DE-FOA-0003281.pdf

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY (DOE)

OFFICE OF SCIENCE (SC)

BIOLOGICAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH (BER)

INTEGRATED BIOLOGICAL AND COMPUTATIONAL LOW DOSE

RADIATION RESEARCH

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (FOA) NUMBER:

DE-FOA-0003281

FOA TYPE: INITIAL

CFDA NUMBER: 81.049

FOA Issue Date: December 21, 2023 Submission Deadline for Pre-Applications: February 6, 2024 at 5:00 PM ET

A Pre-Application is required. Pre- Applications must be submitted by an authorized institutional representative.

Pre-Application Response Date: February 20, 2024 at 5:00 PM ET Submission Deadline for Applications: April 2, 2024 at 11:59 PM ET

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...35

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.

CURRENT AND PENDING SUPPORT AND BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES

The instructions for the content of current and pending support and biographical sketches have changed. Please read the instructions carefully and follow them.

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 at https://nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/nsfapprovedformats/ may not be available in the future. 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.

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

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 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 to evaluate 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 project 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 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

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. The project 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 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 project 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.

Pre-Applications

- Submit your pre-application in PAMS.

- Do not submit your pre-application in Grants.gov.

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

- Follow the instructions in Section IV for the preparation of a pre-application.

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 v

Item Issue Project Narrative Composed of one PDF file including all appendices (bibliography, facilities, equipment, DMP, PIER)

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.

Section I – FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

GENERAL INQUIRIES ABOUT THIS FOA SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO:

Technical/Scientific Program Contact:

Dr. Resham Kulkarni Resham.Kulkarni@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

DOE SC program in Biological and Environmental Research (BER) hereby announces its interest in development of integrated biological and computational research to gain a mechanistic understanding of the effects of low dose radiation exposure on cellular functions. The long-term goal is to build on the understanding of radiation effects on cellular function and establish comprehensive datasets amenable to incorporation into increasingly capable AI/ML models to identify both transient and persistent changes in cellular metabolism that may be linked to adverse health outcomes. This announcement builds on BER’s past efforts in low dose radiation research but seeks to take advantage of rapid technological changes in high throughput genomics, ‘omics and computational (Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning [AI/ML]) technologies in recent years to advance a more mechanistic understanding of low dose and low dose rate effects on cellular metabolism. Developing a large compendium of high-quality datasets coupled with advances in AI/ML computational techniques trained on such data and integrated within the larger scientific literature on cellular processes affords the ability to explore a more mechanistic understanding of the impact low dose radiation has on cellular function.

Over the long-term, this approach can provide a mechanistic basis for identifying markers and/or patterns in altered cellular function that may be indicative of or associated with an adverse health outcome. These approaches may also provide new insights into the uncertainties of health effects seen in epidemiological studies due to low dose radiation exposure and provide a basis to explore links to health effects other than cancer.

mailto:Resham.Kulkarni@science.doe.gov

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION

Low dose radiation effects on human health remain uncertain at levels below ~100 milligrays (mGy). Much of what is known about human health effects of radiation historically comes from correlative epidemiological studies conducted at high dose levels. For low dose radiation effects, the results are subject to large uncertainties and, by nature of the methodology, unable to provide a mechanistic basis for adverse health effects and disease initiation. Cancer is clearly associated with high radiation doses as borne out by many studies. Currently, there are no specific “biomarkers” associated with radiation-induced cancer. However, it is possible to experimentally examine, with appropriate models, the cellular effects of low dose radiation exposure by using the rapidly expanding genomics/’omics technologies integrated with computational techniques.

High-throughput experimental systems combined with new computational approaches could support expanding and increasingly capable models to investigate the mechanistic basis for low dose radiation effects and provide potential linkages to adverse health outcomes.

