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Paper-based materials, due to their availability, environmental benefits and high thermal properties, have already been implemented in several building envelope designs. However, most of them either did not optimise the use of the material or did not provide sufficient thermal insulation for use in permanent buildings. The presented research analyses six original paper-based building envelope core proposals, suitable for use in permanent buildings in temperate climate of Europe, in terms of thermal and environmental efficiency. Proposals include cores with embedded paper tubes structural elements, timber-cardboard studs and sandwich designs. The heat transfer coefficient of the envelopes was obtained for repeatable modules via 2D computer simulations (ThermCAD software), and the environmental impact was assessed for a representative square metre of the envelope via LCA analysis, based in ecoinvent 3.8 database. All analysed designs showed high thermal insulation properties and met the requirements for U max = 0.20 W/m2K, did not cause the risk of surface condensation, nor have excessive thermal bridges. The analysed building envelope designs based on embedded frame wall structure showed environmental superiority over conventional envelopes (timber frame and SIP panels). The research may serve as a proof of concept, for using paper-based building envelopes in sustainable architecture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pseudomonas aeruginosa , a ubiquitous opportunistic pathogen considered one of the paradigms of antimicrobial resistance, is among the main causes of hospital-acquired and chronic infections associated with significant morbidity and mortality. This growing threat results from the extraordinary capacity of P. aeruginosa to develop antimicrobial resistance through chromosomal mutations, the increasing prevalence of transferable resistance determinants (such as the carbapenemases and the extended-spectrum β-lactamases), and the global expansion of epidemic lineages. The general objective of this initiative is to provide a comprehensive update of P. aeruginosa resistance mechanisms, especially for the extensively drug-resistant (XDR)/difficult-to-treat resistance (DTR) international high-risk epidemic lineages, and how the recently approved β-lactams and β-lactam/β-lactamase inhibitor combinations may affect resistance mechanisms and the definition of susceptibility profiles. To address this challenge, the European Study Group for Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance (ESGARS) from the European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases launched the 'Improving Surveillance of Antibiotic-Resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa in Europe (ISARPAE)' initiative in 2022, supported by the Joint programming initiative on antimicrobial resistance network call and included a panel of over 40 researchers from 18 European Countries. Thus, a ESGARS-ISARPAE position paper was designed and the final version agreed after four rounds of revision and discussion by all panel members. To provide an update on (a) the emerging resistance mechanisms to classical and novel anti-pseudomonal agents, with a particular focus on β-lactams, (b) the susceptibility profiles associated with the most relevant β-lactam resistance mechanisms, (c) the impact of the novel agents and resistance mechanisms on the definitions of resistance profiles, and (d) the globally expanding XDR/DTR high-risk lineages and their association with transferable resistance mechanisms. The evidence presented herein can be used for coordinated epidemiological surveillance and decision making at the European and global level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discloses an innovative methodology for the generation and update of technology roadmaps to support strategic decisions for future hypersonic transportation systems, specifically targeting non-profit oriented R&D. The methodology is fully integrated into up-to-date conceptual design activity flows. It consists of five main steps that through mathematical and logical models moves from stakeholders' analysis up to planning definition and results evaluation. Complementary to the traditional experts-based methodologies, the rational process here presented allows for a well-structured logical definition of activities and/or missions required to enhance the readiness level of technologies, including a more accurate and reliable budget and time resources estimation to support the technology development plan. This methodology is exploited in the framework of the H2020 STRATOFLY Project to assess the potential of hypersonic civil vehicles to reach Technology Readiness Level 6 by 2035 with respect to key technological, societal and economical aspects. The paper discloses a unique assessment of the readiness level of the European air-breathing propulsive technologies. The final results confirm the crucial role of air-breathing propulsive technologies in the development of future hypersonic transportation system and highlight the urgent need to invest in in-flight demonstration missions with increasing functionalities, to target 2050 as entry in to service of the first Mach 8 civil transport. • Innovative Technology Roadmap Methodology for Hypersonic Transportation Systems. • Accurate time and budget resources estimation for each TRL transit. • Guidelines for the definition of activities, demonstrative missions or in-flight missions. • Technology Assessment of air-breathing propulsive technologies in Europe. • High-speed air-breathing technologies: TRL6 by 2035 and TRL9 by 2050 are confirmed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The development and production of cell gene and tissue (CGT)-based therapies requires a specialized workforce. Entering the CGT arena is complex because it involves different scientific and biomedical aspects (e.g., immunology, stem cell biology and transplantation), as well as knowledge of regulatory affairs and compliance with pharmaceutical quality standards. Currently, both industry and academia are facing a worldwide workforce shortage, whereas only a handful of educational and training initiatives specifically address the peculiarities of CGT product development, the procurement of substances of human origin, the manufacturing process itself and clinical monitoring and biovigilance. The training offered by traditional Master's and PhD programs is not suited for training a skilled workforce ready to enter the increasingly fast-growing CGT field. Indeed, typically these programs are of long duration and only partially cover the required competencies, whereas the demand for a specialized workforce relentlessly increases. In this paper, we (i) present and discuss our understanding of the roots of current growth acceleration of the CGT field; (ii) anticipate future workforce needs due to the expected increase of marketed CGT-based therapies and (iii) evaluate potential solutions that seek to adapt, develop and implement current educational and training initiatives. Importantly for these solutions, we call for scientific societies, such as the International Society for Cell & Gene Therapy, to play a more active role and act as catalysers for new initiatives, building bridges between academia and Industry to establish effective educational and training programs that will engage and prepare a new generation of qualified professionals for entry into the CGT field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past few years, energy communities initiatives have gained traction in Europe as a means to achieve energy transition goals, allowing citizen involvement in energy production, consumption, and distribution. Following the 2018 European directive RED II, these projects have rapidly increased across the continent, showcasing their potential for creating sustainable local energy systems. While studies highlight economic, environmental, and social benefits, barriers such as regulatory challenges, finance access, and low public awareness remain. This paper presents the results of a systematic literature review that explores the state-of-the-art of the academic research on energy communities. The study adopts a systematic approach to examine the body of literature on the topic to provide a comprehensive analysis of the phenomenon on the basis of rigorous and replicable research criteria. The reviewed material consists of 140 articles collected through the Scopus database, evaluated using specific structural dimensions to group the literature into analytical categories. The analysis of scientific papers published between 2018 and 2022 shows a growing attention towards Renewable Energy Communities, particularly those based on solar energy for electricity production, often combined with storage systems and heat pumps, whereas attention towards energy communities based on thermal energy production is still limited. Furthermore, most scholars focused on analysing specific territorial contexts; comparisons between different regions allows to highlight common features and elements characterizing each model. It emerged that the development of energy communities depends mainly on regulatory, financial, and managerial barriers that require an adequate institutional and legal framework capable of promoting their diffusion. Most studies address the topic from an economic perspective, often in association with incentivizing community models. However, a social perspective should be included by introducing the concept of energy sharing and methodologies for its distribution among all members of the community. The scientific community is called upon to continue investigating and supporting the development of community energy initiatives by providing evidence-based recommendations to policymakers, industry stakeholders, and local communities. This can help to overcome existing barriers and facilitate the diffusion of energy communities models, contributing to the achievement of sustainable and inclusive energy transition goals. • Systematic literature review exploring academic research on energy communities in Europe. • Structural dimensions and related analytical categories as framework to review 140 journal articles. • Most studies concern ECs based on renewable energy sources, with solar power being the predominant source. • Most employed technologies are related to the production of electricity from photovoltaic with batteries and heat pumps. • Most studied focus on Renewable Energy Community, while Citizens Energy Community are less considered in academic studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A novel approach for regional ionosphere grid model with high spatial-temporal resolution is suggested. • The results of the new model is analyzed at different disturb geomagnetic and solar conditions. • A comparative analysis between the results of new model, GIM, NeQuick and GPS-TEC is made. In this paper, a novel approach based on C1 finite element (FE) interpolation is used to construct a regional ionospheric grid model (RIGM) with high spatio-temporal resolution over Europe. The spatial resolution of the new model is 0.50 for a longitude and latitude and a temporal resolution is 15 min. Observations of 38 GPS stations at different days and seasons with different geomagnetic and solar activity conditions are used to evaluate the new method. All stations are used to discretize the whole domain of the problem into separate triangular patches using a Delaunay triangulation algorithm. In this case, GPS stations would be the vertices of the triangular patches. Also, the position of stations in sun-fixed coordinate system with coordinates of latitude and longitude are chosen in order to consider the temporal variations of vertical total electron content (VTEC). To model the behavior of VTEC in each triangular patch, a particular shape function is defined which is fitted to VTEC values at three vertices of each triangle while it satisfies C1 continuity of VTEC at the common edges of the adjacent triangles. The results of the new model are compared with the VTEC of GPS at 4 control stations as well as global ionosphere map (GIM) and NeQuick models. Statistical parameters, including correlation coefficient, root mean square error (RMSE), standard deviation and dVTEC = |VTEC GPS - VTEC model | have been used to evaluate the error of the models. In low geomagnetic activity (KP < 4), the average RMSE at 4 control stations for FE, GIM and NeQuick models are 0.89, 1.05 and 6.42 TECU, respectively, while in the high geomagnetic activity (KP > 4), they are 1.24, 1.68 and 7.62 TECU, respectively. For further analysis, the accuracy of three models in precise point positioning (PPP) has been also evaluated. In PPP method, there is an improvement of about 1–16 mm compared to GIM and NeQuick models at coordinate components of control stations in high geomagnetic activity. The results of the analysis performed in this paper show that the FE model has a very high capability and accuracy in regional VTEC modeling in high and low geomagnetic conditions. The regional accuracy of this model is higher than GIM and NeQuick models and therefore can be considered as a new model for the ionosphere. