the danish council for strategic research, annual report 2012/2013
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Contents
ForewordHallmarks and priorities 2013Vision
Focusing on societal challenges Computer detects lung disease
Better logistics to reduce lorry traffic in
European cities
Technological literacy on the school timetable
High-tech materials transform waste heat
into electricity
Smarter hospital food to save millions
— and aid recovery
The potato is our new super resource
Towards electricity-based transportation
New tests to detect aggressive cancers
The quality concept of the Danish Council for Strategic Research Organisation and boardKey figures
Funding recipients 2012
Secretariat
357
81012
1416
18
202224
29
3032
35
46
The Danish Council for Strategic Research3/
Foreword Investments in strategic research create value
Public-sector investments in strategic research
are long-term investments that play a significant
role in building a foundation for future growth and
prosperity.
In this annual report, we draw on a series of cases
to provide examples of how strategic research
creates value in Danish society through the
special characteristics of the grants awarded
by the Danish Council for Strategic Research.
The primary objective of the Danish Council
for Strategic Research is to advance research
distinguished by its quality, relevance and
potential impact. In other words, the research
must be of excellent standard and address
areas pertinent to challenges in society – and it
must embody the potential to produce solutions
in the short or long term.
In addition, the Danish Council for Strategic
Research is characterised by its focus on a num-
ber of key principles for the research it funds.
The Danish Council for Strategic Research is
committed to strengthening interdisciplinary
research because it is well-suited to solving com-
plex societal challenges. Two out of three grants
involve more than one main research discipline.
The Danish Council for Strategic Research is com-
mitted to strengthening collaboration between
research environments in order to maximise
their synergies. Eight in ten researchers state
that their grant from the Danish Council for Strate-
gic Research resulted in increased collaboration
between Danish research environments.
The Danish Council for Strategic Research
is committed to strengthening international
collaboration because it has the potential to
make Danish research even stronger. Inter-
national collaboration is now a component in
the vast majority of the Council’s grants.
The Danish Council for Strategic Research is com-
mitted to strengthening public-private partner-
ships because they extend the applicability of
the research results. Private-sector enterprise
is currently party to the majority of the Council’s
grants.
The Danish Council for Strategic Research is
committed to strengthening capacity building
at Danish universities because it increases the
relevance of the research and improves the con-
tent of the educational programmes. Two in three
grants have resulted in a change in the academic
content of degree programmes and teaching.
The Danish Council for Strategic Research is
committed to strengthening research training
because it is conducive to knowledge building at
a high level. More than half of the funds awarded
by the Council go towards research training.
I hope that you find the cases presented in the
following both interesting and inspiring.
Enjoy the report.
March 2013
Peter Olesen
Chair of the Board,
The Danish Council for Strategic Research
The Danish Council for Strategic Research5/
Interview with Peter Olesen, Chair, and Mette Thunø, Vice-Chair, the Board of the Danish Council for Strategic Research
Strategic research — hallmarks and priorities 2013
The Danish Council for Strategic Research
has been in existence since 2004. What
significance has the Council had for Danish
research?
Peter Olesen:
“Above all, the Council has been significant for
Danish society in its particular approach to
funding research.
The Council today has prominent standing as an
exponent for research that is geared towards
helping to solve key societal challenges across
a broad front where society, as represented by
Parliament, decides to allocate funding.
Funding applications are assessed on the basis
of the special strategic quality concept, where
relevance and potential impact are distinct crite-
ria signalling that the research must be of benefit
to society. The immense interest in strategic
research gives applicants a particular incentive
for bringing the best forces into play through
collaboration between Danish universities and
between Danish and international researchers.”
Mette Thunø:
“Although not altogether straightforward, the
Council’s focus on research that is expected to
contribute to solving societal challenges and
hence be problem-oriented in its approach, has
resulted in more interdisciplinary and multi-
disciplinary research. The Danish Council for
Strategic Research is the only research council
from which researchers stand to receive major
and long-term grants specifically for interdisci-
plinary research. As a result, one aspect of the
research projects is that the research training
takes place in an interdisciplinary environment.
We believe that this carries many advantages,
making graduates attractive employees in both
the public and private sectors.”
What does problem-oriented research entail?
Mette Thunø:
“The key aspect consists of the specific problems
which the research is to contribute to solving,
and the fact that it is down to the researchers,
in association with a number of different part-
ners, including business enterprises and users,
to define the specific problems and hence the
projects. One of the distinct strengths of strategic
research is that the partners join forces to define
the specific problems and projects. This is what
enables the research to generate the expertise
that is aimed at specific needs in society.”
What is the rationale for your emphasis on
collaboration between universities?
Peter Olesen:
“Although Danish research enjoys high standing
internationally, the competition is so tough that
we have to get the best Danish researchers to
pool their resources in order to generate even
better results. This is not collaboration just for the
sake of it, but collaboration designed specifically
to achieve even better results. We are certainly
pleased to note that researchers in the strate-
gic projects have become proficient at finding
partner entities across the universities – even
to the extent that we could well claim to be the
main driving force for inter-university research
partnerships.”
What are the main priorities of the Danish
Council for Strategic Research in 2013?
Peter Olesen:
“The Council will naturally be maintaining its
ongoing efforts to develop the hallmarks of Dan-
ish strategic research. In addition, in 2013, the
Council will be giving special priority to:
1. Research management and up-and-coming
researchers
2. International collaboration
3. User involvement.”
6/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
Why do you wish to give special priority to
research management and up-and-coming
researchers?
Mette Thunø:
“Over the course of 2012, an independent eval-
uation was conducted of the grants awarded by
the Council for interdisciplinary nano, bio, and
ICT research in the period 2005-2011, totaling
DKK 300m. We are pleased that the panel’s
overall conclusion was a very firm recom-
mendation for continued priority to be given to
strategic research within this area. One aspect
which the panel stresses as being wholly unique
to Danish strategic research is the interdiscipli-
nary research training that gives both PhDs and
postdocs a set of special competencies, which
are so highly prized in private-sector business
and industry as well as in the public sector.
The panel also commends the Danish Council for
Strategic Research for prioritising interdiscipli-
nary research partnerships, recognising that
these are extremely challenging in terms of their
management. The panel recommends that efforts
to strengthen this be continued through, for exam-
ple, increased focus on research management
and more support for future research managers.
To that end, the Council has decided to host a
special seminar for the managers of the Council’s
most recent major grants. In order to provide
further support for interdisciplinary collaboration
among grant-holders, and the development of
future research managers, managers of the indi-
vidual work packages will also be attending.”
What does the priority given to international
cooperation involve more specifically?
Peter Olesen:
“Firstly, the Council will continue to give priority to
international cooperation in the individual grants
as a means of generally strengthening Danish
research. The dedicated efforts to that end have
now resulted in the fact that active international
cooperation is a component in the majority of the
Council’s grants. In the beginning this was true of
less than a fifth of the grants.
Secondly, we know from studies that grants
from the Danish Council for Strategic Research
provide special preconditions for subsequent
applications to participate in European research
projects. This is why the Council, within the con-
straints of the annual appropriations under the
National Budget, intends to participate in joint
European calls, e.g. in the fields of health, foods
and climate.
Thirdly, since 2009, the Council has worked in-
tensively to strengthen cooperation with growth
countries. In 2012, we had bilateral agreements
on joint calls with China, India and Brazil. In 2013
we will be extending this cooperation to comprise
joint calls with South Korea in the area of energy
research.”
What do you mean by user-involvement?
Mette Thunø:
“In the Danish Council for Strategic Research, we
attach great importance to the applicability of
the research for the benefit of society at large.
For this reason, we naturally seek to involve the
future users in business and industry, public
user institutions and consumers. The research
must be of sufficiently high quality for it to create
a basis for innovation in the public and private
sectors. In order to increase both the relevance
and the intended impact of the research we fund,
we place great emphasis on the involvement of
private as well as public sector stakeholders. We
believe that this increases both the relevance
in respect of applicability and constitutes an
important relevancy aspect for the PhD students
who typically carry out a large proportion of the
research. The Council is also focused on ongoing
knowledge exchange with users, including with
business enterprises, through participation in
research activities, and the subsequent applica-
tion of the results in developing new technologies
or products.”
