Imagine finding out that the pilot of your next flight will be using Apple Vision Pro while in command of the plane. Would you feel comfortable boarding that plane? If your answer is no, you might think the pilot is reckless and that your life is at risk. On the other hand, if your answer is yes, you probably know the potential of using this device in such a situation.
Recently, the world was caught up in this debate when a pilot in the United States was recorded using Apple Vision Pro during a flight1. The pilot claimed to have improved productivity with this device. However, he faced significant criticism and had to apologize after deleting the video.
Why did this case cause so much outrage? In reality, many sectors use these types of devices daily, such as surgery, architecture, engineering, and training. The reason is simple: we are progressing. Although humans are skeptical of new technologies, we recognize that they can improve our lives. A clear example is e-commerce; when it started, many people thought it was dangerous. Now, Amazon is the fifth most valuable company in the United States, and in Spain, 39% of the population shops online at least once a month2.
It’s likely that over time, this feeling will also dissipate in the case of extended reality. This term, which encompasses virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality, can be confusing for many. Each technology serves a specific purpose based on the level of immersion: virtual reality creates entirely digital environments, augmented reality overlays digital elements onto the physical reality, and mixed reality combines both to provide spatial awareness to digital elements. This concept is best understood when looking at the following image.
Differences between virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality. Source: Avi Barel3
In the image, you can see how in mixed reality, an object like a rubber duck can recognize its surroundings and position itself behind a table instead of going through it as it would in augmented reality. This is the magic of mixed reality!
Although Apple Vision Pro has incredible features, similar devices have existed for a long time, something that CARTIF is well aware of. That’s why in the Industrial and Digital Systems Division, we have long been using the Microsoft HoloLens 2 mixed reality device for various purposes.
In the Baterurgia project, we are using this technology to automate the disassembly of electric car batteries and promote human-robot interaction. To achieve this, we rely on robotics and computer vision to detect screws present in a battery. Through the lenses of the Microsoft HoloLens 2, the operator sees holograms indicating the position of the screws in space. The operator can select a screw with a finger or gaze and issue instructions to the robot via voice commands. The system provides feedback on the progress of the activity, allowing the operator to perform other tasks simultaneously.
Secuence for picking up a screw (Recorded with Microsoft HoloLens 2)
Display of the camera image showing detected screws.
Identification and marking of the screws.
The operator selects a screw.
The robot picks up the selected screw.
As you have seen, mixed reality is gaining popularity and being applied in more sectors. The high cost of products like Apple Vision Pro and Microsoft HoloLens 2, which are around $3500, is a significant limitation. However, new more affordable devices like Meta Quest 3, which costs around $500, are making this technology more accessible for companies and users. Along these lines, it is projected that the global sales of extended reality devices will increase to 105 million by 20254 .
If this post has intrigued you and you wish to explore more about extended reality and its impact, I’d be happy to share more information with you!
In a world where sustainability is increasingly at the forefront of our concerns, the need for innovative solutions to transform our built environment is more pressing than ever. The current state of the EU building stock presents a significant challenge, acting as one of the largest energy consumers in Europe and responsible for over one third of the EU’s emissions.
Recognizing the urgency of the situation, the European Commission unveiled a new strategy in October 2020: “A Renovation Wave for Europe – Greening our buildings, creating jobs, improving lives.” This strategy represents a crucial step forward, aiming to incentivize investments in renovation and support the implementation of efficient methods and technologies.
Despite these efforts, the reality remains stark – over 75% of the EU building stock is not energy-efficient, and the annual renovation rate languishes at a mere 1%. The strategy emphasizes the need for deep renovations, those achieving over 60% reduction in energy consumption, as a top priority. The overarching goal? To double annual energy renovation rates over the next decade, not only to reduce emissions but also to enhance the quality of life for building occupants and create green jobs in the construction sector.
To achieve the depth and volume of renovation required, a strong and competitive construction sector is essential. Embracing innovation and sustainability is paramount to increasing quality and reducing production and installation costs. The Built4People European Partnership highlights three pillars crucial to this endeavour:
Industrialized Technological Solutions: Embracing advanced technologies to streamline construction processes.
Digitalization of the Construction Industry: Leveraging digital tools such as Building Information Modelling (BIM) to improve transparency and efficiency.
Integration of Circularity Principles: Incorporating circular economy principles across the entire value chain, from materials sourcing to waste management.
