[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]
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