Using adaptive optics, first applied in astronomy and then (under STFC funding) successfully adapted for use in optical microscopy, we aim to to produce micrometric resolution ultrasound imaging. Specifically, the goal is to track microbubble contrast agents in circulation thus generating detailed images of the vascular network. This is to meet the unmet clinical need for microvascular assessment in common diseases associated with abnormal microvascular networks such as cancer, ischaemia, inflammatory disease, transplant rejection and tissue regeneration. An example is the ongoing need for rapid and low-risk biomarkers of treatment outcome and its prediction in cancer. The current response evaluation criteria for solid tumours (RECIST) utilises Computerised Tomography (CT) to assess tumour volume changes which typically is done three (3) months after the treatment. Such indirect assessment significantly limits early personalisation based on treatment response and may contribute to suboptimal morbidity and mortality rates. Every year, over 250,000 people in England are diagnosed with cancer, and around 130,000 do not survived as a result of the disease. The annual NHS related costs are in the order of £4.5 billion, and the cost to society as a whole about £18.3 billion. Although these statistics are improving the UK Department of Health aims to achieve the average cancer survival rate on par with the rest of the European Union in an attempt to save an extra 5,000 lives every year. Our proposed product will be used to provide additional benefits to the care of each patient that can be used for: -Early diagnosis with the potential of becoming a screening test, -Early and fast disease monitoring that enables early patient stratification. Ultrasound provides real time images at low cost and low risk to patients, which is very attractive for repeated imaging of tissues. As recommended by the Department of Health we will assess our technique in the measurement of an established biomarker such as microvascular density (which is an established biomarker for many cancers), and consider the generation of new biomarkers such as capillary blood velocity, vessel structure and tortuosity that may provide a robust differentiation of vascular related disease. This is a significant improvement to all current imaging modalities that are macroscopic. There is a real opportunity to establish CEUS as the leading modality for perfusion assessment by translating existing technology that provides super-resolution images of point sources in optics (microscopy, astronomy), mm-wave and radar. This proposal will deploy the scatter from single microbubbles as a priori knowledge for implementing an available maximum sharpness likelihood technique similar to that used in optical microscopy. We will implement existing algorithms in an ultrasound field simulation environment to define the experiments that will be used to test these algorithms in vitro and finalize the design of the beamforming method. By utilizing existing image analysis algorithms used for particle tracking we will generate the visualization of in vitro microvascular phantoms. A prototype tool that can be implemented in existing ultrasound imaging product provided by BK Medical, our industrial partner, will be delivered. Finally, we will use existing commercial equipment to collect cancer patient data in order to identify a patient group with promising image data (in comparison with a gold standard). This will provide a focal point in a follow up project for the commercialization of the enhanced imaging capability of our prototype.

Freshwater ecosystems are heavily impacted by human activities and climate change. Overall, at least 37% of Europe's freshwater fishes are threatened at a continental scale, and 39% are threatened at the EU level. This is one of the highest threat levels of any major taxonomic group (DG. Environment, 2011). Many species of river fish are in a very poor conservation status and even those that are protected by eg. the Habitats Directive, are not regularly monitored and documentation of the population trend and status is often lacking. A recent great increase in predation pressure has further increased pressure on river fish, even in healthy, restored or least-impacted areas. In the EU, predation may be the main reason for widespread loss of populations of Habitats Directive listed grayling (Thymallus thymallus). There is a genuine and widespread concern among managers and stakeholders regarding protection of wild populations of river fish, as grayling, from unsustainable predation pressure. The conflicts involving fish protection and predation have been intense in most member states for decades and despite protective measures, including culling (Birds Directive article 9-derogations), the conflicts have remained intense. ProtectFish aim to investigate the monitoring and protective measures of Habitat Directive-listed river fish species, answering Area A of the call. We will develop and test protective actions, using cormorants (Phalocorax carbo sinensis) and grayling as a case. Small- and large scale field experiments will be conducted to measure the effect of relieving cormorant predation pressure on fish populations. We will examine the background for the conflicts, by estimating the current population status of cormorants and grayling in EU as well as quantify the culling of cormorants. The results of ProtectFish will directly aid to achievement of EU Biodiversity Strategy, Natura 2000 and the WFD as well as improved adaptive nature management on local levels.

The present project (COOLBATTERY) proposes a game-changing thermal management method for high-energy batteries, especially the Li-ion class which has captured the majority of the rechargeable battery market. This system is proposed to fill the main scientific and technological gap of high-energy batteries, i.e. optimal thermal management, to give them a new competitive edge for more significant impact and market share for a variety of energy storage applications in different sectors. The proposed innovation is an inter-layer thermal management sheet of high-performance materials to facilitate a strong yet uniform thermal flow between the cells while the temperature is within the safe range and to act as a thermal shield when a cell suddenly goes to high temperatures, preventing battery explosion or thermal runaway. COOLBattery pushes the state-of-the-art via i) establishing the theoretical foundation for calculation of performance and thermal stability degradation for Li-ion batteries in different states of charge and conditions, b) developing the most optimal design of the thermal management sheet, c) finding the optimal configuration of the battery when integrated with the cooling sheets, and d) techno-economic and environmental evaluation of the technology. The project will develop the fundamental theories and methods to design, optimize, and test this breakthrough technology. The outcome is a highly efficient Li-ion battery that will be a competitive candidate for efficient energy storage and management for a wide range of applications. The developed thermal sheet may also be further developed for lower and higher temperature ranges (and thus other critical thermal management processes) through future research building upon the cultivated knowledge in COOLBattery. The project will contribute to SDG-7 on clean and affordable energy; SDG-9 on industry innovation & infrastructure; and SDG-13 on climate action.

GO-Forward aims to develop a novel methodological approach to make more accurate pre-drilling predictions of geothermal reservoir properties and thus reduce the mining risk. Key to the GO-Forward approach is to simulate geological processes for pre-drill assessment of reservoir structure and properties, calibrated to geological or geophysical data, rather than extrapolating the properties from those data with geostatistical methods. To this end, GO-Forward focuses on extending and further developing, testing and demonstrating the added value of forward modelling methods originally developed for hydrocarbon exploration, including stratigraphic forward modelling (SFM), diagenesis forward modelling (DFM) and fracture network forward modelling (FFM), to be used for exploration in different geothermal settings of high relevance for Europe. First, the developed approaches will be tested and calibrated in areas with abundant subsurface information and production data, to prove conceptually the applicability of the methods and reproducibility of the results, to optimise and de-risk geothermal exploration. Calibrated model approaches are subsequently applied in areas with limited data availability to demonstrate their capability to increase pre-drill Probability of Success (POS). To support the workflow and further reduce exploration costs, GO-Forward advances ML-based and computational methods to enhance (existing) (sub)surface information for calibration, uncertainty quantification and data assimilation, and (upscaling) routines for flow simulation, DNSH, and techno-economic performance assessment for POS and Value of Information (VOI). In addition, GO-Forward addresses public awareness of geothermal developments already at the early stages of exploration. By including novel approaches to citizen engagement and stakeholder dialogue, we aim to increase the societal readiness level of geothermal exploration as the first step of geothermal developments.