EXTRACT-IT

Name: EXTRACT-IT
Program: 7th Framework Programme

Europe’s dependency on the import of raw materials is growing every year, despite efforts in the development of recycling technologies and in material science.

The EXTRACT-IT project aimed to identify emerging and potentially disruptive trends in how ICT could be used in future deep mines. The challenge for EXTRACT-IT was to turn such potential future applications into Calls for Proposals under the Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) Programme of Horizon 2020, supporting the development of these anticipated future trends in the present. The FET programme promotes high risk research, “offset by potential breakthrough with high technological or societal impact”. In particular FET Proactive fosters “novel non-conventional approaches and foundational research in selected themes in response to emerging societal and industrial needs.”

During the 12 months of EXTRACT-IT three workshops were organised and a Delphi survey was conducted that resulted in the definition of four “Thematic Areas” and a corresponding 11 Call topics for FET. These Call topics range from bio-inspiration in mining through the challenges of the development of future resilient artificial ecosystems to breakthrough data transmission technologies in the deep mines of the future. The underlying research challenges are so profound and revolutionary that calling on such topics would contribute to the development of research areas beyond mining, eventually strengthening European research excellence in exploratory ICT.