The U.S. population is potentially exposed to low-dose and low-dose-rate radiation from several different sources including natural radiation sources, medical applications, and occupational exposures. Epidemiological studies of populations exposed to low dose radiation have generally focused on cancer. However, there is increasing evidence that non-cancer health outcomes such as cardiovascular disease, neurological disorders, immune dysfunction, and cataracts are also possible outcomes. A recent NASEM strategic plan for low dose radiation research published in 2022 provided several recommendations for a renewed effort in low dose radiation research. A renewed low-dose radiation research program that takes advantage of the latest genomic/’omic technologies and computation could improve the understanding of adverse human health effects, by seeking ways to link experimentally derived mechanistic data with observations from epidemiological studies. As an initial step towards this goal, DOE will initiate biological research focused on the development of new and/or revised experimental datasets integrated within AI/ML computational frameworks to explore these linkages, identify underlying mechanisms, develop improved risk models for dose and dose rates, and ultimately develop more individualized risk estimates. Web-based collaboration platforms/portals for data collection, reproducible analyses and research report sharing will also be needed. Combined experimental and AI/ML-based computational capabilities for modeling will provide new avenues for research leading to reduced longstanding uncertainties of the risk posed by low dose radiation.

This funding opportunity calls for biological research applications conducted with well-defined and/or known exposures to low energy transfer (LET) radiation sources (high energy electrons, protons, x- and gamma rays) across a range of low dose exposures (<100mGy encompassing 10mGy) and dose rate ranges encompassing 5mGy/hr within four topics.

1) Development of experimental laboratory model systems representative of human systems for combined experimental and computational analyses. Model systems that are more representative of human systems impacted by low dose radiation are needed.

New or improved model systems that can be used for systematic hypothesis-based investigations in the laboratory under controlled conditions will be crucial to elucidating mechanisms of cellular response to radiation exposure and for extrapolating to potential adverse outcomes in humans. Model systems of sufficient genetic diversity that can address impacts due to genetic sensitivity under a range of differing conditions reflective of confounding conditions observed in epidemiological studies are also of interest.

2) Combined Experimental and Computational Approaches for Low Dose Radiation Research. Hypothesis-based experimental approaches to evaluate genomic and ‘omic changes in cellular metabolism within appropriate model cell/tissue/multi-cellular or organoid systems exposed to a range of dosages and dose rates from well-defined low energy transfer (LET) radiation sources (high energy electrons, protons, x- and gamma rays) are of interest. The goal is the generation of high-quality datasets using relevant laboratory model systems that can be related back to human systems that capture to the fullest extent possible, changes in cellular metabolism as a result of exposure to a range of radiation doses extending from < 100mGy and encompassing 10mGy and dose rate ranges encompassing 5mGy/hr. Datasets resulting from these activities should be assembled in machine readable format suitable for inclusion in AI/ML computational systems for analysis and sharing with the larger community.

3) Assembly and Analysis of Harmonized Datasets to Support Biological Research.

There is a need to assemble more coherent datasets available within the literature, data archives, and legacy tissue archives that could be beneficial to understanding low dose impacts. Assembly of relevant datasets, including analysis of archived tissue samples from existing legacy datasets, could still provide a wealth of information relevant to low dose radiation research. This topic seeks to support efforts to assemble, re-analyze and harmonize datasets relevant to low dose radiation research where the sample quality is robust and radiation dose/dose rate is known.

4) Computational Tools Supporting Low Dose Radiation Research. Computational approaches that can model potential genomic/’omic changes leading to transient and persistent alterations in cellular metabolism may lead to identification of potential “markers” or “patterns” of low dose radiation effects. Computational efforts that take advantage of new AI/ML approaches are of interest to explore in silico effects that could lead to new hypotheses of radiation effects and, by extrapolation, resulting adverse health outcomes.

For this funding opportunity, applications are expected to build on DOE and BER capabilities and complement research supported by other agencies, where possible. Advancement in this research area will rely on training programs and workforce development, and these aspects should be an integral part of the application.

Assembly of epidemiological and/or phenomenological data sets are not included at this time for this FOA. Studies involving human subjects are not applicable to this call at this time for this FOA. The focus of this initial effort is on laboratory-based, experimental systems using human cell/tissue/organoid systems or other model systems relevant to human systems (excluding plant and microbial systems) and datasets that take advantage of the latest developments in genomics/’omics technologies and computation to gain a systems level understanding of the effects low dose radiation on cellular function.

Current efforts in integrated experimental, computational and data-driven low dose radiation research, incorporating AI/ML capabilities, are ongoing in an existing project at the DOE National Laboratories, led by Argonne National Laboratory with Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Brookhaven National Laboratory. Applicants seeking information about these ongoing efforts can contact Dr. Tom Brettin brettin@anl.gov.

