Technology Demonstration Project Research Articles

Desulfovibrio desulfuricans and its derived metabolites confer resistance to FOLFOX through METTL3

Chemoresistance is a critical factor contributing to poor prognosis in clinical patients with cancer undergoing postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy. The role of gut microbiota in mediating resistance to tumour chemotherapy remains to be investigated. Patients with CRC were categorised into clinical benefit responders (CBR) and no clinical benefit responders (NCB) based on chemotherapy efficacy. Differential bacterial analysis using 16S rRNA sequencing revealed Desulfovibrio as a distinct microbe between the two groups. Employing a syngeneic transplantation model, we assessed the effect of Desulfovibrio on chemotherapy by measuring tumour burden, weight, and Ki-67 expression. We further explored the mechanisms underlying the compromised chemotherapeutic efficacy of Desulfovibrio using metabolomics, western blotting, colony formation, and cell apoptosis assays. In comparison, Desulfovibrio was more abundant in the NCB group. Invivo experiments revealed that Desulfovibrio colonisation in the gut weakened the efficacy of FOLFOX. Treatment with Desulfovibrio desulfuricans elevates serum S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) levels. Interestingly, SAM reduced the sensitivity of CRC cells to FOLFOX, thereby promoting the growth of CRC tumours. These experiments suggest that SAM promotes the growth and metastasis of CRC by driving the expression of methyltransferase-like 3 (METTL3). A high abundance of Desulfovibrio in the intestines indicates poor therapeutic outcomes for postoperative neoadjuvant FOLFOX chemotherapy in CRC. Desulfovibrio drives the manifestation of METTL3 in CRC, promoting resistance to FOLFOX chemotherapy by increasing the concentration of SAM. This study is supported by Wuxi City Social Development Science and Technology Demonstration Project (N20201005).

Current Status of Water Electrolysis Technology and Large-scale Demonstration Projects in Korea and Overseas

Current Status of Water Electrolysis Technology and Large-scale Demonstration Projects in Korea and Overseas

Recent advances in the catalytic conversion of CO2 to chemicals and demonstration projects in China

To achieve the global net-zero carbon emissions target, enhanced studies on how to effectively convert and utilize CO2 have been conducted. Herein, the research progress and development trend of CO2 conversion to chemicals, including CO2 hydrogenation to hydrocarbons, CO2 as an oxidant to syngas, and CO2 cycloaddition to carbonate were discussed in this review. The principles, advantages, disadvantages, and prospects of thermal catalysis, electrocatalysis, photocatalysis, enzyme catalysis, and plasma catalysis for CO2 conversion were summarized. Among them, the different methods of the active component, carrier, catalyst electronic effect, synergistic effect and size effect used to develop specific catalysts for different CO2 conversions were introduced emphatically. Moreover, the developmental stage of CO2 catalytic conversion technology and important industrial demonstration projects in China were summarized, with special emphasis on the relationship between hydrogen/electricity supply and the carbon emission reduction effect of CO2 catalytic conversion. The reaction network, catalytic system and demonstration project of CO2 catalytic conversion were comprehensively compared and discussed to more clearly play the beneficial role of CO2 catalytic conversion in carbon reduction work.

Impacts of the Extension of Cassava Soil Conservation and Efficient Technology on the Reduction of Chemical Fertilizer Input in China

The reduction of fertilizer inputs can be considered as an effective policy tool for achieving Sustainable Development Goal 12 and for reaching carbon neutrality. In this study, we examine the impact of the extension of cassava (Manihot sculenta) soil conservation and efficiency (SCE) technology on the cost of chemical fertilizers used by China’s cassava industry. The SCE technology was developed by a Technology Integration and Demonstration (TID) Project of China’s National Key R&D Program, which is an innovative and official channel of agriculture technology extension. Based on data collected from cassava farmers in Guiping, Guangxi, China, the differences-in-differences with propensity score matching (PSM-DID) approach was conducted in this study. We found that farmers participating in the cassava SCE technology project reported a reduction in fertilizer costs per mu (15 mu = 1 ha) of approximately 24.0%. Consequently, the results demonstrate that the government can increase the number of TID projects in order to reduce chemical fertilizer inputs and to encourage the sustainable development of agriculture.

