DE-FOA-0003267.pdf

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY (DOE)

OFFICE OF SCIENCE (SC)

FUSION ENERGY SCIENCES (FES)

RESEARCH ON GENERAL PLASMA SCIENCE

COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH FACILITIES

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (FOA) NUMBER:

DE-FOA-0003267

FOA TYPE: INITIAL

CFDA NUMBER: 81.049

FOA Issue Date: February 21, 2024 Submission Deadline for Letters of Intent: March 29, 2024 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time

A Letter of Intent is required.

Letter of Intent Response Date April 5, 2024 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time Submission Deadline for Applications: April 29, 2024 at 11:59 PM Eastern Time

Table of Contents

SECTION I – FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

SECTION II – AWARD INFORMATION

II.A. TYPE OF AWARD INSTRUMENT

II.B. ESTIMATED FUNDING

II.C. MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM AWARD SIZE

II.D. EXPECTED NUMBER OF AWARDS

II.E. ANTICIPATED AWARD SIZE

II.F. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

II.G. TYPE OF APPLICATION

SECTION III – ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

III.A. ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

III.B. COST SHARING

III.C. ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS

III.D. LIMITATIONS ON SUBMISSIONS

SECTION IV – APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

IV.A. ADDRESS TO REQUEST APPLICATION PACKAGE

IV.B. LETTER OF INTENT (LOI) AND PRE-APPLICATION

IV.C. GRANTS.GOV APPLICATION SUBMISSION AND RECEIPT PROCEDURES

IV.D. CONTENT AND APPLICATION FORMS

IV.E. SUBMISSIONS FROM SUCCESSFUL APPLICANTS

IV.F. SUBMISSION DATES AND TIMES

SECTION V - APPLICATION REVIEW INFORMATION

V.A. CRITERIA

V.B. REVIEW AND SELECTION PROCESS

V.C. ANTICIPATED NOTICE OF SELECTION AND AWARD DATES

SECTION VI – AWARD ADMINISTRATION INFORMATION

VI.A. AWARD NOTICES

VI.B. ADMINISTRATIVE AND NATIONAL POLICY REQUIREMENTS

VI.C. REPORTING

VI.D. REPORTING OF MATTERS RELATED TO RECIPIENT INTEGRITY AND

PERFORMANCE (DECEMBER 2015)

VI.E. INTERIM CONFLICT OF INTEREST POLICY FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE...34

SECTION VII - QUESTIONS/AGENCY CONTACTS

VII.A. QUESTIONS

VII.B. AGENCY CONTACTS

SECTION VIII – SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL

VIII.A. HOW-TO GUIDES

VIII.B. ADMINISTRATIVE AND NATIONAL POLICY REQUIREMENTS

VIII.C. REFERENCE MATERIAL

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UPDATES AND REMINDERS

RECOMMENDATION

The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science (SC) encourages you to register in all systems as soon as possible. You are also encouraged to submit letters of intent (LOIs), pre-applications, and applications well before the deadline.

PROMOTING INCLUSIVE AND EQUITABLE RESEARCH (PIER) PLAN

All new and renewal applications must provide a Promoting Inclusive and Equitable Research (PIER) Plan as an appendix to the project narrative. Please read the instructions in Section IV and the associated review criteria in Section V.

INTERAGENCY FORMATS FOR CURRENT AND PENDING SUPPORT AND BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES

Interagency common instructions for preparing current and pending support and biographical sketches are being developed. The Science Experts Network Curriculum Vitae (SciENcv) system at https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sciencv/ will be updated to support the forthcoming common instructions and formats. The fillable PDFs provided by the National Science Foundation at https://nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/nsfapprovedformats/ are no longer available. When interagency common formats and instructions are promulgated, their use will be required. SC strongly encourages all researchers to use the online SciENcv system to ensure that their documents are prepared in the appropriate format with the least inconvenience.

INDIVIDUALS WHO SHOULD NOT SERVE AS MERIT REVIEWERS

Follow the updated instructions in Section VIII and consider the use of the Collaborator Template available at https://science.osti.gov/grants/Policy-and-Guidance/Agreement-Forms. Do not include this list as part of the biographical sketch.

LIVING WAGES

SC is committed to ensuring that students, trainees, and postdoctoral fellows are paid a fair and equitable wage sufficient to allow a reasonable standard of living. Applicant institutions are strongly encouraged to examine their institutional pay scales to ensure that all personnel earn a living wage. The provision of fellowships, traineeships, stipends, honoraria, subsistence allowances, and other similar payments may be allowable expenses on SC financial assistance awards, per 2 CFR 200.430, § 200.431, and § 200.466. For graduate students, SC considers a reasonable living wage to be an annual income of $45,000, excluding benefits.

