PSAAP IV NOFO - Final 5-20-2024.docx

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

NATIONAL NUCLEAR SECURITY ADMINISTRATION,

OFFICE OF RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, TEST, AND EVALUATION

PREDICTIVE SCIENCE ACADEMIC ALLIANCE PROGRAM IV

NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT (NOFO) NUMBER:

DE-FOA-NA0003284

NOFO TYPE: Initial

ASSISTANCE LISTING NUMBER: 81.124

NOFO Issue Date:

May 22, 2024

*Pre-applications and full applications are due at 11:59 PM ET on their respective deadlines.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PSAAP IV FUNDING OPPORTUNITY ANNOUNCEMENT: DE-FOA-NA0003284

Section I – FUNDING OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTION

A. PROGRAM DESCRIPTION

Defense Programs, within the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), direct research and development activities to maintain the safety, security, and effectiveness of the nation’s nuclear weapons stockpile. This nuclear deterrent remains a vital part of our national security infrastructure. It maintains strategic stability, deters potential adversaries, and reassures our allies and partners of our security commitments. Since 1992, the United States has observed the moratorium on underground nuclear testing while significantly decreasing the size of its nuclear arsenal. National Policy required NNSA and its weapons laboratories to institute the science-based Stockpile Stewardship Program (SSP) to ensure the safety, security, and effectiveness of the stockpile, while allowing the country to pursue a variety of nonproliferation and disarmament goals. The SSP combines sophisticated experiments, highly accurate physics modeling, and improved computational power to simulate and predict nuclear weapon performance over a wide range of conditions and scenarios.

In 1995, DOE established the Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative (ASCI), which is now known as the Advanced Simulation and Computing (ASC) program. Its purpose is to bring together the resources of three NNSA national laboratories in a consolidated effort to achieve significant advances in computational modeling and simulation capabilities for stockpile stewardship. ASCI recognized that some of its program objectives are only achievable by the establishment of a strong research portfolio of strategic alliances with leading U.S. academic institutions. To help meet the challenge, the ASCI Academic Strategic Alliance Program (ASAP) was formed in 1997 to engage the U.S. academic community in advancing science-based modeling and simulation technologies. In 2008, the next phase of the Alliance Program, the Predictive Science Academic Alliance Program (PSAAP), continued the academic engagement, adding an emphasis on validation, verification, and uncertainty quantification. The program continued in 2014 with the establishment of PSAAP II, adding a focus on computer science in anticipation of the upcoming exascale computing era. In 2020, the program continued with PSAAP III, focusing on discipline-focused research needed to further predictive science enabled by effective exascale computing technologies, with continued emphasis on verification and validation and uncertainty quantification (V&V/UQ) for large-scale simulations.

The NNSA Academic Programs and Community Support, Office of Advanced Simulation and Computing (ASC) and Institutional Research and Development Programs (NA-114), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), are initiating the next phase of its academic program, called Predictive Science Academic Alliance Program IV (PSAAP IV). PSAAP IV will add an additional focus, on the development and application of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies to improve quantified predictive capabilities.

The DOE NNSA Academic Programs and Community Support PSAAP IV Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO), DE-FOA-NA0003284, and succeeding awarded agreements, are made possible from NNSA’s statutory authority, and are managed by applicable guidance, regulations, and laws.

1. STATUTORY AUTHORITY

Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, Section 31, Public Law 83-703, 68 Stat. 919, 42 U.S.C. 2051; Energy Reorganization Act of 1974, Title 1, Section 107, Public Law 93-438, 88 Stat. 1240, 42 U.S.C. 5817; Federal Nonnuclear Energy Research and Development Act of 1974, Public Law 93-577; Department of Energy Organization Act of 1977, as amended, Public Law 95-91, 42 U.S.C. 7101 et seq.

2. APPLICABLE REGULATIONS AND GUIDANCE

Applicable regulations and guidance include, but is not limited to the following:

a. Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, codified at 2 CFR 200;

b. U.S. Department of Energy Financial Assistance Requirements, codified at 2 CFR 910; and

c. Department of Energy – Guide to Financial Assistance.

3. UNCLASSIFIED

All projects funded through this PSAAP IV program announcement are required to be unclassified.

B. PREDICTIVE SCIENCE ACADEMIC ALLIANCE PROGRAM IV PURPOSE

Predictive Science Academic Alliance Program IV (PSAAP IV) will support leading U.S. institutions of higher education, with doctoral programs, engaging in five major focus areas:

1. Discipline-focused research to further predictive science and enabled by effective exascale computing and data science technologies;

2. Mathematics and computer science (CS) technologies and methodologies to support effective exascale computing in the context of science/engineering applications (development and demonstration);

3. State-of-the-art machine learning (ML) and data science technologies for predictive science and engineering (utilization and advancement);

4. Predictive science based on verification, validation, and uncertainty quantification (VVUQ) for large-scale simulations; and

5. Workforce development of the next-generation computational scientists.

C. PROGRAM CENTER TYPES

PSAAP IV will create a program consisting of two types of Centers: Predictive Simulation Centers (PSCs) and Focused Investigatory Centers (FICs).