The Danish Council for Strategic Research seeks to strengthen problem-oriented research which
— has high international impact
— focuses on significant societal challenges
— has the potential to contribute to national economic growth and welfare improvements
Vision
Strategic research contributes to solving significant societal challenges
On the following pages, we present a small selection of the many research projects granted funding by the Danish Council for Strategic Research.
p. 12Traffic
Reduced lorry traffic
in cities
p. 18Hospital food
Reducing food waste and
improving patient health
p. 10DiagnosticsNew techniques for
COPD detection
p. 22Electric cars
Tomorrow’s electric cars are
conveniently charged via
wireless charging
stations
p. 16Energy efficiency
Waste heat converted
into new energy
p. 24Prevention
New screening techniques
to detect aggressive
cancers
p. 20Smart crops
Optimising the potato
p. 14Use of technology
Technological literacy at
schools and hospitals
10/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
Computer detects lung diseases
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
(COPD), typically caused by smoking, is a
frequent cause of death and disablement
worldwide. WHO rates it as the fourth most
common cause of death – and its prevalence
is rising. There is no curative treatment for
COPD, as, among other things, the underly-
ing mechanisms of the disease are unknown.
However, by using computer technology, the
strategic research project entitled Computer-aided assessment of COPD from CT-images
has taken an important step towards a better
understanding of the disease.
“A unique partnership between computer sci-
ence and health science has brought about
the development of new, innovative methods
of analysing lung CT scans,” explains project
manager Marleen de Bruijne from the Depart-
ment of Computer Science at the University of
Copenhagen (DIKU). This has enabled enhanced
diagnostics and understanding of lung diseases
such as COPD.
“The techniques are currently in use at several
hospitals in Denmark – and have the potential
for diffusion to the international hospital sector,”
asserts Professor Asger Dirksen of Gentofte Hos-
pital, who participated in the project.
Enhanced diagnostics
The new techniques supplement the doctor’s
visual assessment using a computer algorithm
which enables more reliable and fine-meshed
analysis. This has enhanced COPD diagnostics
significantly, in three areas in particular.
Firstly, the computer algorithm permits the state
of the disease to be quantified. The algorithm
checks several factors which determine whether
the patient has COPD and, if so, the severity of
the condition. Secondly, the computer is capa-
ble of detecting disease progression that is not
visible to the naked eye. By comparing CT scans
taken at different sequential stages, it is pos-
sible to identify even slight, localised changes
in the disease. Thirdly, it is now also possible to
perform analyses of the smaller-calibre airways
with a diameter of as little as 1-2 mm. These small
airways play a crucial role in lung diseases such
as COPD.
The more sophisticated techniques are valuable
aids to doctors in diagnosing COPD. “The diagno-
sis is more reliable and quicker to establish. The
disease can be detected at an earlier stage, and
it is possible to obtain a prognosis of how it will
progress,” says Asger Dirksen.
At the same time, these techniques have also
produced better understanding of the disease,
which may be an important step towards devel-
oping drugs to treat it. Among other things, the
techniques make it possible to demonstrate dif-
ferent varieties of the disease, which is important
in drug development and tailoring treatment to
the individual patient.
The result of interdisciplinary partnership
Development of the techniques is the result of
a close partnership between researchers from
widely differing disciplines and from both the pub-
lic sector and a private enterprise. They were cre-
ated in a partnership between researchers from
DIKU, who have the expertise in the technological
capabilities, and researchers from Gentofte Hos-
pital, including pulmonologists and radiologists,
who have the requisite expertise in the disease.
Researchers from the pharmaceutical company
AstraZeneca also participated in the project.
The company develops novel drugs for respira-
tory diseases such as COPD. AstraZeneca’s
involvement was instrumental in ensuring that the
results are applied in the ongoing efforts to find a
treatment for COPD.
The partnership was so successful that it has con-
tinued after the expiration of the grant period. The
researchers are currently working to improve the
techniques that have been developed and also to
extend the applicability of the existing techniques.
New algorithms give PhD students Laura Thomsen and Mathilde Wille a better tool for diagnosing lung disease.
The Danish Council for Strategic Research13/
Better logistics to reduce lorry traffic in European cities
To enable European metropolitan areas to
function effectively, there is a need for con-
tinual inter- and intra-urban delivery and dis-
tribution of freight. Meanwhile, heavy goods
traffic is causing increased congestion and
particle and noise pollution in urban areas. A
new research project aims to change the way
we organise urban freight.
Associate Professor Allan Larsen from DTU
Transport, Technical University of Denmark, has
just been awarded a grant of DKK 1.8m for Danish
participation in the CONCOORD – Consolidation
and Coordination in Urban Areas project, an
alliance of researchers in Denmark, the Nether-
lands, Turkey and Austria. The project aims to
contribute to resolving urban problems of con-
gestion through enhanced logistical systems.
“The project allies business economics perspec-
tives with softer values such as liveability, that
is, how good cities are for their citizens to inhabit
and traverse,” says Allan Larsen.
The main concept in the project is to stop treating
each individual heavy goods vehicle and consign-
ment as an isolated unit, and rather to consider
them as subcomponents in a comprehensive
logistics system that can be optimised to prevent
half-empty vehicles from congesting city streets.
“In the past, a great many cities in the West have
attempted to develop city logistics concepts
based on consolidation centres on the outskirts
of major cities as a way of achieving a higher
utilisation rate for the lorries entering the city
centre,” Allan Larsen explains. “The problem is
that this model has a hard time surviving once
the government subsidies run out, because the
reloading means introducing a price-raising in-
termediary. From the start, the CONCOORD model
was intended to be financially sustainable, e.g.
by consolidating the freight further back down
the supply chain.”
Solutions to Europe’s urban problems
Allan Larsen received his grant after applying
for funds from the first joint call within JPI Urban
Europe, an interdisciplinary research initiative
with participation from a number of European
countries.
The Urban Europe initiative focuses on the urban
challenges faced by Europe in the coming years:
Migration from rural to urban areas is continuing,
making it a challenge to create attractive, sustain-
able and financially viable urban areas in which
European citizens, communities and their environs
can thrive. In Urban Europe, the researchers will
be involving users, decision-makers and business
and industry in research that will provide a new
and better basis for drawing up strategies for
European urban development.
The multinational research calls in the JPIs pave
the way for some of Europe’s most talented
researchers to collaborate and learn from each
other. The internationally composed research
teams also offer better opportunities for doing
research in societal challenges that extend be-
yond national borders.
Logistics at European level
“When we collaborate with other European
researchers, we gain a better perspective on the
national challenges in relation to the European
ones, and on how to integrate them in such a
way that we can produce solutions that can be
applied Europe-wide. Naturally, that makes it a
bigger challenge, but it also makes us more at-
tractive as partners for international companies
and others,” says Allan Larsen.
A key focus of the CONCOORD project is just that:
collaborating with a range of companies who are
willing to trial new concepts. The project involves
participants both from actual logistics compa-
nies such as DHL and from major multinationals,
such as Procter & Gamble and Heineken.
“For our concept to work, we need to get com-
panies to team up on supply capacity during
the freight process, and this is where it makes
all the difference to have companies involved,
even early on in the project,” says Allan Larsen.
“Ultimately, they are the ones who are going to be
using our system.”
What is a JPI?
JPI stands for Joint Programming Initiative and denotes a form of collaboration in which research councils in several European countries seek to coordinate research, e.g. through joint calls. This boosts knowledge sharing and collaboration across Europe.
The JPIs are all interdisci-plinary because they are structured around societal challenges that call for collaboration between dif-ferent research disciplines in order to identify best solutions.
The Danish Council for Strategic Research par-ticipates in JPIs within the following areas:
— JPI Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change
— JPI Antimicrobial Resistance
— JPI Climate— JPI Healthy and Produc-
tive Seas and Oceans— JPI Healthy Diet for a
Healthy Life— JPI More Years, Better
Lives— JPI Neurodegenerative
Diseases— JPI Urban Europe — JPI Water
Read more about JPIs at www.fivu.dk/en/dsf
14/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
Technological literacy on the school timetable
Electronic boards and iPads have been pro-
cured by many schools, and health services
are investing in welfare technology. But these
state-of-the-art technologies risk defeating
their own purpose if teachers and nurses do
not understand how to use them accordingly
to support their day-to-day work. This is what
the Technucation project will change in a close
collaboration between universities and voca-
tional colleges. The results will benefit future
teachers and nurses, and give university re-
searchers insights into professional practices.
