## 4 Data Management Infrastructure and Workflow
### Data Management in This PEFC Project  
In this project, we build on established practices and emerging standards to implement a data management framework tailored to the specific demands of PEFC-related synchrotron research. Although international efforts toward standardization are still in progress, our approach emphasizes the key principles of metadata consistency, reproducibility, and interoperability, adapted to the immediate needs and constraints of the research environment.  
Key elements of our data management approach include:  
**Metadata Design and Consistency Enhancement:** Building on the metadata design principles outlined earlier, we focus on ensuring the consistent application of schemasthat capture essential contextual information for experimental techniques such as XAFS, HAXPES, and XRD. This includes the adoption of standardized descriptors (e.g., beamline identifiers, measurement conditions, and sample characteristics) to maintain discoverability, comparability, and interpretability. Annotation reviews, controlled vocabulary, and internal guidelines were implemented to enhance consistency. Recognizing that metadata quality is critical to research reproducibility and usability, we view it as an iterative process subject to continuous refinement.
* **Database Integration and Centralized Access:** Curated datasets are registered in a centralized database to streamline data organization, discovery, and retrieval. Using a platform such as the BENTEN system, we established a coherent environment that supported metadata-driven searches. This design facilitates collaborative research and lays the groundwork for potential future linkages with external databases or national initiatives as the standards evolve.
* **MI Integration (Planned):** We plan to integrate our curated datasets with material informatics workflows for PEFC research by leveraging platforms such as the NIMS MIX platform [57]. This platform integrates experimental, computational, and simulation data, providing a robust foundation for data interoperability and advanced analyses. Our metadata schemas and database structures were designed to support MI-ready data, enabling the seamless integration of experimental datasets (e.g., XAFS spectra and crystallographic information) with computational models. Currently, FC-BENTEN includes only experimental results obtained at SPring-8 by the authors' group. However, future integration with the NIMS MIX platform may allow for the incorporation of additional datasets, including those from other research publications, to further enhance data comprehensiveness.
* This unified approach aims to accelerate insights into structure-property relationships and support next-generation PEFC material development.
* **Collaboration and Potentially Broader Accessibility:** Our data management infrastructure supports secure collaboration within the project team and among authorized external partners. Policies and workflows governing data access rights help protect sensitive or proprietary information, while enabling efficient knowledge exchange. Although fully open data sharing policies have not been established, our framework is sufficiently flexible to adapt to future developments. As metadata standards mature and community norms evolve, we may consider incremental steps toward broader accessibility, aligning our practices with international trends in research transparency and data stewardship.  
By focusing on metadata integrity, centralized management, and flexible future integration with MI tools, these data management strategy positions our project to effectively meet current research needs while remaining open to future opportunities for interoperability, improved accessibility, and alignment with emerging global standards.