Chemical Upcycling of Polymers

This is a canvass to determine whether an internal competition will be necessary for this limited submission program. If you are interested in applying to this program, you must notify OPD by submitting the internal competitions form. Pre-applications are not yet required.

The DOE is now accepting applications for Chemical Upcycling of Polymers to support fundamental experimental and theoretical efforts that advance chemical upcycling of polymers and circular design of next-generation plastics. Stony Brook University may submit no more than TWO pre-applications as the lead institution.

Please see below for details. If you are interested in applying, you must submit the internal competitions form by Wednesday, February 17, 2021. The competition code for this program is LC202120.

WHAT DOES IT FUND: This FOA emphasizes cross-cutting, fundamental research in the following areas:

Discovery and design of new chemical pathways to deconstruct synthetic polymeric materials efficiently and selectively into useful chemical intermediates or to functionalize existing polymers to provide new materials with improved properties.
Detailed molecular-level mechanistic understanding of macromolecular conversions of polymers to materials or chemical intermediates for upcycled products from plastics.
Co-design of materials and chemical processes, coupling aspects of plastics construction, use, disassembly, and reassembly to maximize energy efficiency.
Novel approaches for efficiently delivering the energy required to drive specific chemical transformations and enable both energy- and carbon-efficient plastics upcycling.
Development of next-generation tools to probe macromolecular transformations and/or to understand polymer-catalyst interactions and behavior that drive conversion and selectivity during upcycling processes.

APPLICANT REQUIREMENTS: No restrictions.
AWARD: Up to $1,500,000 per year for 3 years.
SPONSOR DEADLINE: Pre-applications due March 10, 2021. Applications due May 12, 2021.