Alternatives to Accelerating Scale-up and Pre-piloting of Emerging Chemical Technologies (ASPECT)

The opportunity for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Center of Excellence for Alternative Jet Fuel and Environment (AJFE) was awarded in 2013 to the ASCENT cooperative aviation research organization. ASCENT is a coalition of 16 leading US research universities committed to improving the understanding of aviation noise and emissions and the modeling of aviation systems. ASCENT is co-led by Washington State University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (https://ascent.aero/). Any new grant opportunities under AJFE are open and available only to the university members of ASCENT.”

Advancing Oil and Natural Gas Production and Delivery This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is seeking proposals to advance cost-effective technologies for improving the efficiency, reliability, and resilience of the Unites States oil and natural gas supply chain. This funding opportunity spans research and development efforts focused on enhancing resource utilization, modernizing infrastructure, and accelerating digital transformation within the sector.

U.S. Advanced Nuclear Energy Licensing Cost-Share Grant Program The application deadline for current review cycle, anticipated selection notification date for the current review cycle, and anticipated award date for current review cycle have changed. See date changes on page 6 of NOFO Part 1. Also, applications must now be submitted within the respective application period (July 1 – September 30). See date changes on page 24 of NOFO Part 1.

Modification 000003: The purpose of this modification is to revise NOFO Part 1. Section I.A.1 is revised to correct the Topic Area 1b cost share to 20% and Section IV.C.2 is revised to delete the Environmental Considerations Summary and Environmental Impact Volume from the Summary of Application Requirements table. This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) will seek proposals for specific research and development (R&D) projects to improve recovery efficiency from unconventional oil and natural gas reservoirs and to advance technologies for the treatment of flowback and produced water from oil and natural gas production operations. Despite increasing energy for demand, recovery efficiency for oil and natural gas from unconventional reservoirs can average less than 10 percent. This NOFO will enable rapid field deployment of a variety of novel technologies and processes related to improving primary and enhanced recovery with the goal of significantly improving resource recovery and accelerating industry uptake. This NOFO will also support the field testing and validation of water treatment technologies of produced water from oil and natural gas production operations to avoid deep well injection and potential issues with induced seismicity and interaction with underground sources of drinking water.

Staff Support to the Tribal Radioactive Materials Transportation Committee for Engagement with the U.S. Department of Energy on Radioactive Materials Transportation Planning. Facilitate engagement between DOE and federally-recognized Tribal governments throughout the United States in planning for future large-scale DOE transportation of commercial used nuclear fuel (UNF), high-level radioactive waste (HLW) and other radioactive wastes, as well as related DOE program issues that may impact Tribal areas.

Annual Recurring University Training and ResearchThe purpose of this funding opportunity is to solicit and award research and development grants to educate and train the next generation of engineers and scientists; to support novel, early-stage research at U.S. colleges and universities; to increase research and development opportunities for underrepresented and structurally marginalized communities; and to ensure that students are equipped with cutting-edge, translatable skillsets that allow them to contribute to the U.S. workforce and greater economy over the course of a longstanding and enduring career.

A. STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to award multiple cooperative agreements to accredited United States (U.S.) two- and four-year colleges and universities (Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs)) to receive and administer scholarship and fellowship funding—provided through the University Nuclear Leadership Program (UNLP) and as administered by the Department of Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE)—on behalf of selected students attending these U.S. IHEs. The selection of students to receive scholarships and fellowships through the program will occur via a separate DOE-NE process. A.1 BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES UNLP works to attract qualified nuclear science and engineering students (NS&E) to nuclear energy professions by providing undergraduate level scholarships and graduate level fellowships. The scholarships and fellowships are focused on two-, four-year, and graduate programs in science and engineering disciplines related to nuclear energy such as nuclear engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, chemistry, health physics, nuclear materials science, radiochemistry, applied nuclear physics, nuclear policy, radiation protection technology, nuclear power technology, nuclear maintenance technology, nuclear engineering technology, computer science, cybersecurity, nuclear safety, nuclear operations, mechanical and electrical maintenance, and radiation protection. NE’s mission is to advance nuclear energy science and technology to meet U.S. energy, environmental, and economic needs. NE has identified the following goals to address challenges in the nuclear energy sector, help realize the potential of advanced technology, and leverage the unique role of the government in spurring innovation: • Keep existing U.S. nuclear reactors operating • Deploy new nuclear reactors • Secure and sustain our nuclear fuel cycle • Expand international nuclear energy cooperation Collectively, all NE-sponsored activities support the Department’s priorities to combat the climate crisis, create clean energy jobs with the free and fair chance to join a union and bargain collectively, and promote equity and environmental justice by delivering innovative clean energy technologies for nuclear energy systems. UNLP supports NE’s Nuclear Energy University Program (NEUP), which enables outstanding, cutting-edge, and innovative research at U.S. IHEs through the following: • Integrating research and development (R&D) at U.S. IHEs, national laboratories, and industry to revitalize nuclear education and support NE’s Programs • Attracting the brightest students to the nuclear professions and supporting the nation’s intellectual capital in science and engineering disciplines • Improving U.S. IHE’s infrastructure for conducting R&D and educating students • Facilitating knowledge transfer to the next generation of workers Educating undergraduate and graduate students in NS&E will: • Support the ongoing need for personnel who can develop and maintain the nation’s nuclear power technology • Enhance the R&D capabilities of U.S. IHEs • Fulfill national demand for highly trained scientists and engineers to work in NS&E areas

