http://ec.europa.eu//research/index.cfm?pg=whatsnew en Wed, 22 May 2013 07:44:36 GMT http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=rss For more RSS news feeds click the link above. Wed, 22 May 2013 07:44:36 GMT http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=rss http://ec.europa.eu/research/industrial_technologies/modelling-materials_en.html Wed, 15 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-15:/industrial_technologies/modelling-materials_en.html http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-fantom&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29974 To make modern aircraft ever lighter, faster and more fuel efficient, manufacturers are continually introducing new advanced materials, composites and super lightweight structures. Before using them on a plane, the integrity and performance of these materials have to be tested in a non-destructive way, to see how they would perform in the real-life pressure and temperature conditions of flight. Among the techniques aero-space testing facilities currently rely on are two important tests: one using laser beams and one using thermal imaging to see inside the material under stress and detect problems in structures caused by hidden defects. European researchers have found a way to replace these two with a single test. ]]> Tue, 14 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-14:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-fantom&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29974 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-one-p&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29936 A radio made completely of plastic? We might see them in the near future, claim scientists. In 1977 researchers discovered that certain types of plastic can conduct electricity, just like metals. Initially these plastics remained a curiosity, but by improving their electrical properties researchers have now opened the way for their use in a large number of electric and electronic devices. ]]> Fri, 10 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-10:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-one-p&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29936 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-autospar&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29935 As a food, asparagus can trace an illustrious lineage back 20,000 years to Egypt; it features in the world's oldest surviving cook book, Apicius's third century 'De re coquinaria'; it is packed with vitamins, and a very good source of dietary fibre. No wonder the asparagus is such a prized food. But its reputation as the ultimate gourmet vegetable is also reflected in its delicate cultivation, with white asparagus in particular requiring labour intensive hilling. And in Europe, this dedicated nurturing is threatening the crop as farmers struggle to find the manpower needed to harvest asparagus. ]]> Fri, 10 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-10:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-autospar&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29935 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-sesame&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29927 Wel-known accelerators, like the Large Hadron Collider at CERN, the European Laboratory for Particle Physics near Geneva, smash subatomic particles together to study their properties. But there is another group of accelerators where electrons don´t collide, instead they are kept circulating through a ring-shaped vacuum tube, called a storage ring. While they are racing around this ring they produce intense radiation. ]]> Wed, 08 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-08:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-sesame&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29927 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_04_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29893 Every time a firefighter braves an inferno, a scientist wonders if a new material or special flame-resistant coating could be created to protect him. Today, armed with nanocomposite techniques and insights into bio-based materials, new classes of smart, adaptable super-surface coatings are possible, according to European researchers.]]> Sat, 04 May 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-05-04:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_05_04_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29893 http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=FEBC337C-D008-F89F-F73EDBF97A186F33 Fri, 12 Apr 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-04-12:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=FEBC337C-D008-F89F-F73EDBF97A186F33 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-rapolac&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29519 The production of advanced high-tech components for aircraft and other aerospace applications is an expensive and time-intensive process involving design, prototyping and then machining of parts often using costly high strength-to-weight materials such as titanium. A new production approach developed under the European Union (EU) -funded RAPOLAC project (Rapid Production of Large Aerospace Components) can bypass the prototyping stage and build a new part in a fraction of the time with production costs reduced by as much as 40%. ]]> Wed, 27 Mar 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-03-27:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-rapolac&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=29519 http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=A724CF39-A008-D34D-1A952BCAFFB2F21B Tue, 26 Mar 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-03-26:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=A724CF39-A008-D34D-1A952BCAFFB2F21B http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=915B603E-ED37-0B70-EF40E5311DA60793 Fri, 22 Mar 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-03-22:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=915B603E-ED37-0B70-EF40E5311DA60793 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_03_19_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29413 