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Applications emitting radiofrequency electromagnetic fields (RF-EMF; 100 kHz to 300 GHz) are widely used for communication (e.g. mobile phones), in medicine (diathermy) and in industry (RF heaters). The objective is to systematically review the effects of longer-term or repeated local and whole human body radiofrequency electromagnetic field (RF-EMF) exposure on the occurrence of symptoms. Primary hypotheses were tinnitus, migraine and headaches in relation to RF-EMF exposure of the brain, sleep disturbances and composite symptom scores in relation to whole-body RF-EMF exposure. Eligibility criteria: We included case-control and prospective cohort studies in the general population or workers estimating local or whole-body RF-EMF exposure for at least one week. Information sources: We conducted a systematic literature search in various databases including Web of Science and Medline. Risk of bias: We used the Risk of Bias (RoB) tool developed by OHAT adapted to the topic of this review. Synthesis of results: We synthesized studies using random effects meta -analysis. Included studies: We included 13 papers from eight distinct cohort and one case-control studies with a total of 486,558 participants conducted exclusively in Europe. Tinnitus is addressed in three papers, migraine in one, headaches in six, sleep disturbances in five, and composite symptom scores in five papers. Only one study addressed occupational exposure. Synthesis of results: For all five priority hypotheses, available research suggests that RF-EMF exposure below guideline values does not cause symptoms, but the evidence is very uncertain. The very low certainty evidence is due the low number of studies, possible risk of bias in some studies, inconsistencies, indirectness, and imprecision. In terms of non-priority hypotheses numerous exposure-outcome combinations were addressed in the 13 eligible papers without indication for an association related to a specific symptom or exposure source. Limitations of evidence: This review topic includes various challenges related to confounding control and exposure assessment. Many of these aspects are inherently present and not easy to be solved in future research. Since near-field exposure from wireless communication devices is related to lifestyle, a particular challenge is to differentiate between potential biophysical effects and other potential effects from extensive use of wireless communication devices that may compete with healthy behaviour such as sleeping or physical activity. Future research needs novel and innovative methods to differentiate between these two hypothetical mechanisms. Interpretation: This is currently the best available evidence to underpin safety of RF-EMF. There is no indication that RF-EMF below guideline values causes symptoms. However, inherent limitations of the research results in substantial uncertainty. Funding: This review was partially funded by the WHO radioprotection programme. Registration: The protocol for this review has been registered in Prospero (reg no CRD42021239432) and published in Environment International (Röösli et al., 2021) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Inclusion of package leaflets in paper format is a legal requirement in European Union (EU), therefore the electronic package leaflet (ePL) is a relatively unknown phenomenon in medicinal products in Europe. Introduction of ePL only would be a more sustainable format of providing the product information than paper package leaflet. Furthermore, ePL would support health care professionals' comprehension of product use through electronic searchability and facilitate access to up-to-date product information in respective language used. It could also help us to tackle the availability issues and be a further step towards common packages. With this commentary, our aim is to review the ongoing ePL pilots in hospital settings in Europe and identify the benefits and challenges of ePL. Based on our review, there is a broad general support for the removal of paper package leaflets from hospital products. Packages without paper package leaflets are considered more sustainable due to savings in production and materials. Furthermore, ePL could be a facilitator for common packages in EU-countries with the benefit of reducing pharmaceutical waste and drug shortages. The most important benefit from both pharmaceutical industry and healthcare professionals' interest is that current and on-line updated product information is always electronically available, especially from drug safety perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The shift from centralized to decentralized energy, with the development of renewable energies, is giving rise to new energy models. Some of these models aim to increase the citizens participation in the energy transition, such as the energy communities. This concept has recently emerged in Europe to encourage the development of local projects and raising citizens' awareness. Our aim is to better understand how such communities emerge to foster them, and to propose a tool for B2T (Business to Territory) Business Developers. We have developed a generic methodology to follow the formation of sociotechnical systems based on a modeling of the Actor-Network Theory. We use the concept of Socio-Energetic Node and propose a model of it to apply our generic methodology to Local Energy Communities. Preliminary results are presented at the end of this paper on a case study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intermittent rivers, which do not flow all year round, have biophysical functioning specificities which need to be considered when defining management policies, even more so in the current context of global change. However, in Europe intermittent rivers benefit from the same regulations as permanent rivers, which undoubtedly leads to their degradation. This paper aims to identify (1) how perceptions and values of intermittent rivers interact with their management and (2) determine whether the prospect of climate change leads the stakeholders to questioning their perceptions and values of intermittent rivers and the way we should manage them. Semi-structured interviews and mental mapping exercises were conducted with 28 various stakeholders (elected officials, fishers, river managers, and residents), all of whom lived along the French intermittent Albarine River. Qualitative analysis of the discourses and maps confirms strong interactions between the perceptions and values related to intermittent rivers and their management. The results highlight social devaluation of the intermittent section in terms of aesthetics, recreation, and biological values. They also point to the role of power plays between river managers and fishers, in the prioritization of management actions that favor perennial sections to the detriment of intermittent ones. These dynamics of devaluing and discarding intermittent sections or rivers from management plans are all the more alarming as there is little propensity among river stakeholders to think about the future of these intermittent rivers and their value in the context of climate change, where the prevalence of intermittent rivers is likely to increase dramatically. • Stakeholders devalue intermittent rivers (IR) compared to perennial rivers. • Devaluation is due to aesthetic, recreational and biological reasons. • Devaluation leads to IR or IR sections being excluded from management plans. • Stakeholders do not consider a future with increased intermittency with climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Paper describes a methodology that was successfully applied for the development of a temporary road traffic steel barrier in compliance with T1/W1 level according to EN 1317; • A simplified theoretical analysis of 178 barrier, laboratory test of three types of barrier connectors (for two types of barrier), explicit FEM modeling of four chosen barrier, and a full-scale crash test for final barrier are presented; • The stiffness of barrier connector was established based by laboratory barrier test (the FEM model was validated based on laboratory tests); • The chosen final barrier alternative passed the crash test for T1/W1 (TB21) containment level, performed by certified laboratory [35] , which proves that the presented procedure could be used successfully for traffic barrier development. Over a million people die in road crashes and tens of millions result injured or disabled each year, globally. Hence, there is a constant concern for improving the safety of the roads to protect road users, and those at the most risk, the road workers. Construction, maintenance, and utility work are constantly needed to ensure safety and functionality of roads and highways. Temporary road traffic barriers are used to separate passing traffic from the workspace and protect the workspace from an errant vehicle intrusion. Steel barriers are light, and their major advantage is rapid installation. These barriers are not anchored to the ground, and their behavior relies on the base-pavement friction, mass inertia, and stiffness of the system. The paper describes a methodology that was successfully applied for the development of a temporary road traffic steel barrier in compliance with the European specification EN 1317. The study included a simplified theoretical analysis of 178 barriers, static laboratory tests of three types of barrier connectors, development of explicit finite element models (EFEMs) of four selected barrier designs, and a full-scale crash test of the final barrier design. It is shown that static laboratory tests of complex connector systems can help to improve the design process and reduce the cost. The analysis and use of EFEMs was enough so that just a single full-scale crash test was sufficient for certification of the barrier design for use in Europe. The final barrier is compliant with the EN 1317–2 requirements for T1/W1 (TB21) containment level, which was confirmed by a full-scale crash test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent technological developments make perovskite solar cells (PSCs) particularly suitable for building integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) applications on vertical building envelopes, but the relatively short lifespan of PSCs requires frequent replacement, thereby generating substantial waste. Careful consideration of circularity credentials of this novel technology is therefore essential prior to the extensive implementation of vertical PSCs in building envelopes. This paper provides