Bureau of Reclamation, Acquisition Operations Group, Code D-7810, Denver Federal Center, PO Box 25007, Denver CO 80225

A -- BROAD AGENCY ANNOUNCEMENT FOR APPLIED RESEARCH-DESALINATION RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM DUE 121798 POC Contact Diana Mulligan, (303) 445-2436, Grants and Cooperative Agreements WEB: AAMS Current Solicitation Listing, http://www.usbr.gov/aamsden. E-MAIL: Diana Mulligan, dmulligan@do.usbr.gov. Requests for this pre-proposal solicitation package shall be made in writing to the above address, or by facsimile to (303) 445-6345 or by E-Mail to dmulligan@do.usbr.gov, reference the Water Desalination Research and Development Program Pre-Proposal. Telephone requests will not be honored. This may be the only notice issued. Pre-proposals must be submitted in accordance with the instructions contained in the pre-proposal package and shall not exceed six pages in length. Pre-proposals are due no later than 12/17/98. The U.S. Dept. of the Interior, Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation), is currently requesting pre-proposals for research activities sponsored by the Water Desalination Research and Development (DesalR&D) Program. Through this program, Reclamation is forming partnerships with private industry, universities, local communities, and others to address a broad range of desalting needs. The overall objective of the program is to reduce the cost of desalting technologies in order to augment water supply in the United States. The Water Desalination Act of 1996, the authorizing legislation for this program, defines the following important terms: (1) Desalination or desalting means "the use of any process or technique for the removal and, when feasible, adaptation to beneficial use, of organic and inorganic elements and compounds from saline or biologically impaired waters, by itself or in conjunction with other processes." (2) Saline water means "sea water, brackish water, and other mineralized or chemically impaired water." For fiscal year 1999, Reclamation is soliciting pre-proposals in six different research areas for projects of 12 months duration or less (follow-on funding may be available for additional research studies, pilot-plant projects, or future demonstration projects). The award amount varies according to the area of interest. Offerors (other than academic institutions of higher education) must be willing to cost-share 50% or more of the project cost, depending on the financial need of the project. Offerors proposing to provide additional cost-share will be given greater consideration. Cost-sharing may be made through cash or in-kind contributions from the offeror, or third party non-Federal participants. Cost-sharing is not mandatory from academic institutions, but is strongly encouraged. The authorizing legislation for this program provides for up to a total of $1,000,000 per year to be awarded to academic institutions of higher education, including United States-Mexico binational research foundations and inter-university research programs established by the two countries, without any cost-sharing requirement. No profit or fee will be allowed. Patent rights for any developments will be retained by the research partner (offeror) in accordance with provisions contained in the solicitation. Reclamation's laboratory facilities are available for use on a cost reimburseable basis. These include laboratory and pilot-scale equipment at the Technical Service Center in Denver, Colorado, and the state-of-the-art water treatment facility, the Water Quality Improvement Center, in Yuma, Arizona. Additional information regarding the use and cost of these facilities may be obtained by contacting the above. Any responsible source, to include individuals, academic institutions, commercial or industrial organizations, private entities, public entities (including state and local), or Indian Tribal Governments, may submit a pre-proposal which will be considered by Reclamation. Foreign entities, other than United States-Mexico binational research foundations and inter-university research programs established by the two countries, are not eligible for funding under the authorizing legislation for this program. Federal agencies are not eligible to apply. Pre-proposals will be reviewed for overall scientific and/or technical merit, potential contributions to Reclamation's DesalR&D program objectives, qualifications of the proposer; and reasonableness of the estimated project costs and proposed cost sharing. Meritorious pre-proposers will be encouraged to submit a full proposal. Submission of a pre-proposal is not mandatory; however, offerors are strongly encouraged to do so in order to receive the benefit of the initial pre-proposal screening process. It is anticipated that solicitation packages for full proposals will be issued by no later than 2/28/99, with a due date of approximately 45 days after issuance. Brief descriptions of each area of interest and their respective funding amounts are listed below. During fiscal year 1999, Reclamation anticipates making awards in the quantities listed below, subject to the content and quality of proposals received for each task area; however, should additional funding become available, additional awards may be made. A list of generic examples of the types of research and development opportunities that will be considered are listed below for each Task Areas A through F. These examples will not necessarily be given preferential consideration over unspecified research that also meets the goals of the program. Due to current funding levels, pre-proposals submitted under Tasks B, C, and F will be combined for evaluation. For fiscal year 1999, Reclamation anticipates the award of a total of two (2) or three (3) financial assistance agreements, with Federal funding of $40,000 to $50,000 for each agreement, for the combined Tasks B, C, and F. TASK A -- MEMBRANE PROCESS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT STUDIES -- The primary objective of this task is to reduce the cost and increase the ease of operation of membrane-based desalting and water treatment systems. Projects sponsored under this emphasis area can apply to any portion of a membrane treatment process including pretreatment related to membrane processes. In fiscal year 1999, Reclamation expects to award one (1) to two (2) financial assistance agreements, with Federal funding of $50,000 to $100,000 for each agreement. Examples of these projects include but are not limited to (1) Development of membranes with improved properties, (2) Development of membranes with increased resistance to chlorine or other oxidants, (3) Development