SC STATEMENT OF COMMITMENT

The DOE SC is fully and unconditionally committed to fostering safe, diverse, equitable, and inclusive work, research, and funding environments that value mutual respect and personal integrity. SC is committed to advancing belonging, accessibility, justice, equity, diversity, and https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sciencv/ https://nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/nsfapprovedformats/biosketch.pdf https://science.osti.gov/grants/Policy-and-Guidance/Agreement-Forms ii inclusion across the portfolio of activities we sponsor. SC’s effective stewardship and promotion of safe, accessible, diverse, and inclusive workplaces that value and celebrate the diversity of people, ideas, cultures, and educational backgrounds across the country and that foster a sense of belonging in our scientific community is foundational to delivering on our mission. We are committed to promoting people from all backgrounds, including individuals and communities that were historically underrepresented and minoritized in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields and the activities we sponsor in recognition of our responsibility to serve the public. We also recognize that harnessing a broad range of views, expertise, and experiences drives scientific and technological innovation and enables the SC community to push the frontiers of scientific knowledge for U.S. prosperity and security. Discrimination and harassment undermine SC’s ability to achieve its mission by reducing productivity, discouraging, or inhibiting talent retention and career advancement, and weakening the integrity of the SC enterprise overall. SC does not tolerate discrimination or harassment of any kind, including sexual or non-sexual harassment, bullying, intimidation, violence, threats of violence, retaliation, or other disruptive behavior at institutions receiving SC funding or other locations where activities funded by SC are carried out. All applicants and collaborators should familiarize themselves with the SC Statement of Commitment available at https://science.osti.gov/SW- DEI/SC-Statement-of-Commitment.

UPDATING YOUR PORTFOLIO ANALYSIS AND MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (PAMS) PROFILE

All applicants are encouraged to update their profiles in the PAMS website at https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov regularly, at least annually, to ensure SC has your most up to date information. The PAMS profile now requires that individuals provide responses to the demographic related fields. SC strongly encourages personnel at applicant and recipient institutions, including Principal Investigators (PIs), Co-PIs, and other Key Personnel, to provide their demographic information. By providing your demographic information, you are assisting with SC’s continued commitment to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in its business practices. Alternatively, for information you wish not to disclose, please select, “Do not wish to provide.” Your individual demographic information will not be shared with peer reviewers and the information in your PAMS profile is protected by the requirements established in the Federal Privacy Act of 1974. Aggregate, anonymized demographic information may be shared with confidential review committees who are charged with evaluating the quality and efficacy of SC’s business practices. For example, summary statistics of all applicants to or award selections from a particular SC FOA may be reviewed by a Committee of Visitors.

PORTABLE DOCUMENT FORMAT (PDF) GENERATION

The research narrative in an application must be one single machine-readable PDF file that contains the DOE Title Page, project narrative, all required appendices, and other attachments.

This single PDF file may not be scanned from a printed document and must be attached in Field 8 on the Grants.gov form. This must be a plain PDF file consisting of text, numbers, and images without editable fields, signatures, passwords, redactions, or other advanced features available in some PDF-compatible software. Do not use PDF portfolios or binders. The research narrative will be read by SC staff using the full version of Adobe Acrobat: Please ensure that the narrative is readable in Acrobat. If combining multiple files into one research narrative, ensure that a PDF https://science.osti.gov/SW-DEI/SC-Statement-of-Commitment https://science.osti.gov/SW-DEI/SC-Statement-of-Commitment https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/ iii portfolio or binder is not created. If creating PDF files using any software other than Adobe Acrobat, please use a “Print to PDF” or equivalent process to ensure that all content is visible in the project narrative. Once a project narrative has been assembled, please submit the combined research narrative file through a “Print to PDF” or equivalent process to ensure that all content is visible in one PDF file that can be viewed in Adobe Acrobat. Review your submission to ensure that blank pages are not present.

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Checklist for Avoiding Common Errors:

Item Issue Applications Submitted in Grants.gov. Do not submit applications in PAMS or FedConnect.

Grants.gov Submission Ensure that applications are submitted under the correct Opportunity Number.

Standard Form (SF)-424 Research and Related (R&R):

- Attach nothing to field 20

- Attach nothing to field 21

SF-424 Research and Related Other Project Information form:

- Attach the abstract to field 7

- Attach the project narrative, with all appendices, to field 8

- Attach nothing to field 9

- Attach nothing to field 10

- Attach nothing to field 11

- Attach the list of individuals who should not serve as merit reviewers (Collaborator Template) to field 12

- Do not attach other files to field 12

- NOTE: Files attached to field 12 will not be shared with merit reviewers.

Letters of Intent (LOIs) - Submit your LOI in PAMS.

- Do not submit your LOI in Grants.gov.

- Do not attach your LOI to the SF-424 Research and Related (R&R) form.

- Follow the instructions in Section IV for the preparation of an LOI.

Page Limits Strictly followed throughout application, including particular attention to:

- Project narrative and appendices

- Biographical sketches

- Data Management Plans (DMPs)

- Promoting Inclusive and Equitable

Research (PIER) Plan

- Letter(s) of Collaboration or Access, if any Personally Identifiable Information None present in the application Project Narrative Composed of one PDF file including all appendices (bibliography, facilities, equipment, DMP, PIER) v

Project Summary / Abstract Name of PI, PI’s institutional affiliation(s), Co-Investigator(s), Co-Investigator’s institutional affiliation(s)

DOE Title Page Follow instructions closely Budget Use current negotiated indirect cost and fringe benefit rates Budget Justification (attached to budget) Justify all requested costs Biographical Sketches Follow page limits strictly and do not include list of collaborators. Attach the biographical sketch to the Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) Form.

Current and Pending Support Ensure complete listing of all activities, regardless of source of funding. Attach the current and pending support to the Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) Form.

