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Hydrogen Production via Direct Seawater Electrolysis
Get PDFSeawater electrolysis is a promising approach for sustainable hydrogen production that could alleviate the ever-growing demand for freshwater resources. This literature review synthesizes current research on direct seawater electrolysis, drawing attention to advances in electrode materials, catalyst efficiency, and system design. Furthermore, an overview of indirect seawater electrolysis is given as a benchmark. Key challenges, including electrode corrosion, chlorine evolution and energy efficiency, are critically analysed. Recent innovations in selective catalysts and membrane technologies are discussed as potential solutions for such challenges. The review also evaluates the economic feasibility of direct seawater electrolysis compared with the established traditional electrolysis using desalinated water. There is currently no research or industrial project demonstrating clear benefits of using direct seawater electrolysis over indirect seawater electrolysis. Our findings, however, do suggest that direct seawater electrolysis can become a viable component of the hydrogen economy for specific target applications.JRC.C.1 - Battery and Hydrogen Technologie
Are cities ready to synergise climate neutrality and air quality efforts?
No full textThis study investigates the alignment of climate change mitigation with air quality initiatives in 362 (mostly European) cities eligible under the Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities Mission, hence targeting net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2030. It examines ambient air quality, particularly PM2.5 concentration levels, and GHG emissions, considering physical attributes, policy frameworks, and local authority actions. The research finds a north-to-south gradient in air quality, with northern cities exhibiting better air conditions, and a strong correlation between sectors contributing to GHG emissions and air pollution. Cities' strategies are dominated by cross-sectoral plans and assessing air quality as a co-benefit of climate mitigation is common practice, suggesting potential for synergistic approaches to climate and air quality goals, supported by the political authority that cities typically exert over relevant policy areas. Machine learning analysis (XGBoost) highlights national context, population density, and climate class as significant predictors of PM2.5 levels, with policy variables indicating that proactive health and justice measures in city governance may correlate with improved air quality. The study advocates for a co-benefits approach in urban policy-making to effectively address climate change and air quality challenges, and it emphasises the need for transdisciplinary research and governance to optimise outcomes and reduce trade-offs.JRC.C.2 - Energy Efficiency and Renewable
Primary and secondary Portable Batteries of General Use
No full textThe data set is created in support of the European Batteries regulation EU2023/1542. It is divided in subfolders for primary batteries and for secondary batteries according to chemistry.JRC.C.1 - Battery and Hydrogen Technologie
Particle size analysis of iron hydroxide adipate tartrate (IHAT) in a food supplement: Interlaboratory testing of a dynamic light scattering method
No full textIron hydroxide adipate tartrate (IHAT) is a nano-scale material with a diameter of less than 5 nm intended for use as iron source in food supplements. It is the first engineered nanomaterial that was authorised as novel food in the European Union in 2022 (Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2022/1373) and subsequently added to the European Union list of novel foods. Official control laboratories of EU Member States are required to conduct compliance testing of novel foods, including IHAT, against approved specifications. In the case of IHAT, the authorised specifications include the constituent particle size, referred to in the implementing regulation as ‘primary particle size’. In this study, a method to determine the constituent particle size distribution of IHAT using the volume-based hydrodynamic diameter with dynamic light scattering is proposed and tested in an interlaboratory comparison study involving five experienced European food control and food research laboratories. Three test materials were examined, including an early batch of IHAT without the flow agent, a damaged material unintentionally exposed to water, and the final commercial product that included the flow agent. The results demonstrate that dynamic light scattering can reliably measure the particle size of particles in the low nanometre range if samples are prepared and measured following a robust, easy-to-reproduce, and standardised protocol. The results obtained for the commercial product met the compliance requirements specified in the annex of the Commission Implementing Regulation in all laboratories for the primary particle size distribution (Dv(10/50/90)). The method proposed in this study could represent an initial step towards the full validation of the method.JRC.F.2 - Technologies for Healt
Financing EU Health Innovation: the role of Venture Capital
Get PDFThe EU is challenged by a persistent leadership gap in the global health innovation landscape, with the US leading in corporate health innovation and venture capital (VC) funding. The EU health innovation landscape is more concentrated in older "incumbent leading firms," while the US has a more dynamic landscape with higher R&D growth rates. Financing constraints are highly relevant in the health sector, particularly for startups and scale-ups with risky breakthrough ideas and technologies. The EU-US gap in dynamic innovative performance in health may be partly due to differences in access to risk finance, particularly venture capital.