Development of a Methodology for Technology Demonstration Projects Evaluation

AbstractTo ensure optimal resource allocation in technology demonstration projects, the evaluation of demonstrators of various maturity, scale, and nature has to be carried out. Most of the existing approaches focus on risk assessment or projected financial return; the need for a tool supporting multi-facet projects evaluation has been identified. This paper presents R2L framework based on three major criteria, defined in detail: Leap Potential, Learning, and Risk. The framework was applied to a real flight-test demonstrator project during workshops in a major aerospace company.

Research on the Impact and Utility of Rural Revitalization Big Data Service on Farmers Based on Integrated Technology Acceptance Model

The integrated technology acceptance model was proposed in 2003 and has been gradually applied in many fields since then. At present, the promotion of agricultural big data has achieved initial results, and a number of agricultural big data practice demonstration projects have been formed. For example, Shandong Province supports the establishment of the “Big Data Platform of Bohai Granary Science and Technology Demonstration Project,” which includes four modules of data collection, mining and analysis, monitoring and early warning, and decision-making service. It is characterized by the diversity of massive data sources, the integration of historical and real-time data, and multifactor comprehensive analysis and decision making. However, farmers, as an important service subject of agricultural big data platform, do not have strong willingness to participate. In the era of big data, it is still difficult for farmers to obtain data information and services, and their ability to obtain, screen, and use data is poor. Therefore, it is of great practical significance to effectively improve farmers’ willingness to adopt and use agricultural big data. Based on the integrated technology acceptance model, this study analyzed the impact of big data service of rural revitalization on farmers. Firstly, the basic content of integration technology acceptance theory was analyzed, and the research hypothesis was proposed based on this theory. After that, the questionnaire survey was used to empirically analyze the impact of big data service on farmers. Reliability and validity test, correlation test, goodness of fit test, and path system test were carried out on the analysis results to prove the factors that affect farmers’ behavior and attitude of using big data.

Fisheries Extension Workers’ Competence, Challenges and Fisherfolk’s Farming Technology Practices in Zamboanga City: Basis for Intervention

The study is an investigation of the level of competence and challenges of Fisheries Extension Workers and its relationship to the fisherfolks?s farming technology practices in Zamboanga City. The study secured the responses of 12 Fisheries Extension Workers (FEWs) from the Office of the City Agriculturist and 145 fisherfolk from Tumaga, Ayala and Culianan Agricultural Districts. The study employed a descriptive-correlational-quantitative research design. The results of the study revealed that FEWs are highly competent in seaweed production and are challenged in the implementation of fisheries extension programs. Furthermore, the fisherfolk highly practiced the farming technologies imparted to them by the FEWs. However, the competence of FEWs has no significant relationship to the farming technology practices of fisherfolk. Likewise, there is no significant difference in the competence of FEWs when data are categorized to profile. The study recommends continuous trainings and retooling of FEWs to further improve the level of competency. It also encourages the validation of the challenges encountered to improve the fisheries extension programs in the ground. Finally, it calls for the conduct of Technology Demonstration Projects in major seaweed-producing barangays for the fisherfolk to develop and apply the right farming technologies wherein actual seaweed farming activities can be applied, tested, modified and improved.

Integration of clinicopathologic identification and deep transferrable image feature representation improves predictions of lymph node metastasis in prostate cancer.

BackgroundAccurate identification of pelvic lymph node metastasis (PLNM) in patients with prostate cancer (PCa) is crucial for determining appropriate treatment options. Here, we built a PLNM-Risk calculator to obtain a precisely informed decision about whether to perform extended pelvic lymph node dissection (ePLND).MethodsThe PLNM-Risk calculator was developed in 280 patients and verified internally in 71 patients and externally in 50 patients by integrating a set of radiologists’ interpretations, clinicopathological factors and newly refined imaging indicators from MR images with radiomics machine learning and deep transfer learning algorithms. Its clinical applicability was compared with Briganti and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) nomograms.FindingsThe PLNM-Risk achieved good diagnostic discrimination with areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUCs) of 0.93 (95% CI, 0.90-0.96), 0.92 (95% CI, 0.84-0.97) and 0.76 (95% CI, 0.62-0.87) in the training/validation, internal test and external test cohorts, respectively. If the number of ePLNDs missed was controlled at < 2%, PLNM-Risk provided both a higher number of ePLNDs spared (PLNM-Risk 59.6% vs MSKCC 44.9% vs Briganti 38.9%) and a lower number of false positives (PLNM-Risk 59.3% vs MSKCC 70.1% and Briganti 72.7%). In follow-up, patients stratified by the PLNM-Risk calculator showed significantly different biochemical recurrence rates after surgery.InterpretationThe PLNM-Risk calculator offers a noninvasive clinical biomarker to predict PLNM for patients with PCa. It shows improved accuracy of diagnosis support and reduced overtreatment burdens for patients with findings suggestive of PCa.FundingThis work was supported by the Key Research and Development Program of Jiangsu Province (BE2017756) and the Suzhou Science and Technology Bureau-Science and Technology Demonstration Project (SS201808).

