2028-07-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 217965.12
EU funding (EUR): 217965.12
Participants: 1
Project status: SIGNED

SPECIFY aims to address the urgent global challenge of food security by enhancing wheat resistance to Zymoseptoria tritici, the pathogen responsible for Septoria tritici blotch (STB). STB significantly threatens wheat production, leading to substantial annual losses. Current management strategies, including resistant cultivars and fungicides, are increasingly ineffective due to the pathogen's rapid development of resistance. Our research seeks to explore diversity in wild wheat relatives and their septoria pathogens to uncover the genetic basis of host-pathogen interactions in Z. tritici. We will leverage a unique collection of Z. tritici isolates from Iran and integrate genome-wide association studies (GWAS) with map-based cloning to identify key effector genes. This dual approach will provide robust insights into pathogen adaptation mechanisms, guiding the development of targeted breeding strategies for resistant crops and novel fungicides. Additionally, we will explore the transcriptome and genome data of native Iranian Aegilops species infected by Z. tritici to identify resistance genes (R-genes). By comparing gene expression profiles between resistant and susceptible Aegilops samples, we aim to pinpoint key genes involved in the resistance response. These discoveries will be validated through functional assays and potentially introduced into wheat varieties to enhance STB resistance. Our interdisciplinary methodology combines genetics, genomics, plant pathology, molecular biology, and bioinformatics to comprehensively understand host-pathogen interactions. This project not only aims to advance scientific knowledge but also to translate findings into practical solutions for sustainable agriculture, ultimately enhancing global wheat production resilience. Moreover, undertaking this research will significantly contribute to my career development by providing me with advanced skills in cutting-edge genomic and bioinformatics techniques.

Keywords: wheat septoria tritici blotch host pathogen interactions disease management sustainable agriculture