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Microorganisms and spontaneous vegetation: natural allies to protect strategic crops and urban environments

Beneficial microorganisms and spontaneous vegetation act as natural allies against pests and diseases. Their use in agriculture improves soil health, protects strategic crops, and strengthens resilience to climate change.

Save me as you can!

Have you ever wondered what a world where renewable energy storage is efficient and affordable would look like? One of the challenges society must address to achieve effective decarbonization is increasing the generation and penetration of renewable energy. Despite the progress made, the...

From water to plate and from plug to field

Three problems, one only answer: water-energy-food nexus This year we´ve experienced situations as diverse as a widespread blackout that left us without power and basic services for several hours; a period of intense rain that, while providing sufficient water, also caused flooding in certain...

The impact of PCB design on reliability and electronic performance

In sectors as diverse as construction, logistics, heritage, and industry, the Internet of Things (IoT) has become a key factor in driving digitalization, improving efficiency, and opening up new opportunities for innovation. When designing an electronic device, attention is often focused on the...

Innovation is a marathon, not a sprint

Innovation isn´t just about having a good idea. It´s about fighting for it when nobody does. It´s about shaping it when it´s still intangible, about falling a hundred times until, suddenly, something starts to shine. We tend to think when we talk about innovation, that thanks to the emergence of a...

When “green” doesn’t come from doing an LCA, but only from a Pantone® colour

If my grandma had heard about green marketing, she would have raised an eyebrow saying: “That sounds like they’re selling you the same thing... just with a pine-scented label.” And if I told her about the recent situation with Ursula von der Leyen, having to confirm her support for the Green...

How Did We Recover from the Blackout?

Hydropower as the Silent Heroine of April 28 By now, we’re probably all tired of hearing every kind of theory—some quite colorful—about the causes behind the April 28th blackout. But what has received far less media attention is the set of technical solutions that made it possible to restore power...

Preserving what we are: a new technical perspective on the maintenance of built heritage

Beneath the vaults of a Gothic church, within the thick walls of a Cistercian monastery, in the stucco of a Renaissance palace or the rammed earth and timber frames of a traditional house, a single truth emerges: built heritage is an essential part of our history and collective identity. It is a...

Chemical recycling of textile waste: a new life for fiber blends

A growing problem: mountains of textile waste Clothing and textile consumption has increase with the expansion of so-called "fast fashion", giving rise to enromous amounts of waste. In Europe, the European Environment Agency (EEA)1 reports that each EU citizen purchased an average of 19kg of...

A journey through production

Imagine if every product that reaches your hands could explain its story: where it comes from, what materials it was made with, what processes it went through, how its quality was guaranteed and under what conditions it was transported to its destination. We live in an era in where information is...

Content categories

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Agrofood

Sugar free, please: the ideal sweetener

Sugar free, please: the ideal sweetener

We start the new year fulfilling the promise of writing a second part of the post "Without sugar, please” of possible alternatives to elaborate food without sucrose or "table sugar", the most commonly used sweetener in the industrialized world. So this year, my letter...

Do we toast with cava?

Do we toast with cava?

During these dates we usually toast at Christmas celebrations. The idea is to toast with a frothy drink, although sometimes we don´t know how to differentiate well one from the other, because we may confuse the terms “sparkling wine”, “cava” and “champagne”. Cava and...

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Energy & Environment

Quantum Computing is not science fiction

Quantum Computing is not science fiction

For many science fiction fans, quantum computers are those gadgets than can make everything and that they are installed as on-board computers in spacecrafts or they appear as laptops of reduced size and sophisticated aesthetics. For many of those that aren´t fans of...

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Environment

A pilot experience with a constructed wetland

A pilot experience with a constructed wetland

Aquamundam project was briefly introduced in the previous chapter of this constructed wetland series. CARTIF is currently participating in the pilot setting and analysis within Aquamundam project. One of the main approved actions in this cross-border project is the...

Mimicking natural water depuration: constructed wetlands

Mimicking natural water depuration: constructed wetlands

One of the Sustainable Developments Goals (SDGs) included in the United Nations Agenda 2030 is ‘ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all’. It has been estimated that 25% of global population will inhabit countries affected with...

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Industry

Efficiency Wars (Episode V) – The ROI strikes back

Efficiency Wars (Episode V) – The ROI strikes back

Watch out, the game might not be worth the candle. In my previous post, I explained how beneficial could be for a factory to disaggregate (by direct measure and not by estimations based on nominal values) the energy consumptions of the factory between the different...

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Health & Quality of life

How much expensive is to be a celiac in Spain?

How much expensive is to be a celiac in Spain?

Celiac disease is a condition developed by people who are intolerant to gluten and is characterized by an inflammatory reaction, where the immune system mistakenly attacks the intestine as if it were an external aggressor and causes lesions in the mucous affecting...

Wearables: watchers or assistants?

Wearables: watchers or assistants?

The wearables provide us functions such as view the time and do calculations or improve our capabilities. They are nothing new Already in 1654, the Qing dynasty miniaturized an abacus on a ring. Today it is considered as the first wearable of the history. At the same...

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Construction and Heritage

Five false myths about thermographic camera

Five false myths about thermographic camera

Everybody knows what a thermographic camera is. Movies as “Predator”, the formula 1 broadcast, etc. have helped people to know this technology. CARTIF has been using it, during last years, in construction and infrastructure inspection. My intention is not to tell you...

Guiding dancing structures

Guiding dancing structures

Despite the title, this blog is not about ballroom dances, but about something related to movement and how to guide your dance partner. Have you ever felt how a footbridge sways when you walk over it or how a stadium stand vibrates under your feet when you are jumping...

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Digitalization

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Innovating R&D

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