a circular economy approach for the implementation of PSCs in vertical envelopes and assesses its economic feasibility by life cycle cost analysis in Europe. The process of recycling PSC is developed. The economic performance of PSC envelopes is provided and compared to that of the conventional rigid BIPV system. Uncertainty analysis and sensitivity analysis of economic indicators are then performed to identify the influential parameters. The findings indicate that the PSC envelope has a significant potential for circular BIPV components and that PSCs applied on vertical envelope are economically viable. • LCCA of vertical PSC envelopes with recycling strategy is analyzed in Europe. • Recycling strategy of PSC is explored before diffusion to overcome PSC's short lifespan. • PSC price is the most influential factor for the deviation of LCOE. • PSC envelope has potential to achieve profitability in most regions of Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Of the 4.4 million people diagnosed with cancer in Europe each year, around 36 % are of working age. Return-to-work rates vary across Europe. Work is important for the individual, as well as for society, and this review aims to provide an overview of the predictors for the return to work (RTW) process in European cancer survivors of working age. A systematic literature search was conducted. The present review included quantitative and qualitative study designs published since 2013. In total, the review included 85 papers examining cancer survivors with various cancer diagnoses in 18 European countries. Identified predictive factors for RTW related to the social system, treatment, disease, health behavior, the individuals' psychosocial, work, and sociodemographic situations. There is a need for a standardized definition and operationalization of RTW. Providers can use these results to identify survivors at risk and support cancer survivors in their RTW process. [Display omitted] • Cancer survivors' RTW is associated with various predictors. • The predictors vary over time and differ between cancer entities and countries. • Predictors can be used to identify survivors at risk and to extent support programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a set of digitalisation indicators focused on measuring the different digital capabilities and infrastructure of electricity distribution systems, as opposed to previous indicators which have mainly focused on performance and quality of service aspects. The indicators are classified according to the pillars of digitalisation: sensor and actuator, connectivity, data processing, and digital culture. They are use-case-agnostic and do not require a huge amount of information. In addition to this, three possible new applications of these indicators for distribution system operators and regulatory authorities are identified and discussed. The extensive use of these indicators in Europe could allow the development of fruitful collaborations between distribution system operators, allow the identification of cause–effect relations between grid performance and digital infrastructure, and improve the replicability of innovative smart grid solutions. However, this will only be possible if regulators promote the adoption of the proposed indicators and the dissemination of their results. • Smart grid indicators are required by European Directive 2019/944. • Indicators on sensors/actuators, connectivity, data processing, and digital culture. • Indicators to provide an overview of the distribution grid. • Indicators to study relation between performance and digital infrastructure. • Indicators to generate information for the replicability of solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Investigation focuses on coupling link inspection, integral safety components to train screw coupling systems. • Plastic deformation increase, during operational use, did not affect yield stress or ultimate tensile strength. • Fractured links showed ductile fractures with distinctive surface structures. • 83 % of links, tested after 30 years in operation, exceeded the minimum breaking force. • Train brake analysis suggests a decrease in link failures due to other component issues. This paper presents an analysis of train screw coupling used mainly in Europe as mechanical connection of wagons in train. An analysis of train breaks apart incidents revealed that less than 30 % of the cases were caused by elements of the screw coupling, with coupling links accounting for only 5 % of the failures. Therefore, the investigation focused on testing the coupling links, which are safety elements of the screw coupling. The coupling links underwent various inspections, including visual inspection, dimensional control, non-destructive testing, examination of chemical composition, and mechanical tests. Dimensional control found longitudinal plastic deformations of the links. Chemical examination revealed that the links were made of different material than recommended, but their mechanical properties generally met the recommended values. However, variations were observed among different links, likely due to different rates of deformation during testing and operational conditions. Overall, the analysis and inspections provided insights into the condition and performance of coupling links in the screw coupling system, highlighting the importance of monitoring and maintaining these elements to ensure safe and efficient railway operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Policies aim to increase the penetration of renewable energy resources (RERs) to minimize the dependence on fossil fuels, have compelled different countries to devise their diverse blueprints by transforming smart grids infrastructure into futuristic grids or super smart grids (SSGs). Europe is taking the lead by developing SSGs by 2050, based on two exclusive alternatives, i.e., totally based on RERs and dispersed large decentralized networks. Critically assessing tensions in balancing load flow associated with RERs is a complicated task in SSGs. To solve this concern, the advanced probabilistic model is adopted in this research to observe the variations in demand and response profiles and mitigate it through transmission network planning using a super smart node transmission network topology (SSN). The proposed SSN transmission network topology outperforms the power synergy hub (PSHub) topology used in the existing literature through achieving an optimal load flow balancing in SSGs power infrastructure. This is also verified through simulation results, which provides an effective utilization of continuous spinning reserves (CSRs) and vehicle to grid (V2G) topologies integrated in an SSN transmission network topology for managing an optimized load flow balancing in SSGs. Additionally, this research work also provides a comprehensive overview of technical challenges in SSGs in terms of power flow control, their possible solutions, and future prospects. Finally, this paper concluded with the 2050 framework of futuristic SSGs, which provides a road map path for a sustainable and green energy environment for European infrastructure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper delves into an econometric analysis to uncover the differences between Nordic European Countries - NEC (Norway, Denmark, Finland, Sweden) and South-East European Countries - SEEC (Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary). The focus is on exploring the interplay among electricity generation from Renewable Energy Sources (RES), CO 2 emissions, urban population and GDP per capita in these two European regions. The study employs cross-sectional dependence, first and second-generation panel unit root tests, Pedroni panel and Westerlund panel cointegration tests, ARDL, Dumitrescu-Hurlin causality test to establish the relation among variables. The findings reveal that in both regions, CO 2 emissions are significantly influenced by GDP per capita, urbanization and RES generation. Furthermore, urbanization plays an important role. When examining causality in SEEC, three bidirectional relationships are observed: urbanization and CO 2 , urbanization and GDP, urbanization and generation from RES, and two unidirectional causalities: CO 2 and GDP, generation from RES and CO 2. In contrast, for the NEC, there are two bidirectional causalities: urbanization and CO 2 , urbanization and generation from RES, and two unidirectional causalities: GDP and CO 2 , generation from RES and CO 2. These results highlight the nuanced and varied nature of environmental and economic dynamics across various European regions. • Relationship between CO 2 emissions, GDP per capita and electricity production from RES. • Investigating two groups of EU countries located in the North and SE Europe. • Estimations with Fully Modified and Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares. • Causality and cointegration between variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shear reinforcement design has changed over time, along with the knowledge about the shear behaviour of reinforced concrete structures. Until the 1970s, the shear design in Europe was based on empirical limits for shear stress. The rules stipulated by the design standards often resulted in designs of concrete slabs with shear reinforcement consisting only of bent-up bars without any additional stirrups. Today, truss models are widely used to design shear reinforcement. However, in the structural assessment of bridges with bent-up bars, it is difficult to apply such models due to their specific detailing requirements. In order to evaluate the applicability of current design standards and to span the knowledge gap between the load-bearing behaviour of small-size specimens and actual structures, four shear tests on two full-scale replica bridge slabs containing bent-up bars are presented in this paper. The applied load configuration represents two-axle and four-wheel loads of the current load models for railway bridges stipulated by Eurocode 1–2 and train load model UIC 71. The load distribution due to a track superstructure consisting of a track, sleepers and ballast was investigated. A comparison of the obtained results with those of preliminary tests on narrow slab strips shows differences in the load-bearing behaviour of small-format laboratory tests. The results of the analysis of the bridge slabs according to various design standards show the potential of the newly developed potential shear crack model for the assessment of slab bridges with bent-up reinforcing bars. • Four shear tests on two full-scale replica bridge slabs containing bent-up bars. • Experimental investigation of the load distribution effect due to a complete track superstructure on the shear strength. • Comparison of the load-bearing behaviour of full-size slabs with small-format laboratory tests with a tenth of the width. • Analytical verification of the test results and discussion of shear models of various standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The capability to predict tritium retention and permeation by accurate and reliable tritium transport models for the breeding blanket design development is one of the most relevant objectives of the European Test Blanket Module (TBM) Programme. This also represents a key aspect for the development and licensing of next-future fusion systems and power plants, including the European DEMO. Tritium analyses can be performed using either system-level models to calculate global blanket and the related ancillary system performances or detailed 3D models for spatially limited areas and critical regions: the choice between these two modelling approaches depend on the objective of each analyse. When looking at the accuracy of tritium transport simulations, two main aspects have to be considered: the first one is the completeness of the description of the physical phenomena participating to the tritium