Introducing circular economy models in the construction sector, from buildings to city scale

Expected Outcome: Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes: Based on the results of the project, at least one industrial sector with a significant heating demand in the EU and Associated Countries develops pathways and business models to measurably increase the recovery and upgrade of locally available heat for covering process needs and significantly or totally phasing out of fossil fuel use, while preserving or enhancing its global competitiveness. Measurable improvement of renewable and/or industrial excess/waste heat recovery and upgrade solutions, possibly combined with thermal and/or electrical energy storage, in terms of energy efficiency, flexibility of electrical demand, climate and environment protection, reliability and safety, physical and cyber security, and profitability. Scope: This topic aims to satisfy the need for process heat in the more industrial sectors by upgrading excess/waste heat from the process itself, possibly combined with heat recovered in nearby locations or local renewable heat, as a cost-efficient way to improve energy efficiency and reduce the GHG emissions and air pollutants and the use of fossil…

Expected Outcome: The proposals under this topic should address the design/specification and implementation/testing of the key microelectronics building blocks of an FR3 FEM paving the way towards their future integration into a complete integrated FEM system. • Progresses the State of the art to optimise the cost-performance trade off to serve the target ITU IMT 2030 specifications, notably for what concerns maximum data rate, user data rate, spectral efficiency, whilst enabling 50% mobile transmission system energy consumption; • Allows operational implementation of spectrum sharing with other spectrum users within the selected FR3 sub-band; • Enables large arrays integration for increased path loss compensation at FR3 frequencies with very compact, low power, high efficiency FEM integration; • Enables high bandwidth for carrier aggregation with broadband RF transceivers; • Enables SBFD (Sub-Band non overlapping Full-Duplex) for UL coverage extension (Rel.-19 5G-Advanced in 3GPP) with appropriate interference cancellation techniques; • Enables ISAC (Integrated Sensing and Communications) supporting monostatic as well as bistatic radar functionality, and addressing interference…

Expected Outcome: Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes: Measurable reduction in the costs of deep renovation compared to current best practices; Measurable increase in resource and energy efficiency compared to current best practices; Measurable reduction in the number of days when occupants are disturbed due to renovation works; Measurable reduction of dust, noise, waste and pollutant and greenhouse emissions on the construction site compared to current best practices. Scope: Meeting Europe’s ambition for the renovation of the housing stock requires innovative approaches that improve buildings’ energy performance and occupants’ satisfaction, at a reduced cost while speeding up the renovation process and minimising impact on the construction site and disturbance for occupants. Renovation approaches should cover the whole workflow from design, off-site manufacturing and on-site installation to strategies for maintenance, operation and end of life. Proposals are expected to address all of the following: Demonstrate cost-effective approaches (comprising design, planning and construction processes and techniques) for deep renovation to…

Expected Outcome: Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes: Increased number of building information tools, assessments and/or certificates makes use of digital data exchange platforms; More accurate and reliable EU-aligned life cycle inventories of embodied environmental flows in construction materials and products; Increased number of already existing building standards and certification schemes refer to GWP to support national decarbonisation strategies in line with relevant European legislation (such as Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, Construction Products Regulation and delegated acts, voluntary label for carbon footprint of steel, Delegated Act for carbon removal certification in long-lasting products); Improved data availability and interoperability for whole life carbon assessments across different building lifecycle stages. Scope: The Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) recast places an increased emphasis on addressing whole life carbon and the calculation of the global warming potential (GWP) of buildings as part of its holistic approach to enhancing building sustainability. Several projects have focused…

Expected Outcome: Successful proposals will contribute to the Circular Economy Action Plan, the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability, the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation, the Chemical Industry Action Plan, and the Clean Industrial Deal. Projects results are expected to contribute to the following expected outcomes: Wider availability of bio-based thermoset materials meeting high technical performance requirements. Improved circularity of thermosets and downstream application(s) against specified market benchmarks taking into account production, use and EoL. Scope: Bio-based thermosets have a proven capability to achieve challenging technical performances for high demanding applications including transport, energy, electronics, among others. However, due to their cross-linking nature, the recycling of thermoset materials (including composites) is more challenging without compromising the technical performances. Thus, eco-designing bio-based thermoset materials to be both circular and high-performing remains a significant challenge in scaling-up towards competitiveness and higher sustainability. Some of the key challenges to address for bio-based thermosets include…

