Timing, hosts and locations of (grouped) events of NanoImpactNet

Transnational Access:
� QNano aims to provide approximately 400 Users with
access to state of the art characterisation equipment
across the 15 Transnational Access Facilities shown in
Figure 2, and to promote the need for characterisation of
nanomaterials in situ in the medium in which they will be
exposed to living systems. 7
� Funding for approved applicants will cover the costs of
International travel, accommodation, living costs for the
researcher, and the cost of provision of the access for the
host Transnational Access Facility. Average visits 5‐10
working days.
� Visits are fully supported with the technical expertise in
the institute of equipment being accessed, and with
protocols and nanomaterials as needed.
� The first Transnational Access call opened November 1 st
2011 for 3 months. The second call will open May 1 st 2012
and close July 31 st 2012. Further calls will be held every 6
months for the duration of the project.
Figure 2: Map showing the locations of the institutes offering
QNano‐funded Transnational Access to state of the art
characterisation facilities for nanomaterials in contact with living
systems. Note that a potential User cannot request to visit a
facility in the country in which they work.
�
Figure 3. Categories of QNano Transnational Access. The
categories of access offered by each Transnational Access Facility
(TAF) are shown in the graph (left). A legend explaining the
categories of access is shown on the right.
NanoSafetyCluster ‐ Compendium 2012
� Transnational Access is provided according to four
thematic categories: nanomaterial synthesis, labelling and
processing, characterisation in situ, exposure assessment.
As shown in figure 3 the 15 Transnational Access Facilities
offer access under one or more of these categories.
� Details of the application process can be found on the
QNano website: http://www.qnano‐ri.eu/access.html.
� Briefly, after contacting the Technology Expert at the host
institution of interest the applicant (User) submits a
project, which was previously agreed with the Technology
Expert, through the online application system. The
application undergoes an eligibility check and is
afterwards evaluated by an external unbiased panel of
experts, the User Selection Panel (USP). The USP provides
feedback on the application through the online application
system. Successful applicants are notified by the QNano
project office, and have 1 year in which to complete their
visit. Exact timing of the visit must be agreed between the
User and the relevant Technology Expert at the host
institution. The process is shown schematically in Figure 3.
A User Handbook and Frequently Asked Questions sheet
are available on the QNano website, as well as the contact
details for each Transnational Access Facility.
Figure 4. Flow chart of the Application Process. The steps involved
in the submission of a proposal and the evaluation process are
shown in the graph. Shown are also the expected interactions
between the applicant (User) and the Transnational Access Leader
(TAL) and Technology Expert.
Joint Research Activities:
� All of the research WPs are underway, with WP meetings
scheduled, round robin activities in progress, and first
batches of well‐characterised nanomaterials available.
� JRA1 ‐ strategies to eliminate and/or reduce nanomaterials
batch‐to‐batch variability: Assessment of sources of
variability in widely used synthesis methods is under way
and strategies are being developed to eliminate or reduce
such sources of variability. Different batches of Silica
nanoparticles made via the Stöber synthesis route are
being produced to verify the extent of variability among
Compendium of Projects in the European NanoSafety Cluster 249