“Use of state-of-the-art technologies is not
merely an option for teachers today. It is actually
a condition,” says Ann-Thérèse Arstorp, a PhD
student in the Technucation project who is affili-
ated with the UCC vocational college, and whose
studies concern the use of interactive boards,
iPads, Facebook and other online resources in
teacher training programmes and in secondary
schools.
“This is why an understanding of the capabilities
and functions of the technologies is so important.
New technology is fascinating, and just the act
of using interactive boards may seem advanced
and innovative in itself. But it is essential that
teachers are critical regarding the technologies,
so they can opt to use them or not in a way that
supports the teaching.”
Technological literacy at multiple levels
The Technucation project is headed by Profes-
sor Cathrine Hasse of Aarhus University, with
participation from two vocational colleges in Co-
penhagen, UCC and Metropol, among others. The
project concerns teachers’ and nurses’ techno-
logical literacy, a concept deriving from literacy
research, where it denotes proficiency in reading,
understanding and critical appreciation of a text.
By this analogy, the concept of technological
literacy covers multiple levels of technological
appreciation.
With the aid of anthropological and other
methods, the researchers on the project are
studying how teachers and nurses are currently
using the technologies available to them. The
project demonstrates a big difference in how
teachers use equipment, such as electronic
boards: some teachers use them exclusively as
a more efficient variant of the traditional black-
board, while others are more informed about
making the most of the interactive potentials
offered by this kind of board.
In order for future teachers and nurses to achieve
greater technological literacy, the project is
developing new teaching resources as a means
of including technological literacy in the teacher/
nurse training. This will be done in the project’s
Innovation Lab, where researchers, tutors,
students and practitioners are jointly working to
develop a learning game that will be designed to
extend the trainees’ technological literacy.
PhD students as bridge-builders
One crucial component in the Technucation
project is the close collaboration between the
vocational colleges and the universities. Every
fortnight, all the project participants – employees
from UCC, Metropol, Aarhus University, Roskilde
University and the Danish Technological Institute
– meet for ongoing analyses and discussion. The
project’s two PhD students split their time evenly
between the vocational colleges and the univer-
sity, and in that they contribute to boosting the
research capacity at the vocational colleges.
Some of the insights from the research project
have already been translated into know-how
within the nurse training programme in the shape
of teaching modules focusing on technology.
When Ulla Gars Jensen, Associate Professor at
Metropol, teaches in research methodology, she
can also draw on her findings from the interviews
conducted as part of the project.
But it is not only the vocational colleges that
gain new insights from the project. “As teachers,
we are able to provide information about the
students in the vocational degree programmes,
who differ from university students. In doing so,
we add validity to the research, because we un-
derstand the students’ environment, culture and
vocational skills. We have to take care not to be
too academic,” says Ulla Gars Jensen.
Associate Professor Ulla Gars Jensen can apply research results from the Technucation project in teaching tomorrow’s nurses.
16/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
High-tech materials transform waste heat into electricity
With pioneering energy materials and thermo-
electric technology, a new Danish company
intends to convert temperature differences
into electricity. Research and new expertise at
the Centre for Energy Materials has resulted in
the establishment of the entrepreneurial firm
TEGnology A/S.
New energy materials with names such as zinc
antimonide and magnesium silicide are in focus
when the results of the strategic research centre
CEM (Centre for Energy Materials) come up for as-
sessment. These compounds make it possible to
transform temperature differences into electricity.
In 2007, CEM was awarded a grant of DKK 32m
by the Danish Council for Strategic Research. The
establishment of CEM saw the alliance of two
of Denmark’s leading research environments
– iNANO at Aarhus University and the Depart-
ment of Energy Technology at Aalborg University.
Danish industrial firms the likes of SCF Technolo-
gies, PANCO, Alpcon, FLSmidth and Steeper
Energy contributed both financing and research,
helping to make CEM what it is today: the setting
for a public-private research partnership, which,
allied with international expertise in the shape
of Swedish Chalmers and German Aerospace
Center, is dedicated to research and develop-
ment at the highest international level. The Centre
is led by Professor Bo Brummerstedt of Aarhus
University, who outlines CEM’s activities:
“Core to the very latest energy technology is the
development of novel materials with novel proper-
ties. As such, basic research in energy materials
is a crucial first link in the food chain towards the
development of new technologies for renewable
energy. Our ambition is to conduct pioneering
interdisciplinary research and deploy the results
in practical industrial applications. We have suc-
ceeded in several areas. And this has given us
ideas for further promising research and partner-
ships with business and industry, which can put
the research results to use in practical applica-
tions. FLSmidth, for instance, has a keen interest
in thermoelectric materials because cement
production is such a major source of waste heat.”
Reduced energy consumption in heavy
industrial manufacturing
An everyday example of an unexploited tempera-
ture difference is the one that arises in cars, where
there are several natural temperature differences,
e.g. surrounding the exhaust. And cars and heavy
traffic is an area for which there is a constant
demand for new solutions to optimise fuel con-
sumption. The ability of the new energy materials
to remain reactive in environments with very high
temperatures makes the technology a crucial
development area in many segments of society.
Heavy industrial production and distribution such
as in cement production, shipping and combined
heat and power generation account for substan-
tial emissions of greenhouse gases. Reduction of
energy consumption by recovering the energy in
temperature differences in these industrial set-
tings will serve to enhance energy efficiency and
reduce carbon emissions.
One of the successful outcomes of the CEM centre
was the formation of the entrepreneurial firm
TEGnology A/S. The firm’s patented technology
has great potential in, for example, the automo-
tive, shipping, biofuel and CHP industries.
First to market with thermoelectric module
“What makes our technology new and cutting
edge is the efficient energy materials we have
developed. One of the distinctive properties of
these materials is that they remain reactive at
very high temperatures – up to 400 degrees,”
says CEO Helge Holm-Larsen of TEGnology, who,
in addition to contributing his fundamental IPR
(intellectual property rights) from Aarhus Univer-
sity, has also signed a licensing agreement with
the German Aerospace Center on use of their pat-
ents for thermoelectric materials and modules.
“We are very active in the development of a com-
mercial manufacturing process for modules of
this type that are capable of generating elec-
tricity from waste heat. And we are set on being
the first to market globally with a highly energy-
efficient thermoelectric module,” says Helge
Holm-Larsen.
cold side
= Fuel economy
hot side
The new energy materials make it possible to
convert waste heat into electricity. A thermoelectric
system allows the difference in temperature be-
tween a car’s engine and exhaust to be harnessed
for generating electrical power.
Temperature difference turned into electricity
In 2012, TEGnology joined the Lysholtparken busi-
ness park in Vejle, where the integrative design
of the infrastructure and architecture creates a
setting conducive to business development, job
creation and growth.
“Lysholtparken is an ambitious cluster initiative
for an array of greentech activities,” says Helge
Holm-Larsen. “With our new base, TEGnology
has gained the setting it needs to develop the
business – and secure its growth. We are keenly
anticipating becoming part of a major business
cluster in the area.”
Appealing and individu-alised hospital meals to improve in-patient health.
The Danish Council for Strategic Research19/
Smarter hospital food to save millions — and aid recovery
Each year, Danish hospitals bin millions of
kroner worth of discarded meals. This is not
only a waste of the ingredients, the volume
of water and the energy required to produce
the huge amount of meals, it is also paradoxi-
cal, since one in three patients at the same
hospitals have problems with malnutrition. By
developing a special concept, the researchers
behind the FoodServInSPIRe project intend to
reduce food waste, make hospital food more
appealing and produce individualised meals
for patients with malnutrition.
The huge food wastage at Danish hospitals is
partly down to ineffective logistics and differing
individual patient preferences. These are just
two of the issues addressed by a research and in-
novation partnership within the FoodServInSPIRe
intervention, which aims to better utilise food and
energy resources, reduce the carbon footprint
and contribute to an enhanced cost-effective-
ness and therapeutic efficacy.
Targeted food
Within the food service sector, there is no tradi-
tion for employing evidence and research-based
methods. “There are long-standing research
traditions in targeted industrial food production,
but only limited research in hospital food,” says
sub-project manager for FoodServInSPIRe, Pro-
fessor Bent Egberg Mikkelsen, Aalborg Univer-
sity. He and his colleagues will be establishing
a model supply chain integrating patient data
and food data, along with the associated data
processing.
