Biomass Research and Development Initiative (BRDI)

Supporting research, development, and demonstrations on cost-effective ways to produce alternative fuels and chemicals from biomass resources

Authorized in Section 9008 of the 2002 Farm Bill, the Biomass Research and Development Initiative offers grants to eligible entities to carry out research, development, and demonstrations on cost-effective ways to produce ethanol and other fuels and chemicals from biomass resources such as agricultural and forestry residues or fast-growing trees and grasses. This requires efficient technology to extract and use the sugars in cellulose and hemicellulose—the fibrous bulk of plant material. Developing this technology is the primary focus of the Biofuels Program.

The program funds research on biobased products, bioenergy, biofuels, biopower, and related processes. The program is conducted as a collaboration between the Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Energy (DOE) to expand the nation’s overall supply of clean and affordable energy. Biomass is defined as organic non-fossil material of biological origin constituting a renewable energy source.

Project Examples
Selected projects for the 2003 fiscal year were in seven areas: crosscutting, product uses, thermal conversion, bioconversion, feedstocks, anaerobic, and biorefineries. Some examples:

• The Metabolix Corporation in Cambridge, MA, was funded to develop genetically engineered switchgrass that can be processed in a biorefinery to produce a family of biodegradable, biobased polymers, polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), and energy.
• Utah State University was funded to explore technical systems and market analyses of a full-scale anaerobic digester dairy farm system that generated significant amounts of electricity (two 80 kW microturbines) that will be fed into the power grid.
• A Tesuque, NM, company was funded to design a district heating system for the downtown area of Santa Fe, using woody biomass from overstocked fire-prone forests surrounding the community. Beneficial impacts on output, earnings, and jobs for the optimized model will be quantified, and the results will be used to teach other communities how to develop their local economies and improve their energy security using renewable biomass energy.

Application and Financial Information
All eligible applications are evaluated in a joint USDA/DOE technical merit review process, as well as reviews by each department based on cost and programmatic priorities. The DOE selected four winning projects and the USDA fifteen.

The joint solicitation process was managed by the USDA in 2003, and in 2004 will be managed by the Department of Energy. It will continue to have alternating departmental management each year. In 2003, the program awarded $23 million in biomass research funding to 19 project selected from about 400 applications.

Eligibility, Uses, and Restrictions
Eligible applicants include private sector entities, institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, national laboratories, federal and state research agencies, and consortiums of two or more of these entities. Grants are awarded competitively based on technical merit and program priorities identified in the solicitation package. This solicitation requires a minimum non-federal share of 20 percent of the total project cost. The federal share of each grant is expected to range from $250,000 to $2 million, with the work proposed to be completed within a 3-year timeframe.

Contact
The National Biomass Coordination Office serves as the Executive Secretariat for the Biomass Research and Development Initiative, conducting the day-to-day activities of the Initiative. Staffed by both the Departments of Energy and Agriculture, the Coordination Office is located at the DOE headquarters in Washington, DC.

National Biomass Coordination Office
U.S. Department of Energy
1000 Independence Avenue, SW
Mail-Code EE-1 Washington, DC 20585
Phone: (202) 586-7766;
Fax: (202) 586-5010
E-mail: sara.mitcho@ee.doe.gov
The principal contact at USDA is Glenn Carpenter at (301) 504-2212, with the NRCS Animal Husbandry and Clean Water Division.

Internet
www.brdisolutions.com

Information about additional energy grants provided by the Farm Bill and about USDA’s energy policy can be found at
www.rurdev.usda.gov/rbs/farmbill/ and
www.usda.gov/oce/energy/, respectively.