1. Predictive Simulation Centers (PSCs) will be required to focus their research on scalable application simulations, targeting either large-scale, integrated multidisciplinary problems or a broad single science/engineering discipline, to be carried out on ASC’s unclassified high-performance computing (HPC) systems that will be made available to the funded PSAAP IV Centers. A PSC must (1) develop and demonstrate computer and/or data science technologies and methodologies that will advance exascale computing, and (2) demonstrate a verified and validated predictive simulation (or simulation-driven workflow) with uncertainty quantification. Both (1) and (2) must be demonstrated within the context of the proposed application. It is expected that a PSC will demonstrate a compelling and significant advance in predictive science, in the context of their application. The overall goal should require the integration of state-of-the-art techniques and advances in physical science, scientific machine learning, and exascale-enabled computer/computational science to demonstrate improved predictive capability. This should be manifested as predictions of a wider range of phenomena, with improved predictive accuracy and reduced uncertainty, in comparison to existing capabilities at the beginning of the project. Integrated system simulation (or simulation-driven workflow) results for a single demonstration problem must be produced each year, beginning in the second year of the program. All research efforts within a PSC must contribute towards advancing this predictive capability and be integrated no later than the year 4 demonstration. It is anticipated that PSCs will be 5-year awards at $1.5-3.5M per year, with the larger-award sizes for Centers targeting multidisciplinary problems and advancing both CS and ML technologies.

2. Focused Investigatory Centers (FICs) will be required to be tightly focused on a specific research topic either in one of the disciplines or one or more of the exascale-enabling CS, ML, or VVUQ technologies listed below. FICs will not necessarily have a tie to an application or be required to demonstrate a verified, validated predictive simulation with uncertainty quantification. Successful FIC will demonstrate a compelling and significant scientific advance in the single discipline or enabling technology. The technical advance should represent a qualitative step up in the discipline, as opposed to incremental progress. It is anticipated that FIC awards will be up to 5-year awards, at $0.5-1.0M per year.

D. MISSION AREA REQUIREMENTS

PSAAP IV Centers will be required to focus on mission areas.

1. Predictive Simulation Centers’ will be required to:

a. Advance one or more of the Disciplines of Interest (Section 1.E.1) and Enabling Research Areas of Interest (Section 1.E.3);

b. Work toward solving an integrated/overarching problem by the final year of funding through the advancement, development, and application of science and research to multiscale V&V/UQ challenges;

c. Demonstrate on available DOE/NNSA supercomputers (availability determined based on requirements and DOE and/or NNSA program priorities) a full-system prediction at least annually, beginning in the second year;

d. Perform work that will contribute to the development of effective exascale computational and data science; and

e. Demonstrate advances in and utilize state-of-the-art V&V/UQ.

2. Focused Investigatory Centers’ will be required to:

a. Focus on a specific research topic either in one of the disciplines listed below in Section I.E.1, Disciplines of Interest, or one or more of the Enabling Research Areas of Interest listed below in Section I.E.3;

b. Demonstrate a compelling and significant scientific advance in the single discipline and/or an enabling technology; and

c. Represent the technical advance should a qualitative step up in the discipline or technology, as opposed to incremental progress.

E. TECHNICAL RESEARCH AREAS

PSAAP IV Centers will focus on disciplines of interest and enabling research areas of interest.

1. Disciplines of Interest

Predictive Science is applicable to a variety of fields, including nuclear weapons, efficient manufacturing, biological systems, nanoscale material science, and organic chemical processes. Success in these simulations requires both software and algorithmic frameworks for integrating multiple disciplines into a single application and adding significant disciplinary strength and depth to make that integration effective.

PSCs and FICs with interest in disciplinary research should consider advancing one or more of the following disciplines of interest to NNSA’s mission.

The following list is not considered exhaustive:

· Hydrodynamics, turbulence, and the transition to turbulence

· Hypersonics

· Radiation and particle transport

· Atomic physics

· Plasma physics, including the transition to turbulent plasma

· Molecular dynamics

· Reactive and energetic materials

· Chemical transformations, combustion, and fire science

· Solid-solid phase transitions, plastic flow

· Shock-assisted and shock-induced reactions

· Equations of state and constitutive properties

· Material damage and failure

· Material stability

· Novel material design

· Nuclear properties and data

· Physics related to nuclear reactors

· Inertial confinement fusion energy systems

· Design of experiments for validation, including surrogate materials and environments

· Magnetohydrodynamics

· Electromagnetic effects

· Engineering mechanics and design

· Predictive simulation of manufacturing and production processes (advanced and traditional manufacturing methods)

2. Disciplines Not of Interest

The following application areas are not primary scientific disciplines relevant to the ASC mission and are NOT of interest for this NOFO:

· Response to natural and man-made threats

· Weather

· Climate

· Science of natural disasters (earthquakes, tsunamis, etc.)

