Towards monitoring a socio-ecological transition

The achievement of individual well-being while guaranteeing a sustainable development path represents an important objective of a socio-ecological transition. This objective indicates that targets referring to the economic, social and environmental dimensions are taken into account simultaneously. However, so far too little attention has been paid to the problems and opportunities of monitoring such a transition process. The identification of building blocks derived from the WWWforEurope project's vision for Europe in 2050 allows attaining measurability and hence breaking down the complexity inherent in the transition objective. Based on the distinction between the environmental, social and economic dimensions, synergies and trade-offs are derived and analysed indicating possible conflicts between the aspects of the three dimensions. The investigation of those conflicts reveals to be highly important for detecting progress in the transition process. This deliverable introduces a new approach for designing a tool for monitoring a socio-ecological transition. However, more research is needed to be able to bring the tool into action. In particular, a more detailed elaboration of the synergies and trade-offs would improve the accuracy of the monitoring tool

Innovation at the Firm Level across Countries with Different Economic and Technological Capacity

This paper presents an analysis of innovation behaviour at the firm level across countries with different levels of technological capabilities and economic development. Using data from the Community Innovation Survey for 20 European countries the paper shows that the impact of total innovation expenditures - including next to R&D also outlays for technology transfer, the market introduction of innovations or new designs - increases monotonically across countries with their level of technological capabilities. R&D investments instead have a significant impact on the generation of innovations only for firms located in countries with higher levels of technological capabilities. Firm specific competencies to suggest or contribute to innovation projects have a more significant effect on the innovation output the higher the level of economic development of the countries in which firms are located. Finally, the paper presents also evidence that R&D does not generally increase the absorptive capabilities of firms

Geomimetics for green polymer synthesis: highly ordered polyimides via hydrothermal techniques

Dieser Beitrag ist mit Zustimmung des Rechteinhabers aufgrund einer (DFG geförderten) Allianz- bzw. Nationallizenz frei zugänglich.This publication is with permission of the rights owner freely accessible due to an Alliance licence and a national licence (funded by the DFG, German Research Foundation) respectively.Inspired by geological ore formation processes, we apply one-step hydrothermal (HT) polymerization to the toughest existing high-performance polymer, poly(p-phenyl pyromellitimide) (PPPI). We obtain highly-ordered and fully imidized PPPI as crystalline flakes and flowers on the micrometer scale. In contrast to classical 2-step procedures that require long reaction times and toxic solvents and catalysts, HT polymerization allows for full conversion in only 1 h at 200 °C, in nothing but hot water. Investigation of the crystal growth mechanismviascanning electron microscopy (SEM) suggests that PPPI aggregates formviaa dissolution–polymerization–crystallization process, which is uniquely facilitated by the reaction conditions in the HT regime. A conventionally prefabricated polyimide did not recrystallize hydrothermally, indicating that the HT polymerization and crystallization occur simultaneously. The obtained material shows excellent crystallinity and remarkable thermal stability (600 °C under N2) that stem from a combination of a strong, covalent polymer backbone and interchain hydrogen bonding

3-phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase as target in cancer therapy

PhD ThesisCancer cells adapt their metabolism to simultaneously fulfil the requirements of energy production and biomass generation necessary to sustain high proliferation rates. This deregulated energy metabolism and the proteins responsible therefor provide a potential new route of targeting cancer that has not been thoroughly explored. 3-Phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase (PHGDH), which takes 3-phosphoglycerate (3-PG) out of the glycolytic pathway and into serine production, has been reported as potential target in certain breast cancer forms and melanoma. There is no known inhibitor of PHGDH to date to fully validate the target. Inhibition of PHGDH was explored in breast cancer and melanoma cell lines using siRNA and shRNA interference techniques. Greater knockdown was achieved by siRNA resulting in better growth inhibition than when using shRNA expressing cell lines. The substrate-binding pocket was investigated with substrate analogues and substrate-containing compounds. NAD+-binding was found to be stabilised by coordinated binding of substrates. The catalytic subunits of human PHGDH were crystallised and revealed a flexible lid domain that moves in response to substrate binding. The NAD+-fragment adenosine 5’-diphosphoribose (ADPR) was shown to be a moderate inhibitor of the enzymatic activity of PHGDH and was used for assay validation. Cofactor analogues with different substituents around the pyridine ring were equally suitable to promote the oxidation of 3-PG. A fragment screen was performed using differential scanning fluorimetry and hits were subsequently validated by competition isothermal titration calorimetry. To investigate the fragments in crystals of human PHGDH, a truncated form of PHGDH (construct 93) was engineered by limited proteolysis. Soaking of fragments into crystals of 93 confirmed binding of seven fragments. Structure-activity relationship studies were initiated around the confirmed hits

