DOE Invests $100 Million for Pilot-Scale Carbon Conversion

Funding will Enable the Manufacture of More Sustainable Products With Long-Term Potential for Lower Costs and Superior Performance

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) today announced up to $100 million in federal funding for large-scale conversion of carbon emissions captured from industrial operations and power plants into environmentally responsible and economically valuable products. Provided by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the funding will advance the pilot scale testing of carbon conversion technologies with high technology readiness levels (TRLs) capable of achieving significant carbon mitigation via biological, catalytic, or mineralization pathways.

>> In Other News: DOE Invests Nearly $14 Million To Develop Carbon Conversion Pathways

“Carbon conversion technologies enable the transformation of captured carbon emissions into sustainable and economically valuable products with many different applications,” said Brad Crabtree, Assistant Secretary of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management. “The funding announced today will help demonstrate the feasibility of these technologies and further develop them for broader-scale adoption.”

This notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) also supports testing of carbon conversion product performance and characterization needed for market or consumer adoption. This may include life cycle analysis (LCA) development for novel carbon conversion technologies and LCA development for pilot facilities using these technologies.

This NOFO supports DOE’s Carbon Conversion Program, which works to develop and advance technologies that feasibly convert captured carbon emissions into more sustainable carbon-derived products, including chemicals, fuels, building materials, plastics, and bioproducts, with the potential for lower costs and improved performance over time.

Selected projects will perform research in the following four topic areas:

Pilot-Scale Biological Conversion

Research focused on technologies at TRL 5 that seek pilot scale conversion of carbon dioxide, either through photosynthetic or non-photosynthetic routes. Research and development (R&D) will support algae biomass production, separation, and conversion, as well as autotrophic CO2 fermentation to fuels and products.

Pilot-Scale Catalytic Conversion

Research focused on technologies at TRL 5 that seek pilot scale thermochemical and electrochemical conversion of carbon dioxide. R&D will support reactor and catalyst performance improvements, long-term stability, and electrolyzer stack durability and design.

Pilot-Scale Mineralization

Research focused on technologies at TRL 5 that seek pilot scale mineralization of carbon dioxide to produce synthetic aggregates, alternative binders, or injection, curing, and carbonation processes. R&D will support pilot scale operations at a scale of 10 tonnes/day.

Other Testing and LCA Development Required for Commercialization

R&D will support performance testing in specific environments, production of the amount of material needed for testing, performance validation support, and specific tests required as a prerequisite for participation in competitive purchasing and procurement processes.

Read more details of this NOFO here. All questions must be submitted through FedConnect; register here for an account. The application deadline is April 11, 2025 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time.

FECM reduces emissions from fossil energy production and use and key industrial processes, while strengthening U.S. energy and critical minerals security. To learn more, visit the FECM website. Sign up for FECM news announcements and visit the National Energy Technology Laboratory website_. _