· Infectious diseases

· Protein dynamics

· Eco-systems

· Magnetic fusion systems

· Crowd behavior

· Nuclear reactor design

· Bioscience and bioengineering

· Economics and business systems

· Logistics and agency resource deployment

· Internal combustion engines

3. Enabling Research Areas of Interest

PSCs should conduct computational and/or data science research in areas that will contribute to the advancement of mathematics/CS technologies for exascale computing and demonstrate the results in the context of the chosen application. The following topics are of particular interest to the NNSA National Laboratories. Other topics that will enable the advancements in exascale computing are encouraged as well. FICs wanting to pursue research in a specific area of computer/data science are encouraged to choose from the following list of topics:

· Data analytics for science/engineering applications, including statistical fusion of simulation and experimental data, and data management and curation

· Exploration and co-design of advanced HPC architectures (including early-stage prototypes, e.g., those being developed through microelectronics and CHIPS Act initiatives)

· Programming environments and runtime systems, including composition of libraries, runtimes, programming languages, performance-portable programming languages and models, and compiler technologies (e.g., Just-In-Time (JIT) compilers and Domain Specific Languages (DSLs))

· Workflow automation, including containerization, portability to/from Cloud resources, and dynamic resource management

· Productivity and performance portability, including rapid prototyping of new applications

· New approaches to engineering, including design optimization and theory/tools to support mathematically rigorous model-based and physics-based design

· Design of experiments for validation, including surrogate materials and environments

· Algorithms/models, novel approaches to multiphysics/multiscale coupling, algorithms for increasing HPC performance, stochastic algorithms, and adaptive algorithms

· Methods and techniques for digital system verification and formal reasoning about algorithms and digital systems

PSCs and FICs with interest in AI/ML are encouraged to consider the following research topics:

· Co-design and use of special-purpose AI processors/accelerators

· Adversarial ML methods and applications

· Generative AI and foundation models for predictive science

· AI workflows

· Surrogate models

· Data science / ML for accelerating solution of PDEs, especially on exascale architectures

· Digital twins

Finally, Verification, Validation, and Uncertainty Quantification (VVUQ) are essential for progress towards predictive simulation. Suggested research topics advancing these methods and their application include:

· Assessing the credibility and trustworthiness of AI/ML including UQ

· Developing analytics and analysis for verification and numerical error assessment

· Demonstrate novel methods for evaluating model form error

· Holistic V&V methodologies spanning the full breadth of the Center’s work

· Using UQ methods for computational models and experimental measurements, including:

· Use of surrogate models including an accuracy and extrapolation assessment

· Effective assessment with UQ and propagation to validation

· New approaches for Quantification of Margins and Uncertainty for use in decision making

F. CENTER COLLABORATION WITH NNSA LABORATORIES

Each funded Center will be required to collaborate with NNSA Laboratories. The Center Director (lead PI) must contact the Federal Technical Project Officer or Grants Officer immediately should they have any concerns or issues with the any required or optional collaboration.

For all collaboration activities that have associated travel, applicants should use their entity’s travel and per diem policy when requesting the funding. If an entity does not have a travel per diem policy, they may use GSA’s guidelines for per diem rates. The budget justification must reflect each cost requested.

1. 10-Week Graduate Student Internship (Requirement)

Graduate students supported on this award are required to complete a ten (10) week consecutive internship at one of the three NNSA Laboratories. The Center Director (PI) must collaborate with the NNSA National Laboratories to match students with Laboratory Project Leaders as well as coordinate the logistics of the internship. This internship should be full-time (minimum 30 hours, maximum of 40 hours per week), and consist of graduate students participating in collaborative research across a wide range of areas in computational science and engineering, solid mechanics, structural dynamics, and thermal mechanics, involving theoretical and/or experimental aspects.

Graduate students will be required to conduct research related to their enrolled graduate program discipline which should have at minimum a relation to the discipline areas of research listed in this NOFO. Should a graduate student’s program be questionable or not directly related to the discipline areas in this NOFO, the recipient must obtain prior approval from NNSA for a graduate student to be considered for the funding.

In addition, graduate students will be highly encouraged to take advantage of opportunities provided by the Laboratories that expose them to other Laboratory research programs.

2. One Week Collaboration for Research Staff and Post Docs (Requirement)

Every research staff member and post doc (funded half-time or greater) supported by a PSAAP-IV award will be required to spend one week (5 consecutive business days, maximum of 40 hours per year) collaborating with scientists, engineers, and/or analysts at one of the three NNSA National Laboratories each year working on activities relevant to the research efforts associated with this award at their home institution. Participation in a Laboratory-hosted workshop or conference are also desirable activities during this collaborative visit.

