Department of Energy announces opportunity for industry to connect with national laboratories to develop energy efficiency technologies

The Department of Energy (DOE) today announced a new solicitation to connect industry partners with the high-performance computing (HPC) resources and expertise at DOE’s national laboratories to improve material performance and advance manufacturing processes for an equitable clean-energy future.

Through the High-Performance Computing for Energy Innovation (HPC4EI) initiative, selected teams will harness the raw processing power of our National Labs’ supercomputers to apply advanced modeling, simulation and data analysis to manufacturing and materials projects.

HPC4EI is the parent initiative for the HPC4Manufacturing (HPC4Mfg) and HPC4Materials (HPC4Mtls) Programs. The HPC4EI Summer 2023 Solicitation will fund projects within both programs.

The HPC4Mfg program is funded through DOE’s Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office (AMMTO) and Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office (IEDO).

AMMTO seeks manufacturing partners interested in leveraging HPC resources to improve the operational performance of advanced materials and manufacturing processes, increase the resiliency and circularity of material supply chains, and advance manufacturing technologies for semiconductors and energy storage and conversion systems.

IEDO is looking for industry partners who will implement HPC-based solutions to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions across U.S. industry in subsectors including chemicals, cement, iron and steel manufacturing, food and beverage, forest products and water treatment facilities.

The HPC4Mtls program is funded through DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management. As part of its Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) and Conversion Program, FECM is soliciting industry partners who will use HPC to bolster domestic materials supply chains needed to reduce industrial emissions. Specific areas of interest include projects that will advance materials used for direct air capture, biomass carbon removal and storage (BiCRS), enhanced mineralization and marine CDR.

Eligibility is limited for U.S. manufacturers. U.S. universities, institutes, and other non-profit organizations are also eligible to participate as collaborators.  The solicitations encourage applicants to partner with a diverse range of universities, community colleges, and non-profit organizations, especially those located in disadvantaged communities.

Learn more about the topic areas and view the solicitation here. Concept papers will be due on Aug. 17.

There will be two webinars to go over details:

Wednesday, July 26 at 10 a.m. PDT
Registration link

Wednesday, Aug. 2 at 9 a.m. PDT
Registration link  

In addition to the summer 2023 solicitation, the HPC4EI Initiative is seeking public input to better understand the perceived value of HPC capabilities to small-and-medium-sized manufacturers and companies who have participated in the initiative in the past.

Read the full RFI here. Comments must be received by Friday, Aug.25.

The HPC4EI initiative is led by AMMTO with additional funding from IEDO and FECM. The initiative is managed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. To learn more, visit the HPC4EI website.