List of Individuals who Should not Serve as Merit Reviews

Attach to field 12 of the SF-424 Research and Related Other Project Information form.

Data Management Plans (DMP) - If referring to an experiment’s DMP, describe the relationship to the proposed research.

- Include a DMP even if no experimental data is expected.

Promoting Inclusive and Equitable Research (PIER) Plan

PIER Plans are required for new and renewal applications.

Institutions capable of being funded through the DOE Field Work System

If National Laboratories and/or DOE sites are permitted to submit under this FOA:

- Do not create new institutions in the

PAMS website.

- Submit applications in Grants.gov using the name of the laboratory or site in Field 5 of the SF-424(R&R) application form, not the contractor operating the laboratory or site.

Submissions under this FOA will be evaluated for technical merit, but any resulting funding, work, or awards will be made under the laboratory or site’s contract with DOE. No separate financial assistance awards will be made. No administrative provisions of this FOA will apply to the laboratory or any laboratory subcontractor.

Section I – FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

GENERAL INQUIRIES ABOUT THIS FOA SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO:

Technical/Scientific Program Contact:

Dr. Nirmol Podder 301-903-9536 Nirmol.Podder@science.doe.gov

Administrative Contact (questions about budgets and eligibility):

Ms. Marty Carlin

301-903-3287 Marty.Carlin@science.doe.gov

STATUTORY AUTHORITY

Section 646 of Public Law 95-91, U.S. Department of Energy Organization Act Section 901, et seq. of Public Law 109-58, Energy Policy Act of 2005

APPLICABLE REGULATIONS

Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, codified at 2 CFR 200 U.S. Department of Energy Financial Assistance Rules, codified at 2 CFR 910 U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science Financial Assistance Program Rule, codified at 10

CFR 605

SUMMARY

The DOE SC program in Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) hereby announces its interest in receiving new applications from U.S. researchers to carry out frontier-level plasma science research on one or more of the FES General Plasma Science (GPS) Program supported collaborative research facilities (CRFs). These include the Big Red Ball (BRB) and Madison Symmetric Torus (MST) experiments at the Wisconsin Plasma Physics Laboratory (WiPPL) at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, the Large Plasma Device (LAPD) in the Basic Plasma Science Facility (BaPSF) at the University of California – Los Angeles, the DIII-D Frontier Science Campaign at General Atomics, the Magnetized Dusty Plasma Experiment (MDPX) at the Magnetized Plasma Research Laboratory (MPRL) at Auburn University, and the low-temperature Plasma Research Facility (PRF) at Sandia National Laboratories, and Princeton Collaborative Research Facility (PCRF) at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

Only new applications may be submitted on behalf of investigators who have previously responded to the separate call for runtime proposals from one or more of the GPS Program supported CRFs, competed for runtime and been allotted (or waitlisted for) experimental runtime mailto:Nirmol.Podder@science.doe.gov mailto:Marty.Carlin@science.doe.gov to carry out their project.

Program Objective

The objective of this FOA is to provide new, one-time, short-term, small “seed” funding for external collaborations with the GPS Program supported CRFs and increase participation at and productivity of these facilities. The FOA aims to provide an opportunity to external collaborators or users of these facilities to acquire experience and preliminary data; carry out data analysis and/or validation resulting in peer-reviewed publications; and transition to a full three-year research program available through other funding opportunity announcements. A typical project period should be one year; an additional year may be requested with sufficient justification when the proposed work involves a larger research scope. A typical budget may include travel support as well as participation and data analysis support for students and postdocs. On a limited basis, a small level of support (no more than two weeks in a budget period) may be requested for the PI serving as a supervisor or mentor. Through the support of this research, the FES GPS Program plays a key role in training the next generation of plasma scientists and engineers. New applications are encouraged from first-time external collaborators or users, historically underrepresented communities, minority serving institutions (MSIs), primarily undergraduate institutions (PUIs), and early career researchers. For more information, see the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine Plasma 2020 Decadal Survey, the FESAC Long Range Plan 2020, and the Community Planning Process (CPP) Report 2019-2020.

Topical Areas

The FES GPS program supports investigations in the following core research areas:

1. Basic Plasma Science (BPS) The BPS area spans a wide range of topics, including dynamical processes in the laboratory, heliospheric, and astrophysical plasmas, such as explosive instability, magnetic reconnection, plasma dynamo, shocks, particle energization, magneto-rotational instability, turbulence cascade, magnetic self-organization, structures, waves, flows, and their interactions.

2. Dusty/Non-neutral Plasma Physics Specific topics of interest include, but are not limited to, understanding the behavior of dusty plasma, diagnosis of charge on dust particles, coherent structures, strongly-coupled plasma, dusty plasma crystal, waves and instabilities, non-neutral, single-component matter or anti-matter plasma, and ultra-cold neutral plasma.

3. Low Temperature Plasma (LTP) Science The LTP area includes a variety of research topics, including plasma chemistry and processes, interfacial plasma, cold atmospheric-pressure plasma (CAP), micro-plasma, synthesis of nanomaterials, and interaction of plasma with materials and/or biomaterials.