“We will be setting up intelligent monitoring
of hospital food flow. We want to know which
patients eat which foods, and in what quantities,
and use this information as a basis for even better
nutritional support, with a view to reducing food
waste,” says Bent Egberg Mikkelsen.
The system will link information on the patients’
nutritional status, their medical treatment and
food preferences to data on the nutritional con-
tent of meals. These data can in turn be linked to
data on the manufacturing process, including
consumption of energy and water. The overall
intervention is to result in more appealing, tar-
geted meals, less waste and improved kitchen
logistics.
Hothousing ideas
FoodServInSPIRe is a small part of the extensive
SPIR project InSPIRe, a new strategic public-
private platform for research and innovation,
which aims to enhance productivity and global
competitiveness in the Danish food sector.
FoodServInSPIRe’s research team collaborates
with both hospital staff and a range of equip-
ment suppliers such as Bent Brandt A/S and
Mettler Toledo. This allows them to better target
the research and come up with the methods and
products that are actually needed.
“We are aiming to develop the concept to have
it ready for when Denmark’s super hospitals
become a reality. We are collaborating with Aal-
borg Hospital, which already has an outstanding
innovation climate when it comes to food, mak-
ing it an excellent hothouse for new concepts,”
says Bent Egberg Mikkelsen.
Anticipating high impact
A number of suppliers of local foods – including
Himmerlandskød (meat), Aabybro Mejeri (dairy)
and Nordjysk Fødevarenetværk (food traceabil-
ity) – are also partners in the project, assisting
in supplying food with innovative narratives,
while AgroTech, a technological institute, is
helping to ensure the commercial value of the
product.
“There has been no tradition for addressing
hospital meals, in spite of the fact that they
directly influence treatment efficacy,” says Bent
Egberg Mikkelsen, who anticipates significant
health improvements in at-risk patients. In
addition, there are the cost savings in food
manufacture. “We hope our solutions will be
capable of reducing hospital food waste to half
the current level.”
About the project
FoodServInSPIRe (Integrated Modelling of Large-Scale Hospital Food Service Production Chains) is a subproject of the InSPIRe project, which in 2010 received a SPIR grant worth DKK 60m.
Calls for SPIR (Strategic Platform for Innovation and Research) funding are made jointly between the Danish Council for Strategic Research and the Danish Council for Technology and Innovation. This initiative is designed to make it more attractive for business and industry to participate in research and development activities in partnership with universities, Author-ised Technological Service Institutes – the so-called GTS institutes – and other organisations and innova-tion players with a view to translating research into innovation.
For updates, see FoodServ-InSPIRe at www.foodserv-inspire.aau.dk
20/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
The potato is our new super resource
Creative thinking and Danish potatoes may
come to play a key role in the development
of sufficient volumes of starchy, sustainable
biomass, which is set to be an essential in-
gredient in future production of foods, animal
feed and ingredients. With the Danish govern-
ment’s plans for farming efficiency and more
sustainable production, there is incentive
enough to make the potato plant smarter –
and a research team headed by researchers
from Aalborg University is making no small
progress in this field.
The potato of the future has many applications. It
does well in a drought. It requires no pesticides,
only a small amount of fertiliser, and it produces
huge amounts of starch. Moreover, it can be
adapted to make it ideal for a variety of end-uses,
from foods and animal feed to chemical elements.
This is the vision held by Associate Professor Kåre
Lehmann Nielsen, Aalborg University.
The farming industry faces massive challenges.
It will have to produce more foods and more
feed in response to rising population growth.
The products must be high quality, but also be
produced according to eco- and climate-friendly
criteria, and with minimal waste production.
Meanwhile, the extent of agricultural land is chal-
lenged by industrialisation, and also nature and
environmental protection requirements.
For farmers to be able to produce sufficient vol-
umes of starchy biomass by sustainable means
without more farmland, while at the same time
reducing the volume of pesticides and fertiliser,
calls for creative thinking.
Humble potato with starchy promise
There is consequently a need for high-efficiency
crops that use energy for producing exactly what
is to be used, which is why crops such as potatoes
need to be made more efficient in order for them
to yield maximum starch per hectare.
Rising to this challenge, a team of researchers
led by Kåre Lehmann Nielsen are on a mission
to develop a multipotato in the research project
entitled Developing potato into a high-efficient,
low-maintenance and multipurpose crop.
“There is already a range of potato varieties with
highly differing properties, and it is unusual in a
crop for there to be so many varietal differences.
But we haven’t even come close to making the
most of the potato’s incredible adaptation poten-
tial,” says Kåre Lehmann Nielsen. “Even the best
starch-rich potato still has a lot in common with
the waxy boiling potato, which is why it will take
a great deal of refinement to make the potato
varieties more end-use specific, and thereby
engineer them to use energy more efficiently.”
New synthesis pathway discovered
In association with two potato starch manufac-
turers, Kartoffelmelcentralen and Andelskart-
offelmelfabrikken Vendsyssel, Kåre Lehmann
Nielsen and colleagues have conducted a raft of
experiments and devised a new, effective analyt-
ical methodology. Along the way, they discovered
an unknown potato protein, which appears to be
the missing link that until then had eluded potato
refiners. The protein explains why refinement
attempts which focused on the known pathway
for starch formation, were never quite success-
ful: this is because there are two pathways of
starch synthesis and two associated proteins,
as opposed to just a single pathway and a single
protein which was the previous wisdom on which
manipulation attempts were based. And as Kåre
Lehmann Nielsen puts it: If there are two holes in a
bathtub, you either have to plug or unplug both of
them simultaneously to get a significant effect.
Kåre Lehmann Nielsen’s research team is still
looking for the gene that encodes the starch
synthesis protein. There is still potential for
doubling the starch volume in potatoes. “If we can
optimise the pathway of starch synthesis we have
now identified, then we will be able to increase
the starch volume,” says Kåre Lehmann Nielsen.
Once the genes and markers have been identi-
fied and are understood, traditional breeding
will then permit cultivation of potatoes with far
higher starch volumes than are known at present.
Moreover, in terms of disease and drought resist-
ance, a great deal of hope is being pinned on
enhanced potato varieties. And that will benefit
the starch industry, the growers, the environment
– and consumers.
The starch is
used in industry
for producing e.g.
potato starch
flour.
Reduced water
consumptionThe potatoes become more
drought-resistant so they
continue growing in dry
conditions.
Reduced pesticide use
The plant gains resistance
to the fatal potato blight
disease, which otherwise
requires constant crop
spraying.
More starchy potatoes
Starch-rich potatoes save
energy by producing less
storage protein and instead
using the same energy to
double their starch
volume.
More efficient energy distribution
The potato plant produces
more tubers instead of
expending the equivalent
energy on increasing
its foliage.
The potato of the future
22/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
Towards electricity-based transportation
One of the obstacles to the uptake of electric
vehicles is the current lack of a sufficiently
universal and functional charging system. In a
new European research project investigating
wireless inductive charging, Danish research-
ers contribute with expertise on magnetic
systems and the health aspects of electro-
magnetic fields.
There is a huge potential in electrifying the global
car fleet: reduced carbon emissions, reduced
noise and enhanced driving comfort. And yet,
electric cars are still not as common as could be
hoped. This is due to the drawbacks still associ-
ated with electric cars; for example, that they
require frequent charging. The international
WIC2IT research project – Wireless Inductive
Charging to Interoperation Testing – aims to
promote uptake of electric cars by offering easier
charging. The aim is also to support the stand-
ardisation process so that wireless charging for
different makes of electric vehicles can become a
reality in Europe.
Inconvenient charging
At present, electric cars are charged using cables
at special charging stands. This is inconvenient,
especially in winter, where it means handling large,
heavy, dirty cables. In addition, there is the safety
hazard of having cables attached to the cars, plus
the risk of the cables being vandalised. This is why
WIC2IT is working to develop a wireless charg-
ing system for electric cars. A wireless charging
system means that an electric vehicle can have
more frequent contact with the power grid by being
parked at special wireless charging stations.
“The problem is not designing a charging system
that works, because that’s easily done. The
real challenge is to design a charging system
that is just as generally and universally usable
as a petrol pump at a service station,” explains
project participant Associate Professor Søren K.
Kjærgaard from the Department of Public Health
at Aarhus University.