In the midst of this pressing need for renovation innovation, REHOUSEemerges as a beacon of hope. Coordinated by CARTIF and under the Horizon Europe program, REHOUSE is poised to lead the charge in innovation within the construction sector. With a laser focus on deep renovations and circularity principles, REHOUSE aims to develop and demonstrate eight renovation packages incorporating promising technology innovations up to TRL7 (Integrated pilot system demonstrated).
These renovation packages are meticulously designed to overcome the main barriers that impede current EU renovation ratios. Through the integration of active/passive elements, prefabrication, and off-site construction, REHOUSE seeks to deliver affordable and sustainable renovation solutions with the flexibility to address nearly 100% of building renovation challenges at the EU level.
But what truly sets REHOUSE apart is its people-centric approach. By actively engaging residents and building owners throughout the renovation process, the project ensures that solutions are not only sustainable but also affordable, satisfactory, and attractive.
REHOUSE is now at its halfway point, demonstrating remarkable progress and achievements. The project has already established the basis for the social innovation strategy, detailed the specifications of innovative solutions, and produced digital versions of the Renovation Packages. Additionally, an innovative evaluation framework and technical building diagnosis of the demo-sites have been completed. The validation of the Renovation Packages (RPs) is underway to achieve TRL6 (Prototype system verified), accompanied by the development of guidelines for their industrialization. Furthermore, the project is actively defining specifications for the Digital Building Logbook, designing and preparing the groundwork for the later construction of the demo-sites, and outlining the pathway towards market achievement after the project concludes. These efforts mark the beginning of our journey to revolutionize renovation processes, driven by innovation and collaboration.
Join us on this transformative journey as we pave the way for a brighter, greener tomorrow with REHOUSE. Together, we can reshape our built environment, create sustainable spaces, and preserve our planet for generations to come.
This project has received funding from the European Union´s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101079951.
If any of us were asked what we know of Central Asia, perhaps we could say it’s a geographical region located in the heart of the Asian continent made up of several countries that emerged from the disintegration of the USSR. We might even be able to name some of them and even highlight the great ethnic and cultural diversity of the area, or its wealth of natural resources, especially natural gas and oil. But, above all, most of us are reminded of the importance of this region in history because of the Silk Road, an ancient trade network connecting East and West. What maybe few people know is the key role that this region now plays in the global energy landscape.
Understanding the reasons for this key role
Made up of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, the region, which is home to a population of over 70 million people, with projections to reach 90 million by 2050, is characterised by a diversity of landscapes, from high pastures and mountains to vast deserts and steppes, and several transboundary rivers, making the region independent in terms of water, energy and food. But the distribution of these resources, is not uniform; while the upstream countries – Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan – are rich in water resources, the downstream countries – Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan – are rich in hydrocarbons. Thus, after the collapse of the Soviet System and the emerge of borders between them, these countries face huge challenges in terms of economic and political development, as well as environmental challenges related to the management of their natural resources, mainly in the water use, both for energy generation and agricultural demands, between upstream and downstream countries (because if the first ones consume too much water, the latter do not get enough to meet their demands in the same way as the first ones did).
The great chance of small-scale hydroelectric power
Small hydropower is based on harnessing the kinetic energy of water, such as riverbeds, small waterfalls or irrigation canals, to generate electricity in a small hydropower plant. In the study region, small hydropower offers a great opportunity to take advantage of the presence of numerous rivers and streams to generate electricity in a sustainable and decentralised way, while providing local communities with an economic source of diversified energy generation. However, it is important to carefully assess the environmental and social impacts of each initiative in each of the countries in the region, as well as to ensure proper planning and management to avoid potential conflicts and ecological damage.
In recent years, the five Central Asian countries have been engaged in detailed studies to exploit their renewable energy sources, which is why small-scale hydropower feasibility studies have been carried out in the region with different results and implementations to date, rehabilitating dams or building new ones.
Bases on these studies, we can infer that Tajikistan and Turkmenistan show a large hydropower potential, but only a tiny fraction has been exploited to date. On the other hand, Uzbekistan faces challenges due to altered river flows, while Turkmenistan has only sparsely developed hydropower capacity. Kazakhstan is working to increase its renewable energy capacity, including hydropower. In summary, each country it’s implementing specific initiatives to harness its hydropower potential and improve its energy infrastructure, but they continue to face challenges related to the unequal distribution of water resources.