of ion- or component-specific membrane for reverse osmosis, electrodialysis, or other membrane-based processes, (4) Quality improvements in membrane element manufacture, (5) Research on techniques for membrane storage or preservation and for biological control during plant operation, (6) Studies on adhesion of foulant or other materials to membrane surfaces, (7) Studies on membrane cleaning, including frequency and effectiveness, (8) Development of improved membrane-containing element or stacks, (9) Increase of rates of mass transfer to membrane surfaces, (10) Studies on influence of minor components in groundwater on membrane properties, (11) Studies on pretreatment specifically for membrane processes, (12) Studies on presence and influence of biofilms on membranes, and (13) Development of investigative techniques relating to membranes and membrane processes. TASK B -- THERMAL PROCESS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT STUDIES -- Research and development studies will focus on improvements in thermally driven desalting processes. Thermal processes are generally applied to seawater desalting due to the high energy investment. Projects sponsored under this area can apply to any portion of the thermal desalting process, including pre- and post-treatment for these processes. Examples of these projects include but are not limited to (1) Research and development studies of improvements and/or cost reductions in thermally driven desalting processes including multi-state flash, multiple effect, or vapor compression distillation, (2) Evaluation and development of methods to improve the heat economy of thermally driven desalting processes, (3) Investigation of methods to resolve pre- or post-treatment issues of thermally driven desalting processes, and (4) Investigation of methods to reduce the formation of scale and corrosion in thermally driven desalting processes. Only technologies with the potential of becoming cost competitivewith existing membrane and thermal processes will be considered. Proposed projects should have the potential to become commercially viable and have wide applicability. TASK C -- NON-TRADITIONAL AND ALTERNATIVE DESALINATION RESEARCH AND STUDIES -- Research and development studies will focus on investigation of non-traditional, or alternative desalination techniques, to include the evaluation of economics and thermodynamic efficiency of these processes. Examples of these projects include but are not limited to (1) Development of new, innovative alternative desalination processes, (2) Investigation of innovative techniques combining desalination processes with renewable energy sources including photovoltaic, wind power, solar thermal, and geothermal, and (3) Investigation of freeze desalination and innovative combined desalination processes. Only technologies with the potential of becoming cost competitive with existing membrane and thermal processes will be considered. Proposed projects should have the potential to become commercially viable and have wide applicability. TASK D -- WATER RECYCLING AND REUSE -- Research and development studies will support activities directed at innovative methods to treat municipal, industrial, or agricultural waste water in a cost-effective manner. Projects could also include solving specific problems related to specific reuse facilities, in order to improve the economics or overall operation and maintenance of existing or future facilities. In fiscal year 1999, Reclamation expects to award one (1) or two (2) financial assistance agreements, with Federal funding of up to $50,000 for each agreement. Examples of these projects include but are not limited to (1) Investigating innovative methods to recycle and reuse municipal, agricultural, or industrial process water or waste waters, (2) Research studies to remove toxic substances from waste water streams, i.e., pesticides, heavy metals, radioactive elements, etc., (3) Research studies aimed at innovative methods to upgrade existing industrial waste water treatment processes to meet state/federal standards, (4) Development of low-cost treatment methods for high nitrate well waters from farm fertilization or cattle operations, and (5) Developing "leak-proof" recycling treatment technologies. TASK E -- ANCILLARY AND ECONOMIC IMPROVEMENTS -- In fiscal year 1999, Reclamation expects to award one (1) or two (2) financial assistance agreements, with Federal funding of up to $40,000 for each agreement. This task addresses four aspects of the authorizing legislation for this program that relate to the general economic improvement of desalination processes: (1) A method for evaluating the economic implications of technological improvements is of primary importance at this time. Reclamation has models for reverse osmosis and nanofiltration that are sensitive enough for this purpose, but needs models for electrodialysis, ion exchange, and thermal desalting methods. If the costs of desalting are to be decreased through this program it is vital that models for all desalting methods be obtained so that the recent technological improvements made under this program can be compared on an equal basis, (2) Studies optimizing cost and/or design for different operating conditions, (3) Investigation of methods for increasing the economic efficiency of desalination processes, including hybrid systems or dual-purpose co-facilities with other processes involving the use of water, (4) Detailed surveys of construction and operating costs for desalination facilities with common itemized categories of costs for each plant surveyed normalized to a common basis. TASK F -- CONCENTRATE ISSUES -- Research and development studies will evaluate the various problems related to concentrate disposal, and develop innovative techniques to reduce concentrate disposal costs and impacts on the environment. Examples of these projects include but are not limited to (1) Concentrate disposal systems development, (2) Recovery and use of concentrate by-products (dissolved salts), (3) Salinity modeling and toxicity analysis of concentrate discharges to the environment, (4) Substitution of brackish concentrate for potable water in industrial applications, and (5) Removal of supersaturated salts to permit further desalting of concentrate and reduce the volume of concentrate requiring disposal. Only technologies with the potential of becoming cost competitive with existing alternative disposal methods will be considered. Proposed projects should have the potential to become commercially viable and have wide applicability. Posted 11/03/98 (W-SN267671). (0307)

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