Federal agency name: defense advanced research projects agency (DARPA), defense sciences office (DSO) funding opportunity title: young faculty award (YFA) funding opportunity number:…

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), Defense Sciences Office (DSO), awarded a $250,000 Cooperative Agreement to Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (doing business as Tees) under the Research and Technology Development program (CFDA 12.910). The award was obligated on September 30, 2025, with a completion date of September 29, 2027. This Young Faculty Award (YFA) funds innovative research to establish a new field of high-entropy aqueous solution engineering, enabling the rational design and synthesis of biocompatible aqueous liquids that remain kinetically stabilized against crystallization at cryogenic temperatures.

The research deliverables will advance fundamental scientific knowledge in low-temperature liquid stability while enabling practical applications critical to national defense and healthcare. Specifically, the project will develop minimally-toxic aqueous solutions capable of long-term banking of complex biomaterials, including transplantable organs, battlefield-injured tissue preservation, and next-generation cell therapies and vaccines. Secondary applications include de-icing materials and low-temperature heat exchange fluids. As a cooperative agreement, Tees will collaborate with DARPA to conduct research meeting DARPA's criteria for revolutionary advances rather than evolutionary improvements to existing technology.

Federal agency name: defense advanced research projects agency (DARPA), defense sciences office (DSO) funding opportunity title: young faculty award (YFA) funding opportunity number: DARPARA2501CATALOG of federal domestic assistance (cfda) number(s): 12.910 research and technology developmentprogram description: DARPA is soliciting innovative research proposals in the areas of interest to the following DARPA technical offices: defense sciences office (DSO), information innovation office (I2O), microsystems technology office (MTO), and the tactical technology office (TTO). Further detail regarding the specific technical areas of interest can be found below under open office topics. Proposed research should investigate innovative approaches that enable revolutionary advances in science, devices, or systems. Specifically excluded is research that primarily results in evolutionary improvements to the existing state of practice.summary: this proposal seeks to establish a new field of high-entropy aqueous solutionengineering that enables rational design and synthesis of out-of-equilibrium biocompatibleaqueous liquids that are kinetically-stabilized against crystallization down to cryogenictemperatures. Such liquids will both enable human-scale organ tissue preservation andadvance the state of knowledge in low-temperature liquid stability, with additional applicationsin DE-icing materials, low-temperature heat exchange fluids, etc.impact: the realization of minimally-toxic aqueous solutions that remain stable againstcrystallization at cryogenic temperatures could enable long-term banking of myriad complexbiomaterials critical to national defense and overarching national healthcare needs, includinglife-saving transplantable organs, limbs lost on the battlefield, and next-generation cell therapiesand vaccines. The basic science of entropic stabilization as applied to low-temperature liquidswill also advance other key applications under extreme cold temperatures, including nextgenerationaircraft DE-icing and cryogenic cooling in quantum computing and in space.