transport dynamics; the second one is the reliability of the tritium transport material property values used in the simulation activities. In this context, this paper has the objective to carry out a critical analysis on the status of the integration of the most relevant multi-physics elements, providing recommendations on the approach to follow, with a particular focus on the system-level codes. Moreover, a set of data and correlations on tritium transport materials properties is proposed as a first step towards a material property database to be shared within the breeding blanket community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Buildings are the largest energy consumers in Europe and are responsible for approximately 40% of EU energy consumption and 36% of the greenhouse gas emissions in Europe. Two-thirds of the building consumption is for residential buildings. To achieve energy efficiency, buildings are being integrated with IoT devices through the use of smart IoT services. For instance, a smart space heating service reduces energy consumption by dynamically heating apartments based on indoor and outdoor temperatures. The W3C recommends the use of the Web of Things (WoT) standard to enable IoT interoperability on the Web. However, in the context of a smart building, the ability to search and discover building metadata and IoT devices available in the WoT ecosystems remains a challenge due to the limitation of the current WoT Discovery, which only includes a directory containing only IoT devices metadata without including building metadata. Integrating the IoT device's metadata with building metadata in the same directory can provide better discovery capabilities to the IoT services providers. In this paper, we integrate building metadata into the W3C WoT Discovery through the construction of a Building Description JSON-LD file. This Building Description is integrated into the W3C WoT Discovery and based on the domOS Common Ontology (dCO) to achieve semantic interoperability in smart residential buildings for the WoT IoT ecosystem within the Horizon 2020 domOS project. This integration results in a Thing and Building Description Directory. dCO integrates the SAREF core ontology with the Thing Description ontology, devices, and building metadata. We have implemented and validated the WoT discovery on top of a WoT Thing and Building Description Directory. The WoT Discovery implementation is also made available for the WoT community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As short-term variations existing in differential code bias of receivers (RDCB) will decrease the accuracies of extracting ionospheric observables by carrier-to-code leveling (CCL) method, a modified carrier-to code leveling (MCCL) method had been proposed to estimate RDCB offsets epoch by epoch in retrieval of ionospheric information. However, MCCL method is hampered by efficiency and precision at higher sampling intervals. To address RDCB offsets in higher sampling rate domain, a kernel model in the form of radial basis function (RBF) was chosen to model RDCB offsets produced by MCCL using lower sampling rate data in this paper. Owing to ill-posed problem induced by setting to many kernels, L1 norm regulation was employed to promote the sparsity of the problem and Fast iterative shrinkage thresholding algorithm (FISTA) was adopted to find the sparse solution. Data sets of 350 IGS stations evenly distributed in high-solar and low-solar activity years were chosen to illustrate the general existences of RDCB offsets and their dependence on solar activity. To validate the reliability and efficiency of the proposed method, two stations of them were selected out to construct the spares kernel model. As shown in experimental results, kernel model is of good performance in training data with over 90% sparsity rate and all standard deviations of the errors between original and fitting data are around 0.4 ns. It is a striking finding in terms of efficiency that the proposed method and CCL are much more efficient than MCCL in extracting ionospheric observables by means of fixed equipment. For further validations, generalized triangular series function (GTSF) was constructed using ionospheric observables derived from precise point positioning (PPP), CCL, MCCL and the proposed method. With Center for Orbit Determination in Europe (CODE) Global Ionospheric Map (GIM) regarded as reference, compared with VTEC estimates derived from CCL, those derived from MCCL and the proposed method have improved accuracies ranging from 10% to 20%. Overall, these results indicate that the proposed method has a promising application in retrieval of ionospheric observables in terms of accuracy and efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The EU has committed to make Europe the first climate-neutral continent by 2050. Reaching this objective requires massive changes in the region. The biggest challenge is that the green transition happens without sacrificing economic progress and guaranteeing justice and inclusiveness. This pledge implies that every country be capable of addressing the trade-offs between targets while remaining committed towards the common decarbonisation goal. Our paper analyses the success with which countries are carrying out the energy transition. We propose an enhanced hyperbolic distance function and a stochastic frontier analysis approach to model the joint attainment of economic development, environmental sustainability, and energy equity. We apply our model to an unbalanced panel dataset of 29 European countries for the period 2005–2018. Our estimates show that the average performance of the economies has improved over time. The results also highlight the pivotal role of a sustainable economic development with clean energies for both slashing CO 2 emissions and fostering energy equity. Moreover, we find convergence in countries' performance, being this convergence slightly higher for the EU-15 countries compared to the rest. Finally, we show that a higher share of renewable energy sources helps countries that are lagging behind to reach their optimal performance level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reduced water availability poses risks for many economic activities. This paper studies how water risks affect hydroelectricity generation in Europe and the US and whether these risks are priced in by financial markets. To this end, we build a novel dataset for the period 2015–2022, which combines plant-specific hydroelectricity generation with geo-specific water physical risks and equity returns. We find that water risks, measured using model-based aggregate water risk metrics as well as precipitation anomalies, are significantly associated with reduced electricity generation, although the effect disap- pears after two months. We then link the power plants in our sample to the equity returns of their owners to investigate whether financial markets adequately price water risks. Using a portfolio sorts approach, we find weak evidence of a negative risk pre- mium. Given the real negative effect of water risks on generation, we conclude that the lack of a positive risk premium amounts to mispricing of water risks by financial markets. [Display omitted] • Hydroelectricity is key for the energy transition but faces challenges from fluctuations in water availability. • Higher water risk is associated with a 9% reduction in hydroelectricity generation in the driest year of our sample, 2022. • The occurrence of a precipitation anomaly leads to an 18% drop in hydroelectricity generation. • Despite the real negative effect of water risks, these risks are not priced in by financial markets. • The mispricing of water risks by financial markets calls for closer scrutiny by financial supervisors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Hydrogen is among the energy carriers, which are most often considered for bringing about a sustainable energy system. Yet, so far, hydrogen has not delivered as an energy carrier. The core objective of this paper is to provide a comprehensive analysis of the state-of-the-art and the future prospects of green hydrogen in the European energy system from economic, energetic and CO 2 emissions point-of-view. The analysis shows that there are some increasing opportunities for hydrogen use in industry and in the transport sector, when electrification is not possible or is too expensive, as well as a storage in the European electricity system. However, a hydrogen-based energy system will remain a vision at least over the next decades. The major reason for this is the unfavorable economics mostly due to high investment costs in the whole supply chain. In addition, the overall efficiencies in the hydrogen chains are moderate in general. The full environmental benignity of hydrogen as an energy carrier is only provided when renewable energy sources are used for hydrogen production. However, in Europe, the potentials for green hydrogen are very limited due to the insufficient expansion of renewable electricity generation. For this reason, many European countries are considering options for green hydrogen import. The future of hydrogen is highly dependent on the supporting policy framework. To reduce the risk in the investment in hydrogen infrastructure, as well as to justify the promotion of green hydrogen, it is very important that Europe works out a very clear and realistic long-term implementation strategy. • Hydrogen might have potential in the European energy system, yet a hydrogen-based energy system stays visionary. • Green hydrogen from renewable electricity via electrolyzers is key for environmental benefits and decarbonization. • Hydrogen should be prioritized for uses where electrification is not feasible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While concentrations of most air pollutants have been decreasing in Europe over the last 20 years, O 3 is showing variable trends, with increasing average and decreasing peak concentrations. The complexity of O 3 chemistry adds to the difficulty of understanding both the trends observed and how concentrations can be mitigated. This paper tries to answer the following questions: which emission sectors should be targeted and what levels of reduction could be achieved? To address these reflections, an Atlas of O 3 chemical regimes has been constructed. For this Atlas, 22 European cities were selected and the surrogate model Air Control Toolbox (ACT) was used to evaluate the simulated changes in several ozone metrics as a result of reductions in road transport and industrial emissions. O 3 chemical regimes have been classified and put in perspective with meteorological and emission data at each city location and around. The O 3 sensitivity to road transport and industrial emissions differ from one city to another, but also for the same city when considering different ozone metrics and seasons (e.g., annual means versus SOMO35 or summer peaks). Counterproductive impacts yielding O 3 increase when emissions are reduced are mainly encountered in regions or periods where O 3 concentration are relatively low. In terms of meteorological factors, O 3 chemical regimes are mostly impacted by the amount of solar radiation received but wind speed also has a considerable impact. Most cases show a higher sensitivity to emission reductions from road transport or equal sensitivity to emission reductions from road transport and industry. Very few cases are more sensitive to emissions from the industrial sector. However, the response of annual or seasonal average O 3 metrics to industrial and road transport emissions can be considered relatively low with a maximum reduction of 33% for a 100% reduction of both industrial and road transport emissions. This is because anthropogenic emission can only mitigate ozone above a substantial natural tropospheric background. It is precisely this incremental anthropogenic ozone, which should be targeted