Continuation of Fire Research Grants ProgramAvailability of Funds

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

National Institute of Standards and Technology

[Docket No. 960227052-6052-01]

RIN: 0693-ZA06

Continuation of Fire Research Grants Program--Availability of

Funds

AGENCY: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Commerce.

ACTION: Announcing NIST continuation of fire research grants program.

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SUMMARY: The purpose of this notice is to inform potential applicants

that the Fire Research Program, National Institute of Standards and

Technology, is continuing its Fire Research Grants Program.

DATES FOR APPLICATION: September 30, 1996.

ADDRESSES: Applicants must submit one signed original and two (2)

copies of the proposal along with the Application for Federal

Assistance, Standard Form 424, (Rev. 4-92), as referenced under the

provisions of OMB Circular A-110 to: Building and Fire Research

Laboratory, Attention: Sonya Parham, Building 226, Room B206, National

Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, Maryland 20899-

0001.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Technical questions concerning the

NIST Fire Research Grants Program should be directed to Sonya Parham,

(301) 975-6854. Administrative questions concerning the NIST Fire

Research Grants Program may be directed to the NIST Grants Office at

(301) 975-6329.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Name and Number:

Measurement and Engineering Research Standards; 11.609.

Authority: As authorized by section 16 of the Act of March 3,

1901, as amended (15 U.S.C.; 278f), the NIST Building and Fire

Research Laboratory conducts directly and through grants and

cooperative agreements, a basic and applied fire research program.

The annual budget for the Fire Research Program is approximately

$1.4 million. Because of commitments for the support of multi-year

programs, only a portion of the budget is available to initiate new

programs, only a portion of the budget is available to initiate new

programs in any one year. Most grants and cooperative agreements are

in the $10,000 to $100,000 per year range. The Fire Research Program

is limited to innovative ideas which are generated by the proposal

writer on what research to carry out and how to carry it out. The

issuance of awards is contingent upon the availability of funding.

All grant proposals submitted must be in accordance with the

programs and objectives listed below.

Program Objectives

A. Fire Modeling and Applications: To perform research, develop,

and demonstrate the application of analytical models for the

quantitative prediction of the consequences of fires and the means to

assess the accuracy of those models. This includes: Developing methods

to assess fire hazard and risk; creating advanced, usable models for

the calculation of the effluent from building fires; modeling the

ignition and burning of furniture, contents, and building elements such

as walls; developing methods of evaluating and predicting the

performance of building safety design features; developing a protocol

for determining the accuracy of algorithms and comprehensive models;

and developing data bases to facilitate use of fire models.

B. Large Fire Research: To perform research on and develop

techniques to measure, predict the behavior of, and mitigate large fire

events. This includes: Understanding the mechanisms of large fires that

control gas phase combustion, burning rate, thermal and chemical

emissions, transport processes; developing field measurement

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techniques to assess the near- and far-field impact of large fires and

their plumes; performing research on the use of combustion for

environmental cleanup; predicting the performance and environmental

impact of fire protection measures and fire fighting systems and

techniques; and developing and operating the Fire Research Program

large-scale experimental facility.

C. Smoke Dynamics Research: To produce scientifically sound

principles, metrology, data, and predictive methods for the formation/

evolution of smoke components in flames for use in understanding and

predicting general fire phenomena. This includes research on the

effects of within-flame and post-flame fluid mechanics on the formation

and emission of smoke, including particulates, aerosols, and combustion

gases; understanding the mechanistic pathway for soot from chemical

inception to post-flame agglomerates; and developing calculation

methods for the prediction of the yields of CO (and eventually other

toxicants) as a function of fuel type, availability of air, and fire

scale.

D. Materials Fire Research: To perform research to understand

fundamentally the mechanisms that control the ignition, flame spread,

and burning rate of materials and the chemical and physical

characteristics that affect these aspects of flammability. This

involves developing methods of measuring and predicting the response of

a material to a fire, including characterizing the burning rates of

charring and non-charring polymers and composites; delineating and

modeling the enthalpy and mass transfer mechanisms of materials

combustion; and developing computational molecular dynamics and other

mechanistic approaches to understand the relationships between polymer

structure and flammability.