Deep Learning for Detecting Corneal Pathologies From Anterior Segment Optical Coherence Tomography

Background: The corneal disease accounts for a mass of cases of visual impairment and blindness. Developing an automatic corneal pathologies detection system is critical in early management and vision preservation. Methods: A deep learning model, CorNet, was developed to identify 9 categories of corneal pathologies from anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT) images. To develop the CorNet, 48644 AS-OCT images were collected and labeled by professional ophthalmologists. We evaluated the performance of CorNet by comparing the clinical readings of 6 ophthalmologists with different seniority who analyzed two independent testing datasets from different hospitals. Findings: By classifying 9 corneal pathologies, our CorNet achieved the area under receiver operating characteristics curve (AUC) of 0.972 (95% CI, 0.961-0.980) on the QDEH testing set (1,203 images) and the AUC of 0.972 ( 0.953-0.983 ) on the SDEH testing set (483 images). The average accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity values of CorNet were 0.947, 0.917, 0.956 on the QDEH testing set and 0.949, 0.932, 0.955 on the SDEH testing set, respectively. Compared to ophthalmologists, the statistical analysis revealed that CorNet was significantly higher than residents in sensitivity and achieved comparable performance in accuracy and specificity between attending ophthalmologists and residents. Interpretation: We constructed a large-scale AS-OCT dataset and developed a deep learning model for corneal pathologies detection. The CorNet achieved high accuracy and good generalization in multicenter clinical validation. Thus, it is a promising strategy for timely screening and treatment of corneal pathologies. Funding Information: Qingdao Science and Technology Demonstration and Guidance Project, under Fund No. 20-3-4-45-nsh. Declaration of Interests: All authors certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest (such as honoraria; educational grants; participation in speakers' bureaus; membership, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, or other equity interest; and expert testimony or patent-licensing arrangements), or non-financial interest (such as personal or professional relationships, affiliations, knowledge or beliefs) in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript. Ethics Approval Statement: This study adhered to the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki, whereas approval was issued by the institutional review board of Qingdao Eye Hospital of Shandong First Medical University (No. QYLS 2020-07).

Neuropilin-1 and Neovascularization Are Associated With the Vulnerability of Carotid Plaques: New Insights Into Atherosclerosis Plaques Development

Background and Objective: Intraplaque neovascularization was considered as an important indicator of plaque vulnerability, neuropilin-1 (NRP1) acted as a coreceptor for vascular endothelial growth factor with an essential role in angiogenesis, the mechanism of NRP1 in plaque vulnerability remained unknown. This article aimed to investigate the relationship between NRP1 and neovascularization with carotid atherosclerotic plaque vulnerability. Besides, new insights into the NRP1 was attained by regulating the development of atherosclerosis plaques. Methods: In this study, 3 plaques of carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and 3 normal external carotid arteries which were obtained from trimmed external carotid artery of high flow intracranial - external artery bypass grafting was first compared by RNA sequencing, functional analysis was used to screen out the genes significantly different related to neovascularization in plaques. A total of 65 plaques from CEA were registered and divided into stable group and vulnerable group by histology. NRP1 and its associated protein expression were analyzed by western blot and co-immunoprecipitation assay. CCK-8 and tube formation assays were used to analyze cell viability and angiogenesis. Transwell migration and Wound healing assays were utilized to assess the motility of HMEC-1 cells. Immunohistochemistry of CD31 and CD68 were used to assess neovascularization and inflammation respectively. Findings: 7110 differentially expressed genes were identified in RNA sequencing. NRP1 was up-regulated compared to normal external carotid artery and related to angiogenesis. The protein levels of NRP1 was elevated in vulnerable plaques. Knockdown of NRP1 inhibited HMEC-1 cells proliferation, angiogenesis and migration in vitro. The protein levels of phospho-FAK and the molecules of integrin α3, α6, αV and β1 were also up-regulated in vulnerable plaques (all P < 0.05). In immunohistochemical results, the expression of CD31 and CD68 were elevated in vulnerable plaques and associated with the plaque vulnerability (P = 0.038, P = 0.015). Interpretation: The current study demonstrated that NRP1 played an important role in vulnerable plaques with angiogenesis. Meanwhile, NRP1 may interact with integrin to activate the FAK signaling pathway to increase neovascularization of plaques. Besides, neovascularization was also associated with plaques instability and inflammatory infiltrate. Funding Statement: This work was supported by cadre health care research project of Jiangsu Province (No. BJ17010), people’s livelihood science and technology demonstration project of Suzhou (No. SS202061, No. SS201859), thirteen major projects of the ministry of science and technology of China (No. 2017YFC0114302). Declaration of Interests: The authors declare no competing interests. Ethics Approval Statement: This study was approved by the local ethics committee (NO: 2019124) and all enrolled subjects had signed written informed consent.

