Next Generation Electric Machines: Enabling Technologies

The summary for the Next Generation Electric Machines: Enabling Technologies grant is detailed below. This summary states who is eligible for the grant, how much grant money will be awarded, current and past deadlines, Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) numbers, and a sampling of similar government grants. Verify the accuracy of the data FederalGrants.com provides by visiting the webpage noted in the Link to Full Announcement section or by contacting the appropriate person listed as the Grant Announcement Contact. If any section is incomplete, please visit the website for the Golden Field Office, which is the U.S. government agency offering this grant.

Next Generation Electric Machines: Enabling Technologies: Manufacturing is the use of energy, equipment, information, services, and capital to convert raw materials, components, and parts into goods that meet market expectations. As an economic sector, manufacturing generates 12 percent of U.S. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and employs 12 million Americans. The DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO) makes research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) investments in advanced manufacturing process and materials technologies. These technologies are foundational, pervasive, and promise crosscutting industrial applications and impact in reducing industry’s energy footprint and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as well as supporting the global competitiveness of clean energy products. By targeting the development of energy-related advanced manufacturing technology, AMO’s work can create completely new supply chains and stimulate significant economic growth and job creation.

AMO’s Next Generation Electric Machines (NGEM) program is an RD&D effort leveraging recent technology advancements in power electronics and electric motors to develop a new generation of energy efficient, high power density, high speed, integrated MV drive systems for a wide variety of critical energy applications. Improvements to these systems can be realized through the application of key enabling technologies, such as wide bandgap devices, advanced magnetic materials, improved insulation materials, aggressive cooling techniques, high speed bearing designs, and improved conductors or superconducting materials. Through this development program, NGEM will facilitate a step-change that enables more efficient use of electricity, as well as reduced drive system size and weight, developing lasting capabilities for motor material development, design, and analysis that are cost-shared with industry stakeholders.

This specific Financial Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is focused on advancing three key enabling technologies that can take the development of electric machines a giant step further by addressing significant reductions in three major categories of energy losses in an electric machine. The FOA leverages on recent technical advancements made in nanomaterial research, 6.5wt% siliconizing process in electrical steel manufacturing, and improved in-field performance of high temperature superconductor technology to realize the complete vision of developing a new generation of energy efficient, high power density, high speed electric machines for a wide variety of critical energy applications.

EERE will conduct one informational webinar during the FOA process. It will be held after the initial FOA release but before the due date for Concept Papers.

The purpose of this webinar is to give applicants a chance to ask questions about the FOA process generally. Attendance is not mandatory and will not positively or negatively impact the overall review of any Applicant submissions. As the webinar will be open to all Applicants who wish to participate, Applicants should refrain from asking questions or communicating information that would reveal confidential and/or proprietary information specific to their project. Specific dates for the webinar can be found on the cover page of the FOA. Here is information on how to register for the webinar: The Next Generation Electric Machines: ENABLING TECHNOLOGIES FOA Informational Webinar will be held March 16, 2016 at 1:00pm EDT. Standard application questions regarding the EERE Office and FOA procedures will be discussed.

Register here: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/1215144340226267393

The full Funding Opportunity Announcement is posted on the EERE Exchange website at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov. Applications must be submitted through the EERE Exchange website to be considered for award. The applicant must first register and create an account on the EERE Exchange website. The Users' guide for applying to Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy’s Funding Opportunity Announcements through the Exchange website can be found at https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/Manuals.aspx.

Information on where to submit questions regarding the content of the announcement and where to submit questions regarding submission of applications is found in the full FOA posted on the EERE Exchange website.

The Exchange system is currently designed to enforce hard deadlines for Concept Paper and Full Application submissions. The APPLY and SUBMIT buttons automatically disable at the defined submission deadlines. The intention of this design is to consistently enforce a standard deadline for all applicants.

Applicants that experience issues with submissions PRIOR to the FOA Deadline: In the event that an Applicant experiences technical difficulties with a submission, the Applicant should contact the Exchange helpdesk for assistance ([email protected]).