Project Grant 20235140239207
- This Project Grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program (CFDA 10.212) will demonstrate the use of pine wood-derived graphene oxide materials for lithium-ion batteries and paving blocks. The $650,000 grant, awarded on September 1, 2024, will also fund further research into how changes in processing affect the final products to enable scale-up and commercialization. The...
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) awarded a $175,000 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program grant to Forest Concepts LLC, a for-profit limited liability company based in Auburn, Washington. The objective of this 20-month project grant is to optimize the entire size reduction and drying system for producing micronized biomass feedstock, with the goal of reducing energy consumption while enhancing feedstock performance for...
- This $175,000 Project Grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program to Exelus Inc. on August 15, 2025 will fund the development of a process to produce commodity chemicals from lignocellulosic biomass at approximately half the cost of conventional, petroleum-derived methods. This project aims to enable manufacturers to implement a more sustainable, cost-efficient, and eco-friendly...
- This Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program is intended to support the development and production of renewable carbon (or "biocoke") from biomass sources to replace petroleum-based coke (petcoke) used in aluminum and steel production. The $175,000 Phase I effort, awarded to Agrebon Energy Incorporated on August 15, 2025, will adopt and follow a...
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) awarded a $181,498 Project Grant to Skyvision Sciences, LLC, a small business based in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, under the USDA SBIR/STTR program (CFDA 10.212). The grant supports the development of a hybrid semiconductor light-harvesting material that can be combined with a nickel-based molecular catalyst to simultaneously produce hydrogen gas and convert forest residues into valuable organic...
- Conovate Inc. received a $181,500 Project Grant award from the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program/Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program to develop environmentally-friendly anode materials for lithium-ion batteries. The company will synthesize and optimize graphene monoxide using bio-sourced feedstocks as an alternative to graphite in battery anodes. Conovate will evaluate...
- This federal Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) / Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program aims to de-risk Arbor Energy & Resources Corp's advanced biomass gasification approach. The $175,000 award, granted on August 15, 2025, will fund the development of an analytical model to support the successful deployment of a novel high-pressure energy conversion...
- This $650,000 Project Grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture will fund research at Iowa State University from May 2023 through May 2026 under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative competitive grants program. The university will investigate and develop a novel lignin-based carbon fiber production method with the goal of producing automobile-grade carbon fibers from general lignin at low costs. Overcoming the challenges of effectively...
- The U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service awarded a $600,000 Project Grant under the Wood Utilization Assistance program (CFDA 10.674) to Nature Coatings Inc., a woman-owned small business in Las Vegas, NV. The 5-year grant, awarded on August 23, 2024, supports the development and commercialization of new biobased pigments and dispersion technology made from biochar. The project aims to expand this high-growth market opportunity for innovative wood products and energy solutions. The...
- The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded a $174,746 Project Grant under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) / Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program (CFDA 10.212) to Glanris Water Systems Inc., a for-profit manufacturer, to develop a low-cost, easily manufactured modified biochar that can adsorb plant nutrients. The goal is to use this biochar to remediate agricultural runoff and wastewater, removing harmful phosphate and nitrate,...
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture has awarded a $175,000 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant to Acadian Research & Development LLC, a company based in Laramie, WY. The grant will fund research from July 2023 through June 2024 to develop a more cost-effective and environmentally friendly process to produce graphene products from wood biomass feedstock. The project aims to convert wood biochar into graphene oxide, reduced graphene oxide, and graphene nanosheets, which have numerous applications in areas such as battery manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, concrete, optics, filtration, and composites. The research focuses on using a single reagent in the synthesis process to reduce costs and increase the availability of these important materials, while also helping to utilize an estimated 82-88 million dry tons of woody biomass available annually in the United States.
Mod # | Description | ReasonForModification | Federal Obligation | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not listed | $175.0k | 6/21/23 | ||
| Not listed | ($175k) | 6/8/23 | ||
| Not listed | $175.0k | 3/7/23 |