The project has an overall budget of EUR 5.2m,
and is financed by a total of EUR 2.3m by the
ERA-net Electromobility+, which in addition to
contributions from the 13 participating coun-
tries, including Denmark, has received subsidies
from the EU in support of research and innovation
in electrically-based transport in Europe. Danish
researchers have generally done really well in
this call. Grants were awarded to six projects
with Danish co-participation. 11 Danish part-
ners received funding worth a total of approx.
DKK 17m, of which DKK 7.5m is from the Danish
Council for Strategic Research, and DKK 9.5m
from the EU.
Interest from car manufacturers
Within the WIC2IT project, it is the Danes’ par-
ticular expertise in health aspects and electro-
magnetic fields together with power electronics
that makes them attractive partners. Research-
ers from the universities in Aalborg and Aarhus
are collaborating with the car manufacturers
Renault and Daimler.
“We have attracted the interest of the major car
manufacturers because Denmark generally has
good capability in power electronics, which is the
branch of electronics used in converting and con-
trolling energy flow in different kinds of devices
such as mobile phone chargers,” explains another
of the project participants, Associate Professor
Erik Schaltz of Aalborg University. “We have also
attracted the interest of the automotive industry
because of the Danish tax exemption on electric
cars. Meanwhile, Denmark draws a large propor-
tion of its energy from wind turbines, and there
are sound prospects for storing that energy in the
batteries of electric vehicles.”
Erik Schaltz is supervising a PhD student who will
be modelling the magnetic resonance coupling
system that will be transferring energy from
the charging station to the vehicle. “We will be
carrying out software modelling of the magnetic
coupling that will simulate reality as closely as
possible so that we can calculate the power flow
from the grid to the battery. Having done that, we
can start optimising the energy transfer.”
While Erik Schaltz is researching the energy
transfer, Søren K. Kjærgaard’s role in the project
is to assess the health-related aspects of the
system. “The studies carried out to date have
not demonstrated any particular health hazard
from this type of electromagnetic radiation,” says
Søren K. Kjærgaard. “But it is still a good idea to
carry out health studies early on while the system
is under construction.”
“The real challenge is to design a charging sys-tem that is just as generally and universally usable as a petrol pump at a service station.”
Associate Professor Søren K. Kjærgaard Department of Public Health, Aarhus University.
The future will see far more electric vehicles on the roads.
Elective blood test for elevated PSA
Individuals treated whose life was saved as a result of the test
Individuals needlessly treated
Individuals who go on to contract cancer, but whose condition is not detected by the blood test
Screening of high-risk individuals
Treatment only of patients at increased risk
Risk assessment based on DNA and family history
Number ofpeople
Current situation The future
Individuals treated 49
1
48
?
1410
Fewer individuals needlessly treated.
Fewer cases in which the disease was not detected in time.
Screening ofprostate cancer
The Danish Council for Strategic Research25/
New tests to detect aggressive cancers
Systematic screening of the population is
important in preventing high cancer mortality
rates. But when screening entire population
groups, the reliability of the screening test
itself is crucial – otherwise there is the risk of
identifying people who are not actually sick,
or of not reaching those who really are. In a
strategic research project, the researchers
have made good progress in identifying how
aggressive cases of prostate cancer can be
detected without unnecessarily pathologising
thousands who would never have developed
the disease. In another project, the research-
ers are working to develop a new screening
programme for cervical cancer, the incidence
of which is needlessly high in Denmark.
Prostate cancer is the most commonly treated
type of cancer in Denmark. However, approxi-
mately 90 per cent of men treated for the disease
have no benefit from the treatment, as the
cancer progresses so slowly that it would in all
probability not be life-threatening. Against that,
many sufferers have to endure unnecessary
side-effects, such as impotence or urinary reten-
tion. Equally, the many treatments are a great
financial burden on the health system.
The reason for this is that there is currently no
marker to determine whether or not a case of
prostate cancer is aggressive. This means that far
too many men receive unnecessary treatment, the
result of which is physical and mental suffering.
“Prostate cancer, unlike other cancers, is a puz-
zling disease. We are working to find new aggres-
siveness mechanisms in patient tissue, mice and
cells, based on state-of-the-art technologies,”
explains Professor Torben Ørntoft of Aarhus Univer-
sity Hospital, who is heading the strategic research
project entitled Molecular Prediction of Prostate
Cancer Risk and Aggressiveness (MPRAS).
Researchers in the project found a number of
major changes in the mechanisms that regu-
late genomic function in men with aggressive
prostate cancer. Aarhus University Hospital has
already taken out a patent on the first markers
found in the project, and is negotiating with a bio-
tech company on developing them for clinical use.
Costly and ineffectual test
Denmark does not operate any kind of screening
programme for prostate cancer, simply because
there is no marker reliable enough to detect the
disease. But it could be claimed that within the
past few years, Danish men have introduced their
own screening programme. They see their doc-
tor and ask to have their blood PSA (prostate-
specific antigen) tested, this being a test method
that is currently in use.
The problem is that in a great many of those
who have the disease, the PSA value is normal.
Conversely, men may also have an elevated blood
PSA value, without the doctors ever finding an
explanation for it. The situation is compounded by
the fact that many of those men, who on the basis
of an elevated PSA value are diagnosed with
prostate cancer, will never develop symptoms,
but have to live with the knowledge that they are
sick, or even elect to have their prostate gland
surgically removed, as a result of which they may
suffer potentially major adverse effects.
Currently, for every 1,410 men who have their
PSA tested, 48 men will be treated for prostate
cancer, but ‘only’ one life will be saved. It is both
mentally distressing for the men concerned and
costly for society, since e.g. a set of prostate
gland biopsies costs approx. DKK 27,000, while a
procedure to remove the prostate costs approx.
DKK 120,000. This is the reason that the project is
also working to identify a more reliable screening
technique for prostate cancer.
“We have already made good progress in identi-
fying men who are at increased risk of being
diagnosed with prostate cancer, and many
general practitioners have agreed to recruit
patients, so we are expecting results within the
year,” says Torben Ørntoft.
New test for cervical cancer
In another strategic research project, CONTROL
(Optimizing Control of Cervical Cancer), research-
ers are well ahead in the process of trialling a
range of tests as a new screening method for
cervical cancer, which will nearly eliminate the
need for the so-called smear test. The project is
led by Professor Elsebeth Lynge of the Depart-
“This study has put Denmark on the world map in HPV diagnostics for the preven-tion of cervical cancer.”
MD, Senior Consultant Carsten RygaardHvidovre Hospital’s Pathology Department
26/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
ment of Public Health at the University of Copen-
hagen, and is an alliance with the country’s lead-
ing research group in diagnostic HPV technology
at the Pathology Department, Hvidovre Hospital.
The smear test, which permits cell changes to
be detected by means of a sweep of cells around
the cervix, has been in use in Denmark since the
1960s. Yet the incidence of cervical cancer in Den-
mark remains high, as compared with that in e.g.
the other Nordic countries. This is due to a number
of factors, among other things, the high rate of
HR HPV-virus infection in the population. HR HPV
(high-risk human papilloma-virus) infection is a
sexually transmitted disease that predisposes
women to cervical cancer.
Unique business partnership
The CONTROL project is unique in that it represents
the first-ever alliance of researchers at different
public institutions and four of the world’s lead-
ing biotech firms in molecular HPV diagnostics.
The four companies have agreed to allow their
new HPV analyses and latest equipment for high
throughput of tests, to be tested against each
other in ordinary screening assays at an inde-
pendent hospital laboratory.
This aim is to determine which test is the most
reliable at identifying treatment-requiring pre-
stages of cervical cancer, and hence how these
tests may be used most effectively and economi-
cally in the Danish screening programme and
also internationally. The project holds the right to
publish the evaluation of the different HPV tests
and the companies’ technologies.
“All of the participating companies’ HPV tech-
nologies are currently marketed for screening
purposes, but when the study got underway,
they were still in the final development phase. It
has been a privilege to have access to the latest
technologies so early on in the process, which
has meant that our results are now being cited
internationally,” says MD, Senior Consultant
Carsten Rygaard of Hvidovre Hospital’s Pathol-
ogy Department.
