Process and Reaction Engineering National Science Foundation

DUE DATES

Full Proposal Window:  January 15, 2014 - February 20, 2014

SYNOPSIS

The Process and Reaction Engineering program supports fundamental and applied research on:

• Rates and mechanisms of important classes of catalyzed and uncatalyzed chemical reactions as they relate to the design, production, and application of catalysts, chemical processes, biochemical processes, and specialized materials

• Chemical and biochemical phenomena occurring at or near solid surfaces and interfaces

• Electrochemical and photochemical processes of engineering significance or with commercial potential

• Design and optimization of complex chemical and biochemical processes

• Dynamic modeling and control of process systems and individual process units

• Reactive processing of polymers, ceramics, and thin films

• Interactions between chemical reactions and transport processes in reactive systems, and the use of this information in the design of complex chemical and biochemical reactors 

• Recent emphasis on the development of sustainable energy technologies means that the support of projects on the processing aspects of chemical systems that further such technologies have high priority when funding decisions are made. Areas that focus on reactors of all types - fuel cells, batteries, microreactors, biochemical reactors, etc.; reactor design in general; and design and control of all systems associated with energy from renewable sources, have high priority for funding.

The Process and Reaction Engineering program funds research in: chemical and biochemical reaction engineering, process design and control, and reactive polymer processing.  Within these three areas, research supported is focused as follows:

• Chemical Reaction Engineering - the area encompasses the interaction of transport phenomena and kinetics in reactive systems and the use of this knowledge in the design of complex chemical and biochemical reactors.  Focus areas include non-traditional reactor systems such as membrane reactors, microreactors, and reactions in supercritical fluids; novel activation techniques such as plasmas, acoustics, and microwaves; and multifunctional systems synthesis such as "smart" molecules, "chemical laboratory on a chip," "chemical factory on a chip" concepts, bioreactor design and bioprocess optimization, and fermentation technology.  The program also supports new approaches for generating energy from renewable resources as well as optimizing new approaches in all areas such as developing atomic layer deposition for microelectronic devices.

• Process Design and Control - these areas encompass the design and optimization of complex chemical and biochemical processes and the dynamic modeling and control of process systems and individual process units.  High priority research topics include simultaneous product and process design, including bioprocesses; increased plant efficiency by algorithms that communicate across design levels and incorporate multiple criteria such as profitability, safety, operability, environmental sustainability, and societal concerns; and new sensor development to measure composition, product properties, morphology, etc.  Systems approaches that span and optimize across multiple scales, from nano to mega, and integrate planning and scheduling and the globalization of the industrial applications are also of interest to the program.  Utilization of the latest in cyberinfrastructure resources including hardware at the tera- and peta-scale is encouraged.

• Reactive Polymer Processing - program scope is limited in the polymerization area to research that integrates synthesis (chemical reaction of monomers to form polymer chains or complexes) and processing steps (steps that orient and anneal polymer melts and affect the long range conformations and consequently their properties).  Typical projects are in the areas of emulsion and miniemulsion polymerization, reaction injection molding, etc.  Program focus is on addressing environmental concerns while producing tailor-made molecules and materials.

The duration of unsolicited awards is generally one to three years.  The average annual award size for the program is $100,000.  Proposals requesting a substantially higher amount than this, without prior consultation with the Program Director, may be returned without review.

Innovative proposals outside of these specific interest areas can be considered.  However, prior to submission, it is recommended that the PI contact the Program Director to avoid the possibility of the proposal being returned without review.

Additional Program Information - 1403:  (e.g., Areas of Research, Research Highlights, Conferences and Workshops, Program Director Information, etc.)