Expected Outcome: This topic aims at supporting activities that are enabling or contributing to the Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities Mission by accelerating the transition towards climate neutrality in cities. To this end, project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes: Cities involved in this action advance in achieving their climate neutrality targets, reducing greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions by improving energy efficiency in urban and sub-urban public transport systems , complemented by urban mobility service car fleets – taxis, ride-hailing, car sharing and other active and shared mobility services . Comprehensive inventory and assessment of existing instruments and measures to foster electrification and attractiveness of urban and sub-urban public transport systems , urban mobility service car fleets and shared mobility, accompanied by targeted guidance for responsible authorities, operators and providers through integration of measures to improve energy efficiency in public transport and new shared mobility services. Upscaling of innovative and sustainable integrated mobility solutions , identifying gaps and shortcomings in…

Expected Outcome: Project results are expected to contribute to the following outcomes: For supported postdoctoral fellows Increased set of research and transferable skills and competences, leading to improved employability and career prospects of MSCA postdoctoral fellows within academia and beyond; New mind-sets and approaches to R&I work forged through international, inter-sectoral and interdisciplinary experience; Enhanced networking and communication capacities with scientific peers, as well as with the general public that will increase and broaden the research and innovation impact. For participating organisations Increased alignment of working conditions for researchers in accordance with the principles set out in the European Charter for Researchers; Enhanced quality and sustainability of research training and supervision; Increased global attractiveness, visibility and reputation of the participating organisation(s); Stronger R&I capacity and output among participating organisations; better transfer of knowledge; Regular feedback of research results into teaching and education at participating organisations. Scope: Fellowships will be provided to excellent researchers…

Specific Challenge: The “EU Award for Gender Equality Champions” is a recognition prize scheme designed as a booster and a complement to the Gender Equality Plans (GEP) eligibility criterion in Horizon Europe [1] , and as a tool for advancing inclusive GEPs and policies within the framework of the ERA Policy Agenda. Expected Outcomes : Recognition of organisations with the most significant impact resulting from the implementation of their GEP, serving as role models for others; Strengthened gender equality and inclusiveness in the European Research Area. The Prize will be awarded to four organisations, and contestants can apply to one of the following three prize categories: Sustainable Gender Equality Champions: Organisations that can demonstrate a significant and sustained record of activity and a high level of achievement through the implementation of their GEP(s); Newcomer Gender Equality Champions: Organisations without a sustained record of activity in gender equality that have recently completed the implementation of their first GEP and can demonstrate the most progress achieved through its implementation; Inclusive Gender Equality Champions: Organisations that have…

Specific Challenge: The “EU Award for Gender Equality Champions” is a recognition prize scheme designed as a booster and a complement to the Gender Equality Plans (GEP) eligibility criterion in Horizon Europe [1] , and as a tool for advancing inclusive GEPs and policies within the framework of the ERA Policy Agenda. Expected Outcomes : Recognition of organisations with the most significant impact resulting from the implementation of their GEP, serving as role models for others; Strengthened gender equality and inclusiveness in the European Research Area. The Prize will be awarded to four organisations, and contestants can apply to one of the following three prize categories: Sustainable Gender Equality Champions: Organisations that can demonstrate a significant and sustained record of activity and a high level of achievement through the implementation of their GEP(s); Newcomer Gender Equality Champions: Organisations without a sustained record of activity in gender equality that have recently completed the implementation of their first GEP and can demonstrate the most progress achieved through its implementation; Inclusive Gender Equality Champions: Organisations that have…

Specific Challenge: The “EU Award for Gender Equality Champions” is a recognition prize scheme designed as a booster and a complement to the Gender Equality Plans (GEP) eligibility criterion in Horizon Europe [1] , and as a tool for advancing inclusive GEPs and policies within the framework of the ERA Policy Agenda. Expected Outcomes : Recognition of organisations with the most significant impact resulting from the implementation of their GEP, serving as role models for others; Strengthened gender equality and inclusiveness in the European Research Area. The Prize will be awarded to four organisations, and contestants can apply to one of the following three prize categories: Sustainable Gender Equality Champions: Organisations that can demonstrate a significant and sustained record of activity and a high level of achievement through the implementation of their GEP(s); Newcomer Gender Equality Champions: Organisations without a sustained record of activity in gender equality that have recently completed the implementation of their first GEP and can demonstrate the most progress achieved through its implementation; Inclusive Gender Equality Champions: Organisations that have…