“It also meant that we were working with com-
panies on an ongoing basis to resolve a number
of technical problems with the analysis, which is
one of the reasons why our technical expertise in
HPV testing is now leading edge. This study has
put Denmark on the world map in HPV diagnostics
for the prevention of cervical cancer. Combined
with vaccination for HPV, Danish women will be
offered a screening programme, which in terms of
technique and quality ranks among the best in the
world, and which is based on Danish results and
findings.”
The project, which is now around the midway
mark, is also unique in the sense that unlike the
majority of other international studies, it is based
on how the new HPV tests function within an
already established screening programme. This
gives the study’s results a clear picture of what
challenge a transition from smear tests to mo-
lecular HPV testing will mean for the implementa-
tion of the health service’s screening programme.
About the two projects
Molecular Prediction of Prostate Cancer Risk and Aggressiveness (MPRAS)Grant holder: Professor Torben Ørntoft, Aarhus University HospitalGrant: DKK 14.4mParticipants: Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus University, USC/Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center (USA), Shenzhen HuaDa (China), Univer-sity of Erlangen-Nürnberg (Germany), CLC bio A/S
CONTROL – Optimizing Control of Cervical Cancer Grant holder: Professor Elsebeth Lynge, University of CopenhagenGrant: DKK 10.7mParticipants: University of Copenhagen, Hvidovre Hospital, Erasmus Univer-sity Medical Centre, Roche Diagnostics, Qiagen Ltd., Hologic Inc., Genomica SAU
The Danish Council for Strategic Research29/
The quality concept of the Danish Council for Strategic Research
Strategic research is subject to special quality
criteria. The Council assesses the quality on the
basis of three equivalent criteria: the relevance,
the potential impact and the quality of the
research.
The three-fold quality concept is applied both in
the evaluation of applications submitted to the
Danish Council for Strategic Research and in its
subsequent follow-up on the funded research
activities.
The relevance of the research is assessed with
respect to the extent to which it addresses the
societal challenges that form the basis for the
research theme in question.
Evaluation of the potential impact of the research
concerns its anticipated positive impacts on public
and private-sector stakeholders, including its
potential to promote economic growth and the
development of the welfare society from a global
perspective.
The quality of the research is evaluated on
the basis of the originality of the application and
projected achievements on an international scale.
Re
leva
nce
Quality of the research
Strategic quality
Potential i
mp
ac
t
The Organisation
The Danish Council for Strategic Research is
comprised of a Board and a variable number
of programme commissions. In 2013, the Coun-
cil is composed of a board and the programme
commissions presented on the organisation chart.
Bo
ard
Programme Commission on Sustainable Energy and Environment
Programme Commission on Individuals, Disease and Society
Programme Commission on Health, Food and Welfare
Programme Commission on Transport and Infrastructure
Programme Commission on Strategic Growth Technologies
Programme Commission on for Peace and Conflict
The Danish Council for Strategic Research31/
ChairProfessor Peter Olesen, Director, ActiFoods ApS
Professor Per Michael Johansen, Dean, Faculty of Engineering, University of Southern Denmark
Professor Ole Lehrman Madsen, Department of Computer Science, Aarhus University and Director, Alexandra Institute Ltd
Vice-chairMette Thunø, Dean, Faculty of Arts, Aarhus Universitet
Helle Westphal, Head of Department, DHI Group
Professor Børge Obel, Head of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Organi-zational Architecture, Aarhus School of Business and Social Sciences, Aarhus University
Svend Erik Sørensen, Vice President, Danish Crown
Professor Birthe Høgh, MD, Vice-Dean for Research, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen
Professor Frede Blaabjerg, Institute of Energy Technology, Aalborg University
The Board
32/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
Per cent DKK m
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
20
15
10
5
02004
20052006
20072008
20092010
20112012
20042005
20062007
20082009
20102011
2012
DKK m Number of PhDs
1200
1000
800
600
400
200
0
300
250
200
150
100
50
02004
20052006
20072008
20092010
20112012
20042005
20062007
20082009
20102011
2012
Key figures — grants*
Total grants*
The figures for grants allocated by the Danish Coun-
cil for Strategic Research Council do not correspond
exactly with the annual allocations under the Na-
tional Budget, as some applications are considered
in the year preceding the year in which the alloca-
tions are made under the National Budget. In 2012,
the Council awarded grants to 33 strategic research
centres, alliances and projects totalling DKK 580m.
Success rate
The success rate, that is, the percentage of the
total funding amount applied for that was granted
by the Council, varied between 13 and 28 per cent.
Average grant size
The average grant size in 2012 was DKK 17.6m.
Research training
The Danish Council for Strategic Research co-
funds a large number of PhD grants. The number
of PhDs is the total number of PhD students
participating in the funded research activity.
*Excluding international grants. See separate figures for international grants.
of the 33 grants awarded by the Council in 2012 had binding partnerships with international partners.
34/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
DKK m
20092010
20112012
0
40
30
20
10
Brasilien
Indien
Kina
DKK m
6
4
2
0
ERA-net: Industrial Biotechnology 2 (ERA-IB2)
ERA-net: Coordination of ICT and Robotics in Agriculture and Related Environmental Issues (ICT-AGRI)
ERA-net: ELECTROMOBILITY+
Joint Programming Initiative for Neurodegenerative Diseases (JPND)
Joint-Programming Initiative on Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change (FACCE-JPI)
Joint Programming Initiative — Urban Europe
8
Bilateral grants
In 2012, the Danish Council for Strategic Research
awarded bilateral grants in collaboration with
China, India and Brazil.
Totally, approx. DKK 40m has been awarded to
Danish participants in bilateral projects.
Joint European Grants
The Danish Council for Strategic Research par-
ticipates in a number of joint European research
collaborations – ERA-net and Joint Programming
Initiatives. In 2012, the Council awarded approx.
DKK 33m to Danish participants in joint European
projects.
Key figures — international grants
Funding recipients 2012
The Danish Council for Strategic Research funds research
within those areas in which the Danish Parliament makes
annual allocations. In 2012, the Council awarded funding
worth a total of DKK 650m.
36/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
Programme Commission on Sustainable Energy and Environment
In 2012, the Programme Commission on Sus-
tainable Energy and Environment awarded
approx. DKK 220m for strategic research
under the themes of “Energy and Environment
— Energy Systems of the Future” and “Environ-
mental technology”.
Significant societal challenges
in this research area
Denmark is to be future-proofed by creating a
sustainable growth economy and switching to
energy and transport systems wholly based on
renewable energy by 2050, in which the reliabil-
ity of energy supply, climate and environmental
considerations and cost-efficiency are the main
pillars. The challenge consists of developing
energy-efficient, intelligent and climate-friendly
technologies capable of reducing greenhouse
gas emissions and other forms of pollution, and
of reducing dependence on fossil fuels, and, in so
doing, also improving reliability of supply.
The research shall promote improvements
in which economic growth does not result in
increasing negative environmental impacts, and
where the focus is on a renewable, intelligent and
environmentally sustainable energy system. Re-
search efforts must also support the capacity for
business and industry to capitalise on the major
future market potentials in the field of climate,
energy and environment.
Energy and Environment — Energy Systems of the Future
Bio Chain – Optimisation of value chains for biogas production in DenmarkProfessor Sven Gjedde Sommer,
University of Southern Denmark
Grant: DKK 19.6m (total budget: DKK 24.7m)
UserTEC – User practices, technologies and residential energy compsumptionSenior researcher Kirsten Gram-Hanssen,
Danish Building Research Institute, Aalborg
University
Grant: DKK 17.2m (total budget: DKK 26.4m)
ENOVHEAT – Efficient novel magnetocaloric heat pumpsSenior researcher Christian Bahl,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 18.9m (total budget: DKK 22.1m)
4M Centre – Mechanisms, materials, manufacturing and management – interdisciplinary fundamental research to promote commercialization of HT-PEMFCAssociate professor Qingfeng Li,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 31.0m (total budget DKK 43.6m)
ALPBES – Advanced lifetime predictions of battery energy storageProfessor Søren Knudsen Kær,
Aalborg University
Grant: DKK 16.5m (total budget: DKK 25.3m)
The Danish Council for Strategic Research37/
Environmental Technology
CAT-C – Clean-air-technologies by development of new catalystsProfessor Flemming Besenbacher,
Aarhus University
Grant: DKK 15.0m (total budget: DKK 33.1m)
LaGas – Diagnostics, monitoring and mitigation of N2O (laughing gas) emissions from wastewater treatment operations: towards climate compatible wastewater technologyProfessor Barth F. Smets,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 12.3m (total budget: DKK 20.7m)
NOVAGRASS – Innovative eelgrass restoration techniquesAssociate professor Erik Kristensen,
University of Southern Denmark
Grant: DKK 14.1m (total budget: 26.9m)
NACORR – New alloy catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction in proton exchange membrane fuel cellsProfessor Ib Chorkendorff,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 14.8m (total budget: DKK 22.0m)
5s – Future electricity marketsAssociate professor Pierre Pinson,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 11.0m (total budget: 15.3m)
CHALSOL Chalcogenide solar cells of CZTS – Copper zinc tin sulfide – a new, high-efficiency material for low-tech solar cells of earth-abundant and environmentally friendly elementsSenior researcher Jørgen Ingolf Schou,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 16.4m (total budget: DKK 18.5m)
SYMBIO – Integration of biomass and wind power for biogas enhancement and upgrading via hydrogen assisted anaerobic digestionProfessor Irini Angelidaki,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 12.9m (total budget: DKK 16.9m)
ASHBACK – Ash from biofuel from energy plants back to the area where grown; ecotoxicological censequencesProfessor Søren Christensen,
University of Copenhagen
Grant: DKK 20.6m (total budget: DKK 28.2m)
Programme Commission on Sustainable Energy and Environment
38/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
In 2012, the Programme Commission on
Health, Food and Welfare awarded approx.