by efficient policies as we also demonstrate that none of the cities studied would exceed the European target value with a 100% reduction in emissions. • An atlas of ozone chemical regimes has been constructed for 22 European cities. • O 3 sensitivity to road transport and industrial emissions differ when considering different ozone metrics and different periods of the year. • Counterproductive effects of precursors emission reductions on ozone are a concern where and when ozone concentrations are low. • On the contrary, significant reductions of precursor emissions are found to reduce the number of exceedances of the EU target limit value. • In most cities, mitigation of road transport yields larger benefit to ozone air pollution than mitigation of the industrial sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Investigation of GHG pollutants persistence in Europe and major economic areas. • Mean reversion properties and the integration factor is examined for CO2, CH4, and NO2 (2000-2021) • Empirical evidence of mean reversion in CO2 emissions across all countries. • CH4 and NO2 show reduced persistence and not all countries exhibit mean reversion properties. • These empirical findings highlight policy progress, but underscore the need for further efforts. This paper investigates the persistence of GHG in Europe, evaluating the effectiveness of government policies, including the Kyoto Protocol and the EU Council commitment. Mean reversion properties, and the structure of the integration factor were examined to determine the degree of persistence across markets and assess policy effectiveness. The analysis focuses on CO 2 , CH 4 , and NO 2 pollutants, with monthly data starting in January 2000 and ending in December 2021 from major European countries, and the US, Japan, Brazil, China, and India for comparison purposes. Empirical results show clear evidence of mean reversion in CO 2 emissions observed across all countries, indicating certain degrees of stabilization. Similar patterns are seen for CH 4 , and NO 2 , observing reduced persistence of these pollutants; however not all countries exhibit mean reversion properties. Thus, these findings highlight policy progress in stabilizing GHG emissions, particularly for CO 2 , but underscore the need for further efforts to achieve a substantial emissions reduction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eutrophication by human activities is increasingly affecting ecosystem functioning and plant community composition. So far, studies mainly focus on the effects of atmospheric nitrogen deposition, surface water eutrophication or soil nutrient accumulation. Groundwater pollution of spring habitats, however, has received much less attention, although numerous papers report groundwater nutrient enrichment worldwide. This study presents a survey on groundwater pollution (with emphasis on nitrate and phosphate) and bryophyte composition in 51 ambient petrifying springs in 5 NW European countries, which were compared to published data from 173 other sites in 11 European countries. The reviewed dataset covers a broad range of unpolluted to heavily polluted springs with nitrate concentrations between 0.7 and 3227 μmol l−1. Most petrifying springs in the rural lowlands of NW Europe were found to have elevated concentrations of nitrate and phosphate with the most polluted springs occurring in The Netherlands. The cover of individual characteristic bryophyte species significantly correlates with groundwater nutrient concentrations indicating that nutrient pollution of spring waters affects bryophyte composition. Palustriella commutata, Eucladium verticillatum and Brachythecium rivulare prefer unpolluted petrifying springs whereas Cratoneuron filicinum and Pellia endiviifolia show a much broader tolerance to groundwater pollution. In order to sustain at least the basic conditions for the typical bryophyte composition of petrifying springs habitats, threshold values of 288 μmol (18 mg l−1) NO 3 − l−1 and 0.42 μmol (0.04 mg l−1) ortho-PO 4 3- l−1 were defined. Data analysis of the spring water composition indicates that the main source for nutrient and nutrient induced base cation enrichment are nitrate losses from intensively used agricultural fields. The anthropogenically induced but regionally different chemical processes in subsoil and aquifers can result in different levels of nutrient pollution in springs. Further regulations for nitrate and phosphate application are required to conserve and restore groundwater fed ecosystems in Europe. • A study on Groundwater pollution of petrifying springs. • A correlative study on 51 springs in NW-European countries. • Including data from 173 sites in 11 European countries. • Threshold values of 288 μmol NO 3 − l−1 and 0.42 μmol ortho-PO 4 2- l−1 were defined. • Main source of groundwater pollution are nitrate losses from agricultural. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Frescoes were developed as religious paintings in medieval Europe before the rise of oil paintings. When coloring with natural pigments on a slaked lime plaster, calcium carbonate gradually forms a coating on the pigments at the surface of the plaster over a period of decades to a hundred years. Many frescoes have been maintained for hundreds of years and have become part of historic heritage. However, the making of frescoes is rarely selected as a general art painting method because it takes a lot of time for complete carbonation to occur. This study demonstrated that a geomimetic ceramic hardening technique using calcium hydroxide and calcium carbonate, followed by subsequent acceleration of carbonation at the surface of the calcium hydroxide with supercritical carbon dioxide, could assist in forming frescoes in a short time. The immobilization of the pigment used on the base calcium hydroxide body was evaluated by a scratch test with emery paper, and pigment color differences were measured by a colorimeter. Furthermore, the micromorphology of the resultant frescoes fabricated by the geomimetic technique in a short time was investigated to evaluate the progress of carbonation. As a result, frescoes could be fabricated in a short time by combining a geomimetic technique and carbonation with supercritical carbon dioxide using a novel pigment that is a mixture of pigment and calcium hydroxide. The pigment in the final sample was completely fixed to the base calcium hydroxide body, and the pigment color was brighter than the original pigment color due to the densification of calcium carbonate after supercritical carbon dioxide treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Competing societal demands on land require careful land management. In the era of the European Green Deal, farmers are required to meet some of these competing demands, specifically around production, greenhouse gas emission reductions, and biodiversity conservation. At the same time, 15.1% of total EU land is abandoned or underutilised, which means that it contributes neither to food, nor to ecosystem services, to its full potential. Reintegrating abandoned agricultural land back into production is therefore one of the potential pathways to deliver on the aspirations of the Common Agriculture Policy post-2020. In this paper we assess the potential of managing and reintegrating abandoned agricultural land in Europe to simultaneously increase primary productivity, carbon regulation and habitat for biodiversity, using Latvia as a national case-study that is representative of this challenge in a Baltic context. Our results show that for some regions, reintegration of abandoned agricultural land can lead to "triple win" synergies. These opportunities can be further exploited by applying best management practices to these reintegrated lands. In other regions, where the area of abandoned agricultural land is limited because of favourable biophysical conditions for intensive agricultural production, such "triple-win" synergies are scarce. In such areas, abandoned land plays a role in maintaining ecosystem services at local and regional scales, and even small increases in primary productivity come at the expense of biodiversity. This calls for careful management that involves diverse actor groups, including land managers, in the decision-making process, and in priority setting in each of the regions. • The EU Farm-to-Fork strategy calls for the agricultural sector to deliver on multiple societal demands. • Revaluing and reintegrating abandoned land is a promising and hitherto undervalued pathway to deliver on multifunctionality. • An evidence-based regional approach can maximise the efficacy of national land management strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We use a spatial error model to test the EKC hypothesis on European cities. • The sample is a balanced panel of 922 European cities from 2000 to 2020. • We test CO 2 and SO 2 emissions, PM 2.5 and O 3 concentration and artificial land use. • Depending on the environmental indicator, the EKC takes on different shapes. • Participation in Transnational City Networks can affect EKC curvature. This paper empirically explores the extent to which European cities are on track to sustainable development by examining the environmental performance of a large sample of cities observed during the last two decades. The paper builds on the Environmental Kuznets Curve framework and leverages satellite data to build a set of environmental indicators as varied and as granular as possible. Evidence suggests that European cities are, on average, on track to sustainable development, meaning that the contribution of their economic growth to environmental degradation is already negative or close to becoming so. The paper also examines Transnational City Networks as accelerators of environmental transition. The results suggest that cities participating in such networks anticipate the transition with respect to their peers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The importance of defining and establishing professional standards for Clinical Microbiology (CM) in Europe has long been highlighted, starting with the development of a European curriculum. The first European Curriculum in Medical Microbiology (MM) was adopted by the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS) council in 2017. This paper assesses how training programmes in CM in Europe align with the European curriculum, just under 5 years after its introduction, and reviews what methods of assessment are in use to assess the CM trainees' progress during training programmes. Using an internet-based platform, a questionnaire was circulated to the full, associate and observer members of the UEMS MM section. Information collected related to the structure, content and delivery of CM training in the participating countries, as well as methods of assessment used to evaluate training progress. Twenty-one countries responded, from a total of 30 countries invited to participate. All had a structured CM training programme, with a curriculum, dedicated trainers and a record of training activities. Fifteen countries require trainees to pass an exit examination, and over 60% of countries participate in continuous workplace-based assessment. Of the participating countries, 57% meet the European Training Requirements recommendation that duration of specialist training is 60 months. Regarding core competencies, all trainees gain experience in laboratory skills and infection prevention and control, but the emphasis on clinical management and antimicrobial stewardship is more varied across countries. The UEMS MM curriculum has been largely adopted by 21 countries within less than 5 years of ratification, which speaks optimistically to a future of standardized quality training across Europe. The introduction of a pilot European Examination in Clinical Microbiology in 2021 is the start of a pan-European assessment of the success of the implementation of this