3. Annual Center Peer Meeting with Alliance Strategy Team (AST) (Requirement)

The DOE/NNSA Alliance Strategy Team (AST) will organize a Tri-Lab Peer Meeting Team for each Center, comprised of Laboratory staff with technical expertise covering the major research and development efforts within that Center. The AST and Tri-Lab Peer Meeting Team will attend an annual Center Peer Meeting to receive briefings on Center progress and plans, to provide a technical assessment and input to the Technical Project Officer (TPO) for their evaluation of the forthcoming Continuation Application (or final report in the last year of a Center).

Centers:

· The prime recipient’s Principal Investigator will be required to host an annual Center Peer Meeting, annually, at a mutually convenient time for the TPO, DOE/NNSA Alliance Strategy Team (AST) and NNSA Peer Meeting Team. The Authorized Organization Representative (AOR), Grants Officer and Grants Specialist will be invited to attend this meeting as well. A maximum of five (5) peer meetings, per period of performance, are allowed.

· The prime recipient determines the location(s) (e.g., recipient campus) of the peer meetings each year.

· The PI will be required to organize a two-day meeting following a suggested agenda to be provided by the AST, with any substantial changes required to be approved by the TPO.

· The prime PI and any co-PIs on an award will be required to attend this peer meeting. Other Center personnel (e.g., faculty, post docs, research staff, and graduate and undergraduate students) are encouraged to attend.

4. Annual Center Meeting with Trilab Sponsor Team (TST) (Requirement)

Each Center will be given a NNSA Tri-Lab Sponsor Team (TST) and will be required to meet with them at least one time per year throughout the period of performance to solicit guidance on future plans, feedback on current performance, and ensure resources are properly utilized.

A PSAAP IV TPO will introduce each awarded PSAAP IV Center to its Tri-Lab Sponsor Team (TST), made up of NNSA staff researchers from the NNSA Laboratories. The expertise represented by the TST members may cover the broad categories of research pursued by the Center and required under a PSAAP IV Cooperative Agreement, including as appropriate: (1) science and engineering models; (2) computer science; and (3) verification, validation, and uncertainty quantification. TSTs for each PSC Center will be composed of up to six NNSA researchers. TSTs for each FIC Centers will be composed of up to three NNSA researchers.

TSTs:

· Each TST will have a Chairperson that is the appointed NNSA staff member to serve as the primary liaison and contact between the Center Director and the Labs.

· The NNSA TST Chairperson will be responsible for identifying a mutually agreeable time and location for the annual meetings and developing the agenda in collaboration with the Center Director, subject to final approval by the TPO.

· TST members may serve as resources for making needed contacts at the labs for possible software or data sharing, as well as potential research collaborations.

· TST members are points of contact to help establish contacts and mentors for students’ 10-week internships, as well as other Center staff visits.

Centers:

· Each Center’s prime recipient is required to host Annual TST Center Meeting.

· The prime recipient determines the date and location(s) (e.g., recipient’s campus) of the Annual TST Center Meeting, in collaboration with the TST Chairperson and subject to TPO approval.

· Each Center will be required to meet with their TST, at a minimum once per year, to exchange ideas regarding progress of the research and developments at the Labs and discuss any on-going issues that the Center may be having with such items as computer access and student/staff visits to the Labs. Other TST Center Meetings may be scheduled at mutually convenient times and should be approved by the Technical Project Officer at least two calendar weeks ahead of a formal meeting.

· The prime PI and any co-PIs on an award will be required to attend this peer meeting. Other Center personnel (e.g., faculty, post docs, research staff, and graduate and undergraduate students) are encouraged to attend.

Reminders:

· The TPO and GO are the only NNSA federal staff members that are allowed to provide direction on the PSAAP IV awarded cooperative agreements.

· Appropriated funds for the use under the cooperative agreement may not be used to pay for any NNSA staff.

5. Monthly Correspondence with Computer Resource Team (CRT) (Requirement)

Each Center will be given a Computer Resource Team (CRT) to assist with usage of the NNSA Laboratories' High-Performance Computing (HPC) resources. Each Center lead PI, or their delegate, will be required to meet with a CRT once per month throughout the period of the performance via a teleconference, unless cancelled in writing by the CRT.

CRTs:

· CRT’s assistance to the Centers include scheduling of special runs; handling issues arising with establishing and using accounts; balancing usage across the Centers; conducting a monthly telecon with the Centers to keep them up to date with access and scheduling issues and to address any concerns with HPC platforms; collecting and distributing monthly machine usage statistics; tracking and facilitating problem resolution reported to each Labs' customer support; interfacing with other individuals and groups within the Labs, such as management, networking, system administration, storage, etc. to facilitate the effective support of PSAAP users; providing necessary HPC user documentation and training; and discussing HPC resources and offering technical consultation.

· A list of individuals and their contact information, that serve on the CRT, will be provided to the recipient at the time of award by the TPO.