DKK 168m for strategic research under the
themes of “Connection between Food, Health
and Lifestyle”, “Bioresources, Food and other
Biological Products” and “Food”.
Significant societal challenges
in this research area
Global changes in the natural environment and
the climate, but also in societal and economic
dimensions, are posing a mounting challenge in
securing adequate supplies of food, feed, en-
ergy, materials and water for the growing world
population. There is consequently a need to
develop more efficient and competitive biological
production that promotes health, the production
of appetising quality foods, consumer protec-
tion, animal welfare and a clean environment and
which in combination serve to realise the goals
defined within sustainable production.
Realisation of this vision holds considerable
societal and commercial potential, not least in
the international arena, and will thereby be a
significant driver for growth and development.
Connection between Food, Health and Lifestyle
NEOMUNE – Early milk and microbiota to stimulate later immunity Professor Per Torp Sangild,
University of Copenhagen
Grant: DKK 35.6m (total budget: DKK 74.0m)
ProbiComp – The effect of probiotics in re-ducing infections and allergic manifestations in young children during the complementary feeding periodProfessor Kim Fleischer Michaelsen,
University of Copenhagen
Grant: DKK 11.5m (total budget: DKK 18.9m)
ELIN – The effect of enterolignans in chronic diseaseSenior researcher Anja Viendahl Olsen,
The Danish Cancer Society
Grant: DKK 13.8m (total budget: DKK 16.8m)
TRIM – Transcobalamin in milk and optimal vitamin B12 uptake
Senior researcher Christian Würtz Heegaard,
Aarhus University
Grant: DKK 14.3m (total budget: DKK 18.4m)
Programme Commission on Health, Food and Welfare
The Danish Council for Strategic Research39/
Bioresources, Food and other Biological Products
ProAqua – Reducing antibiotic use in marine larviculture by a novel combinatory probiotic strategyProfessor Lone Gram,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 14.6m (total budget: DKK 19.9m)
REMRUM – Reduction of methane emissions from dairy cows and concurrent improve-ment of feed efficiency obtained through host genetics and next generation sequencing of rumen microbiomeSenior researcher Peter Løvendahl,
Aarhus University
Grant: DKK 12.2m (total budget: DKK 15.5m)
GenSAP – Centre for genomic selection in animals and plantsSenior researcher Mogens Sandø Lund,
Aarhus University
Grant: DKK 30.6m (total budget: DKK 68.7m)
Food
EvoPPM – Evolution-proof pest management Associate Professor Michael Hassing Kristensen,
Aarhus University
Grant: DKK 15.1m (total budget: DKK 19.0m)
DNMARK – Danish nitrogen mitigation assessment: research and know-how for a sustainable, low-nitrogen food production Senior researcher Tommy Dalgaard,
Aarhus University
Grant: DKK 20.0m (total budget: DKK 31.3m)
Programme Commission on Health, Food and Welfare
40/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
In 2012, the Programme Commission on Indi-
viduals, Disease and Society awarded a total
of approx. DKK 55m for strategic research
under the theme “Clinical Research”.
Significant societal challenges
in this research area
Denmark faces a number of challenges in the
health area. Disease causes great distress for
the individual, and health service spending is of
great economic significance. Patients must be
assured of a high standard of treatment, and the
organisation of the health service must guaran-
tee patients maximum efficacy of treatment.
The challenge consists both of preventing
disease and of individualising the treatment
of patients. Only through individualised treat-
ment is it possible to progress to the next stage
of development and avoid the consequences of
overmedication and mismedication: injury and
damage, side effects and high costs for both the
individual and society.
Clinical Research
LOOP – Atrial fibrillation detected by con-tinuous ECG monitoring using implantable loop recorder to prevent stroke in high-risk individuals. Professor Jesper Hastrup Svendsen,
Rigshospitalet
Grant: DKK 15.6m (total budget: DKK 36.7m)
CLEAR – Finding a cure for HIV infection: eradication of the latent reservoirProfessor Lars Jørgen Østergaard,
Aarhus University Hospital
Grant: DKK 12.0m (total budget: DKK 23.1m)
PAUSE – Phenotypes in alcohol use disorders. A multidisciplinary approach to improve diagnosis, understanding and treatment of patients with alcohol use disorders (AUD)Chief physician Ulrik Becker,
University of Southern Denmark (National
Institute of Public Health) and Gastroenheden,
Hvidovre Hospital.
Grant: DKK 16.6m (total budget: DKK 19.4m)
Non-sedation versus a daily wake-up trial in critically ill patientsProfessor Palle Toft,
Odense University Hospital
Grant: DKK 10.8m (total budget: DKK 13.9m)
Programme Commission on Individuals, Disease and Society
The Danish Council for Strategic Research41/
In 2012, the Programme Commission on Stra-
tegic Growth Technologies awarded a total
of approx. DKK 83m for strategic research
under the theme “Nanotechnology, Biotech-
nology and Information and Communication
Technology”.
Significant societal challenges
in this research area
The development and application of new tech-
nologies such as nanotechnology, biotechnology,
synthesis biology, materials technology and
information and communication technology are
key drivers of productivity improvements and
economic growth generally. The challenge lies in
developing and applying the technologies for the
development of new, innovative and competitive
products and processes, while instilling public
confidence in the use of new technologies. At the
same time, the technologies may potentially pave
the way for new solutions to key challenges facing
society in areas such as energy, food, environ-
ment, health and education, while they may also
form the basis for commercial development.
Moreover, combining technologies holds great
potential in relation to e.g. the development of the
bio-based economy.
Nanotechnology, Biotech-nology and Information and Communication Technology
DA-GATE – Danish alliance of graphene application technology and engineeringAssociate Professor Peter Bøggild,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 20.0m (total budget: DKK 40.5m)
Plant Power – Light-driven synthesis of complex terpenoids using cytochrome P450sProfessor Poul Erik Jensen,
University of Copenhagen
Grant: DKK 20.7m (total budget: DKK 29.7m)
APCGlyVac – Production of APC targeted allergy vaccinesAssociate Professor Hans H. Wandall,
University of Copenhagen
Grant: DKK 13.1m (total budget: DKK 21.4m)
CARMEN – Center for advanced robotic manufacturing engineeringProfessor Henrik Gordon Petersen,
University of Southern Denmark
Grant: DKK 18.3m (total budget: DKK 26.2m)
e-space – Enhanced spatial light control in advanced optical fibresProfessor Toshio Morioka,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 11.2m (total budget: DKK 14.7m)
Programme Commission on Strategic Growth Technologies
Programme Commission on Individuals, Disease and Society
42/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
SPIR
In 2012, the Programme Commission on Peace
and Conflict awarded DKK 15m for strategic
research under the theme “Peace and Conflict
Research”.
Significant societal challenges
in this research area
The research within the area is to strengthen the
basis for Denmark to contribute with non-military
solutions to current international conflicts. The
research can address e.g. conflict prevention, con-
flict management and resolution as well as preven-
tive efforts to forestall the escalation of conflicts.
