Funder
Innovate UK, GB and other funders: BSGN Advanced Materials Accelerator: Call for Proposals
Added date
06/10/2022
Closing date
11/11/2022
Call summary
Innovate UK, via KTN, the European Space Agency, AIMPLAS, CPI, National Composites Centre and the German Institute of Materials Research invites applications for the BSGN Advanced Materials Accelerator: Call for Proposals. This enables innovators and enterprises to demonstrate space-based advanced materials research, manufacturing or associated technologies in microgravity. Up to 15 proposals will be selected. Funding has three packages: category 1 for business and technical concept maturation and feasibility studies is worth up to €30,000; category 2 for prototype development and on-ground pre-flight feasibilities is worth up to €200,000; category 3 for in-orbit demonstrations, trails and testing is worth up to €750,000.
Scientific scope
The following will areas are prioritised:
•uniquely leverage space environment such as microgravity platforms with the objective of driving innovations in advanced materials solutions and processing;
•require space-based testing to mature technical solutions to known or new engineering challenges and lead to the creation of new products and opportunities across either space or industrial applications, such as energy, electronics, aerospace and beyond;
•require the use of microgravity platforms to advance the TRL of products and processes that have already demonstrated potential to produce a near-term commercialisation, such as space-grade optical fibres and semiconductor materials;
•involve the development of enabling hardware for deployment in microgravity platforms to accelerate in-space research and manufacturing of advanced materials solutions;
•involve the re-design and adaptation of latest innovations in materials or manufacturing processes to the space environment to accelerate or enable the development of large infrastructure and emerging applications in space – such as Space-Based Solar Power.
PI eligibility
Innovators or businesses registered in one of the European Space Agency member states may apply.