60 grands projets européens en nano : c’est beaucoup ?

Bien des choses sont dites sur les projets européens. Oublions les chimères et les rumeurs!

Pour avoir travaillé sur les projets collaboratifs depuis FP5, Vitamib souhaite démystifier leurs structures, les montages et les financements. La connaissance des projets européens est une partie intégrante de notre savoir-faire et nous avons décidé de vous faire part de notre expertise.

Alors, qu’en est-il de la thématique Nanosciences, nanotechnologies, Matériaux et nouvelles technologies de Production (NMP) au sein du 7ème Programme Cadre de Recherche et Développement (PCRD) ou FP7 en anglais.

Cette dernière était déjà traitée durant le FP6, avec une orientation matériaux. Par la suite, FP7 l’a voulu tournée vers les applications, l’industrie et la production.

Pour le rappel FP7 est le programme cadre voté par le Parlement en 2006, et représente un budget de 50Mds€ au total pour 7 ans (2007-2013), dont 32Mds pour les projets collaboratifs de R&D et finalement 3,5 Mds€ pour la thématique NMP (Nano, Micro et Photonique).

Effectivement, la Commission a déjà conduit plusieurs appels d’offres NMP en 2007, 08, 09, 10 et 2011 est en cours. Pour les projets effectivement financés, seules les données 2007 et 2008 sont complément disponibles.

En 2007, 288,65 m€ financés en NMP, 2008 163,49 m€, avec un budget relativement stable mais surtout de grosses dépenses par rapport à l enveloppe totale sur les 7 années de FP7.

Pour autant, on constate que la commission a choisi de distribuer plus largement son budget NMP avec une plus grande proportion de petits projets collaboratifs que dans FP6.

Les deux premiers appels d’offres de FP7 ont tout de même financé 60 grands projets : 38 projets en 2007 et 22 en 2008. Un déclin de la subvention totale entre 2008 et 2007 est constaté ainsi qu’une diminution de la médiane de budget financé par grand projet entre 2007 et 2008. Cependant une certaine stabilité dans le taux de financement est observée : autour de 70% des coûts des projets sont pris en charge par les allocations de la commission.

Qu’en sera t il pour les années 2009, 10 et 11 ?

Les annonces de projets financés sont encore en cours, les données disponibles restent incertaines. Cependant, Vitamib constate une volonté de distribution des budgets, avec peu de grands projets et une multitude de projets collaboratifs sur des thématiques très affinées, des consortiums restreints et des budgets financés beaucoup moins élevés.

N’hésitez pas à nous contacter pour en savoir plus de nos analyses et suivis des projets collaboratifs européens.

Nouveau Projet Européen (NMP): COPERNICO

Description of Project

In COPERNICO a novel approach is adopted which will look at ALL factors of the production system in a holistic manner (machines, humans, environment) and model the interactions. Particular attention will be paid to factory ramp-up, which is critical for new products and can be a major stumbling block achieving fast time-to-market. We believe that it is only possible to design a virtual manufacturing process by developing a detailed understanding of the system at all levels.

COPERNICO is directed at generic issues spanning the interests of all our industrial partners and indeed common to all factories. The problems include optimizing capacity, removing bottlenecks and scheduling (coordinating with both the upstream and downstream supply chain and minimizing work in progress).

The emphasis of COPERNICO is on virtual simulation to eliminate problems before they happen. The preplanning stage is an ideal time in the life-cycle of the plant to include human and environmental concerns, safety factors and work-place satisfaction metrics.
The objectives are to:
- Identify and merge the range of mathematical, physical, data driven and knowledge based models with soft data such as worker and environmental considerations to create a tool to predict the behaviour of production processes and overall factory environments.
- Use the models to develop optimum processing routes
- Develop novel experimental methodologies to validate the models in a virtual test bed facility
- Condense the validation and certification time to reduce cost and time
- Build from machine tools to cells and factories
- Build on the close working relationship with our industrial collaborators and transfer knowledge
- Create a modular factory layout system with a diagnostic and solutions toolkit
- Demonstrate this system in a virtual facility, validate it across a real test-bed facility and implement it in at least 1 SME factory and 1 OEM production process