References

1. Plasma Science: Enabling Technology, Sustainability, Security, and Exploration – A

NASEM Consensus Study Report, 2021

2. Powering the Future: Fusion & Plasmas - A Report of the Fusion Energy Sciences Advisory

Committee, 2020

3. A Community Plan for Fusion Energy and Discover Plasma Sciences, 2019-2020

4. Plasma: at the frontier of scientific discovery – A report of the FES Panel on Frontiers of

Plasma Science, 2016

5. A list of FES GPS Program funded Collaborative Research Facilities and website information are available upon request. Inquiries should be sent to the program contact listed on this FOA.

Open Science

SC is dedicated to promoting the values of openness in Federally supported scientific research, including, but not limited to, ensuring that research may be reproduced and that the results of Federally supported research are made available to other researchers. These objectives may be met through any number of mechanisms including, but not limited to, data access plans, data sharing agreements, the use of archives and repositories, and the use of various licensing schemes.

The use of the phrase “open-source” does not refer to any particular licensing arrangement, but is to be understood as encompassing any arrangement that furthers the objective of openness.

Guidance for Application Budgets and Costs

All costs requested in a budget must adhere to standard requirements for all Federal awards:

• Costs must be reasonable, using a prudent-person standard. (2 CFR 200.404),

• Costs must be allocable, related to the particular Federal award. (2 CFR 200.405),

• Costs must be allowable under the relevant Federal cost principles. (See 2 CFR 200.420 and following), and

• Costs must be consistently treated, whether they are paid for with Federal funds or institutional funds. (2 CFR 200.403(c)).

Allowable costs may include the following, subject to the applicable cost principles:

• “Buying out” faculty time dedicated to teaching or administrative responsibilities,

• Support for administrative personnel dedicated to the proposed activity,

• Support for professional development, training, mentoring of students and junior researchers,

• Travel to meet with collaborators at other institutions and relevant DOE/NNSA national laboratories, including costs for internships at the national laboratories; or to attend one or more science team, user facility, scientific conference, workshop, or professional society meetings relevant to the proposed research; or for the conduct of off-site research,

• Fringe benefits, which must be paid in accordance with an institution’s negotiated rates agreement, institutional policies, and the individual’s appointment,

• Temporary dependent-care costs incurred during travel, https://www.nap.edu/read/25802/chapter/1 https://science.osti.gov/-/media/fes/fesac/pdf/2020/202012/FESAC_Report_2020_Powering_the_Future.pdf https://drive.google.com/file/d/1w0TKL_Jn0tKUBgUc8RC1s5fIOViH5pRK/view https://science.osti.gov/-/media/fes/pdf/program-news/Frontiers_of_Plasma_Science_Final_Report.pdf?la=en&hash=85B22EBF1CF773FFC969622524D603D755881999 https://science.osti.gov/-/media/fes/pdf/program-news/Frontiers_of_Plasma_Science_Final_Report.pdf?la=en&hash=85B22EBF1CF773FFC969622524D603D755881999

• Membership costs in relevant professional societies, including both scientific societies and those dedicated to research administration,

• Instrumentation required to conduct proposed research,

• Equipment (items with a useful life of more than 12 months and a per-item acquisition cost of more than $5,000) required to conduct proposed research,

• Purchase of equipment, modification of equipment, or provide services necessary to enable work to be carried out by project personnel with a disability,

• Stipends and benefits for students and post-doctoral researchers, recognizing their dual nature as both trainees and employees,

• Salary support to cover time to participate in outreach for recruitment, internships, and training events, science team meetings, partnership development, or information gathering, and

• Other direct costs, e.g., materials and supplies such as office supplies, desktop or laptop computer, and/or software licenses that are directly necessary to enable the proposed activities.

Multi-Institutional Teams

SC uses two different mechanisms to support teams of multiple institutions.

COLLABORATIVE APPLICATIONS

Teams of multiple institutions may submit collaborative applications. Each submitted application in such a team must indicate that it is part of a collaborative project/group. Every partner institution must submit an application through its own sponsored research office. Each multi-institutional team can have only one lead institution. Each application within the multi-institutional team, including the narrative, starting with the title page, and all required appendices and attachments, must be identical with the following exceptions:

• Each application must contain a correct SF-424 (R&R)1 cover page for the submitting institution only.

• Each application must contain a unique budget corresponding to the expenditures for that application’s submitting institution only.

• Each application must contain a unique budget justification corresponding to the expenditures for that application’s submitting institution only.

• Each application must contain a Project/Performance Site Location(s) form for the submitting institution and its subawards.

• Each application must include a list for the Identification of Merit Review Conflicts for the submitting institution’s senior/key personnel and its subawards’ senior/key personnel.

• Each application must include a Research and Related Senior/Key Person Profile (Expanded) form with the biographical sketches and current and pending support from that institution’s senior/key personnel. The applicant leading the multi-institutional team must include

1 The Standard Form 424 (SF-424) family of forms is used to apply for Federal financial assistance through https://www.Grants.gov. The Research and Related (R&R) set of forms is used by the Office of Science.

https://www.grants.gov/ biographical sketches and current and pending support from each institution’s senior/key personnel.

Our intent is to create from the various applications associated with a multi-institutional team one document for merit review that consists of the common, identical materials combined with a set of detailed budgets from the partner institutions. Each team member’s application must contain the same project title. Team members may use Grants.gov Workspace(s), webforms, and their system-to-system services in any combination.

