DE-FOA-0002473: Single-Use Plastics Recycling (SUPR)

Program and FOA Description for Grants.gov:

The Department of Energy (DOE) is issuing this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) to address the unique economic and design circularity challenges of plastic films, enabling energy and emissions reduction through their lifecycle.

The BioEnergy Technology Office (BETO) develops technologies that convert domestic biomass and waste resources into fuels, products, and power to enable affordable energy, economic growth, and innovation in renewable energy and chemicals production. The Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO) develops technologies that drive industrial decarbonization, energy productivity improvements in the U.S. manufacturing sector, efficiently utilize resources, and support the manufacture of clean energy products with benefits extending across the economy. BETO and AMO fund applied research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) to bolster the body of scientific and engineering knowledge to develop a circular economy for plastics through novel plastics development designed for circularity and establishing deconstruction and upcycling pathways for existing polymers that will generate high-value products. This FOA builds upon the FY20 BOTTLE FOA and seeks to fill a gap identified in the 2019 Plastics for a Circular Economy Workshop, where single-use packaging was highlighted as an important focus area. It will support high-impact technology R&D in technologies that overcome the challenges associated with the recycling of films, which are often used in single-use packaging applications.

This FOA seeks applications that enable the recycling and upcycling of films. Challenges associated with film recycling are vast, spanning collection, sorting/separation, contamination, and lack of economic methods for recycling and upcycling. Multilayer materials present further challenges, including immiscibility of different polymer layers and inclusion of inorganic materials. Technology can help to address these challenges by developing methods for recycling, deconstruction, and upcycling films that are sufficiently economic to incentivize collection, sorting and retention. Designing films to be inherently more recyclable or biodegradable, while retaining desired properties such as flexibility, barrier properties and strength could also make recycling of films more economical.

This FOA aims to increase recycling, upcycling, or environmentally benign degradation of films by pursuing two approaches:

1) Development of recycling and upcycling pathways for plastic films that are economically favorable, lower green house gas (GHG) emissions, and reduce the embodied energy of plastics; and

2) Redesign of multi-layer films to be inherently recyclable or biodegradable.

EERE Exchange is designed to enforce the deadlines specified in this FOA. The Apply and Submit buttons will automatically disable at the defined submission deadlines. Should applicants experience problems with EERE Exchange, the following information may be helpful.

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 (exchangehelp@hq.doe.gov). The eXCHANGE helpdesk and/or the EERE eXCHANGE System Administrators (eXCHANGE@go.doe.gov) will assist the Applicant in resolving all issues.

Applicants that experience issues with submissions that result in a late submission: In the event that an Applicant experiences technical difficulties with a submission that results in a late submission, the Applicant should contact the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance (exchangehelp@hq.doe.gov) The eXCHANGE helpdesk and/or the EERE eXCHANGE System Administrators (eXCHANGE@go.doe.gov) will assist the Applicant in resolving all issues (including finalizing the submission on behalf of, and with the Applicant's concurrence). DOE will only accept late applications when the Applicant has a) encountered technical difficulties beyond their control; b) has contacted the eXCHANGE helpdesk for assistance; and c) has submitted the applicant through eXCHANGE within 24 hours of the FOA's posted deadline.