Faced with tough competition from low-wage countries and economic strife at home, European shoemakers are interested in clever and efficient solutions to design and customise stylish shoes that meet every customer's needs. But is ‘mass customisation’ like this a contradiction in terms? Not according to EU-funded researchers. ]]> Tue, 19 Mar 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-03-19:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_13_03_19_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=29413 http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=6EC6BAB2-E1E1-BF85-7516BA093A19AD9B Fri, 15 Mar 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-03-15:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=6EC6BAB2-E1E1-BF85-7516BA093A19AD9B http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=F74AC1F2-D0C5-D415-7BE4A1FDA6A7C6F8 Wed, 20 Feb 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-02-20:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=F74AC1F2-D0C5-D415-7BE4A1FDA6A7C6F8 http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=F7445536-09FB-0F3A-BFCDD0398441F38B Wed, 20 Feb 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-02-20:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=F7445536-09FB-0F3A-BFCDD0398441F38B http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=F738521D-0DC9-6361-00C601E30191F3B1 Wed, 20 Feb 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-02-20:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=F738521D-0DC9-6361-00C601E30191F3B1 http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=8203C2DA-E205-B672-FAA1E95AF2FC96AF Mon, 28 Jan 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-01-28:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=8203C2DA-E205-B672-FAA1E95AF2FC96AF http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=4DC12D4B-DFDE-ADB3-B422F25308FE14EB Fri, 18 Jan 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-01-18:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=4DC12D4B-DFDE-ADB3-B422F25308FE14EB http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=1EE98770-EE61-27EC-121AAB6A7E7193A4 Wed, 09 Jan 2013 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2013-01-09:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=1EE98770-EE61-27EC-121AAB6A7E7193A4 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-sustaincomp&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=28793 Sustainability in the plastics sector will become a more pressing issue in the future as legislation and public demand force companies to manufacture more environmentally friendly products. A European project has been developing alternative materials, production processes and even products like a composite bus seat which could, in time, replace oil-based plastic versions. ]]> Fri, 21 Dec 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-12-21:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-sustaincomp&calledby=infocentre&item=Infocentre&artid=28793 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_12_06_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=28573 Taking images through opaque, light-scattering layers is a vital capability and essential diagnostic tool in many disciplines, including nanotechnology and the biosciences. Current techniques are unable to image through opaque layers that scatter all the incident light. Even a very thin layer of a scattering material can appear opaque and hide any objects behind it. Now, a joint research team from Italy and the Netherlands have succeeded in taking non-invasive sharp pictures of objects hidden behind a screen of opaqueness. The study, published in the journal Nature, was supported by a European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant awarded to Dr Allard Mosk at Universiteit Twente in the Netherlands, as part of the PHAROS ('Guiding light through disorder in adaptive photonic resonator arrays') project under the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7). ]]> Thu, 06 Dec 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-12-06:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_12_06_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=28573 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_11_30_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=28453 Pioneering new research is set to upset the standard paradigm of downcycling, and as a result, high-quality new plastics from old plastics will soon be a possibility. This breakthrough is made possible thanks to a new kind of material: an environmentally friendly material mix called EPMT. Downcycling is the process of transforming waste materials â€" things we would throw away â€" into another product of lesser quality, e.g. turning a used plastic bottle into a lower grade product, or rubber residues to floor coverings or safety crash pads. This research team now hopes to upgrade this waste transformation, and has already entered talks with private enterprises to bring their innovation to commercial fruition.]]> Fri, 30 Nov 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-11-30:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/headlines/news/article_12_11_30_en.html&item=Infocentre&artid=28453 http://ec.europa.eu/research/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-wheylayer&calledby=infocentre&item=All&artid=28397&caller=SuccessStories Wed, 28 Nov 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-11-28:/infocentre/article_en.cfm?id=/research/star/index_en.cfm?p=ss-wheylayer&calledby=infocentre&item=All&artid=28397&caller=SuccessStories http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=2D334377-DF21-5657-AE9CE3D49BAEE248 Fri, 23 Nov 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-11-23:/index.cfm?pg=events&eventcode=2D334377-DF21-5657-AE9CE3D49BAEE248 http://ec.europa.eu/research/industrial_technologies/modelling-materials_en.html Tue, 30 Oct 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-10-30:/industrial_technologies/modelling-materials_en.html http://ec.europa.eu/research/industrial_technologies/index_en.cfm Mon, 01 Oct 2012 00:00:00 GMT tag:ch,2012-10-01:/industrial_technologies/index_en.cfm