[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 233 (Tuesday, December 5, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 62246-62247]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-29577]
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DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
Office of Energy Research
Energy Research Financial Assistance Program Notice 96-02;
Enhanced Research Capabilities at DOE User Facilities
AGENCY: Department of Energy (DOE).
ACTION: Notice inviting grant applications.
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SUMMARY: The Office of Basic Energy Sciences (BES) of the Office of
Energy Research (ER), U.S. Department of Energy, hereby announces its
interest in receiving grant applications for new capabilities or for
upgrading existing research capabilities for innovative fundamental
research at DOE-supported synchrotron light sources and neutron
sources, and the Combustion Research Facility. Such instrumentation
should employ state-of-the-art technology so that the photon and
neutron beams are utilized more effectively. Applications for the
development of new capabilities, as well as upgrading of existing
capabilities are encouraged.
DATES: Potential applicants are strongly encouraged to submit a brief
preapplication. All preapplications, referencing Program Notice 96-02,
should be received by DOE by 4:30 p.m.
[[Page 62247]]
E.S.T., December 29, 1995. A response discussing the potential program
relevance of a formal application generally will be communicated to the
applicant within 30 days of receipt. The deadline for receipt of formal
applications is 4:30 p.m., E.S.T., February 8, 1996, in order to be
accepted for merit review and to permit timely consideration for award
in fiscal year 1996.
ADDRESSES: All preapplications, referencing Program Notice 96-02,
should be sent to Dr. William T. Oosterhuis, Office of Basic Energy
Sciences, Division of Materials Sciences, ER-13, U.S. Department of
Energy, 19901 Germantown Road, Germantown, Maryland 20874-1290.
After receiving notification from DOE concerning successful
preapplications, applicants may prepare formal applications and send
them to: U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Research, Grants
and Contracts Division, ER-64, 19901 Germantown Road, Germantown,
Maryland 20874-1290, Attn: Program Notice 96-02. The above address for
formal applications also must be used when submitting formal
applications by U.S. Postal Service Express Mail, any commercial mail
delivery service, or when handcarried by the applicant.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. William T. Oosterhuis, Office of
Basic Energy Sciences, Division of Materials Sciences, ER-13, U.S.
Department of Energy, 19901 Germantown Road, Germantown, Maryland
20874-1290. Telephone: (301) 903-3426.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: As part of the President's Science
Facilities Utilization Enhancement to make more efficient use of the
National User Facilities listed below, the instrumentation (such as
optics, detectors, and data collection electronics) needed to increase
the experimental throughput at these powerful sources has to be at the
state-of-the-art. At some user facilities, there is a distinct need to
upgrade the instrumentation to increase the resolution, to detect more
photons or neutrons per unit time, and increase the quality of the data
so that more and better experiments can be carried out. At other user
facilities, there is a need to put more beamlines on the experimental
floor to make more experiments possible while the facility is
operating. The National User Facilities supported by the Office of
Basic Energy Sciences are the National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS),
High Flux Beam Reactor (HFBR), Combustion Research Facility (CRF), High
Flux Isotope Reactor (HFIR), Intense Pulsed Neutron Source (IPNS),
Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (SSRL), Advanced Light Source
(ALS), Advanced Photon Source (APS), and Los Alamos Neutron Scattering
Center (LANSCE). These facilities have the capabilities of extreme
flux, or brightness, to make certain experiments possible which would
otherwise be impossible. The interest is in exploiting these
capabilities to the maximum extent possible.
The Department's intention for this program is to support
fundamental research which will include the upgrade and/or development
of new instrumentation to optimize the use of these National User
Facilities operated by the Department. The ability to conduct
innovative fundamental research should be emphasized in each
application. Applicants are encouraged to collaborate with industry and
to incorporate cost sharing and consortia wherever feasible. The extent
of the collaboration and cost sharing will be factors, along with the
principal criterion of the scientific merit of the application, in the
selection process by the Department.
Grant applications are encouraged from all disciplines (including
solid state physics, materials chemistry, metals and ceramics, chemical
sciences, structural biology, geosciences, and environmental sciences)
for energy-relevant research which make use of the DOE-supported user
facilities. Instrumentation appropriate for consideration would
include, but not be limited to, the following: beamline optics and
transport guides, monochromators of much greater resolution, more
efficient detectors to reduce the background noise, electronics and
data processing equipment to enable investigators to carry out new or
more difficult experiments and/or more experiments in the same amount
of time.
The brief preapplication, in accordance with 10 CFR 600.10(d)(2),
should consist of two to three pages of narrative describing the
research objectives and methods of accomplishment. The preapplications
will be reviewed relative to the scope and research needs of the DOE's
fundamental research programs at these facilities. Telephone and FAX
numbers are required parts of the preapplication, and electronic mail
addresses are desirable.
It is anticipated that approximately $5,000,000 will be available
for grant awards during FY 1996 which will enable innovative
fundamental research through major enhancements in instrumentation or
capabilities at these user facilities, contingent upon the availability
of appropriated funds. The number of awards and the range of funding
will depend on the number of applications received and selected for
award. Information about the development, submission, and the selection
process, and other policies and procedures may be found in 10 CFR Part
605, and in the Application Guide for the Office of Energy Research
Financial Assistance Program. The Application Guide is available from
the U.S. Department of Energy, Materials Sciences Division, Office of
Energy Research, ER-13, 19901 Germantown Road, Germantown, Maryland
20874-1290. Telephone requests may be made by calling (301) 903-3426.
Electronic access to ER's Financial Assistance Guide is possible via
the Internet using the following E-mail address: http://www.er.doe.gov/
.
The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number for this
program is 81.049, and the solicitation control number is ERFAP 10
CFR Part 605.
Issued in Washington, DC on November 16, 1995.
D.D. Mayhew,
Associate Director, Office of Resource Management, Office of Energy
Research.
[FR Doc. 95-29577 Filed 12-4-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P
