The DOE Hydrogen Program supports the President's Hydrogen Fuel Initiate (HFI).  The President's 2005 Budget Request proposes that fundamental research within the Basic Energy Science (BES) program be included in the HFI to help overcome key hurdles in hydrogen production, storage, and conversion.  Contingent upon FY 2005 appropriations from Congress, research awards will be made according to the information provided in the requests for proposals listed below.  A mandatory preproposal was due by July 15, 2004.  The FY 2005 BES hydrogen solicitations are now CLOSED. 
 
Researchers submitted 668 preproposals, which were reviewed by DOE for conformance to the guidelines contained in the solicitations.  Each preproposal was reviewed by at least one of five panels corresponding to the five submission categories listed below.  The panels consisted of DOE federal officials who are knowledgeable in the respective research areas and who have responsibilities for managing projects within the HFI.  The review panels judged the suitability of the preapplications in accordance with DOE's scientific, technical, and strategic goals related to the HFI.

Following the review, principal investigators of 261 preproposals received notification from DOE encouraging the submission of a full proposal associated with their preproposal.  The distribution of successful preproposals in the five technical focus areas is provided below:

                    A:  Novel Materials for Hydrogen Storage  (56 preproposals)
                    B:  Membranes for Separation, Purification, and Ion Transport  (63 preproposals)
                    C:  Design of Catalysts at the Nanoscale  (68 preproposals)
                    D:  Solar Hydrogen Production  (51 preproposals)
                    E:  Bio-Inspired Materials and Processes  (23 preproposals)
 
As stated in the request for proposals, only those preproposers who received notification from DOE encouraging a formal proposal may submit full proposals.  No other full proposals to the FY 2005 BES hydrogen solicitations will be accepted.   For those researchers receiving written DOE encouragement, a full peer-reviewable proposal is due by January 4, 2005.
 

Basic Research Needs for the Hydrogen Economy
This report is based upon the BES Workshop on Hydrogen Production, Storage, and Use, held May 13–15, 2003, to identify fundamental research needs and opportunities in hydrogen production, storage, and use, with a focus on new, emerging and scientifically challenging areas that have the potential to have significant impact in science and technologies.  (more)
PDF file of this report  (7.5 MB, 2nd printing, February 2004)

Recent Information