Centers:

· Each Center Director (or delegate of the Center Director) will be required to participate in one CRT telecon per month, unless cancelled by the CRT.

6. Additional Center and NNSA National Laboratories Collaboration (Optional)

Recipients will be strongly encouraged to implement additional collaboration activities among Center participants with one or more of the three NNSA National Laboratories. Throughout the period of performance, recipients will be required to submit a plan (no more than two pages) of interest to the Federal Technical Project Officer for review and approval before engaging in additional collaboration activities with NNSA laboratory personnel, not authorized at the time of award.

Collaboration with NNSA National Laboratories may include but not be limited to NNSA staff serving in ancillary activities such as guest lectures or on doctoral committees; mentoring students and staff; and presenting congruent topics at symposia or workshops. Because NNSA staff are held to specific Code of Ethics, NNSA staff may need to obtain approval by NNSA Office of the General Counsel to serve or collaborate in some requested areas.

While NNSA National Laboratory staff may mentor Center’s participants (staff and students), NNSA staff are not authorized to perform any portion of the technical work or research authorized in the awards under this NOFO.

G. PSAAP IV FORUM CENTER COLLABORATION

The PSAAP IV Forum provides the ASC community a singular focus where the PSAAP IV Centers will highlight significant achievements and for students and postdocs through a poster session to relay how their research advances the Center’s objectives.

All Centers will be required to have their staff represented at annual or bi-annual PSAAP IV Forums. NNSA expects to organize at least three but not more than five (5) PSAAP IV forums throughout the period of performance. For the application and budget, applicants should plan for one forum per year.

Each Center’s lead Principal Investigator, or their delegate, will be required to give a brief overview of their Center’s accomplishments at the PSAAP IV Forum. Each PSC may have 3-4 students participate (e.g., by giving a poster or talk), and each FIC may have 1-2 students participate. Centers should budget travel funds for their personnel to attend this Forum for up to three days annually.

H. LETTER OF SUPPORT FROM APPLICANT’S VICE PRESIDENT FOR RESEARCH

Applicants are encouraged to include in the pre-application and application a letter of support from the applicant’s Vice President for Research, or someone in a comparable position, which affirms the proposed Center will comply with the following performance requirements. This letter will be required if considered for award.

· Every graduate student who is supported by Federal funds under a resulting cooperative agreement must spend at least one period of ten contiguous weeks collaborating at one of the three NNSA National Laboratories.

· Every research staff member and post doc (funded half-time or greater), who is supported by Federal funds under a resulting cooperative agreement, must spend at least one week collaborating with scientists, engineers, and/or analysts at one of the three NNSA National Laboratories each year working on activities relevant to the postdoc’s research efforts at their home institution.

· The Principal Investigator will be in regular correspondence with DOE/NNSA Computer Resource Team to assist with usage of the NNSA Laboratories’ High-Performance Computing resources.

· The Principal Investigator will host an annual Center peer meeting organized with the DOE/NNSA Alliance Strategy Team and Review Team at a mutually convenient time.

· The Principal Investigator will host an annual Center Meeting with the DOE/NNSA Trilab Sponsor Team. Reflected above in Part F of this Section.

· The Principal Investigator and all personnel on the award will actively participate in an annual or bi-annual Forum with all the Centers and NNSA staff involved with PSAAP IV.

· For PSCs, the Principal Investigator will provide a minimum of semi-annual progress reports that describe key scientific, simulation, computer science and V&V/UQ progress, and other issues, in addition to responses to the recommendations of the annual Center review meeting. Reports will include but not be limited to the Center’s technical goals for the coming year and provide an updated project plan, software plan, and prediction and V&V plan, as appropriate.

· For FICs, the Principal Investigator will provide a minimum of annual progress reports that describe key advances in their scientific discipline and/or enabling technology development, and other issues, in addition to responses to the recommendations of the annual Center review meetings. Reports will include the Center’s technical goals for the coming year and provide an updated project plan, as appropriate.

· The entity awarded will be held responsible for managing the entire scope, schedule, and cost of the project, to include all financial and program reporting, per DOE F 4600.2, Federal Assistance Reporting Checklist and Instructions.

· Avail the list of major items of equipment already available for this project to the personnel on the application/award.

Section II – AWARD INFORMATION

A. AWARD INSTRUMENT

DOE/NNSA will award cooperative agreements under this NOFO. DOE/NNSA will consider funding multi-institution teams submitted as a prime and subaward model with one application submitted by the lead institution (prime applicant).

DOE/NNSA will be substantially involved with each awarded Center. DOE/NNSA will collaborate with each recipient in evaluating, accepting, and achieving proposed milestones. The DOE/NNSA Federal Technical Project Officer will provide technical direction to the overall program, as well as the individual program elements as it is determined to be necessary and appropriate by DOE/NNSA. DOE/NNSA subject matter experts will meet with PSAAP IV recipients at least bi-annually to provide set-aside time to collaborate and exchange ideas and best practices. NNSA laboratory staff will assist Centers with usage of the NNSA Laboratories' High-Performance Computing (HPC) resources, as well as be available to mentor staff and graduate students while they serve in their internships at NNSA laboratories. NNSA will also have the right to have National Laboratories perform independent tests and evaluations of each cooperative agreement's deliverables to provide an additional measure of technical progress.

