Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 92 /Wednesday, May 13, 1998 / Notices 26587

ACTION: Notice of availability of a

financial assistance solicitation for

cooperative agreement proposals.

SUMMARY: The Department of Energy

(DOE) Office of Advanced Automotive

Technologies (OATT) announces its

interest in receiving applications from

colleges and universities with

accredited graduate engineering

programs in the United States to

develop Centers of Automotive

Technology Excellence under the

Graduate Automotive Technology

Education (GATE) Program. The Centers

are intended to provide multidisciplinary engineering training for

graduate students in specific areas of

advanced automotive technology. The

goal of the GATE Program is to

overcome technology barriers

preventing the development and

production of cost-effective highefficiency vehicles for the U.S. market.

DATES AND ADDRESSES: The complete

solicitation document will be available

on the Internet on or about May 18,

1998 by accessing the DOE Chicago

Internet Home Page at http://

www.ch.doe.gov/business/ACQ.html

under the heading ‘‘Current Acquisition

Activities’’ Solicitation No. DE–SC02–

98EE50519. Applications are due no

later than 3:00 p.m. Central Daylight

Time (CDT), on July 17, 1998. Any

amendments to the solicitation will

continue to be posted on the Internet.

Please note that users are not alerted

when the solicitation is issued or when

amendments are posted. Prospective

offeror(s) are therefore advised to check

the above Internet address on a daily

basis. Awards are anticipated by August

30, 1998.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Completed applications referencing

Solicitation No. DE–SC02–98EE50519

must be submitted to the U.S.

Department of Energy, Chicago

Operations Office, Attn: Dennis L.

Wilson, Bldg. 201, Rm. 3F–08, 9800

South Cass Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439–

4899. As a result of this solicitation,

DOE may award five (5) cooperative

agreements, one for each desired

technology area. The period of

performance is expected to be

September 1, 1998 to August 30, 2000.

Available funding, irrespective of the

number of offerors selected, is

$500,000.00 in FY 1998, and follow-on

funding of approximately $500,000.00

for FY 1999. Colleges and universities

that respond to this solicitation must

already have significant experience with

one or more of the desired technologies

and have access to laboratory facilities

and equipment to support their

proposed programs.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Dennis L. Wilson, Acquisition and

Assistance Group, Chicago Operations

Office, 9800 South Cass Avenue,

Argonne, Illinois 60439; Telephone No.

(630) 252–2413; Fax No. (630) 252–

5045, or by e-mail at

dennis.wilson@ch.doe.gov

Issued in Chicago, Illinois on April 30,

1998.

James Bieschke,

Director of Operations Division, Acquisition

and Assistance Group.

[FR Doc. 98–12680 Filed 5–12–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Environmental Management SiteSpecific Advisory Board, Department

of Energy, Los Alamos National

Laboratory

AGENCY: Department of Energy.

ACTION: Notice of open meeting.

SUMMARY: Pursuant to the provisions of

the Federal Advisory Committee Act

(Pub. L. 92–463, 86 Stat. 770) notice is

hereby given of the following Advisory

Committee meeting: Environmental

Management Site-Specific Advisory

Board (EM SSAB), Los Alamos National

Laboratory.

DATES: Thursday, May 28, 1998: 6 p.m.–

9 p.m., 6:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. (public

comment session).

ADDRESSES: Taos Convention Center,

Taos, New Mexico.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.

Ann DuBois, Northern New Mexico

Citizens’ Advisory Board, Los Alamos

National Laboratory, 528 35th Street,

Los Alamos, New Mexico 87544, (505)

665–5048.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Purpose of

the Board: The purpose of the Advisory

Board is to make recommendations to

DOE and its regulators in the areas of

environmental restoration, waste

management, and related activities.