CMEI intends to issue, on behalf of AFFO, a NOFO titled, “Accelerating Scale-up and Pre-piloting of Emerging Chemical Technologies (ASPECT).” This NOFO will seek applications for financial assistance from entities that wish to conduct work in support of AFFO's focus on emerging chemical technologies. AFFO supports expanding the supply and use of domestic alternative feedstocks to improve supply chain resiliency of U.S. chemical production and to expand domestic manufacturing through technology innovation to lower costs and improve environmental safety of chemical production.[1] Through this NOFO, AFFO seeks to support research, development, and scale-up of novel technologies for producing chemicals from alternative and waste feedstocks. Chemicals of interest include foundational molecules that can be further transformed into high-value end-products, chemical compounds or derivatives generated either from these foundational molecules or directly from alternative feedstocks through process intensification, as well as final end-products. This NOFO will aim to support work involving chemicals that offer advantages in terms of performance or cost, or that offer benefits to America’s foreign trade or national security. The proposed chemicals can be either conventional or bio-advantaged chemicals. Conventional chemicals must possess added benefits like improved domestic supply chain resiliency, reduced U.S. imports, reduced cost, or large market growth potential. Bio-advantaged chemicals must possess favorable properties—such as enhanced durability, production efficiency, or decreased toxicity—that create new value propositions. This Notice of Intent (NOI) is for informational purposes only; DOE is not requesting comments or applications at this time. All information provided here is subject to change. This notice serves to inform interested parties that the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) may issue a Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO). Please be aware that any future NOFO could differ significantly from what is described here, or one may not be issued at all. DOE will provide a designated channel for questions once a NOFO is officially released. This Notice of Intent can be viewed by visiting eere-exchange.energy.gov. [1]Energy Policy Act (EPAct) 2005, Pub. L. 109-58, § 931 as codified at 42 U.S.C. § 16231; EPAct 2005 § 932, as codified at 42 U.S.C § 16232.

The U.S Department of Energy (DOE)’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI) intends to establish, on behalf of the Analysis and Strategy Office (ASO), the PROSPECT Program—Providing Opportunities for Specialized Education in Critical Technologies—and anticipates investing up to $100 million, subject to the availability of appropriated funds, to strengthen the nation's educational capacity in critical minerals and materials.¿ The activities under this anticipated PROSPECT Program support collaborative approaches that strengthen educational pathways across the entire critical minerals and materials value chain—from mineral resource development and extraction through processing, manufacturing, recycling, and related supply chain activities. Specifically, the planned PROSPECT Program would build on existing investments in critical minerals and materials research, development, demonstration, and deployment by ensuring that the United States has the highly skilled workforce needed to support continued innovation and growth across the domestic supply chain.¿ Through collaboration among academia, industry, national laboratories, and other partners, the program is expected to help develop a durable talent pipeline that strengthens U.S. economic competitiveness, energy security, and national security. This Notice of Intent (NOI) is issued so that interested parties are aware of CMEI’s intention to establish this PROSPECT Program in the near term. All the information contained in this NOI is subject to change. CMEI will not respond to questions concerning this NOI. Complete information, including the full Notice of Intent, can be found on the DOE CMEI Funding Opportunities website: https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/.

DOE is seeking information, comments, feedback, and recommendations from interested parties to determine what capabilities supporting research, training and technology demonstration are of highest interest to the nuclear energy research community.All responses are to be made at NEUP.gov per the attached instructions.

University, National Laboratory, Industry, and International Entities Input to the Office of Nuclear Energy’s Competitive Research and Development Work Scope Development - DOE is seeking ideas in the areas of research, information, comments, feedback, and recommendations from interested parties for future work scopes for the major NE-funded research programs. All responses are to be made at NEUP.gov per the attached instructions.

Expected Outcome: Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes: Measurable increase in the number of tools and solutions at district or city level that are supporting the application of circular economy models by public and private stakeholders active in the construction sector; Measurable reduction of material use and an increase of reuse and recycling in the construction sector as a result of the introduction of new and replicable business models; Measurable reduction in the energy and other resources use and the whole life-cycle GHG emissions of buildings [1] and building stock (residential and non-residential) by introducing circular economy activities at building, district and city level. Scope: Applying circularity principles in the construction sector at building, district and city level can reduce the whole life-cycle GHG emissions and support more efficient resource use of the building stock, and help deliver climate-neutral, smart and circular cities, and a more sustainable built environment. To achieve this, there is a need for tools, solutions and associated business models with market potential that facilitate the adoption of…