At CARTIF, though theHydro4U1project, we are supporting the region to address this huge challenge in order to ensure a sustainable supply of water, energy and food as well as to develop resilience to climate change, all aligned with the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). To this end, we are developing a system dynamics model to study the Water-Food-Energy Nexus (WFE) interlinkages and assess how the implementation of certain policies will affect energy and water security and the climate (or the fight against climate change) in these countries. It should be noted that our main objective, apart from the mentioned above, is to maximise the production of renewable electricity through the deployment of small-scale hydroelectric power plants, always ensuring the first instance the coverage of the remaining water demands (population supply, food production, industrial, etc.), taking into account the different climate change scenarios that the scientific community is considering (SSP126, SSP245, SSP585) to see their impact on the availability of water resources.
A complex challenge that is yet to be achieved!
1 This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation under grant agreement No 101022905
By essence is meant that which constitutes the nature of things, that which is permanent and unchanging in them. Essence means the unchanging characteristics that make a thing what it is and without which it wouldn´t be what it is.
The experience of 15 years working in a technology centre has allowed me to realise and appreciate the importance of keeping the essence for which the Technology Centres (TTCC from now on) are created.
TTCC as they are conceived are the hinges of innovation by opening and closing the opportunities of innovation systems and by having the mission to connect the other four actors of the systems: public administrations, reserach organisations, enterprises and society. As centres have such an important role to play in linking science and funding with competitiveness and value, a strong and clear long-term commitment is needed from all actors to achieve robust TTCC clusters in terms of size and availability of resources and infrastructures. Without going into who was the chicken or the egg first, there are numerous examples that demonstrate the link between the competitiveness and prosperity of regions and the existence of establishe TTCC that have been able to drive science towards their exploitation.
TTCC are those entities that should strive to seek collaboration to enhance the results and not for the generation of pure science; they are entities that acts as a lever to move the innovative culture of the regions, providing value and growth to society. They are entities that seek to transfer knwoledge generate impact. They are the key agents for the leveraging funds aimed at increasing business competitiviteness and, in short, they are agents that grease the innovation wheel so that it becomes a virtuous circle in the regions.
What should define and differentiate TTCC is the impact we generate in the industrial ecossytems to which we belong, an impact measure from an economic and social point of view. That is why a pure Technology Centre that preserves its essence must be able to incrementally influences and modify a technology and adapt it to the resolution of a problem. Therefore, TTCC must focus their sustainability and growth strategy on choosing which technology or technologies to act on in order to generate value. The most common tendency that distorts the role of a TC and distances it from its essence is to focus its strategy on a sector. The sector shouldn´t be the means but the end. There are no strategic sectors if there are technologies (otherwise we should be called sectoral centres, not technology centres)If you know and control a technology very well, you will have no obstacles to belong to the value chain of any sector and you can be excellent in technology and bring value to the ecosystems by implementing it, you can have the essence of a technology centre.
TTCC must find, defend and work to maintain our role within the industrial ecossytems to which we belong, but above all to maintain the essence for which we exist: to work for and behalf companies and society to generate value, sustainable growth and prosperity. In short, we must work to generate innovation because this is the only way to preserve our essence.
Innovate for you, innovate for me, innovate for all of us.
In the fight against climate change, technological innovations is one of our most powerful allies. One of the most promising and challenging areas in this regard is the transformation of carbon dioxide (CO2), a prevalent greenhouse gas, into useful raw materials for industry and transport. This approach not only promises to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, but also opens the door to a circular economy where waste becomes a resource.
Challenges and opportunities of CO2 as raw materia for industry
CO2 is the main contributor to global warming, arising mainly from the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation. The concentration of CO2 in the atmosphere has unprecedented levels, making it imperative to find effective ways to reduce these emissions. Capturing and utilising of CO2 is a promising strategy, transforming this gas into valuable products, which could revolutionise sectors such as transport and manufacturing, significantly reducing our carbon footprint.
Converting CO2 into value-added products: key technologies to meet the challenge of decarbonisation of industry and economy
CO2 transformation into raw materials involves several methods, including electrochemistry, catalysis and biotechnology. These technologies aim to convert CO2 into fuels, plastics, building materials and other industrial chemicals, which basically fall into three types:
Biotechnology: based on biological fermentation processes with gas-liquid phase substrate. It uses genetically modified organisms, such as microalgae and bacteria, to absorb CO2 and convert it into biofuels an chemicals. This approach offers the potential for highly sustainable processes that can operate under ambient conditions.
Methanol
Electrochemical technology: based on the use of electrical energy and potential difference between two electrodes to reduce CO2 into value-added chemicals (e.g. methanol, formic acid, etc.) which can be used as e-fuel, H2-bearing green molecules, or chemical precursos for industrial use. The efficiency of these processes has improved significantly, but they still face challenges in terms of scalability and costs.
