The University of Navarra, together with 17 other entities (universities, companies, museums and institutions), is participating in a project of research international and multidisciplinary for the efficient and economically sustainable restoration of modern buildings (19th and 20th centuries). The project is included in the Horizon (Built4People) program of the European Commission and has a total funding of 5 million euros, of which 300,000 euros will be used to finance the work researcher of the group MATCH (Materials and Cultural Heritage) of the department of Chemistry of the academic center. Under the degree scroll "SINCERE, second life for architecture of the modern period: resilient renovation of heritage buildings towards goal net zero" and during the next three years of research, effective solutions for the rehabilitation of buildings to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions will be developed and tested.

"Modern period buildings are the trademark of many European cities; they represent a large part of the built heritage and reflect the identity of our continent. Considering that historic buildings are inefficient in terms of energy consumption for heating and cooling, one of the biggest restoration challenges is to optimize the carbon footprint and their energy performance. Hence the importance of focusing research on this issue," highlights José Ignacio Álvarez Galindo, Full Professor of Chemistry Inorganic, director of group MATCH at the University of Navarra .

The research will be implemented through the use of materials, in particular specially designed restoration mortars and cements that are innovative, sustainable and cost-effective; the application and development of energy harvesting technologies and socially innovative approaches. In this way, SINCERE will adapt a multi-scale concept: from the material, to the building, to the neighborhood and to the city scale; and furthermore, applied to the three main parts of the buildings: the structure, the external envelope (façade and roofs) and the transparent parts (glazing), in order to provide decision making tools to the actors involved in the process, considering the complete useful life of the buildings, including the restoration, operation, monitoring and maintenance phases.

Raising public awareness about the concepts of renovation and reuse of spaces is also a priority issue for the researchers of the project that is now beginning, so various scientific knowledge dissemination activities will be programmed on Economics circular.

The University of Navarra is the only Spanish university institution on project. Other participants include the University of Sheffield and UCL in the United Kingdom; Ben-Gurion University in Israel and the Politecnico di Milano; companies such as Acciona, whose Demopark in Algete (Madrid) will be the test bed for group; the Greek cement company Titan, UP2Metric, and the engineering company Rimond in Milan. The consortium includes institutions such as the NCSRD (National Centre of Scientific Research "Demokritos") of Greece, which manages the project; and the cultural sector entities such as the Museum+ of the Czech Republic or the Greek Ministry of Culture, among others, complete the list.