CENSE has been steadily strengthening its scientific production, both in terms of quantity and impact. Over the past five years, all performance indicators show a positive trend and even exceed established goals, whereas total and per capita scientific production more than doubled. Most of the research is published in the top 10% journals by CiteScore, and in the top 10% most cited publications, with a strong international collaboration and covering a broad range of inter- or transdisciplinary subject areas, including environmental science, social science, business and management, computer science, energy and engineering. CENSE researchers have been publishing widely on these topics in leading journals, including Science and Nature.
Many of the research works were conducted with the involvement of companies, public agencies, NGO, academia and communities, and were the drivers for change in cases at international, national, regional, local and organisational levels. Overall, the research produced new approaches, concepts, methods, models, frameworks and case study applications that are relevant contributions to academic and societal debates.
For example, CENSE has recently coordinated the EU FP7 project ELECTROACROSS, which has promoted knowledge transfer activities, among a network of 6 EU and 5 non-EU centres of excellence, consolidating a European School of Electrokinetics. The conciliation of electrokinetic transport processes in the recovery of secondary resources, remediation and conservation was a multidisciplinary novel approach that opened new technical possibilities for waste minimization, through upgrading of particulate waste products and the recovery of secondary resources for industrial, agricultural or social use. 14 PhD theses were awarded by the consortium during the project and CENSE gained a worldwide recognition.