SUBAWARDS2

Multi-institutional teams may submit one application from a designated lead institution with all other team members proposed as subrecipients.

DOE/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) National Laboratories3 and another Federal agency’s FFRDCs4, if participating in a team led by another institution, may be proposed as subrecipients.

Note that the value of any such proposed subaward may be removed from any such prime award:

DOE may make separate awards to Federally affiliated institutions.

DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN COLLABORATIVE APPLICATIONS AND SUBAWARDS

The following points of advice to applicants may be helpful:

1. Both collaborative applications and proposed subawards are methods by which multiple institutions can work together to reach the scientific objectives described in this FOA.

Choose the appropriate structure based on the nature of the scientific work being proposed. If multiple institutions will be functioning as a network of peer-level researchers, a collaborative structure would be more appropriate. If multiple institutions will be functioning with leadership and direction coming from one institution, a subaward arrangement would be more appropriate.

a. Collaborative applications are assembled from multiple identical applications submitted by the proposing institution. Such applications may be submitted under this FOA in Grants.gov. The multiple applications will be assembled into one joint collaborative application, which will be merit-reviewed as one document, with recommendations to fund or decline the application made at the level of each independent application.

b. Subawards exist when multiple institutions work together to submit one application with a designated prime recipient and multiple potential subrecipients.

c. DOE/NNSA National Laboratories, other Federal agencies, and another Federal

2 Subawards are made to subrecipients. Both terms are defined in 2 CFR 200.1 (https://www.ecfr.gov) 3 The phrase “National Laboratories” is used broadly to encompass DOE/NNSA laboratories and sites capable of performing the work described in this FOA and capable of receiving funds through the DOE Field Work System.

4 An authoritative list of all Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) may be found at https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/ffrdclist/ https://www.ecfr.gov/ https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/ffrdclist/ agency’s FFRDCs may be proposed as subrecipients, but the value of any such proposed subaward may be removed from any such prime award: DOE will often make separate awards to Federally affiliated institutions.

2. A well-thought-out research plan and its associated budget(s) should leave no confusion about which institution will do which parts of the research.

All entities submitting applications to this FOA must recognize the moral and legal obligations to comply with export controls and policies that limit the transfer of technologies with potential dual use. Applicants are reminded that international activities must comply with nonproliferation, sanction, and other protocols described at https://www.export.gov.

International activities related to special nuclear materials (SNM) are subject to additional requirements. Please see 10 CFR 810 for further information.

This FOA is to support scientific endeavors that could be described in scholarly publications. Do not submit applications containing restricted data or unclassified controlled nuclear information as defined in the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, 42 USC 2011, et seq., 10 CFR 1017, 10 CFR 1045.

https://www.export.gov/

Section II – AWARD INFORMATION

II.A. TYPE OF AWARD INSTRUMENT

DOE anticipates awarding grants and National Laboratory authorizations under this FOA.

DOE will consider funding multi-institution teams submitted as collaborative applications, in which each institution must submit its own application with an identical common research narrative, under this FOA. Multi-institutional teams may also apply using a prime and subaward model with one application submitted by the lead institution.

Statement of Substantial Involvement

Not applicable.

II.B. ESTIMATED FUNDING

DOE anticipates that, subject to the availability of future year appropriations, a total of $2 million in current and future fiscal year funds will be used to support awards under this FOA.

Research Grant Awards (typically single-investigator or small-group projects) are expected to be made for a period of one year (an additional year may be considered for a larger research scope with sufficient justification) at a funding level appropriate for the proposed scope, with out-year support contingent on the availability of funds and satisfactory progress.

DOE is under no obligation to pay for any costs associated with preparation or submission of applications. DOE reserves the right to fund, in whole or in part, any, all, or none of the applications submitted in response to this FOA.

II.C. MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM AWARD SIZE

(See B. Estimated Funding above.)

The award size will depend on the number of meritorious applications and the availability of appropriated funds.

Ceiling

$120,000 per year

Floor

$20,000 per year

II.D. EXPECTED NUMBER OF AWARDS

(See B. Estimated Funding above.)

Approximately 15 to 20 awards are expected.

The exact number of awards will depend on the number of meritorious applications and the availability of appropriated funds.

II.E. ANTICIPATED AWARD SIZE

(See B. Estimated Funding above.)

The award size will depend on the number of meritorious applications and the availability of appropriated funds.

II.F. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

(See B. Estimated Funding above.)

DOE anticipates making awards with a project period of one year (an additional year may be considered for a larger research scope with sufficient justification).

Continuation funding (funding for the second budget period) is contingent on: (1) availability of funds appropriated by Congress and future year budget authority; (2) progress towards meeting the objectives of the approved application; (3) submission of required reports; and (4) compliance with the terms and conditions of the award.

II.G. TYPE OF APPLICATION

DOE will accept new applications only under this FOA.

Note that DOE/NNSA National Laboratories may only submit new applications under this FOA.

Applications for the renewal of or of a supplement to an existing award will not be accepted.

Section III – ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

III.A. ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

All types of domestic applicants are eligible to apply, except nonprofit organizations described in section 501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that engaged in lobbying activities after December 31, 1995.