Détails concernant le projet

Acronyme du projet: COPERNICO Référence du projet: 229025 Date de commencement du projet: 2010-05-01 Durée: 48 months Coût du projet: 7.26 million euro Type de contrat: Large-scale integrating project Date d'achèvement: 2014-04-30 Status du projet: Execution Financement du projet: 5.2 million euro

Nouveau Projet Européen (NMP): NanoFATE

Description of project

Concept: NanoFATE has been conceived to fill knowledge and methodological gaps currently impeding sound assessment of environmental risks posed by engineered nano-particles (ENPs). Our vision is to assess environmental fate and risk of ENPs from high-volume products for which recycling is not an option; namely; fuel additive, personal care and antibacterial products. Two market ENPs from each product (CeO2, ZnO, Ag of varying size, surface and core chemistries) will be followed through their post-production life cycles i.e. from environmental entry as spent product, through waste treatment to their final fates and potential toxic effects. This will test the applicability of current fate and risk assessment methods and identify improvements required for a scientific assessment of ENPs at an early stage. Objectives: Such systematic study of the environmental fate and toxicity of selected ENPs will entail addressing 9 S&T objectives: 1: Design, tagging and manufacture of ENPs 2: Analysis of ENP interactions with abiotic and biotic entities 3: Generating predictive models for ENP exposure in waters and sludge-amended soils 4: Studying the fate and behaviour of ENPs through wastewater treatment 5: Determining acute and chronic ecotoxicity 6: Assessing effects of physico-chemical properties on ENP bioavailability 7: Defining mechanisms of uptake, internal trafficking, and toxicity 8: Developing spatial RA model(s) 9: Improving understanding of ENP risks Methodology: The work plan is designed to progress beyond the state-of-the-art through focused work packages. While some objectives are delivered in single WPs, good cross WP integration will secure the key objectives of delivering new methods for quantifying ENP risks. Impact: NanoFATE will provide robust tools, techniques and knowledge needed by stakeholders to understand and communicate risks associated with different ENPs, including their environmental interactions and toxicity.

Détails concernant le projet

Acronyme du projet: NANOFATE Référence du projet: 247739 Date de commencement du projet: 2010-04-01 Durée: 48 months Coût du projet: 3.25 million euro Type de contrat: Small or medium-scale focused research project Date d'achèvement: 2014-03-31 Status du projet: Execution Financement du projet: 2.5 million euro

C’est la fête à Minatec !

Une semaine d’évènements autour des nanotechnologies, de la micro-électronique et de la photonique, avec un le support et l’organisation du CEA.

Minatec Crossroads 2010

C’est la manifestation incontournable pour rencontrer les chercheurs de ces domaines, venus des quatre coins du monde…

Nouveau Projet Européen (NMP): SAFEPROTEX

High-protective clothing for complex emergency operations (SAFEPROTEX)

Description du projet

The idea that constitutes the basis of the proposed project is to address the main issues that currently limit the wide acceptance of protective garments, i.e. protection against multiple hazards, extension of the life-cycle of protective garments, physiological comfort and mechanical parameters. Overall, the proposed research activities aim at addressing the complex risky conditions met in various types of emergency operations, e.g. during accidents involving the threat of chemicals, extreme weather conditions (flood, wind storms, hail etc), small scale fires, or combinations of those. The manufacture of three prototypes is provisioned. In order to achieve these objectives, progress beyond the state of the art is required in a variety of fields. In fact, the project is highly multidisciplinary and requires developments in diverse areas such as polymers science and technology, polymers processing, new additive master batches development and fiber spinning, nanotechnology, plasma technology, sol-gel technology, smart thermo-regulating materials, microencapsulation, ergonomic garment design, etc. The major innovations regard, but are not limited to, the development and application of specific functionalizing materials, capable of providing multiple protective functions. More specifically, the main materials to be examined include layered silicates, carbon nano-tubes, alkoxysilane primers, chromic materials, antimicrobial microspheres, etc.

