An EU-funded project has helped to turn a promising method of producing metal parts for cars, planes and tools into a mainstream industrial process. The project has put in place a functioning supply chain and identified best practices that will enable manufacturers to deliver high-end products in a cost-effective manner.
Some people take pleasure in an epic struggle to configure a new wireless device. Others, not so much. For them, it would be great if the electronics they need could, please, just sort themselves out to work straight out of the box. An EU-funded project has found a way to achieve this level of user-friendliness for assisted living technologies.
With a little help from bees, an EU-funded project has explored how cities can adopt more transformative thinking and actions, including social innovation, to reduce negative environmental impacts and promote the wellbeing of their inhabitants.
Every day, we buy, use and dispose of products that end up as landfill. Unfortunately, the resources required to make new products won't be available in large amounts forever. Through the EU-funded ResCoM project, four well-known companies have already analysed the extent to which they could adopt a circular approach.
Bauxite residue - the by-product from the extraction of aluminium from bauxite ore - has the consistency of thick, red mud. Disposing of this waste poses a serious problem for industry, as does the risk of spills. But red mud can also be a source of critical metals. The REDMUD project intends to turn residues into low-carbon building materials - and to train researchers along the way.
The NEW-MINE project will identify and develop enhanced landfill-mining technology to transform landfill waste into high-added-value products, such as fuel and building materials.
The EU-funded LONGPOP project will train young researchers in the skills needed to fully exploit big data. With a focus on social change, the researchers will be able to apply the knowledge and techniques learnt to helping welfare systems prepare for the years ahead.
EU-funded researchers have been recognised for their ground-breaking work on recovering and reusing waste material in nuclear fusion reactors. They developed and demonstrated new membrane technologies capable of decontaminating waste and extracting valuable tritium for re-use.
If the arrival of spring is not enough to get you out walking and cycling, an EU-funded initiative is launching a number of mobile applications offering incentives to lead a more active lifestyle, reduce urban congestion and fight pollution.
Researchers at the Institute of Soil Science and Cultivation in the Polish town of Pulawy have set out to promote the bioeconomy and its benefits in the region. Their work is backed by funding from the EU's ERA Chairs initiative.