Federally affiliated5 entities must adhere to the eligibility standards below:

III.A.1. DOE/NNSA National Laboratories

DOE/NNSA National Laboratories are eligible to submit applications under this FOA and may be proposed as subrecipients under another organization’s application. If recommended for funding as a lead applicant, funding will be provided through the DOE Field-Work Proposal System and work will be conducted under the laboratory’s contract with DOE. No administrative provisions of this FOA will apply to the laboratory or any laboratory subcontractor. If recommended for funding as a proposed subrecipient, the value of the proposed subaward will be removed from the prime applicant’s award and will be provided to the laboratory through the DOE Field-Work Proposal System and work will be conducted under the laboratory’s contract with DOE. Additional instructions for securing authorization from the cognizant Contracting Officer are found in Section VIII of this FOA.

III.A.2. Non-DOE/NNSA FFRDCs

Non-DOE/NNSA FFRDCs are not eligible to submit applications under this FOA but may be proposed as subrecipients under another organization’s application. If recommended for funding as a proposed subrecipient, the value of the proposed subaward may be removed from the prime applicant’s award and may be provided through an interagency agreement to the FFRDC’s sponsoring Federal Agency. Additional instructions for securing authorization from the cognizant Contracting Officer are found in Section VIII of this FOA.

III.A.3. Other Federal Agencies

Other Federal Agencies are neither eligible to submit applications under this FOA nor to be proposed as subrecipients under another organization’s application.

Notes for domestic applicants of all types:

• Individual applicants are unlikely to possess the skills, abilities, and resources to successfully accomplish the objectives of this FOA. Individual applicants are encouraged to address this concern in their applications and to demonstrate how they will accomplish the objectives of this FOA.

5 Institutions that are not DOE/NNSA National Laboratories, a non-DOE/NNSA FFRDC, or another Federal agency are not Federally affiliated, even if they receive Federal funds or perform work under a Federal award or contract.

• This FOA seeks to support basic research to advance understanding rather than to address commercial opportunities. Applications that propose research related to current commercial activity or current customer needs may be declined without merit review.

III.B. COST SHARING

Cost sharing for basic and fundamental research is not required pursuant to an exclusion from the requirements of Section 988 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005.

Cost sharing is not required of DOE/NNSA National Laboratories, other Federal agencies, another Federal agency’s FFRDC, or their subcontractors at any tier. DOE/NNSA National Laboratories, other Federal agencies, and another Federal agency’s FFRDC may impose cost-sharing requirements on their contractors subject to their policies and procedures.

Cost sharing will not be considered as a factor during merit review or award selection.

III.C. ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS

Individuals with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as a Principal Investigator (PI) are invited to work with their organizations to develop an application. Individuals from underrepresented groups as well as individuals with disabilities are always encouraged to apply.

III.D. LIMITATIONS ON SUBMISSIONS

None.

The PI on a letter of intent or application may also be listed as a senior or key personnel on an unlimited number of separate submissions.

Section IV – APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

IV.A. ADDRESS TO REQUEST APPLICATION PACKAGE

Application forms and instructions are available at Grants.gov. To access these materials, go to https://www.Grants.gov, select “Search Grants”, and then enter the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) number (81.049) and/or the FOA number shown on the cover of this FOA.

Select the “Apply” button to access the application package.

Applications submitted through www.FedConnect.net will not be accepted. Applications may not be submitted through PAMS at https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov.

IV.B. LETTER OF INTENT (LOI) AND PRE-APPLICATION

IV.B.1. Letter of Intent (LOI)

LETTER OF INTENT DUE DATE

The LOI due date is printed on the cover of this FOA.

RESPONSE DATE

The response date is printed on the cover of this FOA. Applicants who have not received a response regarding the status of their LOI by this date are responsible for contacting the program manager to confirm this status.

A LOI is required and must be submitted by the date indicated on the cover of this FOA.

If a multi-institutional team is submitting collaborative applications, only the lead institution should submit an LOI that should include all institutional Co-PIs information.

The LOIs and subsequent applications will be checked for responsiveness to the objectives of the FOA as stated in Section I and may be discouraged without a review if it fails to meet the objectives. The LOI is to help in planning the review and the selection of potential reviewers for the application.

Applications that have not been encouraged by DOE may be declined without merit review.

The LOI must include, at the top of the first page, the following information:

Title of LOI Principal Investigator Name, Job Title

Institution PI Phone Number, PI Email Address

FOA Number: Include the FOA Number indicated on the cover of this FOA Name of the current CRF: Include the name of the CRF for the proposed work

Name of the previous CRF: Include the name of the CRF if prior funding was received through https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.fedconnect.net/ https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/ this program

• Include a list of all senior/key personnel at the applicant institution.

• Include a list of all senior/key personnel at the applicant and team member institutions.

• This information must be followed by a clear and concise description of the objectives and technical approach of the proposed research.

• The description of the proposed research may not exceed two pages, when printed using standard letter-size (8.5-inch x 11-inch) paper with 1-inch margins (top, bottom, left, and right). The body text font must not be smaller than 11 point. Figures and references, if included, must fit within the two-page limit.

If a multi-institutional team is being proposed, provide the following information on a separate page. This information will not count toward the page limitation.

• List all institutions by name with each institution’s PI on the same line.

• Indicate the lead PI who will be the point of contact and coordinator for the combined research activity.

