Initial Application Step: Interested applicants must first submit a concept paper before January 15, 2010 at 5:00 P.M. (EST). The concept paper is limited to six pages, including an abstract (150 word limit), technical section (five page limit, when combined with abstract), and cost summary (one page limit). Please note: Important information re registration and other pre-submission requirements (including ARPA-E eXCHANGE submission mechanics) is included in the funding opportunity announcement (FOA). Please refer to the FOA for details.

Notice of Encouragement/Discouragement to Submit Full Application: Anticipated early February 2010

Full Application Submission Deadline: Anticipated early March

Award Date: Estimated date will be specified by FOA amendment no later than date of notification of encouragement/ discouragement

Award Size: Anticipated award size is from $1,000,000 to $5,000,000. The minimum amount for each award is $500,000 and the maximum amount is $10,000,000. ARPA-E anticipates awarding agreements totaling $35,000,000 for this award.

Award Instrument: Grant, cooperative agreement, or technology investment assignment (TIA)

Program Description

The purpose of the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E) is to create transformational new energy technologies and systems through funding and managing research and development (R&D) efforts. ARPA-E’s mission is to overcome the long-term and high-risk technological barriers in the development of energy technologies that (1) enhance the economic and energy security of the United States through the development of energy technologies that result in reductions of imports of energy from foreign sources, reductions of energy-related emissions, including greenhouse gases, and improvement in the energy efficiency of all economic sectors, and (2) ensure that the United States maintains a technological lead in developing and deploying advanced energy technologies. It is expected that energy technologies funded by ARPA-E will help catalyze breakthroughs for national priorities which harness science and technology to address the "grand challenges" of the 21st century and unleash a clean energy revolution.

In this FOA, ARPA-E states that it seeks to complement existing DOE research efforts in the field of carbon capture and sequestration (CCS). ARPA-E’s stated objective is to fund high risk, high reward research efforts that, if successful, will have a transformational impact on dramatically lowering the energy and cost penalties associated with carbon capture. This FOA is focused on developing materials and processes for CO2 capture that can be applied both to new plants and retrofitted to existing coal-fired power plants.

Areas of Interest 1: Enabling Materials for CO2 Capture

Area of Interest 1A: Catalysts

Capture technologies are often limited by slow rates of reaction as a result of the lack of catalysts that are inexpensive, effective, and stable in flue gas. This applies to capture methods such as solvents, sorbents, and membranes, but also to natural weathering reactions that capture CO2 and provide the additional benefit of permanent sequestration. Where appropriate, the use of computational models in conjunction with a development effort could serve as a synergistic aspect of an experimental research program. Desired topics sought in this Area of Interest include, but are not limited to:

Low cost, widely-available catalysts that enable solvents, sorbents, or membrane systems that exhibit superior thermodynamic properties compared to MEA, but are currently impractical due to slow kinetics
Biological and/or chemical promotion of weathering reactions that greatly accelerate natural weathering of materials such as silicates

Area of Interest 1B: Robust Materials

Novel technologies that demonstrate promise in a laboratory setting often fail quickly when transitioned to actual flue gas. ARPA-E seeks advanced materials that can survive the high temperatures and multiple caustic contaminants associated with flue gas. Where appropriate, the use of computational models in conjunction with a development effort could serve as a synergistic aspect of an experimental research program. Desired topics sought in this Area of Interest include, but are not limited to:

Low cost, widely-available materials for carbon capture that are robust at appropriate temperatures and resistant to degradation caused by contaminants in actual flue gas
Materials that enable alternative chemistries for CO2 reactions (for example, alternatives to bicarbonate or carbamate reactions) that demonstrate promise for lower energy requirements for capture and regeneration. Chemistries that result in carbon in forms other than CO2 could also be considered

Area of Interest 2: CO2 Capture Processes

The amine solvent process is the current state-of-the-art capture technology. While this process has been continuously and incrementally improved as a result of decades of development, a 22-30% parasitic power load is required for capture and compression of CO2. The objective of this Area of Interest is to enable CO2 capture processes that will dramatically reduce current parasitic power requirements. Use of modeling to extrapolate to scaled system implementations is an important element to demonstrate feasibility of proposed approaches. Desired topics sought in this Area of Interest include, but are not limited to:

Capture techniques that utilize novel pathways in thermodynamic phase diagrams for CO2 capture and release, potentially including supercritical phase transitions
Novel forms of capture and regeneration that may utilize other thermodynamic inputs beyond temperature or pressure to effectively facilitate CO2 capture and release
Ultrathin membrane fabrication with high permeance and selectivity
Large-area membrane modules with improved gas flow, membrane packing density, and resistance to flue gas contaminants

Mandatory Program Requirements

ARPA-E states that it welcomes submissions from any type of capable technology research and development entity. This includes, but is not limited to, for-profit entities, academic institutions, research foundations, not-for-profit entities, collaborations, and consortia. A Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) may submit a proposal as a project lead entity; only if the FFRDC is the lead for a consortium, collaboration, or other teaming arrangement. The FFRDC may not submit a proposal as a stand along entity. A minimum of 90% of the work, as defined by total project costs, must be performed on U.S. soil, which includes the United States proper and its territories.

Cost Sharing

If a recipient is exclusively a university, college, or other educational institution, a cost share of at least 10% of the total allowable costs will be required. Cost share of at least 20% is required of all other applicants. For consortia or teams that include educational institutions: the 10% minimum applies to those educational institutions, and other members of the consortia/team must cost share at least 20% of their portion of the consortium's effort. For awards where ARPA-E determines that use of a TIA is appropriate—when a standard grant or cooperative agreement is not feasible or appropriate—a minimum 50% cost share of the total project cost is required. (Exceptional circumstances, on a case-by-case determination at the highest levels within DOE, may warrant a somewhat lower cost-share percentage).