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U.S. Department of Energy Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

About Research & Development

Ultrasonic consolidation equipment joining dissimilar metals.

Simultaneous additive and subtractive solid-state processes enable energy-efficient manufacture of complex geometries. Photo credit: Oak Ridge National Laboratory

The Innovative Manufacturing Initiative (IMI) is the primary source of funding for the AMO R&D programs:

Next-Generation Processes

  • Reactions & Separations
  • High-Temperature Processing
  • Waste Heat Minimization/Recovery
  • Sustainable Manufacturing

Next-Generation Materials

  • Thermal & Degradation Resistant Materials
  • Highly Functional, High-Performance Materials
  • Lower-Cost Materials for Energy Systems

Next-generation technologies can transform U.S. manufacturing and open new markets. The Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO) supports Research and Development of novel technologies that will help manufacturers become more robust, adaptable, profitable, and globally competitive.

AMO R&D funding moves innovative, pre-competitive projects along the technology pipeline. The aim is to support applied R&D through manufacturing-scale demonstration—bridging the traditional "Valley of Death" for emerging technologies.

AMO funds the Innovative Manufacturing Initiative in support of the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership.

Project Selection and Management

R&D projects are selected competitively based on their potential to improve manufacturing via alternative materials and processes that will save energy across product life cycles. Working with other programs and agencies, AMO also invests in cross-cutting technologies to benefit a broad range of manufacturers.

  • Interdisciplinary R&D teams and consortia collaborate on pre-competitive projects. These efforts emphasize the innovative capacity of small companies and strengthen the vertical integration and energy performance along supply chains.

  • Resources are leveraged with other DOE programs, the Department of Defense, other agencies, and industry.

  • R&D projects cover Technology Readiness Levels that involve significant technical risk—from applied research (Level 2) through incorporation into commercial system design (Level 8).

  • Projects have an average duration of 2 to 4 years and must meet specific TRL criteria.

  • Collaborative R&D teams draw on the diverse strengths of industry, academia, and the national laboratories to develop technology solutions and share the costs and risks of research.

  • Projects are managed by rotating project officers—from AMO, EERE programs, other offices in DOE, the U.S. Department of Defense and other federal agencies, industry, academia, and resarch institutes.

Partnerships leverage AMO resources to significantly increase the return on technology investment.