The DOE/NNSA Grants Officer, or delegated Grants Specialist, and DOE/NNSA Federal Technical Project Officer will negotiate a Statement of Substantial Involvement with each PSAAP IV cooperative agreement award recipient prior to award in respect to individual needs beyond what is listed above. The substantial involvement by DOE/NNSA under each Award will remain in effect for the term of the cooperative agreement unless otherwise amended in writing by the Grants Specialist/Officer. The statement of substantial involvement by DOE/NNSA does not increase the Department of Energy's liability under the Agreement award.

B. ESTIMATED FUNDING

Approximately $20,000,000 annually is anticipated to be available for awards under this NOFO. Funding for all awards and future budget periods are contingent upon the availability of funds appropriated by Congress for the purpose of this program and the availability of future-year budget authority.

DOE/NNSA will not provide funding for any costs associated with preparing or submitting an application.

DOE/NNSA reserves the right to fund, in whole or in part, any, all, or none of the applications submitted in response to this NOFO.

Reminder: Federal funds, including funds current PSAAP awards, are not allowed to be used to prepare or submit an application.

C. AWARD SIZE

· Maximum and Minimum Award Size

a. Ceiling (i.e., the maximum amount for an individual award made under this NOFO):

$3,500,000 per year for PSCs; $1,000,000 per year for FICs.

b. Floor (i.e., the minimum amount for an individual award made under this NOFO): $1,500,000 per year for PSCs; $500,000 for FICs.

The ceiling and floor represent the expected range of award sizes and apply to the total costs in the application submitted by the lead institution for multi-institution teams.

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

· Anticipated Award Size DOE/NNSA anticipates that awards for each PSC will be between $7,500,000 to $17,500,000 for the project period (e.g., up to 5 years). Each FIC is anticipated to be awarded between $2,500,000 to $5,000,000 for the total project period. The award size will depend on the number of meritorious applications and the availability of appropriated funds.

D. EXPECTED NUMBER OF AWARDS

NNSA anticipates making no more than nine (9) awards from this NOFO. The number of awards will depend on the availability of appropriated funds, the number of meritorious applications, and other program policy factors. DOE/NNSA reserves the right to make no awards or to make fewer awards than would be possible at the grand-total level at its sole discretion.

E. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

DOE/NNSA anticipates making awards with an estimated project period of up to five (5) years. The overall project duration will be subdivided into annual budget periods. Continuation funding (funding for subsequent budget periods, past year 1 of the base award) is contingent on the following: 1) availability of funds appropriated by Congress and future year budget authority; 2) substantial progress towards meeting the objectives of the approved Statement of Work; 3) submittal of required reports; and 4) compliance with the terms and conditions of the award.

F. TYPE OF APPLICATION

DOE/NNSA will only accept new applications under this NOFO.

Section III – ELIGIBILITY INFORMATION

A. APPLICANTS

In accordance with 2 CFR 910.126 and PSAAP’s mission, eligibility for award is restricted U.S. Institutes of Higher Education with professional doctorate degrees.

1. Eligible Entities

a. U.S. Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) with professional doctorate degrees For this NOFO, an applicant must be an institution of higher education that offer programs for graduate students to earn professional doctorate degrees. It must be an IHE in any State, Federal District, or United States (U.S.) territory that:

· Admits as regular students only persons having a certificate of graduation from a school providing secondary education, or the recognized equivalent of such a certificate;

· Is legally authorized within such State to provide a program of education beyond secondary education;

· Provides an educational program for which the institution awards a professional doctorate degree (e.g., Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)); and

· Is accredited by a nationally or regionally recognized accrediting agency or association or is an institution that has been granted reaccreditation status by such an agency or association that has been recognized by the U.S. Secretary of Education for the granting of reaccreditation status, and the U.S. Secretary of Education has determined that there is satisfactory assurance that the institution will meet the accreditation standards of such an agency or association within a reasonable time.

2. Restricted Eligibility

a. Prohibition Related to Foreign Government-Sponsored Talent Recruitment Programs Persons participating in a Foreign Government-Sponsored Talent Recruitment Program of a Foreign Country of Risk are prohibited from participating in projects selected for federal funding under this NOFO. Should an award result from this NOFO, the recipient must exercise ongoing due diligence to reasonably ensure that no individuals participating on the DOE/NNSA-funded project are participating in a Foreign Government-Sponsored Talent Recruitment Program of a Foreign Country of Risk. Consequences for violations of this prohibition will be determined according to applicable law, regulations, and policy. Further, the recipient must notify the DOE/NNSA Federal Technical Project Officer and Grants Officer/Specialist within five (5) business days upon learning that an individual on the project team is or is believed to be participating in a foreign government talent recruitment program of a foreign country of risk. DOE/NNSA may modify and add requirements related to this prohibition to the extent required by law.

