High-efficiency Nitrogen Oxidation (HNO3)

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), through its Defense Sciences Office, has issued a Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) soliciting proposals for the High-efficiency Nitrogen Oxidation (HNO3) program. This initiative seeks to develop foundational technologies that enable decentralized, energy-efficient, high-rate nitric acid manufacturing. The strategic objective is to secure critical defense and civilian chemical supply chains by moving away from the traditional, resource-intensive Haber-Bosch/Ostwald (HBO) process, which relies heavily on imported ammonia and contributes to significant energy consumption and environmental impact. Nitric acid is an essential industrial chemical used predominantly in fertilizer production, energetics (e.g., explosives and propellants), and as a reagent in polymer and chemical manufacturing. Current production processes are centralized, energy-intensive, and vulnerable to supply chain disruptions due to the reliance on imported ammonia and hydrogen sourced from steam methane reforming. DARPA’s HNO3 program aims to bypass ammonia intermediates by developing direct nitrogen oxidation methods using only air and water as input chemicals, significantly improving energy efficiency and enabling production in contested or decentralized environments. The program spans 42 months and includes three phases: Phase 1a (12 months), Phase 1b (12 months), and Phase 2 (18 months). It emphasizes catalytic and reactor system development, including lab-scale and full-scale prototypes capable of producing 1 L/day and 50 L/day of 68% nitric acid, respectively. The effort will also involve integration with an Independent Verification and Validation (IV&V) team to test catalyst performance and reactor efficiency, requiring regular delivery of catalyst samples and prototypes for evaluation. Technical metrics include improving reaction rates, minimizing side products, and meeting specific energy thresholds. Proposals must include a detailed technical plan demonstrating the ability to achieve DARPA’s metrics. This includes a catalyst selection rationale, reactor design concept, scale-up plan, risk mitigation strategy, staffing plan, and a timeline aligned with the program’s deliverables. Submissions must also account for participation in quarterly reviews, site visits, IV&V sessions at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and Principal Investigator meetings held semi-annually. Applications are due February 5, 2026, with an optional abstract phase closing on December 18, 2025. The application must be submitted through Grants.gov for Cooperative Agreements or through the DARPA BAAT system for Procurement Contracts and Other Transaction Agreements. The evaluation criteria include scientific and technical merit, contribution to the DARPA mission, cost and schedule realism, proposer capabilities, and transition potential. While there is no cost-sharing requirement, the program encourages participation from a wide range of responsible U.S. and non-U.S. organizations. Contact for all queries is HNO3@darpa.mil.

Emphasize innovation over incremental improvement; justify technical feasibility with empirical data; engage with IV&V teams early; clearly map plan to program metrics and timeline.