curriculum and the first step in quality assurance for CM training in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 2018 European bioeconomy strategy sets a new vision for Europe's sustainable development: a transition to regenerative resource usage that embraces circular principles. Similarly, various member states have developed national bioeconomy strategies. To be effective, such strategies require methodologically sound monitoring tools that support the alignment of national and urban policies. Indeed, cities are central to the bioeconomy, mobilizing ever increasing amounts of biogenic materials. To better understand the suitability of national bioeconomy strategies for guiding urban circular bioeconomy transitions, this paper examines the composition, features, and topical coverage of national bioeconomy indicator sets with a threefold analysis: (1) assessment of the integration of circularity principles in the sets and their alignment with existing policy frameworks; (2) appraisal of quality and the fulfillment of the sets' functional purposes; (3) evaluation of the breadth and depth of tackled issues. Of the 27 EU member states, only nine have a dedicated bioeconomy strategy, of which four propose an indicator set. While there is a general lack of sophisticated monitoring, the tools proposed after the publication of the 2018 bioeconomy strategy (Germany and Italy) follow indicator development standards rigorously. They include circularity in their notion of bioeconomy and combine indicators for a comprehensive, substantial, informative and politically relevant analysis. These characteristics strongly improve the potential for alignment and coherence with urban-level bioeconomy monitoring efforts. Although national measuring tools are not intended to cover all urban needs, the findings of this paper give insight into their remaining gaps and highlight improvement pathways for an efficient EU-wide circular bioeconomy transition. [Display omitted] • Most EU national bioeconomy strategies lack sophisticated indicator sets. • National bioeconomy strategies should favor alignment with other policy levels. • Thoroughly developed indicator sets allow targeted answers to environmental change. • Recent strategies follow indicator development standards more rigorously. • Recent indicator sets enable monitoring of urban circular bioeconomy transitions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cancer-related cognitive impairment (CRCI) has increasingly been identified over the last two decades in non-CNS system cancer patients. Across Europe, researchers have contributed to this effort by developing preclinical models, exploring underlying mechanisms and assessing cognitive and quality of life changes. The ultimate goal is to develop interventions to treat patients experiencing CRCI. To do so, new challenges need to be addressed requiring the implementation of multidisciplinary research groups. In this consensus paper, we summarize the state of the art in the field of CRCI combined with the future challenges and action plans in Europe. These challenges include data sharing/pooling, standardization of assessments as well as assessing additional biomarkers and neuroimaging investigations, notably through translational studies. We conclude this position paper with specific actions for Europe based on shared scientific expert opinion and stakeholders involved in the Innovative Partnership for Action Against Cancer, with a particular focus on cognitive intervention programs. [Display omitted] • Cancer-related cognitive impairments (CRCI) are increasingly studied in Europe. • A multidisciplinary approach is needed to disentangle contributing factors to CRCI. • Ultimately, cognitive interventions are being developed based on ongoing science. • The ECCC aims to gain knowledge in this field to optimize oncological treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a new approach to evaluate sustainable energy consumption in selected European countries for the industrial sector and to identify which country is leading in this respect. Energy consumption has been on a continuously rising trend due to industrial development, migration of people from rural to urban areas and growing energy demand in the service sector. Therefore, it is essential to increase the share of renewable sources in energy consumption because it allows reducing the share of non-renewable sources, which significantly contribute to carbon dioxide emissions to the atmosphere. The assessment of the effectiveness of actions taken to improve the sustainability of energy consumption requires the consideration of many different criteria. The practical usefulness of multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) methods in this task has been proven in the literature. The structure of the model evaluated was based on criteria made available by the European Statistical Office (EUROSTAT). The study was conducted using four MCDA methods (TOPSIS, VIKOR, COMET and PROMETHEE II). The results obtained proved the usefulness and adequacy of the selected MCDA methods in assessing the problem in question. It was possible to clearly identify the country with the most sustainable energy consumption in terms of the established principles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Due to the immense pressure of environmental pollution, economic growth and energy usage, green growth is recognized as the fundamental development strategy in Europe. This paper assesses environmental efficiency (ENE) of 54 industries from 28 European countries across the three sectors of an economy over the 2000–2014 period using a non-radial directional distance function (DDF). The aim of this study is to shed light and provide a deeper understanding of the different levels of technological heterogeneity that exist among industries by incorporating the metafrontier approach under distinct sector and country-specific production frontiers. The results reveal that industries present higher levels of environmental efficiency within their sectors while manufacturing industries achieve the lowest progress in environmental efficiency. Thus, it is critical to introduce and implement sector-oriented policies rather than common guidelines for all European countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Iron-based Shape Memory Alloy rebars are available in the construction sector. • They can generate recovery stresses easily due to the shape memory effect. • Hollow Core Slabs structural floors improve their behaviour with continuity. • An active continuity of these structural floors can be achieved with Fe-SMA. • The experimental results ensure an improvement in Service Limit State. Despite the relatively recent introduction of Iron-based Shape-Memory Alloys (Fe-SMA) into structural engineering, more than 150 real applications have been performed to date in Central Europe, especially in retrofitting projects. Thanks to the Shape-Memory Effect, a prestrained and correctly anchored Fe-SMA bar can generate recovery stresses when heated up to 160 °C (activation) or more, and then cooled down. This paper presents research results about using Fe-SMA reinforcing bars as active (prestressed) continuity reinforcement in the hogging bending moment region of Hollow Core Slabs structural floors (HCS-sf). An experimental campaign was designed and carried out on eight HCS-sf specimens, four with concrete topping and four without, and two different slab heights. Using the HCS-sf specimens with the activated Fe-SMA bars resulted in better behaviour in the Service Limit State, which preliminarily proved the effectiveness of the proposed methodology for the specimens with concrete topping, although construction problems arose with the specimens without concrete topping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With increased digitalization and e-government services, Artificial Intelligence (AI) gained momentum. This paper focuses on AI-governance in Child Social Care field, exploring how aspects of individual, family/community factors are embedded in organizational level, especially when dealing with children resilience and wellbeing. A three-level based review has been conducted. In the first part we explored the interlink between individual factors associated to either resilience or wellbeing are connected to community and governance level where a new conceptual model is provided. In the second phase, we conducted an in-depth systematic literature review using PRISMA review protocol where new categorizations of identified literature with respect to individual, family and community levels in child social care field were suggested, while in the third phase, a review of relevant AI-initiatives in Europe and USA was performed. Finally, a comprehensive discussion of the literature review outcomes was carried out and a new updated conceptual model was provided. • Systematic literature using PRISMA protocol has been carried out. • Athree level literature steps is performed: Management, overall and EU case study reports. • There is a clear distinction between individual and family/community factors in governance. • The sparsity of applications of Artificial Intelligence to child social care is emphasized. • New conceptual models have been put forward. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the predictive impact of weather conditions and electricity demand on hourly spot prices of emissions allowances during the first three phases of the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) (2005–2019). We propose an original methodology for constructing European-scale electricity demand and weather indices and characterize the relationship between those indices and emissions allowances prices by means of an advanced predictive modeling technique (Extreme Gradient Boosting). Empirical findings assert that electricity demand and the weather variables under study were of importance for estimating EUA prices during the first three phases of the EU ETS, with air temperature and electricity demand being most relevant to emissions allowances prices. Conversely, total precipitation and relative humidity proved to be the least relevant variables to the outcome. The results also indicate that the relationship between emissions allowances prices and their weather-related predictors was not linear in the studied period. The paper contributes to the growing body of literature on the structural determinants of carbon prices in the EU ETS and enhances our understanding of the impact of climate and weather variability – in the provision of renewable energy production – on the most prominent market-based measure to reduce CO 2 emissions in Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• A new spatial typology of climate change risk for European cities and regions. • Response to IPCC call to understand climate change risks at sub-national levels. • Uneven climate change risk across the 33 countries covered by the typology. • Differences in risk profiles facing urban, rural and peri -urban areas. • Evidence of spatial clustering in climate change risk across typology classes. This paper aims to contribute to the analysis of climate change risk through the development of a new spatially-explicit typology of climate risk for European cities and regions. In doing so, it offers a direct response to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) call to advance awareness of climate change risks at sub-national levels through the integration of hazard, exposure and vulnerability domains into a composite risk classification that covers the whole of Europe. K-means clustering was applied to 49 variables at NUTS3 level where the final classification resulted in an upper-tier of eight 'classes', which were subsequently partitioned to derive a lower-tier of 31 'sub-classes'. A three-stage analysis of the eight-fold class configuration was then undertaken focusing on the distribution