At the time of this NOFO publication, DOE has designated the following countries as foreign countries of risk: Iran, North Korea, Russia, and China. This list is subject to change.

b. Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDC) Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDC) (both DOE/NNSA National Laboratories and other Federal Agency-Sponsored FFRDCs) are not eligible for an award under this NOFO. However, FFRDCs may participate as collaborators to:

· Promote and sustain scientific interactions between the academic community and scientists at the FFRDC Laboratories through exchange of information and/or personnel;

· Increase the availability of unique experimental facilities sited at the FFRDC Laboratories to the academic community, particularly for collaborations in areas of relevance to stockpile stewardship; and

· Develop and maintain a long-term recruiting pipeline to the DOE/NNSA FFRDC’s by increasing the visibility of the DOE/NNSA scientific activities to the U.S. faculty and student communities.

FFRDCs are not eligible to receive any funding under this NOFO.

B. PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS

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 entity to develop an application. Individuals from underrepresented groups and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to serve as PIs. Co-PIs may serve under this NOFO.

1. Each application is required to have an identified PI from the prime applicant’s entity.

2. Applications may have co-PIs from the prime applicant or sub-applicant IHEs.

3. Each identified PIs and Co-PI for proposed agreements are required to be a U.S. Person and must be an active member of the teaching/research faculty of an IHE (see Section III(A)1).

4. Adjunct professors, visiting professors, and post-doctoral fellows are ineligible to be PIs or Co-PIs.

5. Individuals employed by foreign entities, irrespective of citizenship, are ineligible to be PIs or Co-PIs.

C. ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS

Each individual outside of the Principal Investigators (e.g., key personnel, students, participants) proposed to receive funding or have direct involvement in the activities supported under the award are required to be a U.S. person or a foreign person approved by DOE/NNSA. All participants must have the knowledge and skills to carry out their support on the award.

1. Due to the nature of work under this NOFO and DOE policies and procedures, prior approval requests for foreign persons supported on an award must be reviewed by DOE/NNSA. The review may be conducted by but not limited to DOE/NNSA Federal Technical Project Officers; DOE/NNSA Federal grants officials; and personnel in DOE’s counterintelligence office and/or DOE’s Research, Technology and Economic Security office.

2. After a cooperative agreement is awarded, the prime recipient’s Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) must request and receive written subsequent concurrence from NNSA GO/GS for additional foreign persons association with the project throughout the award’s period of performance and closure.

D. COST SHARING (10%)

A minimum cost sharing of 10% of the total allowable cost of the project (i.e., the sum of the Government share and the recipient share of allowable cost equals the total allowable costs of the projects) must come from non-Federal sources unless otherwise allowed by law.

1. The prime recipient will be required to contribute a minimum of 10% as cost sharing to the DOE/NNSA award on an annual basis.

2. The prime recipient will be required to maintain records of how the cost-share was spent.

3. Program Income funds may be used to meet the cost share requirement. However, costs incurred to generate Program Income may not qualify as cost share.

4. Cost share funds, including any program income, are restricted to the same use of funds as allowed for the federal funds on the award.

a. For example, prime recipients may support research staff, post docs, and students through their 10% cost sharing contribution.

E. PROGRAM INCOME

Program income is allowable under this NOFO. Applications that choose to use program income are to include estimated income and source of income planned to be used with this project.

Any program income funds with the award must be used to further project directives and in accordance with the terms and conditions of the award.

If program income is not reviewed at the time of award, post-award prior approval for the use of program income must be received and approved prior to use by the GO/GS.

F. UNCLASSIFIED WORK

All proposed work to be funded through this NOFO is required to be UNCLASSIFIED. No applications for CLASSIFIED work will be accepted.

G. SUBMISSION LIMITATIONS

1. Pre-Applications (Strongly Encouraged):

There are no limits to the number of pre-applications an entity may submit. See section IV for more information.

2. Applications (Required):

a. Predictive Simulation Centers (PSCs)

i. NNSA will only accept one application for a PSC per entity.

b. FICs Focused Investigatory Centers (FICs)

i. NNSA will accept multiple applications for FICs per entity.

c. PSCs and FICs

i. NNSA allows IHEs to submit one PSC application and one or more FIC applications.

ii. NNSA will not accept more than one application with an identified lead PI (e.g., a specific PI may not be requested as the lead PI on more than one application for this NOFO). However, an individual identified as a lead PI in an application may be identified as a Co-PI in other applications.

Section IV – APPLICATION AND SUBMISSION INFORMATION

NNSA is accepting pre-applications and full applications under this NOFO. A pre-application is optional and is to be submitted to the Federal Program Manager, identified below, for potential applicants to obtain an encourage/discourage letter for full application. A full application is required to be submitted via Grants.gov to be considered for merit review and award.