Prostate Cancer Risk Stratification Using Artificial Intelligence-Based Multimodality Integration: A Retrospective Two-Center Study in 1,442 Patients

Background: Pretreatment assessment of prostate cancer (PCa) aggressiveness is important for determining appropriate treatment option and prognostic prediction. Therefore, we employed an artificial intelligence (AI)-based multimodality integration to obtain a precisely informed risk stratification tool (PI-Risk) for PCa aggressiveness. Methods: This study included total 1,442 biopsy-naive patients from two medical institutions, consisting of 671 datasets for model training and an independent set of 232 patients for internal test and 539 patients for external validation. The PI-Risk is designed to discriminate low-risk (Gleason score 6 and biopsy-benign), intermediate-risk (Gleason score 7) and high-risk (Gleason score ≥ 8) PCa by integrating large-scale multimodal information from clinical factors, multiparametric MR radiomics and high-dimensional deep learning-transformed imaging features extracted at intratumorous and peritumorous regions. Algorithm analysis and modelling was performed using an auto AI framework that offers us to deploy algorithm stacking and multimodality-integration. Findings: In 232 internal-tested data, PI-Risk achieved excellent discriminability (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUC] > 0.9) both in low-risk vs intermediate-risk and low-risk vs high-risk disease; and moderate discriminability (AUC > 0.7) in intermediate-risk vs high-risk disease. In 539 external-validated data, the performance of PI-Risk retained excellent (AUC > 0.9) in low-risk vs high-risk disease, and retained good (AUC > 0.8) in low-risk vs intermediate-risk disease; and was moderate (AUC > 0.7) between intermediate-risk vs high-risk disease. In follow-up, PCa patients with different PI-Risk score showed significantly different recurrence rate after radical prostatectomy. Interpretation: PI-Risk offers a noninvasive alternative tool to stratify PCa aggressiveness. Funding Statement: 1. Contract grant sponsor: Key research and development program of Jiangsu Province; contract grant number: BE2017756 (to Y.D.Z.) 2. Contract grant sponsor: Suzhou Science and Technology Bureau-Science and Technology Demonstration Project; contract grant number: SS201808 (to X.M.W) 3. Contract grant sponsor: National Key RD contract grant number: 2017YFC0114300 (H.C.H.) Declaration of Interests: The authors declare no competing interests. Ethics Approval Statement: Ethics committee approval was granted by local institutional ethics review board with a waiver of written informed consent. All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments.

Consideration and Discussion on Green Highway Construction in Urban Area

Green highway construction is the concrete action of the highway industry to continuously improve the development concept. It is the inheritance of green and mysterious low-carbon highway in the new period. Green highway is the use of energy saving, low-carbon and environmental protection technology in the new period. Urban roads are crisscrossed, pipelines such as gas, electricity and water conservancy are densely distributed. The sensitive points such as villages and hospitals are widely distributed, and land pressure is high. These complex characteristics make construction difficult. Therefore, it is of great significance to focus on the construction of the urban road green transportation technology demonstration project with the theme of “green construction and safety first” and build a green highway with urban characteristics.