of climate risk classes, raising significant issues to inform climate change adaptation planning policy, practice and research. The analysis revealed an uneven distribution of climate change risk across the 33 countries covered by the typology, reinforcing the IPCC message that adapting and building resilience to climate change risk is not a 'one-size-fits-all' exercise. In the second stage, the analysis focused on determining whether there was a difference in the climate change risk facing different settlement types in Europe. The analysis revealed the extent of variation in the climate change risk characteristics of Europe's urban and rural areas, revealing the potential for peri -urban areas to fall between climate change risk agendas or priorities when compared to urban–rural contexts. The final component of our analysis considered the extent to which climate change risk classes exhibit patterns of spatial clustering. Here we found that climate change risk exhibits evidence of spatial clustering but the extent of the clustering varies between different classes as the relationship between contiguous NUTS3 regions changes. This finding has notable implications for transboundary adaptation planning where discontinuities in political buy-in, competition, resourcing and awareness of risk could serve to undermine the coherence and adequacy of policy responses at a time when greater cooperation and alignment is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We present new sustainable land system scenarios for Europe for 2050. • Unique values informed each scenario via the Nature Futures Framework (NFF). • Natural grasslands and forests will decline without sustainability targets. • Equal targets under varied NFF scenarios yield diverse outcomes for 20 % of Europe's land. • Identifying convergences/disagreements in sustainability valuations aids dialogue. Ambitious international targets are being developed to protect and restore biodiversity under the Convention on Biological Diversity's post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework and the European Union's Green Deal. Yet, the land system consequences of meeting such targets are unclear, as multiple pathways may be able to deliver on the set targets. This paper introduces a novel scenario approach assessing the plural implementations of these targets. The Nature Futures Framework (NFF) developed by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services aims to illustrate the different, positive ways in which society can value nature. It therefore offers a lens through which the spatial implementation of sustainability targets may be envisioned. We used CLUMondo, a spatially explicit model, to simulate plural land system scenarios for Europe for 2050. The model builds on current land system representations of Europe and explores how and where sustainability targets can be implemented under projected population trends and commodity demands. We created three different scenarios in which the sustainability targets are met, each representing an alternative, normative view on nature as represented by the NFF, favoring land systems providing strong climate regulation (Nature for Society), species conservation (Nature for Nature), or agricultural heritage features (Nature as Culture). Our results show that, irrespective of the NFF view, meeting sustainability targets will require European land systems to drastically change, as natural grasslands and forests are forecast to expand while productive areas are projected to undergo a dual intensification and diversification trajectory. Despite each NFF perspective showcasing a similar direction of change, 20% of Europe's land area will differ based on the adopted NFF perspective, with hotspots of disagreement identified in eastern and western Europe. These simulations go beyond existing scenario approaches by not only depicting broad societal developments for Europe, but also by quantifying the land system synergies and trade-offs associated with alternative, archetypal, interpretations and values of how nature may be managed for sustainability. This quantification exemplifies a means towards constructive dialogue, on the one hand by acknowledging areas of contention, and bringing such issues to the fore, and on the other by highlighting points of convergence in a vision for a sustainable Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a systematic literature review of how market-based instruments can influence the development of sustainable innovation. Our analysis of empirical papers published in selected peer-reviewed journals from 1992 to 2021 shows that contextual factors such as geography and industrial sector impact whether market-based instruments successfully stimulate firms to adopt sustainable innovation. Interestingly, while most of our selected papers on East Asia report positive effects of market-based instruments, about half of the papers on Europe report negative or non-significant effects. Moreover, we appear to uncover a link between the research method they use for analysis and the observed effectiveness of market-based instruments. We reflect on the limitations and bias in current methodological approaches and discuss explanations for our findings, implications for policymakers, and avenues for future research. • We review the effect of market-based instruments on sustainable innovation. • Results from 76 empirical papers show mixed effects. • The observed effect appears to depend on geography and the research method applied. • Instruments appear more effective in East Asia than in Europe. • Reported effectiveness is higher in studies using patent data versus surveys. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research provides a systematic literature review on air transportation. Three periods are analysed: 1973–1999 (120 papers), 2000–2019 (742 papers), and 2020–2021 (177 papers), with the period 2000–2019 being the focus. A computer-assisted thematic analysis was conducted using Reinert's method to quantify thematic classes and their prevalence statistically. The evolution of class predominance over time was also analysed. The results highlighted six major thematic classes in 2000–2019, with three reflecting methodologies (i.e., parameter estimation, time-based problems, and optimisation) and the remaining three characterising underlying applications (i.e., co-opetition, business models, and external stakeholder/social view). Classes found for 1973–1999 also discuss optimisation and co-opetition, with the remaining classes focusing on aviation developments in Europe and transportation systems in general. Classes found for 2020–2021 agreed largely to the period 2000–2019, albeit with more well-delineated classes on the COVID-19 pandemic and the connectivity and accessibility of air networks. A correlation of methodologies and applications (2000–2019) identified the ubiquitous use of regression analysis throughout applications and the underrepresentation of complex network analysis and economic modelling in applications associated with the business models and external stakeholder/social view classes. Temporal trends suggest a steady increase in discussions of the parameter estimation class and subclasses related to low-cost carriers in Europe, regional airports, and high-speed rail co-opetition, and a decrease in investigations of airline alliances, deregulation, and privatisation. • Air transport network references are analysed with Reinert's method. • Thematic classes and prevalence are statistically quantified and spatially mapped. • Temporal trends and correlations of methods and applications are discussed. • A hierarchical structure of themes is provided. • Results assist in theory development and identification of areas for examination. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mapping of environmental variables often relies on map accuracy assessment through cross-validation with the data used for calibrating the underlying mapping model. When the data points are spatially clustered, conventional cross-validation leads to optimistically biased estimates of map accuracy. Several papers have promoted spatial cross-validation as a means to tackle this over-optimism. Many of these papers blame spatial autocorrelation as the cause of the bias and propagate the widespread misconception that spatial proximity of calibration points to validation points invalidates classical statistical validation of maps. We present and evaluate alternative cross-validation approaches for assessing map accuracy from clustered sample data. The first method uses inverse sampling-intensity weighting to correct for selection bias. Sampling-intensity is estimated by a two-dimensional kernel approach. The two other approaches are model-based methods rooted in geostatistics, where the first assumes homogeneity of residual variance over the study area whilst the second accounts for heteroscedasticity as a function of the sampling intensity. The methods were tested and compared against conventional k -fold cross-validation and blocked spatial cross-validation to estimate map accuracy metrics of above-ground biomass and soil organic carbon stock maps covering western Europe. Results acquired over 100 realizations of five sampling designs ranging from non-clustered to strongly clustered confirmed that inverse sampling-intensity weighting and the heteroscedastic model-based method had smaller bias than conventional and spatial cross-validation for all but the most strongly clustered design. For the strongly clustered design where large portions of the maps were predicted by extrapolation, blocked spatial cross-validation was closest to the reference map accuracy metrics, but still biased. For such cases, extrapolation is best avoided by additional sampling or limitation of the prediction area. Weighted cross-validation is recommended for moderately clustered samples, while conventional random cross-validation suits fairly regularly spread samples. • Cross-validation with clustered data produces too optimistic map accuracy estimates. • In contrast, blocked spatial cross-validation is pessimistically biased. • Sampling-intensity weighted cross-validation is recommended for clustered samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate change impacts in one country can lead to impacts in distant locations, for example, via internationally traded crops. Previous work has highlighted a need to include cross-border climate change impacts in climate risk assessments, to describe the exposure and transmission of cross-border climate risk across actors, and understand options for managing this risk. In a case study of the Brazil-Europe soy supply chain, this paper aims to explore how stakeholders perceive past and future shocks, how climate change impacts affect stakeholders differently, and how they might respond. Soy is a key internationally traded commodity and Europe relies on imports for the majority of its soy consumption, used widely in livestock feed. Via 96 semi-structured expert interviews, we found different stakeholder groups are vulnerable to different types of weather shocks, experience different price and supply consequences, and have different capacities to respond. While some responses can reduce risk of impacts across the supply chain (e.g. new soy cultivars, improving transport infrastructure), we also identified examples where responses exacerbate risk for other stakeholders (e.g. export bans, changing demand). A holistic cross-border approach to analysing risk in the soy supply chain can help avoid maladaptation and offer opportunities for more collaborative adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plastic pollution is a ubiquitous and universally recognized environmental threat, and bioplastics have emerged as a potential solution to this issue in the last years. Being biobased and biodegradable, bioplastics have a reduced carbon footprint with respect