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Click here for a quick look at SC grant program. (see below for further information) For more information about fusion grants contact John Sauter, 301-903-3287, Program Support for Office of Fusion Energy Sciences.

The policy for peer review of programs in the Office of Fusion Energy Sciences (OFES) is stated in the Strategic Plan for the Restructured U.S. Fusion Energy Sciences Program (DOE/ER-0684, August 1996; p. iv):

"The peer review process will be used as the primary mechanism for evaluating proposals, assessing progress and quality of work, and for initiating and terminating facilities, projects, research programs, and groups."

This policy applies to all university and industrial programs funded through grants, national laboratory programs funded through Field Work Proposals (FWPs), and contracts from other performers.

General Guidelines

Peer review guidelines for OFES derive from best practices of government organizations that fund science and technology research and development (R&D), such as those documented in the General Accounting Office report, Federal Research: Peer Review Practices at Federal Science Agencies Vary (GAO/RCED-99-99, March 1999), as well as more specifically from relevant peer review practices of other programs in the Office of Science (SC).

Peer review in OFES is based on evaluation of proposals and performance in a formal process using specific criteria and the review and advice of qualified peers. It provides an objective and independent assessment of the scientific and/or technical merit of R&D activities. Peers, who must be technically competent in the field under review and free of conflict of interest, may come from any source, including industry, academia, private and non-governmental institutions, and governmental agencies and their associated laboratories. They must have knowledge and expertise comparable to that of the researchers whose work they review.

In addition to the review of the scientific quality of the programs provided by the peer review process, OFES also reviews the programs for their balance, relevance, and standing in the broader scientific community. Thus, these reviews provide the basis to OFES for

- evaluating proposals for new work and continuation of ongoing work,
- assessing progress and quality of work by institutions and groups, and
- initiating and terminating facilities, projects, research programs, and groups.

Specific guidance and information on reviews of grants, FWPs, and contracts are briefly described below, with links to other documents with more extensive information.

1. Procedures for Reviews of Grants Submitted by Universities and Industry

Universities (including MIT for their work on Alcator C-Mod) and most industries submit grant proposals to receive funding from OFES for their proposed work. The grant review process is governed by the already established SC Merit Review System.

2. Procedures for Reviews of Research Conducted by DOE Laboratories

DOE national laboratories submit annual FWPs for funding of both new and ongoing activities. These are subject to peer review according to the following procedures, which are patterned after those given in 10 CFR 605 that govern the SC grant program.

FWPs for New Activities

For this purpose, "New Activities" are defined as programs and projects for which the scope of work is substantially different from any previous scope of work of related activities and, therefore, do not represent a continuation or expansion of previous or ongoing work. An increment to or increased level of effort in ongoing work is not considered "new" for this purpose.

Before any FWP for a new activity is funded, it will be reviewed for merit.

Upon receipt of an FWP and supporting documentation, OFES determines whether these contain the prescribed information, have been approved by an official authorized to sign for the DOE laboratory, and fall under the scientific scope of the OFES research activities.

After this preliminary review, copies of the FWP and supporting documentation undergo further review to determine if they contain sufficient technical/scientific information for experts to evaluate the proposed research against evaluation criteria, meet program policies and priorities, and do not duplicate or overlap currently funded research projects.

For a new FWP, the supporting documentation will usually consist of a statement of the work to be undertaken and should include the following: objectives of the proposed work and expected significance; relation to the present state of knowledge in the field, to work in progress by the Principal Investigator under other support, and to work in progress elsewhere; and relevance to the missions of DOE and OFES. The statement should outline the general plan of work, including the broad design of activities to be undertaken; a description of experimental methods and procedures; and, if appropriate, plans for preservation, documentation, and sharing of data, samples, physical collections, and other related research products.

FWPs for Ongoing Activities

The OFES will conduct external merit reviews of ongoing DOE Laboratory programs every three to five years, with the frequency for a specific FWP determined by the nature and circumstances of the associated program activities.

When an FWP for ongoing activities, or parts thereof, is the subject of a merit review, supporting documentation will be required as described above, which should also include a description of the progress during the review period, a publication list of work covered by the review, and copies of the five most significant papers published during the review period.

Certain types of reviews, such as mail or site reviews of multiple FWPs, reviews of construction projects, reviews of major items of equipment, and reviews of facilities, may require other supporting material. For these, the DOE laboratory should contact the appropriate entities in OFES for specification of the documentation that will be required. In special circumstances, other information, such as special assignments or work of special significance to DOE, may be included as part of the supporting documentation.

3. Contract Proposals Submitted by Industry

Some fusion research in industry may be funded through contracts. The contractors submit proposals for the work, which will be reviewed for merit by procedures analogous to those described for grants. The contract proposal should include information and supporting documentation similar to that mentioned above for new FWPs.

The contracts may be for work lasting from 1-5 years. There may be an intermediate review of progress for contracts that are longer than 3 years.

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