Beyond the Technology Pork Barrel? An assessment of the Obama administration's energy demonstration projects

This paper provides an assessment of a portfolio of 53 energy technology demonstration projects that were initiated by the Obama administration between 2009 and 2011 and managed by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). After reviewing the rationales for conducting such projects and providing partial public funding for them, five assessment criteria derived from the literature are applied to the portfolio, pertaining to project selection and termination, cost-sharing, partnerships, information-sharing, and the environment for follow-on investment. The assessment is mixed. DOE performed best, relative to expectations, on project selection and termination and partnerships, and not as well on cost-sharing, information-sharing, and the follow-on environment. This performance does not warrant establishing a new agency to replace DOE for management of demonstration projects. The recommendations include implementing cost-sharing more flexibly, making information-sharing a higher priority, avoiding too-rapid scale-up of technologies, and being explicit about project milestones and considering termination if they are not met.

Cash assistance by smart card: from multiple functions to multiple legitimacies of a municipal social policy instrument

ABSTRACTA policy instrument can take on multi-dimensional objectives as additional elements are added over time. I examine this through analysis of the ‘support card’ established by the Turkish district municipality of Başakşehir. In this case, a market-based system of income support and instrument for partizan mobilization subsequently transformed into a technology demonstration project. The appearance of multiple objectives is the result of the juxtaposition of target audiences, including a European-based innovation network, low income urban residents, local businesses, and volunteers for the ruling Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkınma Partisi, AKP) party. This analysis also contributes to a better conceptualization of the AKP's capacity to enhance its legitimacy beyond electoral mobilization.

Editorial Special Issue on Resilient Microgrids

The increasing complexity of electric power systems, growing demand for electric energy, and requirements for reliability, security, and sustainability are driving the transformation of utilities worldwide toward the integration of renewable energy resources particularly at distributed generation levels, demand side management systems, and information, control, and communication systems in electric grids, in addition to advanced backbone transmission networks. In this environment of rapid transformation of power systems, microgrids have evolved over the past decade through extensive research and development efforts and technology demonstration projects in many countries in the world.

Optimizing the Use of Electronic Data Sources in Clinical Trials: The Landscape, Part 1.

TransCelerate BioPharma has created the eSource Initiative with the intent to facilitate the industry's movement toward optimal usage of electronic data sources. Although guidance and standards have been in place for some time, data collection methods and technology have not been utilized to their fullest capability, and transcription between electronic systems continues to be the norm. The TransCelerate approach for the eSource Initiative is to understand the current landscape and highlight factors that are influencing the adoption of new technologies. As a preliminary step in this process, TransCelerate surveyed member companies regarding eSource usage and barriers. Literature review, stakeholder engagement, and the member survey have provided insight into the current landscape, which will help TransCelerate to develop proposals for best practices for industry utilization of electronic data collection tools and methods to benefit all stakeholders. Based on survey results, companies generally have taken steps to leverage current eSource technologies and prepare for optimal utilization of electronic data sources. The TransCelerate eSource Initiative will continue to evaluate the technology, regulatory, standards, and health care landscape to support the goal of improving global clinical science and global clinical trial execution. Forthcoming publications will focus on technology landscape, future vision, and demonstration projects.

The stability of ZnO particles in bacterial cellulose and its potential application as wound dressing

