Formed of three discrete workstreams, the FINE-2 project will investigate means of enabling Integrated Mobility Management (I2M), saving Energy, and reducing inconvenient and disruptive Noise and Vibration (N&V) within the Rail Sector. As a Cross Cutting Activity of the Shift2Rail Programme, FINE-2 will work alongside multiple existing projects to achieve more impactful results through collaboration and shared learning. The I2M workstream will help to enhance the business case for intermodal freight transportation by tackling many of the issues present today, such as accurate ETA, control of hazardous material, and reduced resource waste. I2M will also look at improving Rail Operations through the new forms of data combination and representation. The Energy workstream will develop tools to help understand the energy saving potential, thus Whole Life Cost benefits, of specific enhancements within the industry. It will also optimise tunnel resistance characteristic methodologies, and seek to enhance energy norms to reflect existing state of the art and future developments. Finally the N&V will develop and enhance existing models and simulation tools from across the S2R programme to better understand the source of external noise, whether the train is at standstill or in motion, to help pinpoint the means of reducing it.

BOOSTLOG Vision is transforming European freight transport and logistics R&I ecosystem to perform optimally boosting impact generation out of R&I investment contributing to i) EU policy objectives towards climate neutrality, pollution, congestion and noise reduction, free movement of goods, internal security, digital transformation of logistics chains and data sharing logistics ecosystems and ii) companies sustainability and competitiveness generating value for society. BOOSTLOG has identified 4 main areas of action: i) increase visibility and support valorisation of R&I project Results, Outcomes and Implementation Cases in the freight transport and logistics field ii) develope an implement valorization strategies and guidelines to speed up the technological and organisational innovation uptake, including the creation of the Innovation Marketplace and issue recommendations to increase impact of R&I public funding, iii) Define high potential & priority R&I gaps to make efficient uses of R&I investments and iv) Strengthen R&I impacts communication and Stakeholders engagement in the innovation process. BOOSTLOG will: i) map and assess around 150 EU-funded R&D since FP5 in different freight transport and logistics domains (i.e. the Logistics Clouds), ii) Increase the visibility of projects main results, outputs and potential implementation cases through ALICE Knowledge Platform, iii) develop at least 8 comprehensive and industry actionable reports starting with: a) urban logistics, b) logistics nodes, c) multimodal freight, corridors & transport networks d) freight and logistics data sharing, e) logistics coordination & collaboration, vi) modularization and transhipment to share progress made and highlight the impact achieved through R&I projects, iv) develop valorisation strategies and guidelines for public R&I uptake, v) create the reference innovation marketplace for R&I uptake and vi) identify high priority and potential R&I gaps that need to be prioritiezed in future R&I actions.

BioMOre describes a “New Mining Concept for Extracting Metals from Deep Ore Deposits using Biotechnology”. The concept is to use hydrofracturing for stimulation and bioleaching for winning of ores. The final process will consist of a so-called doublet, which is two deviated and parallel wells. In order to avoid high costs for drilling from the surface, the BioMOre approach is divided into two phases. Phase 1 will be research on the intended bioleaching process whereas phase 2 will aim at a pilot installation to demonstrate the applicability of the process in large scale including hydro-fracturing and access of the deposit from surface. The first phase should cover the intended work of the current BioMOre approach without drilling from surface. The BioMOre project aims at extracting metals from deep mineralized zones in Europe (Poland-Germany, Kupferschiefer deposit as a test case) by coupling solution mining and bioleaching. Selected sustainability indicators based on regulatory requirements of the European Commission will be applied for feasibility considerations. The main objective of the BioMOre first phase is to design and build an underground test facility for testing the concept of combined hydro-fracturing and bioleaching. The test facility will comprise a 100 m² ore block, where boreholes will be drilled horizontally using standard equipment. All necessary equipment for testing different parameters of the intended bioleaching process will be established underground. The intention is to test the bioleaching process in high detail in an in-situ environment at the same time avoiding time consuming and risky permission procedures. On the other hand, the application for the permission of underground test operation must contain detailed information about monitoring of tests and all material controls. No harmful substances will remain in the mine after the tests are completed. Further to that, predictive numerical modelling of a pilot installation should be done.

Arsenic in agricultural soils and water, and its subsequent entering into the food chain cause potential risk to human health and to aquatic and soil organisms. AgriAs addresses the global problem of water and soil pollution by arsenic from multidisciplinary perspective and highlights the needs of sustainable development and healthy food chain. The main objective of AgriAs is to evaluate and manage European risks of As exposure through agriculture, providing a complete summary of efficient tools available for As remediation as well as an array of tools for ecotoxicity evaluation that will help stakeholders and decision makers to manage As contamination. In order to accomplish this, the project will build on existing knowledge by using comprehensive national and European databases, developing and testing new technologies and carries out risk monitoring. Particular attention will be paid to demonstration and dissemination of project deliverables in close interaction with stakeholders, end-users and policy-makers. The project team has a wide international network and numerous international projects on-going for arsenic studies. The results of the project have potential for commercial exploitation and new job creation especially in water and soil treatment. The results and the new knowledge can be utilized also by the SMEs, especially in the generation of bio-indicators, new fertilizers and soil-conditioners. This research proposal complements the strategic priorities in Water RDI, such as sustainable ecosystems, safe water for citizens, and water-wise bioeconomy.

Coordination and demonstration embracing all areas of IP4 and targets aiming to assist support ensure and promote a common technical approach across the IP4 to allow integrated and coherent Technical Demonstrations as outlined on Shift2Rail master plan. Te objective will be achieved through different activities involving and promoting the collaborative participation of associated projects (for members of Shit2Rail and from open calls) and the partners involved, through the close technical interface with the different projects and the coordination of the integration activities activities to support and achieve consistency and convergence amongst the different projects, feeding a reliable set of technical packages.