E. Fire Sensing and Extinguishment: To develop understanding,

metrology, and predictive methods to enable high-performance fire

sensing and extinguishment systems. This involves devising new

approaches to minimizing the impact of unwanted fires and the

suppression process, including research for the identification and in-

situ measurements of the symptoms of pending and nascent fires or

explosions, and the consequences of suppression; devising or adapting

monitors for these variables and creating the intelligence for timely

interpretation of the data; determining mechanisms for deflagration and

detonation suppression by advanced agents and principles for their

optimal use; modeling the extinguishment process; and developing

performance measures for the effectiveness of suppression system

design.

Award Period: Proposals will be considered for research projects

from one to three years. When a proposal for a multi-year grant is

approved, funding will be provided for only the first year of the

program. If an application is selected for funding, DoC has no

obligation to provide any additional future funding in connection with

that award. Renewal of an award to increase funding or extend the

period of performance is at the total discretion of DoC.

Matching Requirements: The Fire Research Grants Program does not

involve the payment of any matching funds and does not directly affect

any state or local government.

Eligibility: Academic institutions, non-Federal agencies, and

independent and industrial laboratories.

Proposal Review Process: All proposals are assigned to the

appropriate group leader of the five programs listed above. Both

technical value of the proposal and the relationship of the work

proposed to the needs of the specific program are taken into

consideration in the group leader's recommendation to the Deputy

Director. Applicants should allow up to 90 days processing time.

Proposals are evaluated for technical merit by at least three reviewers

chosen from NIST professionals, technical experts from other interested

government agencies and experts from the fire research community at

large.

Evaluation Criteria:

a. Intrinsic value of the research--0-40.

b. Qualifications--0-20.

c. Utility of the research--0-20.

d. Balance and financial feasibility--0-20.

Selection Procedure: The results of these evaluations are

transmitted to the group leader of the appropriate research unit in the

Building and Fire Research Laboratory who prepares an analysis of

comments and makes a recommendation.

Paperwork Reduction Act: The Standard Forms 424, 424A, 424B, and

LLL mentioned in this notice are subject to the requirements of the

Paperwork Reduction Act and have been approved by the Office of

Management and Budget, (OMB), under Control Numbers 0348-0043, 0348-

0044, 0348-0040, and 0348-0006.

Application Kit: An application kit, containing all required

application forms and certifications is available by calling Sonya

Parham, NIST Fire Research Grants Program (301) 975-6854. An

application kit includes the following:

SF-424 (Rev. 4/92)--Application for Federal Assistance.

SF-424A (Rev. 4/92)--Budget Information-Non-Construction Programs.

SF-424B (Rev. 4/92)--Assurances-Non-Construction Programs.

CD-511 (7/91)--Certification Regarding Debarment, Suspension, and

Other Responsibility Matters: Drug-Free Workplace Requirements and

Lobbying.

CD-512 (7/91)--Certification Regarding Debarment, Suspension,

Ineligibility and Voluntary Exclusions-Lower Tier Covered Transactions

and Lobbying.

SF-LLL--Disclosure of Lobbying Activities.

Additional Requirements

Past Performance: Unsatisfactory performance under prior Federal

awards may result in an application not being considered for funding.

Preaward Activities: Applicants that incur any costs prior to an

award being made do so solely at their own risk of not being reimbursed

by the Federal Government. Applicants are also hereby notified that

notwithstanding any verbal assurance that they may have received, there

is no obligation on the part of DoC to cover preaward costs.