In 2012, the Danish Council for Strategic Re-
search and the Danish Council for Technology
and Innovation awarded a grant of DKK 79.5m
for a SPIR under the theme “The Bio-based
Economy”.
SPIR (Strategic Platforms for Innovation and
Research) is an initiative to make it more attrac-
tive for business and industry to participate in
research and development activities with the
Danish universities, approved technological
service institutes and other enterprises and in-
novation stakeholders.
Peace and Conflict Research
CRIC – Centre for resolution of international conflictsProfessor Ole Wæver,
University of Copenhagen
Grant: DKK 15.5m
(total budget: DKK 26.5m)
The Bio-based Economy
BIO-VALUE – Value-added products from bio-massUniversity of Copenhagen
(contact: Professor Jan K. Schjørring)
Grant: DKK 79.5m
Thereof: The Danish Council for Strategic Re-
search: DKK 39.5m and The Danish Council for
Technology and Innovation: DKK 40.0m
(Expected total budget: DKK 150.0m)
Programme Commission on Peace and Conflict
The Danish Council for Strategic Research43/
Bilateral funding
In 2012, the Danish Council for Strategic Re-
search granted approx. DKK 40m for bilateral
cooperation with the BRIC countries Brazil,
India and China. The funding was awarded
by the programme commissions within the
respective areas.
Cooperation with China within Sustainable Energy and Environment
OffWindChina – Research and development of optimal wind turbine rotors under offshore wind conditions in ChinaAssociate professor Wen Zhong Shen,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 6.0m
(total Danish budget: DKK 8.2m)
DANCNGAS – Development and application of circulating fluidized bed gasification of biomass
Professor Kim Dam-Johansen,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 6.5m
(total Danish budget: DKK 7.6m)
Cooperation with Brazil within Health, Food and Welfare
Improving food safety by eliminating pathogens in mixed biofilmsProfessor Lone Kirsten Gram,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 3.4m
(total Danish budget: DKK 4.0m)
Meat-Cross-Con – Meat safety: An innovative modelling approach to evaluate microbial pathogen transfer and cross contamination from farm to forkSenior researcher Søren Aabo,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 4.9m
(total Danish budget: DKK 6.8m)
GIFT: Genomic Improvement of fertilization traits in Danish and Brazilian cattleProfessor Haja Kadarmideen,
University of Copenhagen
Grant: DKK 6.1m
(total Danish budget: DKK 10.5m)
Cooperation with India within Individuals, Disease and Society
idMALVAC – Establishing immunological correlates of protection against malaria vac-cine candidates using functional bioassays and proteomic deciphering of host-parasite interactionsDr. med. Michael Scheel Theisen,
Statens Serum Institut
Grant: DKK 6.9m
(total Danish budget: DKK 11.3m)
MicrobDiab – Studies of interactions between the gut microbiome and the human host biolo-gy to elucidate novel aspects of the pathophys-iology and pathogenesis of type 2 diabetesProfessor Oluf Borbye Pedersen,
University of Copenhagen
Grant: DKK 6.1m
(total Danish budget: DKK 13.9m)
Programme Commission on Peace and Conflict
44/ The Danish Council for Strategic Research
Joint European Grants
The Danish Council for Strategic Research
participates in a number of joint European
research collaborations – ERA-net and Joint
Programming Initiatives. In 2012, the Council
awarded approx. DKK 33m to Danish partici-
pants in joint European projects.
Joint-Programming Initiative on Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change (FACCE-JPI)
A detailed climate change risk assessment for European agriculture and food securityProfessor Jørgen E. Olesen,
Aarhus University
Professor John Roy Porter,
University of Copenhagen
Grant: DKK 7.5m
(total Danish budget: DKK 9.1m)
Joint Programming Initiative – Urban Europe
CONCOORD – Consolidation and coordination in urban areasAssociate professor Allan Larsen,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 1.9m
(total Danish budget: DKK 1.9m)
APRILab – Action oriented planning, regula-tion and investment dilemmas for innovative urban development in living lab experiences Research Director Hans Thor Andersen,
Aalborg University
Grant: DKK 2.3m
(total Danish budget: DKK 2.5m)
ERA-net: Coordination of ICT and Robotics in Agriculture and Related Environmental Issues (ICT-AGRI)
USER-PA – Usability of environmentally sound and reliable techniques in precision agricultureAssociate professor Søren Marcus Pedersen,
University of Copenhagen
Grant: DKK 1.1m.
(total Danish budget: DKK 1.1m)
ITApic – Application of information technologies in precision apiculture Associate professor Peter Ahrendt,
Aarhus University
Grant: DKK 1.5m
(total Danish budget: DKK 2.0m)
The Danish Council for Strategic Research45/
Joint Programming Initiative for Neurodegenerative Diseases (JPND)
BIOMARKAPD – Biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s diseaseProfessor Gunhild Waldemar,
Rigshospitalet
Head of Division Niels Henrik Helweg Heegaard,
Statens Serum Institut
Grant: DKK 3.4m
(total Danish budget: 3.4m)
ERA-net: ELECTROMOBILITY+
COMPETT – Competitive electric town transportSenior researcher Hans Christian Bendtsen,
The Danish Road Directorate
Grant: DKK 1.8m
(total Danish budget: DKK 1.8m)
EV-STEP – Sustainable technical and economic pathways for electrified mobility systems in EU27 by 2030Senior researcher Poul Erik Grohnheit,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 1.2m
(total Danish budget: DKK 1.4m)
FCCP-APU – Fuel cell operating on conventional fuels as auxiliary power unit for electrical vehiclesChief Technology Officer Mads Bang,
SERENERGY A/S
Chief Technology Officer Thomas Steenberg,
Danish Power Systems ApS
Grant: DKK 3.2m
(total Danish budget: DKK 6.0m)
WIC2IT – Wireless inductive charging to interoperation testingAssociate professor Søren Kjærgaard,
Aarhus University
Associate professor Erik Schaltz,
Aalborg University
Grant: DKK 6.4m (total Danish budget: DKK 9.1m)
NEMO – Novel e-mobility grid modelHead of Energy Systems Anders Nielsen
Andersen, EMD International A/S
Manager Jesper Skovhus Andersen,
Ringkøbing Fjernvarmeværk amba.
Manager Jacob Møller, Ringkøbing Amts
Højspændings-forsyning amba.
Grant: DKK 1.3m (total Danish budget: DKK 2.3m)
SELECT – Suitability of electromobilityProject manager Anders Vedsted Nørrelund,
Technical University of Denmark
Head of Development Ole Martin Alm,
CLEVER A/S
Grant: DKK 3.2m (total Danish budget: DKK 4.0m)
Grants to Electromobility+ include DKK 9.7m EU funding.
ERA-net: Industrial Biotechnology 2 (ERA-IB2)
SCILS – Systematic considerations of inhomogeneity at the large scale: towards a stringent development of industrial bioprocesses Assistant Manager Kjeld Raunkjær Kjeldsen,
Vitalys I/S
Grant: DKK 1.0m
(total Danish budget: DKK 2.1m)
CONTIbugs – Overcoming metabolic stochasticity and population dynamics in microbial cell factories Professor Søren Molin,
Technical University of Denmark
Grant: DKK 2.6m
(total Danish budget: DKK 3.3m)
CESBIC – Critical enzymes for sustainable biofuels from celluloseAssociate professor Leila Lo Leggio,
University of Copenhagen
Science Manager Katja S. Johansen,
Novozymes A/S
Grant: DKK 3.8m (total Danish budget: 5.7m)
MICROTOOLS – Microscale downstream processing toolbox for screening and process developmentPartner Bent Svanholm,
Svanholm.com
Grant: DKK 0.3m (total Danish budget: DKK 0.5m)
The Danish Council for Strategic Research is served by a secretariat within the Danish Agency
for Science, Technology and Innovation. The secre-
tariat will be pleased to provide further information
concerning the individual programmes and Danish
strategic research in general.
The website www.fivu.dk/en/dsf provides contact
details for the individual members of staff, by
research area.
Secretariat
Publisher:The Danish Council for Strategic Research
Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation
March 2013
Design: e-Types/India
Photos: Tuala Hjarnø
Printed by: Dystan
Circulation: 2.000
ISSN: 1903-0061
ISSN (internet): 1903-007X
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