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NSF Energy for Sustainability (PD 12-7644) - FAQs

What is the NSF Energy for Sustainability program (PD 12-7644)?

The NSF Energy for Sustainability program funds fundamental research and education aimed at enabling new, sustainable ways to produce electricity and transportation fuels. The program emphasizes environmentally benign energy processes that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and rely on renewable resources, with a focus on advances in underlying engineering science and potentially transformative concepts rather than incremental development of established commercial technologies.

Where does this program sit within NSF?

This opportunity is within NSF Engineering in a CBET (Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems) context. The framing emphasizes engineering science advances that can enable next-generation sustainable energy pathways.

What kinds of projects are a strong fit for this program?

Projects are a strong fit when they propose foundational, potentially transformative ideas that could change process performance, scalability, or feasibility for sustainable electricity generation or sustainable transportation fuels, while being environmentally benign, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and relying on renewable resources.

Does the program only fund the topic areas listed in the solicitation?

No. While several focus areas are highlighted, the program leaves room for innovative proposals outside the listed categories. However, the solicitation recommends contacting the Program Director ahead of submission to confirm program fit and reduce the risk of an administrative return without review.

What is the program's stance on incremental or commercially established technology development?

The program is framed around advancing underlying engineering science and potentially transformative concepts. It is not positioned to support incremental development or routine optimization of established commercial technologies.

What biomass and bioenergy topics are emphasized?

A major focus is biomass conversion, biofuels, and bioenergy, especially work that intensifies or rethinks the processes that convert plant or algal products into usable fuels or power. The solicitation highlights biological, thermochemical, and thermocatalytic pathways for converting lignocellulosic biomass into fuels beyond cellulosic ethanol.

Is research beyond cellulosic ethanol encouraged for biomass conversion?

Yes. The solicitation explicitly highlights interest in converting lignocellulosic biomass into fuels beyond cellulosic ethanol, using biological, thermochemical, and thermocatalytic pathways.

Are microbial fuel cells within scope?

Yes. The solicitation calls out microbial fuel cells that generate electricity directly from renewable carbon sources as an area of interest.

Does the program support biological or biomimetic electricity generation directly from sunlight?

Yes. The solicitation notes interest in scalable process concepts for biological or biomimetic electricity generation directly from sunlight.

What microbial production routes are relevant?

The program highlights microbial routes for producing hydrogen, hydrocarbons, and lipids from autotrophic or heterotrophic organisms, with an emphasis on foundational advances rather than routine optimization.

What photovoltaic (PV) solar energy topics are included?

The program includes photovoltaic solar energy, focusing on next-generation PV devices and innovative manufacturing and theory-driven characterization methods needed to understand and improve them. It also notes interest in nano-enabled PV concepts and PV devices using earth-abundant and environmentally benign materials.

What does "nano-enabled PV" mean in the context of this solicitation?

As described in the solicitation, nano-enabled PV concepts include approaches using nanostructured semiconductors, plasmonic materials, photonic structures, or conducting polymers.

Are PV devices made from earth-abundant and environmentally benign materials encouraged?

Yes. The solicitation explicitly includes PV devices built from earth-abundant and environmentally benign materials as a topic of interest.

Are photocatalytic or photoelectrochemical approaches part of the program?

Yes. The program includes photocatalytic or photoelectrochemical processes that use sunlight to split water into hydrogen or reduce CO2 into liquid or gaseous fuels, positioning solar-driven chemistry within sustainable energy.

Is solar thermal energy generation within scope?

No. Solar thermal energy generation is explicitly not in scope for this program and is directed to a different CBET program focused on thermal transport processes.

Is wind energy research included?

Yes, with a specific emphasis. The program supports fundamental engineering research, supported by modeling and simulation, that leads to new processes for efficiently harvesting wind energy to produce electrical power.

Are materials science issues for wind systems supported under this program?

No. The solicitation notes that materials science issues associated with wind energy systems are outside this program's scope.

Does the program fund advanced batteries for transportation?

Yes. The opportunity targets advanced batteries for transportation, aiming for high energy density and high power density systems that could significantly shift transportation toward sustainability. It encourages radically new battery concepts or major breakthroughs on existing families.

Which battery directions are explicitly named as appropriate?

The solicitation explicitly names lithium-air, sodium-ion, and lithium-ion batteries with new cathode chemistries as appropriate directions.

Are lead-acid or nickel-metal hydride battery proposals considered responsive?

No. Proposals centered on mature, commercially common chemistries such as lead-acid and nickel-metal hydride are not considered responsive to this program.

Does this program accept fuel cell proposals?

The solicitation provides routing guidance indicating that fuel cell projects previously submitted to this program should be redirected within CBET based on technical emphasis, rather than being submitted here in the same way.

Where should fuel cell proposals be routed within CBET?

The solicitation indicates the following routing: electrocatalysis-focused work to Catalysis and Biocatalysis, membranes-focused work to Separations and Bioseparations, and systems-focused work to Process and Reaction Engineering.

How long are typical awards under this opportunity?

Unsolicited research awards are typically three years in duration.

What is the typical annual award size?

The average annual award size is about $100,000.

What happens if a proposal budget is substantially higher than the typical average?

The program cautions that proposals requesting substantially more than the average annual award size, without prior discussion with the Program Director, may be returned without review. The solicitation signals that early communication is important when a larger budget is truly needed.

Is there an award floor listed for this opportunity?

Yes. The award floor is listed at $300,000, which is consistent with the typical three-year duration described in the solicitation.

Is cost sharing required?

No. The announcement states there is no cost sharing requirement.

How many awards and how much total funding are expected?

The announcement lists an expected 42 awards and an estimated total program funding level of about $9.2 million.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is listed as unrestricted, meaning it is open to any type of entity, subject to any clarifications in the full solicitation text.

What are the submission dates and deadline time for the cycle described?

For the cycle described, the submission window ran from January 15, 2012 through February 17, 2012, and proposals were due by 5 p.m. local time.

What happens if a proposal is submitted outside the announced submission window?

The solicitation states that proposals submitted outside the announced window would be returned without review.

What does NSF expect applicants to emphasize to be competitive?

NSF emphasizes that proposals should clearly state what is novel or potentially transformative relative to prior work, and that this novelty should appear at least in the Project Summary. Proposers are also expected to connect the idea to advances in engineering science and articulate credible potential impacts on society and/or industry if the work succeeds.

Does NSF fund based only on reviewer scores?

No. The solicitation notes that funding decisions are not based solely on reviewer scores. Program balance across subfields, total available funds, NSF priorities, and other contextual factors can influence final selections.

Are NSF CAREER proposals encouraged under this program?

Yes. Engineering CAREER proposals are strongly encouraged. The solicitation notes that CAREER awards are typically five years in duration and that Engineering CAREER has an annual July deadline.

Can conference, workshop, or supplement proposals be submitted?

Yes. The solicitation notes that conference, workshop, and supplement proposals should ideally be submitted during the regular window and should be discussed with the Program Director.

Are RAPID or EAGER proposals allowed?

RAPID and EAGER proposals may be considered when appropriate, but they require prior discussion with the Program Director before submission.

Should applicants contact the Program Director before submitting?

Yes in several situations described in the solicitation, including: when proposing work outside the clearly listed interest areas, when requesting a budget substantially above the typical average, and when planning conference/workshop/supplement submissions or RAPID/EAGER proposals. The solicitation frames this as a practical step to confirm fit and reduce the risk of return without review.