Annual Meetings

The selected awardees will be expected to attend one annual PI meeting [and participate in coordination activities with other projects]. Applicants should anticipate a need for travel to effectively communicate with other researchers and request appropriate funding in their budgets.

References

1. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2022. Leveraging Advances in Modern Science to Revitalize Low-Dose Radiation Research in the United States.

Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/26434.

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.

Applications from for-profit organizations that propose research related to current commercial activity may be declined without merit review.

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, but are not limited to, the following, subject to the applicable cost principles:

• “Buying out” faculty time dedicated to teaching or administrative responsibilities, mailto:brettin@anl.gov https://doi.org/10.17226/26434

• 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,

• 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 provision of 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,

• Participation in standards development relevant to the proposed research, including travel and membership costs,

• 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-Project Applications

SC permits applications that span multiple research areas described in this FOA, including applications that span multiple programs or that involve multiple sub-projects or tasks. If proposing such an application:

• Ensure that the application describes an integrated and synergistic research effort. Do not propose an unconnected agglomeration of discrete research efforts.

• Provide a description of the management of the overall research effort.

• Organize the narrative portion of the application by the topics, thrusts, programs, projects, or tasks.

• Provide both a summary budget and a budget for each topic, thrust, program, project, or task, using the Research & Related Subaward Budget Attachment(s) Form to provide the multiple budgets by identifying the budget type as being for a “project.” If required by your system-to-system software, the budgets may be identified as “subawards” from the same institution as the summary budget.

Multi-Institutional Teams

Applications for multi-institutional teams must ensure that that the lead institution performs a greater portion of the scientific and technical work than any other team member. Requests to change the institution performing the greatest portion of the scientific and technical work after an application is submitted will result in the application being declined unless the request is the result of the lead PI’s death, incapacitation, or relocation.

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

COLLABORATIVE APPLICATIONS

Collaborative applications (in which each team member submits its own application with a common project narrative) will not be accepted under this FOA.

SUBAWARDS1

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

DOE/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) National Laboratories2, other Federal agencies, and another Federal agency’s FFRDCs3, 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.

1 Subawards are made to subrecipients. Both terms are defined in 2 CFR 200.1 (https://www.ecfr.gov) 2 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.

3 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/

Section II – AWARD INFORMATION

II.A. TYPE OF AWARD INSTRUMENT

DOE anticipates awarding grants under this FOA.

Multi-institutional teams must apply using a prime and subaward model with one application submitted by the lead institution.

II.B. ESTIMATED FUNDING

DOE anticipates that subject to the availability of future year appropriations, a total of $18 million in current and future fiscal year funds will be used to support awards under this FOA.

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.

Note that the ceiling and floor specified below apply to each institution’s proposed budget inclusive of any proposed subawards.

The ceiling and floor specified below are for total costs, both direct and indirect costs.

Ceiling

$500,000 per year

Applications requesting more than this amount of support may be declined without further review.

Floor

$250,000 per year

Applications requesting less than this amount of support may be declined without further review.

II.D. EXPECTED NUMBER OF AWARDS

(See B. Estimated Funding above.)

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.)

It is anticipated that award sizes may range from $250,000 per year to $500,000 per year.

The actual 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 3 years.

Continuation funding (funding for the second and subsequent budget periods) 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 only accept new applications under this FOA.

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 affiliated4 entities must adhere to the eligibility standards below:

III.A.1. DOE/NNSA National Laboratories

DOE/NNSA National Laboratories 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 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. No administrative provisions of this FOA will apply to the laboratory or any laboratory subcontractor. 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 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. Additional instructions for providing statutory authorization are found in Section VIII of this FOA.

Notes for 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

4 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.

• Non-domestic applicants are advised that successful applications from non-domestic applicants include a detailed demonstration of how the applicant possesses skills, resources, and abilities that do not exist among potential domestic applicants.

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.

Applications that are submitted by applicants that have not submitted a required LOI or pre-application may be declined without further review.

Applicants may propose non-domestic entities as subrecipients in their applications. Applicants are advised that successful applications that propose non-domestic entities as subrecipients include a detailed demonstration of how the proposed non-domestic subrecipients possess skills, resources, and abilities that do not exist among potential domestic subrecipients.

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

Applicant institutions are limited to no more than one pre-application and one application for each PI at the applicant institution.

Should DOE receive submissions in excess of the applicable limits, DOE reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to request additional or clarifying information to ascertain the institution’s intended submissions. Otherwise, DOE will consider the latest received submissions to be the institution’s intended submissions.