• Include a table modeled on the following chart providing summary budget information from all institutions. Provide the total costs of the budget request in each year for each institution and totals for all rows and columns.

Multi-Institutional Team Information

Names Institution Year 1 Budget

Year 2 Budget

Total Budget

Lead

PI

Co-PI

Co-PI

Example budget table ($ in thousands)

In addition, the LOI must include a listing of senior/key personnel and a listing of individuals (advisee, advisor, close associate, co-author, co-editor, co-investigator, collaborator) who should not serve as merit reviewers of a subsequent application. Detailed instructions for how to craft the required listings are provided in Section VIII of this FOA. Note that the listing of individuals who should not serve as merit reviewers is rarely empty because the instructions contain mandatory inclusions requirements. This listing will not count toward the LOI’s page limit. The list of individuals must be included as an “Additional Attachment” to your LOI in PAMS. LOIs missing this information may be discouraged without a review.

The LOI must be machine-readable. Do not submit a scanned image of a printed document.

LOI REVIEW

Those LOIs that are encouraged will be used to help SC begin planning for the application peer review process. SC’s intent in discouraging submission of certain applications is to save the time and effort of applicants in preparing and submitting applications not responsive to this FOA.

The PI will be automatically notified when the LOI is encouraged or discouraged. The DOE SC Portfolio Analysis and Management System (PAMS) will send an email to the PI from PAMS.Autoreply@science.doe.gov, and the status of the LOI will be updated at the PAMS website https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/. Notifications are sent as soon as the decisions to encourage or discourage are finalized.

LOI SUBMISSION

LOIs are created in the software system of your choice and must be submitted electronically through the DOE SC Portfolio Analysis and Management System (PAMS) website https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/. You cannot draft or edit an LOI in PAMS. Do not submit an LOI through FedConnect or Grants.gov.

LOIs may be submitted by a PI or by other users at the PI’s institution with the “Submit to DOE” privilege in PAMS.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to inform their DOE Program Manager if teaming arrangements, proposed personnel, topics, or the anticipated title change between submitting the LOI and when an application is submitted, to ensure that their application is properly linked to their LOI and that reviewers are properly assigned to the application.

Detailed instructions about how to submit an LOI are in Section VIII of this FOA.

IV.B.2. Pre-application

Not applicable.

IV.C. GRANTS.GOV APPLICATION SUBMISSION AND RECEIPT PROCEDURES

Applications in response to this FOA must be submitted through Grants.gov. Detailed instructions for registering in and using Grants.gov are in Section VIII of this FOA.

IV.D. CONTENT AND APPLICATION FORMS

LETTERS OF COLLABORATION OR FACILITY ACCESS

Each application must be accompanied by a letter of commitment (or a copy of the email) for experimental runtime from the facility PI/director of one or more of the GPS supported CRFs described in Section I of this FOA. Applications missing this information may be declined without a review.

Letters from collaborators or from institutions providing access to data, models, software, equipment and/or facilities may be appended to your project narrative and are not considered part of the project narrative’s page limit. Please ensure that letters from collaborators or from mailto:PAMS.Autoreply@science.doe.gov https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/ https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/ https://www.fedconnect.net/ https://www.grants.gov/ institutions providing access to data, models, software, equipment and/or facilities only describe the nature of the collaboration or the access to data, models, software, equipment and/or facilities. Letters of recommendation are not allowed in applications under this FOA.

All letters may be addressed “To Whom It May Concern:”.

Letters of collaboration or access should be placed in Appendix 6 (Other Attachments). Letters of collaboration or access must not be written as recommendation or endorsement letters, which are not allowed. Each letter of collaboration or access may contain two and only two sentences and must use the following format:

Dear <Principal Investigator Name>:

If your application entitled, “<Application Name>,” is selected for funding under the FOA Name, it is my intent to collaborate in this research by <Complete Sentence With a Very Short Description of What the Collaborator Offers to Do or Provide>.

Thank you for the opportunity to participate.

Sincerely, <Collaborator’s Name and Signature Block>

IV.D.1. SF-424 (R&R)

Complete this form first to populate data in other forms. Complete all the required fields in accordance with the pop-up instructions on the form. The list of certifications and assurances referenced in Field 17 is available on the DOE Financial Assistance Forms Page at https://energy.gov/management/office-management/operational-management/financial-assistance/financial-assistance-forms under Certifications and Assurances6. Applicants are bound by their representations and certifications in SAM.gov.

TYPE OF SUBMISSION (FIELD 1)

Select the checkbox for “Application” for an initial submission. Select the checkbox for “Changed/Corrected Application” if submitting an updated version of an application. Do not submit pre-applications via Grants.gov: Do not select the checkbox for “Pre-application.”

IDENTIFYING NUMBERS (FIELD 4)

For renewals and supplemental funding, enter the DOE award number in Field 4a. Do not enter any other number in Field 4a. Do not enter anything in Field 4b. If submitting an updated version of an application, you may enter the previous Grants.gov Tracking ID in Field 4c, though this is not required

6 No separate form or submission is required for the Certifications and Assurances.

https://energy.gov/management/office-management/operational-management/financial-assistance/financial-assistance-forms https://energy.gov/management/office-management/operational-management/financial-assistance/financial-assistance-forms

UEI AND EIN NUMBERS (FIELDS 5 AND 6)

The Uniform Entity Identifier (UEI) and Employer Identification Number (EIN) fields on the SF-424 (R&R) form are used in PAMS to confirm the identity of the individual or organization submitting an application.