to plastics, and they are not expected to accumulate and fragmentate in the environments as plastics do. Nevertheless, some bioplastics drawbacks such as their slow biodegradation in engineered (i.e., anaerobic digestion and composting) and natural (i.e., soil and water) environments have been used by sceptics to discredit bioplastics, and this have induced policy makers to use a precautionary approach to the topic (i.e., including bioplastics in the ban of single use products and in the count of inert materials in organic fertilizers). Using a simplified ecologic risk assessment analysis, this Opinion paper aimed to show that bioplastics that are proven to be intrinsically biodegradable are always a better choice than plastics. Having a residence time in natural environments of about 1–10 years, the likelihood of bioplastics causing harmful effects on living organisms is about 100–1000 times lower than plastics that resides thousands of years in the environments. Taking this into consideration, policy makers are asked to revise recent regulations and directives to enhance bioplastics diffusion and fight plastic pollution. In this sense, Single Use Plastic Directive 2019/904 may exclude biodegradable bioplastic items from the ban, and European Regulation on Fertilizers 2019/1009 may exclude biodegradable bioplastics residues from the count of inert materials in organic fertilizers. Bioplastics collection within biowastes and subsequent anaerobic digestion should be also favoured, in order to force controlled bioplastics biodegradation into biogas and reduce their leakage into the environment, resulting in the enhanced circularity of bioplastics products. [Display omitted] • Bioplastics are less hazardous than plastics due to their intrinsic biodegradability. • Policymakers should not be guided solely by the disadvantages of bioplastics. • Single-use plastic Directive needs to exclude biodegradable items from the ban. • Fertilizers regulation should not consider bioplastics' residues as inert materials. • Sorted collection of bioplastics with biowastes and their AD should be enhanced. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] Energy transitions are at the top of global agendas in response to the growing challenges of climate change and international conflict, with the EU positioning itself as playing a pivotal role in addressing climate risks and sustainability imperatives. European energy transition policies identify 'smart consumption' as a key element of these efforts, which have previously been explored from a predominantly technical perspective thus often failing to identify or address fundamental interlinkages with social systems and consequences. This paper aims to contribute to interdisciplinary energy research by analysing a forward looking 'Horizon Scan' research agenda for smart consumption, driven by the Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH). Reflecting on an extensive systematic Delphi Method exercise surveying over 70 SSH scholars from various institutional settings across Europe, we highlight what SSH scholars see as future directions for smart consumption research. Building from seven thematic areas (under which are grouped 100 SSH research questions), the study identifies three key 'shifts' this new smart research agenda represents, when compared to previous agendas: (1) From technological inevitability to political choice , highlighting the need for a wider political critique, with the potential to open up discussions of the instrumentalisation of smart research; (2) From narrow representation to diverse inclusion , moving beyond the shortcomings of current discourses for engaging marginalised communities; and (3) From individual consumers to interconnected citizens , reframing smart consumption to offer a broader model of social change and governance. Social Sciences and Humanities scholarship is essential to address these shifts in meaningful (rather than tokenistic) ways. This agenda and the shifts it embodies represent key tools to enable better interdisciplinary working between SSH and teams from the technical and natural sciences. • Smart agenda deliberatively produced by 70+ Social Sciences and Humanities scholars. • 100 questions organised under seven SSH themes, which cut across technologies. • Prior smart research agendas focus on technical goals and traditional institutions. • We propose three shifts: political choice, diverse inclusion, connected citizens. • Questions support non-tokenistic inclusion of social aspects in technology projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• An LCA tool for non-LCA experts building practitioners in Latin America is presented. • It meets several of literature requirements for LCA tools for first design phases. • A screening LCA of a bioclimatic building showed 30% reduction in carbon footprint. • Using local databases and a BIM-LCA integration are some of the tool's main features. • A carbon footprint benchmark for the Mexican housing use phase has been proposed. Several Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) tools have been generated seeking to facilitate its application in buildings. However, most of them are focused on Europe or the US, leaving aside the Latin American region. This paper presents the EVAMED (Building Environmental Assessment tool) framework, a new tool developed mainly for Latin America, aimed at non-LCA expert users. It is analyzed how this software addresses the requirements established in the literature for LCA tools in early design phases. A screening LCA of a bioclimatic project is presented as a case study. A validation has been made by comparing the results obtained with those of a commercial software. The difference between both tools does not exceed an average of 40% considering various environmental impact categories. The results show EVAMED covers several of the requirements established for LCA tools for buildings early design stages, like the use of regional and international databases, the BIM (Building Information Modeling)-LCA integration and its versatility during project configuration and results visualization. Bioclimatic strategies achieve a 30% reduction in the carbon footprint of the case study. The use phase has improved its rating in the Mexican housing carbon footprint benchmark, going from E (78.8 kgCO 2 e/m2-year) to C (54.7 kgCO 2 e/m2-year). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The new solution for the façade integrated photovoltaic system, En-ActivETICS was proposed and described in detail, including technical recommendations. • The calibrated numerical model was used to determine hygrothermal performance and identify the most crucial issues of En-ActivETICS. • The positive effect of PCM and diffusion channels was revealed based on a numerical study using calibrated thermoelectrical and hygrothermal models. • The En-ActivETICS was investigated considering local climatic and economic conditions among 38 European countries. • The roadmap 2030 for the En-ActivETICS advancement was developed and presented. The main goal of the European building market transformation regards the reduction of CO 2 emissions and energy demand in the built environment towards net zero carbon buildings. This drives research and building practice to search for economically justified solutions that contribute to achieving these objectives. The work presented in this paper is concerned with the technological and economic context. The original solution of photovoltaic integration with the external thermal insulation composite system named the En-ActivETICS was developed, tested and analysed. The energy potential of the En-ActivETICS across Europe, considering south oriented façade is from 88.3 to 195.8 kWh/(m2⋅a), with the efficiency of solar energy conversion of around 13–14%. The problem of system overheating was solved by applying PCM mortar beside the PV panel, which allowed to keep the PV temperature below 70 °C. The risk of moisture load (from driven rain or water vapour condensation) was avoided by diffusion channels pressed in the mortar. Furthermore, the economic analysis of system implementation in Europe is also promising. Considering the availability of solar energy and electricity prices around Europe the payback time of the En-ActivETICS varies between 12 and 44 years for analysed countries. According to the presented roadmap for the En-ActivETICS advancement a payback period of <10 years is possible with a maximum cost of the system <275 EUR/m2 and electricity price >0.25 EUR/kWh. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Modelling energy savings of renovations in the Dutch non-profit housing stock. • Assessment of 1.6 million dwellings, 21 building features and 3 empirical models. • Empirical models outperform the theoretical building energy model. • Shortcomings exist when predicting effects of specific energy-saving interventions. In Europe, the energy performance of dwellings is measured using theoretical building energy models based on the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), which estimates the energy consumption of dwellings. However, literature shows large performance gaps between the theoretically predicted energy consumption and the actual energy consumption of dwellings. The goal of this paper is to investigate the extent to which empirical models provide more accurate estimations of actual energy consumption when compared to a theoretical building energy model, in order to estimate average actual energy savings of renovations. We used the Dutch non-profit housing stock to demonstrate the results. We examined three empirical models to predict the actual energy consumption of dwellings: a linear regression model, a non-linear regression model, and a machine learning model (GBM). This paper shows that these three models alleviate the performance gap by giving a good prediction of actual energy consumption on sectoral cross-sections. However, these models still have shortcomings when predicting the effects of specific renovation interventions, for example newly introduced heat pumps. The non-linear and machine learning model (GBM) outperform the theoretical model in terms of estimating energy savings through renovation interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Methods using macroalgal assemblages in monitoring programs were reviewed. • A total of 215 papers were selected. • A large variability among geographical areas was highlighted. • Most studies focused on mapping the distribution of kelps or Fucales. • In Europe many ecological quality indices were developed. Macroalgae have been utilized as biological indicators of ecosystem health in many monitoring programs worldwide. These programs have utilized various methods to quantify macroalgal community structures. The aim of this study was to provide an overview of current progress by reviewing techniques and methods in both monitoring programs and impact evaluation studies that use macroalgal assemblage data. A total of 215 papers were selected and divided into four categories: macroalgal assemblage monitoring, macroalgal mapping, developing and employing ecological indices based on macroalgae, and developing and employing generic ecological indices including macroalgae. The number and goals of macroalgal monitoring programs are very different among geographical areas. In Europe, the recent European Union Directives led to the development of indices as tool to monitor the ecological quality of coastal systems. In other geographic regions, most studies focused on mapping the distribution of kelps or Fucales. This demonstrates the necessity to harmonize marine macroalgal monitoring, identifying common metrics and approaches in sampling design, field measurements, taxonomic resolution and data management, in order to develop standardized procedures which may allow data obtained to be compared. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]