Department of Energy: Funding for Rapid Encapsulation of Pipelines Avoiding Intensive Replacement (Repair)

Accordingly this modification,

•Updated certain deadlines, including the deadlines for submitting questions, Full Applications, and the Submission Deadline for Replies to Reviewer Comments. See Cover Page and Required Documents Checklist.

•Updated expected start date for funding agreements. Sec Sections II.A and V.C.

•Inserted an additional Program Policy Factor in Section V.B.1.

To obtain a copy of the Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) please go to the ARPA-E website at https://arpa-e-foa.energy.gov. ARPA-E will not review or consider applications submitted through other means. For detailed guidance on using ARPA-E eXCHANGE, please refer to the ARPA-E eXCHANGE User Guide (https://arpa-e-foa.energy.gov/Manuals.aspx).

The Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E), an organization within the Department of Energy (DOE), is chartered by Congress in the America COMPETES Act of 2007 (P.L. 110-69), as amended by the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2010 (P.L. 111-358) to:

“(A) to enhance the economic and energy security of the United States through the development of energy technologies that result in—
(i) reductions of imports of energy from foreign sources;
(ii) reductions of energy-related emissions, including greenhouse gases; and
(iii) improvement in the energy efficiency of all economic sectors; and
(B) to ensure that the United States maintains a technological lead in developing and deploying advanced energy technologies.”

ARPA-E issues this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) under the programmatic authorizing statute codified at 42 U.S.C. § 16538. The FOA and any awards made under this FOA are subject to 2 C.F.R. Part 200 as amended by 2 C.F.R. Part 910.

ARPA-E funds research on and the development of high-potential, high-impact energy technologies that are too early for private-sector investment. The agency focuses on technologies that can be meaningfully advanced with a modest investment over a defined period of time in order to catalyze the translation from scientific discovery to early-stage technology. For the latest news and information about ARPA-E, its programs and the research projects currently supported, see: http://arpa-e.energy.gov/.

Programmatic Overview:

REPAIR seeks to develop the suite of technologies required to rehabilitate cast iron, wrought iron, and bare steel natural gas distribution pipes by developing technologies that will enable the automated construction of a new pipe inside the old pipe. In order for the program to be successful, the new pipe must meet utilities’ and regulatory agencies’ requirements, have a minimum life of 50 years, and have sufficient material properties to operate throughout its service life without reliance on the exterior pipe. Today, older gas distribution pipes are typically excavated and replaced at costs up to $10 million per mile.

REPAIR will advance the state of gas distribution pipelines by incorporating smart functionality into structural coating materials and developing new integrity/inspection tools. It will also create 3D maps that integrate natural gas pipe and adjacent underground infrastructure geospatial information with integrity, leak, and coating deposition data. The cost target is $500k to $1 million per mile, including gas service disruption costs.