Primary Application Certification: All primary applicants must

submit a completed Form CD-511, ``Certification Regarding Debarment,

Suspension and Other Responsibility Matters; Drug-Free Workplace

Requirements and Lobbying,'' and the following explanations are hereby

provided:

1. Nonprocurement Debarment and Suspension. Prospective

participants (as defined at 15 CRF Part 26, Section 605) are subject to

15 CFR Part 26, Subpart F., ``Nonprocurement Debarment and Suspension''

and the related section of the certification form prescribed above

applies;

2. Drug-Free Workplace. Grantees (as defined at 15 CFR Part 26,

Section 605) are subject to 15 CFR Part 26, Subpart F.,

``Governmentwide Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace (Grants)'' and

the related section of the certification form prescribed above applies;

3. Anti-Lobbying. Persons (as defined at 15 CFR Part 28, Section

105) are subject to the lobbying provisions of 31 U.S.C. 1352,

``Limitation on use of appropriated funds to influence certain Federal

contracting and financial transactions,'' and the lobbying section of

the certification form prescribed above applies to application/bids for

grants, cooperative agreements , and contracts for more than $100,000,

and

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loans and loan guarantees for more than $150,000, or the single family

maximum mortgage limit for affected programs, whichever is greater,

and;

4. Anti-Lobbying Disclosure. Any applicant that has been paid or

will pay for lobbying using any funds must submit an SF-LLL,

``Disclosure of Lobbying Activities,'' as required under 15 CFR Part

28, Appendix B.

5. Lower Tier Certifications. Recipients shall require applicants/

bidders for subgrants, contracts, subcontracts, or other lower tier

covered transactions at any tier under the award to submit, if

applicable, a completed Form CD-512, ``Certification Regarding

Debarment, Suspension, Ineligibility and Voluntary Exclusion-Lower Tier

Covered Transactions and Lobbying'' and disclosure form, SF-LLL,

``Disclosure of Lobbying Activities.'' Form CD-512 is intended for the

use of recipients and should not be transmitted to NIST. SF-LLL

submitted by an tier recipients or subrecipient should be submitted to

NIST in accordance with the instructions contained in the award

document.

Name Check Reviews: All for-profit and non-profit applicants will

be subject to a name check review process. Name checks are intended to

reveal if any key individuals associated with the applicant have been

convicted of or are presently facing, criminal charges such as fraud,

theft, perjury, or other matters which significantly reflect on the

applicant's management honesty or financial integrity.

False Statements: Applicants are reminded that a false statement

may be grounds for denial or termination of funds and grounds for

possible punishment by fine or imprisonment.

Delinquent Federal Debts: No award of Federal funds shall be made

to an applicant who has an outstanding delinquent Federal debt until

either:

1. The delinquent account is paid in full;

2. A negotiated repayment schedule is established and at least one

payment is received, or,

3. Other arrangements satisfactorily to DoC are made.

No Obligation for Future Funding: If an application is accepted for

funding, DoC has no obligation to provide any additional future funding

in connection with that award. Renewal of an award, increased funding,

or extending the period of performance is at the total discretion of

NIST.

Federal Policies & Procedures: Recipients and subrecipients under

the Fire Research Grants Program are subject to all applicable Federal

laws and Federal and Department policies, regulations, and procedures

applicable to Federal financial assistance awards. The Fire Research

Grant Program does not directly affect any state or local government.

Applications under this program are not subject to Executive Order

12372, ``Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs.''

Purchase of American-Made Equipment and Products: Applicants are

hereby notified that they are encouraged, to the greatest extent

practicable, to purchase American-made equipment and products with

funding provided under this program.

Indirect Costs: The total dollar amount of the indirect costs

proposed in an application under this program must not exceed the

indirect cost rate negotiated and approved by a cognizant Federal

agency prior to the proposed effective date of the award or 100 percent

of the total proposed direct cost dollar amount in the application,

whichever is less.

Executive Order 12866: This funding notice has been determined to

be ``not significant'' for purposes of E.O. 12866.

Dated: March 27, 1996.

Samuel Kramer,

Associate Director.

[FR Doc. 96-8139 Filed 4-2-96; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-13-M