Chemical-catalytic processes: based on the use of catalysers to active and accelerate the chemical reaction and transformation of CO2 into value-added products (methane, methanol, dimethyl ether, ,etc.)Current research lines are exploring new catalysts that can operate at low temperatures and pressures, making the process more energy efficient and economically viable.
On the other hand, CO2 transformation faces technical, economic and regulatory hurdles. Energy efficiency, cost reduction and integration of these technologies into existing infrastructure are key challenges. In addition, a regulatory framework is required to promote investment in these technologies and the use of CO2 products.
Despite these challenges, the capture and uses of CO2 as a renewable carbon source and to contribute to the decarbonisation of industry and transport, offers an unprecedented opportunity to mitigate climate change and advance towards a more sustainable and circular economy. By turning a problem into a solution, we can unlock new pathways for environmental sustainability, technological innovation and economic growth. Collaboration between governments, industries and scientific communities will be essential to overcome these challenges and harness the potential of these technologies for a greener future.
R&D projects such as CO2SMOS, coordinated by CARTIF´s Biotechnology and Sustainable Chemistry area, aims to develop a set of innovative, scalable and directly applied technologies in the bio-based industries sector that will help to convert biogenic CO2 emissions into value-added chemicals for direct use in the synthesis of low carbon footprint material bioproducts. To this end,and integrated hybrid solution is proposed that combines innovative technologies and intensified electrochemical/catalytic conversion and precision fermentation processes, together with the use of renewable vector soruces such as green H2 and biomass. Key elements to achieve the indsutry´s goal of zero-emissions and climate neutrality.
Biogas as an energy source is becoming more and more popular, but what is biogas and how does it differ from natural gas? The difference is that natural gas is a fossil fuel, while biogenic gas is renewable.
Natural gas was formed millions of years ago, at the age of the dinosaurs, like oil or coal. The accumulation of plankton as well as animal and plant rests on the seabed, buried by layers of soil, caused it to be produced in anaerobic conditions, that is, without oxygen.
Biological bacteria decomposed the organic matter and the gases generated bubbled upwards, and where there was an impermeable layer, they accumulated, giving birth to gas pockets or reservoirs. It is therefore a finite resource; once it is exhausted, there will be no more to supply human energy demands.
Natural gas consists mainly of methane, ethane and carbon dioxide, although it usually has other components or impurities, so the energy is obtained by combustion, compared to other fossil fuels it is more efficient and cleaner in terms of emissions, although it depends on the impurities.
Biogenic gas is also produced by the decomposition of organic matter under the action of bacteria, in the absence of oxygen, which is why it is also called Biogenic Natural Gas, but in this case in a tank with controlled conditions of temperature and pressure.
But in biogenic gas, the organic matter used comes from by-products of farms, crops or industries, so it is a renewable energy. The composition of biogenic gas is similar, but with fewer impurities, as the quality is improved by upgrading, which is explained in this blog post.
Moreover, natural gas is thousands of kilometres away, but biogenic gas can be produced in small tanks for self-supply, e.g. on a farm, or on a large scale in a sewage treatment plant, and existing natural gas pipelines can be used.
It may seem to be all advantages, but this is not the case, which is why CARTIF organised the first meeting of the Community of Practice within the Horizon Europe CRONUS project on 20 March 2024.
The Communities of Practice consist of the grouping of different actors in the biogas sector, such as universities, research centres, producers or distributors, among others, and act as spokespersons for the sector for both citizens and administrations, assessing the strengths and weaknesses, facilities and barriers to the use of biogas in order to make responsible use throughout the value chain.
At this first meeting, three main challenges were addressed:
Raw materials
Technology
Regulations: Logistical, Productive, Social
THE FIRST CHALLENGE, RAW MATERIALS
In the first challenge, the issue of raw materials was addressed. At present, there are no problems in finding them, but there are problems in obtaining supplies, the question is: is this a logistical or quantity limit? In terms of accessibility, it is not as accessible in the mountains as it is on the plateau, and in terms of plant and supplier size.
There is also concern that, in the future, due to the law of supply and demand, both raw materials and transport will reach exorbitant prices. It is necessary to start regulating and organising the market to ensure a supply where the whole value chain benefits.
It is important to consider the methanogenic potential, i.e. how much gas a plant can produce with a given raw material, this determines its viability, therefore the raw materials must meet certain standards and heterogeneity all year round, in order to obtain a constant production, both in quality and quantity.
