Desalination and Water Purification Research Program: Research Projects FY25

Background
The U.S. Department of the Interior, through the Bureau of Reclamation, is issuing this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) to support research projects under the Desalination and Water Purification Research Program (DWPR). The mission of the Bureau is to manage, develop, and protect water resources in an environmentally and economically sound manner.

The DWPR program aims to develop innovative and cost-effective technologies for desalinating and treating water, addressing national concerns about water scarcity and quality, particularly in the context of climate change.

Grant Details
The DWPR Research NOFO invites applicants to address various objectives including:
1) Developing or improving processes to reduce costs, energy consumption, feasibility, and environmental impacts of treating impaired water;
2) Improving existing membrane technologies such as reverse osmosis;
3) Conducting research on next-generation desalination technologies;
4) Developing cost-effective concentrate management approaches;
5) Creating technologies for selective removal of nutrients and contaminants;
6) Studying byproduct recovery methods from desalination;
7) Enhancing intake/outfall methods at coastal facilities;
8) Understanding pathogen removal efficiencies in reuse scenarios;
9) Identifying indicators for monitoring desalination processes;
10) Investigating hazardous transformation products during treatment;
11) Improving detection and separation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS); and
12) Developing destruction technologies for PFAS.

Eligibility Requirements
Eligible applicants include state governments, county governments, city or township governments, special district governments, Native American tribal governments, institutions of higher education, nonprofits, individuals, and for-profit organizations. Foreign entities are not eligible. Cost-sharing is not required but strongly encouraged.

Period of Performance
Laboratory-scale projects should be completed within 24 months of award. Pilot-scale projects should be completed within 36 months of award.

Grant Value
Approximately $2 million is available under this NOFO. Maximum awards are up to $250,000 for laboratory-scale projects and up to $800,000 for pilot-scale projects.

Place of Performance
Research may be conducted at Reclamation’s Brackish Groundwater National Desalination Research Facility in Alamogordo, New Mexico, or the Water Quality Improvement Center in Yuma, Arizona.