Challenges and Opportunities of Data-Driven Advance Classification for Hard Rock TBM excavations

publishedVersio

Capabilities and Challenges Using Machine Learning in Tunnelling

Digitalization changes the design and operational processes in tunnelling. The way of gathering geological data in the field of tunnelling, the methods of rock mass classification as well as the application of tunnel design analyses, tunnel construction processes and tunnel maintenance will be influenced by this digital transformation. The ongoing digitalization in tunnelling through applications like building information modelling and artificial intelligence, addressing a variety of difficult tasks, is moving forward. Increasing overall amounts of data (big data), combined with the ease to access strong computing powers, are leading to a sharp increase in the successful application of data analytics and techniques of artificial intelligence. Artificial Intelligence now arrives also in the fields of geotechnical engineering, tunnelling and engineering geology. The chapter focuses on the potential for machine learning methods – a branch of Artificial Intelligence - in tunnelling. Examples will show that training artificial neural networks in a supervised manner works and yields valuable information. Unsupervised machine learning approaches will be also discussed, where the final classification is not imposed upon the data, but learned from it. Finally, reinforcement learning seems to be trendsetting but not being in use for specific tunnel applications yet

Technologische Souveränität. Empirische Bestimmung und FTI-politische Implikationen

Technologische Souveränität zu fördern, bedeutet einseitige ökonomische Abhängigkeiten von politisch sensiblen Drittstaaten in Schlüsseltechnologien zu vermeiden. Anhand eines handels- und patentdatengestützten Schlüsseltechnologiemonitorings zeigt die EU Stärke bei Produktions-, Material- und Biotechnologien, aber Defizite bei digitalen Technologien. Ansätze zur proaktiven Reduktion von Abhängigkeiten können sich an der Distanz der EU zur Frontier in den Schlüsseltechnologien orientieren und einen Policy-Mix aus FTI- und breiteren wirtschaftspolitischen Instrumenten einsetzen. Zentral sind auch signifikant höhere Forschungs- und Entwicklungsausgaben (F&E) und eine bessere Verfügbarkeit von Risikokapital. Die wichtigste Maßnahme für Österreichs technologische Souveränität ist die Mitgliedschaft in der Europäischen Union

Dual redox-active porous polyimides as high performance and versatile electrode material for next-generation batteries

Energy storage will be a primordial actor of the ecological transition initiated in the energy and transport sectors. As such, innovative approaches to design high-performance electrode materials are crucial for the development of the next generation of batteries. Herein, a novel dual redox-active and porous polyimide network (MTA-MPT), based on mellitic trianhydride (MTA) and 3,7-diamino-N-methylphenothiazine (MPT) monomers, is proposed for applications in both high energy density lithium batteries and symmetric all-organic batteries. The MTA-MPT porous polyimide was synthesized using a novel environmentally-friendly hydrothermal polymerization method. Rooted in its dual redox proprieties, the MTA-MPT porous polyimide exhibits a high theoretical capacity making it a very attractive cathode material for high energy density battery applications. The cycling performance of this novel electrode material was assessed in both high energy density lithium batteries and light-weight symmetric all-organic batteries, displaying excellent rate capability and long-term cycling stability.N. Goujon acknowledges the funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 framework programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie agreement No. 101028682. M. Lahnsteiner, H. M. Moura, D. A. Cerron-Infantes and M. M. Unterlass acknowledge funding through the Austrian Science Fund's (FWF) START programme under grant no. Y1037-N28. We thank Dr Jerpme Roeser and Prof. Arne Thomas (TU Berlin) for gas sorption measurements

Hydrothermal synthesis of metal nanoparticles@hydrogels and statistical evaluation of reaction conditions' effects on nanoparticle morphologies

ABSTRACT: We report a facile green hydrothermal synthesis (HTS) of monoliths of hydrogels decorated with noble metal nanoparticles (NPs). The one-pot approach requires solely water, a polysaccharide able to form a hydrogel, and a salt precursor (Mx+-containing) for the metal NPs. The polysaccharide fulfills three roles: (i) it acts as the reducing agent of Mx+ to M0 under hydrothermal conditions, (ii) it stabilizes NPs surfaces, and (iii) it forms a hydrogel scaffold in which the metal NPs are embedded. The NPs’ localization in the hydrogel can be controlled through the gelation mechanism. Specifically, the NPs can either be located on and slightly under the surface of the hydrogel monoliths or in the volume. The former is found when a hydrogel monolith is crosslinked prior to HTS. The latter is observed when the HTS reaction mixture contains a polysaccharide dissolved in H2O, which forms a hydrogel upon cooling. Furthermore, we studied the influence of HTS conditions on NP shapes. To find significant levers towards morphological control, a set of HTS experiments featuring broad ranges of reaction conditions was performed. Subsequently, we employed statistical analyses with multivariate regression fits to evaluate synthesis parameter effects. Thereby, we can link the synthesis parameters of temperature, time, precursor concentration, heating rate, choice of metallic precursor, and type of biopolymer, to morphology descriptors such as diameter, circularity, and polydispersity index. The presented approach is in fine compatible with broad arrays of NPs and can in principle be modified for different chemistries, thereby providing a tool for quantitatively assessing morphological impacts of reaction parameters

Extending the scope of a new cyanation: design and synthesis of an anthracene derivative with an exceptionally low LUMO level and improved solubility

The preparation of cyanated acenes from quinones has been improved for the conversion of electron-poor starting materials. The new procedure was used to prepare rationally designed 2,7-dinitro-9,10-dicyanoanthracene. Crystallographic, morphological, and electrochemical investigations have revealed most promising properties for applications in organic electronics