This leads to the question of the suitability of single or multiple feedstock feeding. In some cases, it is necessary to pre-treat these feedstocks and due to the technical complexity they are not cost-effective, so having flexibility in the use of feedstocks is an advantage.
The most worrying aspect is the injection into the grid. There are problems when it comes to incorporating the gas produced into the existing national distribution network, which in some cases favours the self-consumption of gas, but in others, the waste of this energy source is wasted.
It is a mature technology, but there is still innovation to be done, especially with the bacteria, points of improvement such as new strains are still being discovered, and they make the process and therefore its efficiency is much better known.
In the end, it is an investment, so it is necessary to conscientiously measure the risk and profitability vs. administrative and legal barriers, and although more and more people are opting for it, there would be more if there was a financial push with subsidies, but they would not be the basis of the product.
THE SECOND CHALLENGE, TECHNOLOGY
The second challenge was to know the opinions about the FP5 prototype that is being developed in CARTIF within the CRONUS project. That can be seen in this video.
The expert assistants pointed out that it competes directly with upgrading, so it may not be economically viable on a large scale, but for small plants, it is a good solution, as it does not need to undergo such a large purification process.
On the other hand, it needs a hydrolysis stage, which requires energy, but it is a self-sustainable process, so it is able to be self-sufficient. Technology must favour profitability, as money is always a constraint, both for development and production.
Its strong point was highlighted, which is that it can valorise and reduce the CO2 generated in the AD, obtaining a higher quality biomethane than through traditional processes, especially because cogeneration is more interesting than gas for sale.
As it is the first meeting only the laboratory prototype could be seen, so they perceived that there could be problems in the scaling in the electrodes, as they have to be larger, and there is no microbial electrolysis cell-assisted anaerobic digestion technology (MEC-AD) on the market, but CARTIF already commented that there are more options to integrate MEC-AD in the digester.
It also raised the possibility of problems with having to restart the plant, after a shutdown, which can be slow and complex, but it is a continuous system so it will not be so slow.
The Community is optimistic about CARTIF’s FP5 prototype and is looking forward to seeing its progress in the next calls for proposals.
THE THIRD CHALLENGE, REGULATION: LOGISTIC, PRODUCTIVE, SOCIAL
This challenge is where there was the greatest participation and unanimity. It seems that the Public Administration is not advancing as fast as biogenic gas is. One barrier is the processing time, which can take up to 3 years for project approval, to which environmental authorisations must be added, and the time dedicated to the plant’s engineering project.
This could be favoured with legislation that favours self-consumption, such as premiums or payments for the generation and sale of energy. It would be interesting to map waste production throughout the country.
In the case of Castilla y León, there is the obligation to become an authorised waste manager and limitations on the maximum distance allowed for the transport of digestate, as in the transport of slurry, which shows that the administration is prepared.
But the definition of waste needs to be revised, in order to revalorise by-products for use in anaerobic digestion and also the resulting digestate as it has many potential uses, such as stripping/scrubbing or crystallisation of struvite, which can even be considered as an environmentally friendly product, as fertiliser.
Raw materials, such as slurry, must be used responsibly due to the contamination of aquifers by nitrates, so the use for biogas generation is a solution for this waste, and the resulting digestate could be revalued as fertiliser or as an ingredient for compost.
The growing demand for biogas highlights the need for the modernisation of farms to increase their income from the sale of waste and reduce energy costs by using biogas.
On the other hand, there is a need for the Administration to update its technicians with specific training, since, when evaluating a project, there is no clarity in the criteria, standards and administrative procedures to be applied, and there are differences between technicians.
In short, more support is needed from the Administration, especially with the private companies that control the distribution networks and establish the technical and economic requirements for connection and injection into the network, resulting in abusive technical and economic conditions. The Community of Practice considers this barrier easy to remove.
There is a lack of dissemination and knowledge, which is why citizens associate it with bad smells, noisy lorry movements and a lack of safety, which is why the Community of Practice is doing a good job of disseminating and raising awareness in society of how biogenic gas works and the technology associated with it.
There are both urban and rural barriers, each with its own complexity, in addition to the fact that each Autonomous Community has its regulations in this regard, so each plant in each area must be approached individually, through conferences, citizen participation, a network of interaction with citizens in other areas that already have this technology in place, but above all with transparency.
The reality is that the development of biogenic gas will contribute to rural repopulation, job creation, as well as energy production and the development of the Circular Economy, which is a pending issue in the 2030 agenda.
