Project Grant DESC0009588

This National Science Foundation (NSF) Convergence Accelerator Track M award of $649,990 to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) supports the development and commercialization of a family of sustainable bio-based plastics derived from hydroxy fatty acids. Key activities include scaling up monomer synthesis, conducting polymer characterization and recycling assessments, and performing techno-economic and life cycle analyses. RPI is collaborating with Danimer Scientific, a bioplastics...

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, awarded $175,000 under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program to KSE, Inc. of Sunderland, Massachusetts. The award will support KSE's efforts to develop and scale an integrated process for converting lignocellulosic waste streams into 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid (FDCA) at high selectivity without pre-treatment of biomass compounds. Key activities include improving reactive...

Advanced Energy Materials LLC received a $256,500 Project Grant award from the Department of Energy Office of Science on June 27, 2022 to develop bioplastic polyethylene (2,5-furandicarboxylate) (PEF) using CO2. The one-year project will be performed in Louisville, KY under the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program (CFDA #81.049), which supports basic research to transform understanding of nature and advance U.S. energy and economic security. Specifically, the company will work to...

The National Science Foundation Division of Materials Research awarded the University of Washington $348,961 on September 1, 2026, under the CAREER program to develop scalable methods for chemically modifying cellulose nanofibers into property-programmable plastics using aqueous click chemistry and artificial intelligence. The research addresses plastic waste accumulation by creating sustainable, plant-based alternatives that decompose naturally. The work combines water-based chemical...

This $516,000 Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Technology, Innovation, and Partnerships program will support the development of injectable cellulose-based hydrogels for soft tissue bulking from July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2024. The Research Foundation of the City University of New York, in partnership with the City University of New York, will engineer a stable yet reversible injectable soft tissue filler material derived from plant polysaccharides like cellulose. If successful,...

This $360,000 Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Engineering program (CFDA 47.041) to Cornell University aims to advance the development of organic solar cells (OSCs) using more sustainable, biomass-derived solvents. The project will design and synthesize zwitterionized conjugated polymers and organic molecules that can be processed using the greener solvents cyrene and gamma-valerolactone (GVL). Through a combination of computational modeling and experimental...

The Department of Energy (DOE) awarded a $206,500 Project Grant under the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program (CFDA 81.049) to Capro-X, Inc., a minority-owned and Hispanic American-owned sustainable ag-tech startup in Somerville, MA. The grant funding supports the development of cellulose ester bioplastics derived from organic waste-based fatty acids. Capro-X, Inc. specializes in biotechnology innovations focused on upcycling organic waste streams, particularly from the dairy...

This federal Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's Mathematical and Physical Sciences program (CFDA 47.049) is providing $1.1M to Purdue University and subawardees to develop sustainable, hemp-derived bioplastics with exceptional properties and recyclability. The goal is to accelerate the displacement of legacy petrochemical-based plastics, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and microplastics. The project will investigate novel hemp-derived monomers to synthesize a variety of...

This Project Grant award from the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Integrative Activities program (CFDA 47.083) provides $118,143 to the University of Alabama to develop sustainable, functional paper-based packaging materials as an alternative to plastic. The project aims to improve the barrier properties of cellulose-based packaging by impregnating it with bio-derived compounds extracted from agricultural waste, using supercritical carbon dioxide technology. Key activities involve studying...

This three-year, $600,000 Project Grant from the National Science Foundation's Engineering program (CFDA 47.041) will fund research at the University of Virginia to develop a scalable and sustainable process for nano cellulose production by leveraging the surface activity of hydrophobin biosurfactants. The goal is to improve the rate and extent of enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulose for conversion into nano cellulose and value-added fuels and chemicals. Researchers will examine how hydrophobins...