• Pre-applications in excess of the limited number of submissions may be discouraged.

• Applications in excess of the limited number of submissions may be declined without review.

DOE/NNSA NATIONAL LABORATORY EFFORT

The DOE/NNSA National Laboratory effort, in aggregate, shall not exceed 50 percent of the total estimated cost of the project, including the applicant’s and the DOE/NNSA National Laboratories’ portions of the effort.

LIMITATIONS ON PI

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

Individuals in a joint appointment are eligible to be proposed as a PI if work will be performed at the applicant institution and if the PI is a paid employee of the applicant institution. Individuals paid by another institution may not be named as the PI but may be named in other senior/key roles. A paid employee is one that is on the applicant institution’s payroll, receiving wages and benefits in accordance with the applicant institution’s normal wage and benefit practices, and whose position is not governed by any arrangement, agreement, or contract between the applicant institution and another institution.

Individuals receiving more than half of their salary and benefits from a DOE/NNSA National Laboratory may not be named as the PI in an application under this FOA, regardless of any arrangement between the employing Laboratory and the applicant institution.

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)

Not applicable.

IV.B.2. Pre-application

PRE-APPLICATION DUE DATE

The pre-application due date is printed on the cover of the FOA.

ENCOURAGE/DISCOURAGE DATE

The pre-application response date is printed on the cover of the FOA.

A pre-application is required and must be submitted by the date indicated on the cover of the

FOA.

Pre-applications will be reviewed for responsiveness of the proposed work to the research topics identified in this FOA. DOE will send a response by email to each applicant encouraging or discouraging the submission of an application by the date indicated on the cover of the FOA.

Applicants who have not received a response regarding the status of their pre-application by this date are responsible for contacting the program to confirm this status.

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

The pre-application must include, at the top of the first page, the following information:

Title of Pre-application Principal Investigator Name, Job Title

[Lead] Institution PI Phone Number, PI Email Address

FOA Number: Include the FOA Number indicated on the cover of this FOA https://www.grants.gov/ https://www.fedconnect.net/ https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/

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

List of Collaborating Institutions including Sub-Recipients

PI Names and Job Titles at the Collaborating Institutions Including Sub-Recipients The research topic area(s), specified in Section I, primarily addressed by the proposed work.

The material listed here defines the minimum acceptable information on a cover page. Additional information may be provided at the applicant’s discretion.

The first page of the pre-application must specify at least one scientific hypothesis whose investigation motivates the proposed work, using no more than 100 words, in a box with a black border. For any hypothesis that is not itself innovative, the pre-application must describe at least one innovative insight into how the hypothesis can be investigated that may be exploited by the planned research.

This information must be followed by a clear and concise description of the objectives and technical approach of the proposed research. The pre-application 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. Pre-applications that exceed the three-page limit will be discouraged. It is the responsibility of the applicant to include sufficient information in the pre-application to enable evaluation of responsiveness to this announcement.

In addition, the pre-application must include a listing of senior/key personnel and a listing of individuals 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 pre-application’s page limit. The list of individuals must be included as an “Additional Attachment” to your pre-application in PAMS.

The pre-application may include a list of suggested reviewers (including email address and organizational affiliation) who they believe are especially well qualified to review the application. DOE is under no obligation to consider any suggested reviewers.

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

PRE-APPLICATION REVIEW

Those pre-applications 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 pre-application 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 pre-application 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.

PRE-APPLICATION SUBMISSION

Pre-applications 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 a pre-application in PAMS. Do not submit a pre-application through FedConnect or Grants.gov.

Pre-applications may only be submitted by a user at the PI’s institution with the “Submit to DOE” privilege in PAMS. A PI may draft a pre-application but will only be able to submit the pre-application for institutional countersignature.

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

Detailed instructions about how to submit a pre-application are in Section VIII of this FOA.

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 ACCESS

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 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.

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-mailto:PAMS.Autoreply@science.doe.gov https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/ https://pamspublic.science.energy.gov/ https://www.fedconnect.net/ https://www.grants.gov/ https://energy.gov/management/office-management/operational-management/financial-assistance/financial-assistance-forms assistance/financial-assistance-forms under Certifications and Assurances5. 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.

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.

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.

5 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

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)

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.