U.S. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
DOE Announces Topics for Upcoming Funding Opportunity to Support Small Businesses and Entrepreneurs

On November 7, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the topics for the latest phase of the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) funding program. American small businesses play a critical role in driving innovation and creating jobs, and the SBIR and STTR programs have helped thousands of small businesses and entrepreneurs develop the cutting-edge technologies required to accelerate our transition to a clean energy future.

Through the SBIR and STTR programs, the Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office (AMMTO) and the Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office (IEDO) support small business research and development projects that improve energy efficiency, material productivity, and drive economy-wide decarbonization and competitiveness for American manufacturers.

The AMMTO and IEDO-funded SBIR/STTR Phase I topics include:

• Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies: An AMMTO-funded topic focused on developing the next-generation materials and manufacturing technologies to support a clean, decarbonized economy, including the following subtopics:
  • Power Electronics for Energy Efficient Electrification
  • Chemistry-level Electrode Quality Control (QC) for Battery Manufacturing
  • Other Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies: In addition to the specific subtopics listed above, AMMTO invites grant applications in relevant areas that enable next generation materials and manufacturing processes as well as secure and sustainable materials.
• Fuel Cell and Electrolyzer Recycling: A joint topic among AMMTO, IEDO, and the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office to develop innovative manufacturing and clean energy technologies, secure and sustainable materials, and facilitate wide-spread adoption of hydrogen and fuel cells. Subtopics include:
  • Efficient and Sustainable Recovery and Reuse of Materials from Manufacturing Scrap in Fuel Cells and Electrolyzers
  • Reducing Hazardous Substances in Fuel Cell and Electrolyzer Recycling
• Decarbonization of Agriculture, Buildings, Transport, Industry and their Communities: A joint topic among AMMTO, IEDO, and four other DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) technology offices to drastically reduce carbon emissions across critical sectors of the U.S. economy, including the following subtopics:
  • Agricultural Decarbonization
  • Buildings Decarbonization
  • Transportation Decarbonization
  • Industrial Decarbonization
• Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization: An IEDO-funded topic focused on activities that address decarbonization in energy- and emissions-intensive industries, cross-sector industrial emissions technologies, as well as technical assistance and partnerships. Subtopics include:
  • Sustainable Chemistry: Mitigation of Hazardous Chemicals in Manufacturing Processes
  • Enhanced Waste Heat Recovery through Highly Efficient Heat Exchangers
  • Other Industrial Decarbonization: Additionally, IEDO seeks other proposals related to industrial decarbonization, especially those aligned with the priorities in the Industrial Decarbonization Roadmap.

DOE will release the funding opportunity announcement (FOA) on December 12, 2022. The FOA is expected to include approximately $13 million in federal funding between AMMTO and IEDO. For more information on the DOE SBIR and STTR programs including announcement timelines and application deadlines visit the Office of Science SBIR website or attend an informational webinar.

The SBIR and STTR programs were created by Congress to leverage small businesses to advance innovation at federal agencies.