Research NewsletterIssue: ORN-2023-42

Biden-Harris Administration Announces $7 Billion For America’s First Clean Hydrogen Hubs, Driving Clean Manufacturing and Delivering New Economic Opportunities Nationwide

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced $7 billion to launch seven Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs (H2Hubs) across the nation and accelerate the commercial-scale deployment of low-cost, clean hydrogen—a valuable energy product that can be produced with zero or near-zero carbon emissions and is crucial to meeting the President’s climate and energy security goals. This historic milestone is part of the third installment of the Investing in America tour, during which President Biden and Secretary Granholm will travel to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to announce this unprecedented investment in American manufacturing and jobs. 

Funded by President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the seven H2Hubs will kickstart a national network of clean hydrogen producers, consumers, and connective infrastructure while supporting the production, storage, delivery, and end-use of clean hydrogen. The H2Hubs are expected to collectively produce three million metric tons of hydrogen annually, reaching nearly a third of the 2030 U.S. production target and lowering emissions from hard-to-decarbonize industrial sectors that represent 30 percent of total U.S. carbon emissions. Together, they will also reduce 25 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from end-uses each year—an amount roughly equivalent to combined annual emissions of 5.5 million gasoline-powered cars—and create and retain tens of thousands of good-paying jobs across the country while supporting healthier communities. 

Aligning Fundamental Research and Education in Advanced Manufacturing with the Objectives of the Manufacturing USA Institutes; Cognitive Neuroscience (CogNeuro); Ethical and Responsible Research (ER2); NSF Trailblazer Engineering Impact Award Mathematical and Physical Sciences Ascending Faculty Catalyst Awards (MPS-AFCA); Ideas Lab: Personalized Engineering Learning (PEL); Research on Innovative Technologies for Enhanced Learning (RITEL);  Advice to the Community About Submitting Proposals to the GRANTED Program Description Funding Opportunity PD 23-221Y : Partnerships for Innovation (PFI)

NIH: National Institute of General Medical Sciences Predoctoral Basic Biomedical Sciences Research Training Program (T32) NIDA REI: Academic Research Enhancement Award (AREA) Training a Diverse Data Science Workforce for Addiction Research (R15); BRAIN Initiative: New Concepts and Early-Stage Research for Recording and Modulation in the Nervous System (R21)

Department of Defense/US Army/DARPA/ONR: Basic Research for Electro-Optic/Infrared (EO/IR) Sensors and Sensor Processing; Defense Sciences Office (DSO) Office-wide BAA

EPA: Reducing Embodied Greenhouse Gas Emissions for Construction Materials and Products; Climate Pollution Reduction Grants Program: Implementation Grants

Department of Energy: Distributed Energy Systems Demonstrations; Innovative DEsigns for high-performAnce Low-cost HVDC Converters (IDEAL HVDC), Solar-thermal Fuels and Thermal Energy Storage via Concentrated Solar-thermal Energy

NASA: ROSES 2023: E.8 Physical Sciences Informatics

National Endowment of Humanities: Digital Humanities Advancement Grants; Humanities Initiatives

Private Foundations: Bill and Melinda Gate Foundation: Grand Challenges

FDA forms new committee to advise on health tech: The Food and Drug Administration announced the creation of a new Digital Health Advisory Committee on Wednesday, intended to help support the development of digital health technologies and their regulation. “As digital health technologies advance, the FDA must capitalize on knowledge from inside and outside of the agency to help ensure we appropriately apply our regulatory authority in a way that protects patient health while continuing to support innovation,” Jeff Shuren, director of the FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health, said in a statement. Nominations are now open for the new nine-member committee, which is expected to be operational next year to advise the agency on the potential benefits, risks and outcomes from digital health technologies. The agency defines DHTs as “systems that use computing platforms, connectivity, software and/or sensors for healthcare.” That might include artificial intelligence, virtual reality, wearable technology, remote patient monitoring and more. The agency has regulatory purview over DHTs that count as medical devices. More information is posted on the NextGov website.

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 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Launches $4.6 Billion in Competitive Grants to Cut Climate Pollution: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) launched $4.6 billion in competitive grants to fund state, local, and Tribal programs and policies that cut climate pollution, advance environmental justice, and deploy clean energy solutions across the country. EPA has already made $250 million available to fund the development of climate action plans, and nearly all states, plus major cities opted in to receive these flexible planning resources. 

The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants Competitions

EPA is announcing the availability of $4.6 billion across two implementation grant competitions, one general competition and one specifically for Tribes and territories. EPA has published the two official Notice of Funding Opportunities or NOFOs for these grants competitions on  View Opportunity | GRANTS.GOV View Opportunity | GRANTS.GOV

The deadline to apply to the general competition is April 1, 2024. The deadline to apply to the Tribes and territories competition is May 1, 2024. EPA estimates that the implementation grants will be awarded in Fall 2024 for the general competition and in Winter 2024-2025 for the Tribes and territories competition.