DOE Technologies to Emend & Obviate Synthetic Nitrogen's Toll on Emissions (TEOSYNTE) - Concept Papers Due 08/13; Full Application Deadline TBD

Opportunity Title:

Technologies to Emend and Obviate Synthetic Nitrogen's Toll on Emissions (TEOSYNTE)

Funder/Agency:

Department of Energy (DOE), Advanced Research Projects Agency Energy (ARPA-E)

Opportunity Number:

DE-FOA-0003405

Description:

The objectives of this program are to:

1. Reduce imports of foreign synthetic N fertilizer by reducing 27% of the N fertilizer usage in U.S. agriculture;
2. Improve efficiency by saving $6.4 billion in operational cost for U.S. farmers, and reduce CI by 14-23% for ethanol and ethanol-derived SAF; and
3. Remove 37 MMT-78 MMT of CO2-eq (0.7-1.4% of total U.S. GHGs) emissions from agriculture-derived N2O and CO2 generated during N fertilizer production.

Successful completion of this research effort will ensure that the U.S. maintains a technological advantage in the deployment of advanced energy technologies.

ARPA-E seeks proposals that address and develop technologies that can lead to a 50% reduction in N2O emissions by 2030 compared to the 2005 emissions baseline as targeted by the Biden Administration in 2021. These technologies will require a minimum reduction of N fertilizer inputs by more than 48% in corn and sorghum cultivation without compromising yield.

The program will focus on corn and sorghum as the crops of interest because of their current use in conversion to ethanol and their potential future role in SAF production. For sorghum, the program will broadly explore cultivars that may be used in current or future ethanol production scenarios, including grain sorghum, sweet sorghum, forage sorghum, and biomass sorghum.

The deployment of these technologies in commercial varieties of corn and sorghum is encouraged but not required for the projects in this program. Cover cropping, intercropping systems, and crop rotations that reduce the need for N fertilization of corn or sorghum by the identified metrics will be considered if elements of microbial and/or plant bio-design approaches are included in the proposal. The program will include lab-based experiments, and by the end of the program awardees are expected to show that their technologies are capable of N fertilizer replacement, as measured by yield, and N2O emissions reduction, as measured by on-field N2O emissions during at least two field seasons.

Eligibility:

Unrestricted

Award Details:

Total Amount Available:

$36,000,000

Maximum Award:

$10,000,000

Minimum Award:

$1,000,000

Deadline:

First Questions Due August 02, 2024

Concept Papers Due August 13, 2024

Full Applications Due TBD

Opportunity Link

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