Event Abstract Back to Event The stability of ZnO particles in bacterial cellulose and its potential application as wound dressing Hai Lin1, Jiaping Zhang2, Yujiang Fan1 and Xingdong Zhang1 1 Sichuan University, National Engineering Research for Biomaterials, China 2 Southwest Hospital, Third Military Medical University, Institute of Burns, China Introduction: Bacterial cellulose (BC) films can be applied as wound dressing[1]. Loaded with metal or metal oxide particles, the BC films will be improved with anti-microbial property. However, to avoid the possible toxic and side-effect, the stability of loaded particles should be considered together with the updated performance. We investigated the stability of ZnO particles in BC network with or without modification by computer simulation and experimental study. The ZnO containing modified BC films were further characterized as wound dressing. Materials and Methods: The models of ZnO and BC with or without introduced side groups were established by Materials Studio. The interaction between ZnO and BC or modified BC were simulated to meet the convergence criteria. Accordingly, the adsorption energy (EAds) of the process and the interaction energy at steady state (EInt) could be calculated. Based on the computer simulation, BC was modified by maleic anhydride to prepare BC-MA. BC-MA was soaked in zinc acetate ethanol solution and then reacted with sodium hydroxide which was dissolved in ethanol. Following the adequately washing by deionized water, the outcome was lyophilized and further dried in oven to attain ZnO containing BC (BC-MA/ZnO). The stability of ZnO was evaluated by sterilizing BC-MA/ZnO and extracting in PBS, with further detection of ZnO content. The antimicrobial property of BC-MA/ZnO was assessed by oscillation method with Staphylococcus aureus (S.au) and Escherichia coli (E.coli). Results and Discussion: The results of computer simulation between ZnO and BC or BC-MA are shown as Fig.1. The result indicated that EAds and EInt between ZnO and BC-MA are 7.0 and 5.5 times higher than that between ZnO and BC. During the experimental study, the ATR FT-IR spectra prove the successful modification of BC-MA and SEM pictures show the morphology of BC-MA and presence of ZnO particles in BC-MA/ZnO, shown as Fig.2. The thermal gravimetric and atomic absorption spectroscopy analysis indicate the ZnO contents range from 3.48%-14.48%. The results of stability tests confirm the higher stability of ZnO in BC-MA network than that in BC, which is consistent with the theory calculation. The MTT assay indicates that BC-MA/ZnO exhibits no cytotoxicity. The antimicrobial tests demonstrate the BC-MA/ZnO has antimicrobial percent higher than 90% to S.au and 40% to E.coli, respectively. Fig. 3 shows the comparison results. Conclusions: The stability of ZnO particles in bacterial cellulose is enhanced by the introduction of side groups on the glucan molecule. Also, the BC-MA/ZnO films show satisfactory antimicrobial property with no cytotoxicity. Therefore, the improved BC-MA/ZnO films have potential application value as wound dressing. National Natural Science Foundation for Young Scientists of China (51403134); Application Technology Research and Demonstration Projects of Hainan Province China (SQ2014ZDXM0294)

Converting Waste Agricultural Biomass into Energy: Experiences and Lessons Learnt from a Capacity Building and Technology Demonstration Project in India

Converting Waste Agricultural Biomass into Energy: Experiences and Lessons Learnt from a Capacity Building and Technology Demonstration Project in India

Demonstration projects for diffusion of clean technological innovation: a review

The demonstration project can be an effective organizational form to transform a clean technology prototype—for example, in the field of photovoltaics, carbon capture and storage, or wind power—into a marketable product. A question with regard to the clean technology demonstration project is how its effectiveness can be increased. This article answers this question by reviewing scientific literature on clean technology demonstration projects of the past 39 years. It distinguishes and analyzes three types of demonstration projects: the technical demonstration, organizational demonstration, and market demonstration. The article proposes that the effectiveness of demonstration projects increases when clean technology prototypes are tested, improved, and marketed successively. First, they should be tested in technical demonstrations, then improved in organizational demonstrations, and finally marketed in market demonstrations. The article also proposes five managerial factors that stimulate the effectiveness of the three consecutive demonstration types. The article concludes with an agenda for future research, concentrating on the diffusion of clean technological innovations through a coherent program of demonstration projects. It presents several theoretical approaches that can be applied to conduct future demonstration project research.

Trend Towards Powertrain Electrification Gathering Pace

with the Honda Insight, paved the way for the vehicle powertrain technologies of today. I confess that, at the time, I didn’t recognise this. The Prius was at odds with almost all other vehicles I was working on, which included some of the most powerful cars of the ‘90s. Development 20 years ago concentrated more on improving performance than fuel economy. A few years later the potential of engine downsizing had been recognised as a means to improve vehicle efficiency. I participated in a technology demonstration project for a ‘Big 3’ manufacturer, which involved turbocharging and installing a small three-cylinder engine into a midsize hatchback. The performance matched the four-cylinder engine it replaced, and the fuel economy was promising. At this stage, my contribution as an electronics engineer was limited to the integration of the powertrain with the electrical system of the vehicle. Electricity played no part in the performance of the powertrain itself. How times have changed! Today, the electrical system is firmly at the centre of many vehicle powertrains. Although not in every car, the trend towards electrification is gathering pace and spans a broad range of vehicles. Electric vehicles, plug-in, standard and micro hybrids are all in series production with multiple manufacturers today. Even those that rely solely on a conventional combustion engine often use sophisticated electronic systems to optimise vehicle efficiency.