Reducing Agricultural Carbon Intensity and Protecting Algal Crops (RACIPAC) FY23
- Currently Closed
Open Date:
Close Date:
Upcoming Milestones:
Eligible Recipients:
- Educational Institution
- Local Government
- Native/Tribal Entity
- Non-profit
- Private Sector
- State Government
Program Purpose:
- Agriculture
- Economic Development
- Education and Workforce Development
- Environmental Clean-up
- Health and Safety
- Other Infrastructure
Reserved for Energy
Communities?
Bureau/Office
Funded by:
Overview
This funding opportunity announcement (FOA), through two distinct topic areas – the first focused on climate-smart agricultural practices and the second on algae crop protection – supports BETO’s RCR Program’s strategies for the development of conversion-ready feedstocks for biofuels and bioproducts and supports the Biden Administration’s goal to produce sustainable aviation fuels.
Climate-smart agricultural practices, such as conservation tillage, cover crops, nutrient management, and soil amendments (e.g., biochar applications), are promising approaches to reduce carbon intensity and improve sustainable production of biomass resources. Topic Area 1 projects will assess the efficacy of climate-smart agricultural practices that reduce the carbon intensity (CI) of biomass feedstocks for biofuels. Implementation of climate-smart agricultural practices is essential to produce low CI feedstocks, particularly from agricultural residues to enable sustainable aviation fuel production with lower greenhouse gas emissions. Topic Area 1, Climate-Smart Agricultural Practices for Low Carbon Intensity Feedstocks, has two subtopic areas:
- Subtopic Area 1a: Climate-Smart Agricultural Practices to Produce Low CI Feedstocks Derived from Agricultural Residues, and
- Subtopic Area 1b: Biochar Strategies to Increase Soil Carbon Levels and Agronomic Benefits of Crops for Energy Production
Cultivating algae (micro-, macro-, and cyanobacteria) and converting it to biofuels and bioproducts is an important component of BETO’s strategy for enabling the production of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF). One of the major cost contributors of producing algae is biomass loss due to predation, competition, and pest infestations. Developing effective strategies to protect algal biomass production is essential to meeting BETO’s long-term goals of decarbonizing the transportation and industrial sectors via cost competitive algal-derived biofuels and bioproducts. Topic Area 2, Algae Crop Protection, focuses on developing crop protection methods and strategies for algae cultivation systems.
Related Resources
Additional information is available on the Resources page.Funding Details
Funding Source:
- Annual Appropriation
Funding Type:
Total Amount Available:
Limit per Applicant:
Estimated Awards:
Applicant Guidance
The required Concept Paper due date for this FOA was March 20, 2023 at 5PM ET.
https://eere-exchange.energy.gov/Default.aspx#FoaId13118f7c-8d89-490e-929d-20e6c076028a
https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=345893