This paper analyzes trends in VC financing for health-related innovations in Europe compared to the US, using data from Dealroom. The results show that the weakness of the European health VC market continues to hold in the early and late stages, where less progress seems to have been made. Some of the main findings include the following: the EU is lagging behind the US in the number of health VC deals, with a larger gap in late-stage deals; European deal sizes are below the US, with a larger gap in late-stage deals, the EU has a lower occurrence of co-investment deals, which does not help reduce the gap in health VC deals. Overall, the European health VC market is particularly missing larger-sized investors (investment funds) with late-stage deals. To address this gap, policy attention is needed to identify and reduce barriers for European health VC investors to grow to a critical scale and engage in a higher number and larger-sized deals. All in all, Europe should further develop and strengthen its strongest asset, i.e., its Open Single Market, reducing the fragmentation in flows of venture capital, reaching a truly single European Venture Capital market. For an EU open strategic autonomy industrial policy for health, an open single market for health remains the critical instrument to further develop and monitor.JRC.B.6 - Industrial strategy, skills and technology transfe
Radiation resistant metal–organic frameworks for the production of high specific activity 51Cr by the Szilard-Chalmers effect
No full textChromium-51 (51Cr) is an attractive radionuclide for diagnosis, which is usually applied for red cells and platelet radiolabeling. However, commercially available 51Cr produced in nuclear reactors via neutron activation requires long irradiation times and complex separation methods. In this work, five metal–organic frameworks (MIL-100 (Cr), MIL-100 (Fe), MIL-100 (Al), MIL-101 (Cr) and aluminium fumarate MOF (FuAl)) were synthesized and the effect of gamma ray irradiation with a high dose rate and a maximum dose of 6 MGy was investigated. The two chromium-based MOFs, MIL-100 (Cr) and MIL-101 (Cr), were selected as radiation targets to produce high specific activity 51Cr by the Szilard-Chalmers effect. A solid–liquid extraction was applied to extract the produced 51Cr under different conditions, including different extractants, extraction times and pH. The most promising results were achieved when using irradiated MIL-101 (Cr) and EDTA as extracting agent, reaching an enrichment factor of 1132 ± 50.JRC.G.I.4 - Reactor Safety and Component
Drought resilience demands urgent actions and unprecedented cooperation
No full textDrought risks are escalating globally, yet efforts to address them remain largely insufficient. As the global drought community and the policy representatives gather at the UNCCD COP16 in Riyadh in December, we point to the urgent need for a paradigm shift in assessing and quantifying drought risks, for developing and implementi ng transformative solutions, and for boosting policy actions and investments supported by unprecedented global cooperation, to facilitate pathways towards drought resilience futuresJRC.E.1 - Disaster Risk Managemen
Decoding growth parameters of small pelagics: a critical examination of model effectiveness with a focus on the European anchovy
No full textTraditionally, parameters defining life history traits, such as growth, were solely determined through length or age–length databases and then included as fixed in integrated stock assessment models. In current practice, growth parameters are usually estimated within these models (“inside”) and fitted to other datasets. However, for short-lived and small pelagic species, challenges may arise, particularly when there is a high variability in the age–length data or sampling biases are inadequately identified or addressed by these models. To test model effectiveness in capturing the growth dynamics of these species, we propose a comparative analysis following recommended practices for incorporating age–length data into integrated stock assessment models for the specific case of anchovy (Engraulis encrasicolus) stock in the Gulf of Cadiz. The reason is twofold: its significant ecological and economic importance and the need to improve the accuracy of growth parameter estimates used to inform total allowable catch (TAC) scientific advice. The overarching goal of this analysis is to identify the optimal model configuration that provides accurate growth parameter estimates. Our approach shows that random effects can effectively estimate growth in species with high age–length variability. Furthermore, using the obtained estimates as fixed in the stock assessment model reduces computational time and enhances the goodness of fit, resulting in a more efficient model. The results address a significant gap in existing integrated models used for scientific advice, which often do not have the “random effects on parameters” feature. Notably, this framework is widely applicable to other short-lived small pelagic species that typically exhibit a high data variability, offering a valuable solution for improving efficiency and robustness in fisheries management decision-making.JRC.D.2 - Ocean and Wate
Food Allergen Quantitative Risk Assessment at a Crossroads: A Critical Evaluation of Laboratory Performance for Quantifying Total Egg and Milk Protein in Cookies
No full textThe accurate quantification of food allergens is crucial for ensuring consumer safety and compliance with regulatory requirements. A proficiency test (PT) was organised to evaluate the performance of laboratories in quantifying total egg and total milk protein in cookies. The PT involved 20 laboratories, which reported results using mainly commercial ELISA kits and liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). The findings indicate a satisfactory performance for milk protein determination among the majority of participant laboratories. However, the quantification of egg proteins in heated products remains a challenge, with most laboratories reporting results significantly below the reference value.
Several potential factors contributing to this challenge are discussed, including the denaturation of egg proteins during heat treatment, differences in extraction strategies and the antibodies used in ELISA kits, and the lack of standardised methods and conversion factors for LC-MS/MS analysis. These findings underscore the importance of regular PT exercises to evaluate laboratory performance and ensure compliance with WHO/FAO recommendations. The results of this study aim to guide the development of improved analytical methods and strategies for ensuring the accurate quantification of food allergens.JRC.F.5 - Food and Feed Complianc
EUROMOD Country Report - Slovakia
Get PDFThe EUROMOD Country Reports have the double function of describing the scope of the EUROMOD simulations, including the underlying assumptions, and providing the validation of these simulations against official statistics. The Country Report for Slovakia is prepared by the SK EUROMOD National Team each year, and made available by the JRC on time for the EUROMOD stable release of the model at the beginning of each year.JRC.B.2 - Fiscal Policy Analysi