• Enter the UEI as a 12-digit alpha-numerical sequence.

• Enter the EIN as a nine-digit number.

• Do not use hyphens or dashes.

• SC does not use the 12-digit EIN format required by some other agencies.

• Applications will not be rejected if an applicant’s system-to-system service uses a 12-digit

EIN format or inserts hyphens or dashes in an EIN.

TYPE OF APPLICATION (FIELD 8)

A new application is one in which DOE support for the proposed research is being requested for the first time. Only new applications will be accepted under this FOA.

SC does not make use of the Resubmission or Continuation options.

Please answer “yes” to the question “Is this application being submitted to other agencies?” if substantially similar, identical, or closely related research objectives are being submitted to another Federal agency. Indicate the agency or agencies to which the similar objectives have been submitted.

Do not attach pre-applications to Field 20 of the SF-424(R&R) form or letters of intent to Field 21 of the SF-424(R&R) form.

IV.D.2. Research and Related Other Project Information

Complete questions in fields 1 through 6 of the SF-424 Research and Related Other Project Information form.

Note regarding question 4.a. and 4.b.:

If any environmental impact, positive or negative, is anticipated, indicate “yes” in response to question 4.a., “potential impact – positive or negative - on the environment.” Disclosure of the impact should be provided in response to question 4.b. First indicate whether the impact is positive or negative and then identify the area of concern (e.g., air, water, exposure to radiation, impacts to endangered species or historic properties, etc.). Should the applicant have any uncertainty, they should check “yes.”

DOE understands the phrase in field 4.a., “potential impact … negative” to apply if the work described in the application could potentially have any of the impacts listed in (1) through (5) of 10 CFR 1021, Appendix B, Conditions that Are Integral Elements of the Classes of Action in Appendix B. (https://www.ecfr.gov) https://www.ecfr.gov/

Additionally, for actions which could have any other adverse impacts to the environment or have any possibility for adverse impacts to human health (e.g., use of human subjects, Biosafety Level 3-4 laboratory construction/operation, manufacture or use of certain nanoscale materials which are known to impact human health, or any activities involving transuranic or high level radioactive waste, or use of or exposure to any radioactive materials beyond de minimis levels), applicants should indicate a “negative” impact on the environment.

Lastly, 1) if there would be extraordinary circumstances (i.e., factor or circumstance that could increase the level of significance of environmental effects normally associated with the proposed action) (10 CFR 1021.410 (b)(2)), 2) if the work is connected to other actions with potentially significant impacts (10 CFR

1021.410 (b)(3), or 3) if the work is related to other nearby actions with the potential for cumulatively significant impacts (10 CFR 1021.410 (b)(3)), applicants should indicate a “negative” impact on the environment.

The bulk of your application will consist of files attached to the Research and Related Other Project Information form. The files must comply with the following instructions:

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT (FIELD 7 ON THE FORM)

The project summary/abstract is a summary of the proposed activity suitable for distribution to the public and sufficient to permit potential reviewers to identify conflicts of interest. It must be a self-contained document. The project summary/abstract must be comprised of:

• The project title, the PI name and the PI’s institutional affiliation, and any coinvestigators and their institutional affiliations.

• This information must be followed by a statement of the project’s objectives including the name of the DOE CRF, a description of the project, including methods to be employed, and the potential impact of the project (i.e., benefits, outcomes).

• The description of the proposed research may not exceed one page (excluding Project Title and list of investigators) when printed using standard letter-size (8.5-inch x 11-inch) paper with 1-inch margins (top, bottom, left, and right). The body text font must not be smaller than 11 point. Figures and references, if included, must fit within the one-page limit.

A sample is provided below:

Project Title

A. Smith, Lead Institution (Principal Investigator) A. Brown, Institution 2 (Co-Investigator) A. Jones, Institution 3 (Co-Investigator)

Text of abstract (no more than one page, excluding Project Title and list of investigators)

If an application is recommended for award, the project summary will be used in preparing a public abstract about the award. Award abstracts and titles form a Government document that describes the project and justifies the expenditure of Federal funds in light of the DOE and SC mission statements at https://energy.gov/mission and https://science.osti.gov/about/.

• Do not include any proprietary or sensitive business information.

• DOE may use the abstract to prepare public reports about supported research.

DOE TITLE PAGE

(PART OF PROJECT NARRATIVE ATTACHED TO FIELD 8 ON THE FORM)

The application narrative must begin with a title page that will not count toward the project narrative page limitation. The title page must include the following items:

• The project title:

• Applicant/Institution:

• Street Address/City/State/ZIP:

• Postal Address:

• Lead PI name, telephone number, email:

• Administrative Point of Contact name, telephone number, email:

• FOA Number: Include the FOA number printed on the cover of this FOA.

• DOE/SC Program Office:

• DOE/SC Program Office Technical Contact:

• PAMS LOI tracking number:

• DOE CRF as identified in Section I of this FOA for the proposed research:

• DOE CRF for which prior funding was received through this program:

Senior/Key Personnel

• Senior/Key Personnel Name, Institution

• Senior/Key Personnel…