OpenDeadline extended (was Aug 17, 2076)Research announcementOpportunity 26-518

Engineering (ENG): Chemical, Bioengineering, Energy, and Transport Systems (CBET)

At a glance

Engineering (ENG): Chemical, Bioengineering, Energy, and Transport Systems (CBET) is an open federal grant opportunity from U.S. National Science Foundation. Applications are due October 5, 2076. Individual awards are listed as from $500K, with about 275 awards expected and $100M in total estimated funding. The notice is unrestricted by applicant type, subject to any clarifications in the notice. Cost sharing is not required. It is funded under Assistance Listing 47.041 (Engineering).

Summary assembled from the official notice's fields. The official notice governs.

Key facts

Aug 17, 2026Posted
Oct 5, 2076Application deadlinenext date

Posted: Aug 17, 2026
Close date: Oct 5, 2076
Award floor: $500,000
Award ceiling: Not specified
Est. total funding: $100,000,000
Original deadline (extended): Aug 17, 2076
Expected awards: 275
Cost sharing: Not required
Funding instrument: Grant
Opportunity category: Discretionary

Who can apply

Unrestricted (any entity type)

Can your organization apply?

A quick check against the listed applicant types — other requirements in the notice still apply.

Based on the published notice. Review the official notice for complete eligibility requirements.

What it funds

Official synopsis as published by the agency, formatted for readability.

The U.S. National Science Foundation Directorate for Engineering (NSF ENG) supports foundational engineering research for chemical, bioengineering, energy, and transport systems through the following programs: 

The Chemical Process Systems (CPS) program supports foundational engineering research in chemical and biochemical processes for chemicals, fuels, energy, and materials.

The Engineering Biological and Biomedical Systems (EBBS) program supports foundational engineering research on platforms, devices, organisms, tissues, and processes that advance knowledge and control of biological functions.

The Energy, Water, and Resource Engineering (EWRE) program supports foundational engineering research to manage energy, water, minerals, and material resources.

The Transport Phenomena (TP) program supports foundational engineering research to understand, model, and control the transport of mass, momentum, energy, and species across multiple scales.

NSF ENG anticipates a portfolio of ENG: Chemical, Bioengineering, Energy, and Transport Systems (CBET) awards with a range of budgets and durations. Estimated program budget, number of awards, and average award size/duration are subject to the availability of funds.

NSF ENG is particularly interested in intellectually ambitious and potentially transformative foundational research. Proposals need not promise a near-term product, deployment, or commercial outcome, nor need they address later-stage development to be competitive.

Additional information from the agency ↗

How to apply

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Read the full announcement (NOFO)Eligibility, evaluation criteria, page limits and required attachments are in the full notice on Grants.gov. Open ↗
Confirm eligibility and fitCheck your organization type above; no cost sharing is required.
Register (or renew) in SAM.gov and get a UEIFree. New registrations can take several weeks; registrations must be renewed every year. Open ↗
Set up Grants.gov accessCreate a Grants.gov account and make sure someone has the Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) role. Open ↗
Open the application packageUse opportunity number 26-518 on Grants.gov (Grants.gov Workspace). Open ↗
Prepare narrative, budget and attachmentsFollow the notice's format exactly — page limits and required forms are common reasons applications are rejected.
Ask the agency contact any questions earlyU.S. National Science Foundation · grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov Open ↗
Submit before October 5, 2076Proposals accepted anytime Submit a few days early and keep your Grants.gov confirmation and validation emails.

Assistance Listing

What is an ALN?

47.041EngineeringProgram →

Reported obligations under ALN 47.041

Historical data · not a prediction

FY24

$752M

FY25

$728M

FY26

$182M est.

Source: SAM.gov Assistance Listing 47.041. Program-wide totals, not awards from this specific opportunity.

Agency contact (as published)

U.S. National Science Foundation
grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov
703-292-4203

Quick answers

When is the deadline for “Engineering (ENG): Chemical, Bioengineering, Energy, and Transport Systems (CBET)”?

According to the official notice, applications are due October 5, 2076. The notice adds: “Proposals accepted anytime” Confirm the deadline and submission time on Grants.gov before applying.

Who is eligible to apply for “Engineering (ENG): Chemical, Bioengineering, Energy, and Transport Systems (CBET)”?

The notice lists eligibility as unrestricted — open to any type of entity — subject to clarifications in the notice's additional eligibility information.

How much funding is available through “Engineering (ENG): Chemical, Bioengineering, Energy, and Transport Systems (CBET)”?

Per the notice, individual awards are listed as from $500k, total estimated program funding is $100,000,000 and the agency expects to make about 275 awards.

How do I apply for “Engineering (ENG): Chemical, Bioengineering, Energy, and Transport Systems (CBET)”?

Applications are submitted through the official source, not through GrantsJunction. Open the official notice on Grants.gov (opportunity 26-518), and review the full announcement and application package. Organizations applying through Grants.gov generally need an active SAM.gov registration and a Grants.gov account, which can take several weeks to set up.

Matched on shared Assistance Listings, agency, categories and eligible applicant types.

Closes todayResearchALN 47.041