Détails concernant le projet

Acronyme du projet: SAFEPROTEX Référence du projet: 228439 Date de commencement du projet: 2010-04-01 Durée: 42 months Coût du projet: 4.22 million euro Type de contrat: Collaborative Project targeted to a special group (such as SMEs) Date d'achèvement: 2013-09-30 Status du projet: Execution Financement du projet: 3.1 million euro

Nouveau Projet Européen (NMP): PRONANO

Promoting Technology Transfer of Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies, Materials and new Production Technologies (PRONANO).


Description of project

ProNano aims at validating new practices to remove the major barriers that prevent results out of scientific research projects on nanotechnology field from reaching market applications: market barriers, technology barriers, financial barriers, managerial barriers. 

Managed by experienced innovation consultant firms and venture capitalist from several European countries, and involving European and national nanotechnology networks and platforms, ProNano promotes existing results of scientific research projects available in EU research centres that have not yet been exploited, through assistance to the entrepreneurial teams connected to such research work. First, existing research results are identified and screened for evaluation of their commercial potential. The technical information is completed by a business-relevant analysis of technological competitive markets, road maps to financing, and management issues leading to draft business plans.



Then, potential entrepreneurs and investors are associated to this process and coached by technology transfer and innovation professionals including specialists in venture capital/ private equity financing and banking instruments. The promising nanotechnologies are made ready to be licensed for sale to industry or developed into business proposals for start-up companies. 

ProNano ultimately aims at closing investment deals to prove the approach successful (completing full financing rounds to venture capital investors/established businesses, or licensing agreements). Lessons learnt during the project and policy recommendations are presented to the broad public at a final event.

Détails concernant le projetAcronyme du projet: PRONANO
Référence du projet: 248219
Date de commencement du projet: 2010-03-01
Durée: 24 months
Coût du projet: 1.22 million euro
Type de contrat: Support actions
Date d'achèvement: 2012-02-29
Status du projet: Execution
Financement du projet: 1.1 million euro

More information the PRONANO Website

Photo: courtesy of Pronano

Nouveau Projet Européen (NMP): MATRANS

Micro and Nanocrystalline Functionally Graded Materials for Transport Applications (MATRANS)

Description du projet

MATRANS aims at development of novel metal-ceramic functionally graded materials (FGMs) for aerospace and automotive applications in:
(i) exhaust and propulsion systems,
(ii) power transmission systems, and (iii) braking systems, with the main objective to enhance the mechanical properties of these materials through spatial variations of material composition and microstructure.

Specifically, MATRANS deals with two groups of bulk FGMs:
(i) ceramics-copper/copper alloys,
(ii) ceramics-intermetallics. These FGM systems have not yet been used in the transport sectors targeted. The MATRANS methodology is problem oriented and comprehensive combining interrelated activities of material processing (core activity of the project), characterization, modeling and demonstration.

The processing will encompass starting materials (e.g. nano-powders) and the resulting FGMs.

Characterisation of the FGMs will include detailed description of microstructure, measurements of physical and mechanical properties and residual stresses. The modeling will be carried out at a design phase and for the material response to combined thermo-mechanical loading and extreme service conditions. Extensive use of multi-scale approaches and numerical methods will be made.

The project addresses the joint design of the FGM and the structural component it is intended for. Economical and ecological aspects of processing are included. Risks aspects of material non-performance will be tackled, too. MATRANS has mobilized a critical mass of interdisciplinary expertise and highly specialized equipment. The consortium includes leading groups from materials science, physics, chemistry, mechanical engineering and computer science.

The industry and SME involvement in the project is substantial. As the exploitation measures, the industrial partners will define business plans and start pilot cases during the project, followed by up-scaling activities after the project end.

Détails concernant le projetAcronyme du projet: MATRANS
Référence du projet: 228869
Date de commencement du projet: 2010-02-01
Durée: 36 months
Coût du projet: 4.92 million euro
Type de contrat: Small or medium-scale focused research project
Date d'achèvement: 2013-01-31
Status du projet: Execution
Financement du projet: 3.6 million euro