A. PRE-APPLICATION (STRONGLY ENCOURAGED)

1. Pre-Application Overview

A pre-application for PSAAP IV is optional yet strongly encouraged. The due date for pre-applications is listed on the cover of this NOFO. NNSA will provide a response to pre-applications through letters that will either encourage full proposal submission or state discouragement of full proposal submission due to not meeting the intent of research areas relevant to NNSA listed in this NOFO. The letters will be provided by the date listed on the cover of this NOFO.

2. Pre-Application Submission

a. Pre-applications must be submitted as a single PDF via email to David Etim (david.etim@nnsa.doe.gov) by the pre-application due date listed on the cover of this NOFO. The pre-application may be submitted by the anticipated lead Principal Investigator (PI), or the anticipated Authorized Organizational Representative (AOR) based on the institution’s internal policy for submitting pre-applications, if applicable. The subject line of the email should read “PSAAP IV Center Pre-application” followed by the PI’s last name and the prime entity’s name (e.g., “PSAAP IV Center Pre-application: Jones, University of XYZ”).

b. An entity may submit more than one pre-application, given that it meets all the following conditions:

· Each submission must have a different lead Principal Investigator (PI).

· Each submission must target a significantly different application and/or enabling technology.

· A PSC submission from an existing PSAAP III Center must focus on a different topic area than their current award.

· A letter acknowledging the pre-application submission from the Vice President for Research, or someone in a comparable position.

The pre-applications should include the following information, with the font size NOT any smaller than Times New Roman 11 and in a Portable Document Format (PDF):

a. For PSCs and FICs:

1. A one-page executive summary of the approach, goals, and tasks proposed for the Center. Indicate whether the response is for a PSC or FIC.

2. Technical and Scientific Approaches and Objectives (see below specific to PSCs and FICs)

3. Roadmap (see below specific to PSCs)

4. A discussion of ideas for attracting a diverse pool of (preferably US citizen) graduate students and postdocs and involving them with the NNSA National Laboratories. Efforts to broaden the workforce pool through outreach to traditionally underrepresented communities are encouraged. The full application will require a detailed plan that describes the activities and strategies applicants will incorporate to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA). The pre-application should briefly discuss ideas along these directions (one page maximum).

5. A list of ideas for interacting with the NNSA National Laboratories, including exposing lab technical personnel to work being done by the proposed Center and university personnel to work done by the Laboratories (one page maximum).

6. A list of all supported participants (except for students) from the proposing IHE and from any other participating IHEs and laboratories, including a paragraph describing the nature of the contribution by any supporting institution(s) (two pages maximum).

7. If there are multiple institutions on the team, the pre-application should contain a clear plan for how the “prime” institution will manage the overall program with particular attention given to the partner university(ies). This should include a plan, not to exceed one page, for how the “prime” institution will manage adding or deleting partner universities and associated faculty and staff, as refocusing is needed or for non-performance. Roles and responsibilities of the “prime” and partner universities should be part of this management plan (one page maximum).

8. A two-page outline of the coordinated multi-department/discipline structure of the Center with a corresponding organizational chart. To demonstrate collaboration experience and targeted areas for research, include a list of participating department heads and key research personnel. Also, include provide 3-6 key related publication or project references that are completed or in process for those identified in the organizational chart.

9. The anticipated budget and a brief explanation of how it will be partitioned across institutions, departments, and research tasks, including the anticipated number of students and postdocs for each. Detailed SF424 budget forms and justifications are not required for this pre-application but will be for a full application (one page maximum).

10. IHE point of contact name, mailing address, and email address to direct the Encourage/Discourage letter (one page maximum).

b. For PSCs:

1. For PSCs, no more than six pages describing the technical and scientific approaches and objectives for the work, with an outline plan that presents the simulation of a large, multidisciplinary, complex problem or a significant single-discipline advance that is of ASC programmatic and national interest; an integrated plan for advancing and demonstrating exascale mathematics, CS, and ML technologies in the context of the chosen application; and a timetable showing key milestones for each research area during the proposed life of the Center. The research and simulation plan should provide for and outline significant simulations beginning in the second year and at the end of each subsequent year of the program. The plan should include how to leverage existing mathematics/CS and ML frameworks and science/engineering codes to bring up an integrated simulation capability more quickly for the selected problem so more effort can be focused on the exascale science/engineering, mathematics/CS, and ML components. The approach should include a verification and validation plan and associated data management plan. The data management plan should outline what existing data will be used; and if any new data is required, how it is to be obtained. This Simulation Capability Demonstration Plan should show a convincing path to initial demonstration by end of the second year.

2. For PSCs, a one-page well-defined simulation and modeling roadmap should cover all five years anticipated for the program. For each year, it should be clear how the various research components come together to contribute to the goals of the Center.