Tentative Agenda:

6:00 p.m. Call to Order by DOE

6:00 p.m. Welcome by Chair, Roll

Call, Approval of Agenda and

Minutes from March 21, 1998 and

April 28, 1998 Meetings

6:30 p.m. Public Comments

7:00 p.m. Break

7:15 p.m. Board Business—Formation

of Committees, Charter, Budget

Status, Workshop Announcements

8:30 p.m. Review of Outstanding

Environmental Restoration/Waste

Management Recommendations

9:00 p.m. Adjourn

Public Participation: The meeting is

open to the public. Written statements

may be filed with the Committee either

before or after the meeting. Individuals

who wish to make oral statements

pertaining to agenda items should

contact Ms. Ann DuBois, at (505) 665–

5048. A sign-up sheet will also be

available at the door of the meeting

room for members of the public to

indicate their desire to address the

Board. Requests must be received 5 days

prior to the meeting and reasonable

provision will be made to include the

presentation in the agenda. The

Designated Federal Official is

empowered to conduct the meeting in a

fashion that will facilitate the orderly

conduct of business.

Minutes: The minutes of this meeting

will be available for public review and

copying at the Freedom of Information

Public Reading Room, 1E–190, Forrestal

Building, 1000 Independence Avenue,

SW, Washington, DC 20585 between 9

a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday–Friday, except

Federal holidays. Minutes will also be

available by writing to Mr. Mat

Johansen, Deputy Designated Federal

Officer, Department of Energy, Los

Alamos Area Office, 528 35th Street, Los

Alamos, NM 87185–5400.

Issued at Washington, DC on May 7, 1998.

Rachel Samuel,

Deputy Advisory Committee Management

Officer.

[FR Doc. 98–12679 Filed 5–12–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Office of Energy Efficiency and

Renewable Energy

Notice of Solicitation for Research and

Development for Fuel Cells, Direct

Injection Engines, and Fuels: Energy

Efficiency and Renewable Energy

Technology for Transportation and

Buildings

AGENCY: Chicago Operations Office,

DOE.

ACTION: Notice of solicitation

availability.

SUMMARY: The U. S. Department of

Energy (DOE) Office of Energy

Efficiency and Renewable Energy

announces its interest in receiving

financial assistance applications for

research and development (R&D) on

automotive fuel cells, direct injection

engines, and fuels in support of the

Government/automotive industry

Partnership for a New Generation of

Vehicles (PNGV). The Partnership is
26588 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 92 /Wednesday, May 13, 1998 / Notices

developing light-duty vehicles that

achieve up to 3 times the fuel economy

of comparable conventional vehicles,

meet emissions standards, and offer the

same level of performance and cost as

today’s vehicles. Direct injection

engines and fuel cells have been

selected for their potential for attaining

the goal of 80-mpg fuel economy in a

six-passenger sedan. In support of the

DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and

Renewable Energy fuel cell cross-cutting

technologies, the Office of Building

Technologies also plans to acquire

research and development (R&D) of fuel

cell technologies for building

applications.

DATES AND ADDRESSES: The complete

solicitation document will be available

on or about July 1, 1998 on the DOE

Chicago Internet Home Page at http://

www.ch.doe.gov/business/ACQ.htm

under the heading ‘‘Current Acquisition

Activities,’’ Solicitation No. DE–SC02–

98EE50526 with applications due

August 17, 1998. Any amendments to

this solicitation will be posted on the

Internet. Please note that users will not

be alerted when the solicitation is

issued on the Internet or when

amendments are posted on the Internet.

Prospective applicants are therefore

advised to check the above Internet

address on a daily basis. The

cooperative agreements are expected to

be awarded on or about March 1, 1999.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John

O’Keefe, at (630) 252–2125, U.S.

Department of Energy, 9800 South Cass

Avenue, Argonne, IL 60439–4899; by

fax at (630) 252–5045; or by e-mail at

john.o’keefe@ch.doe.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Topic 1

includes research on proton-exchangemembrane (PEM) fuel cells for

transportation and buildings. Proposals

for light-duty transportation

applications are sought in three areas

and building applications in another

area: (1) Fuel cell system integration

issues, including delivery of complete

sub-scale fuel cell power systems; one to

DOE for experiments to validate fuel

cell system models, another for use at

the contractor(s) laboratory facilities to

develop engineering solutions for

operation at extreme conditions while

ensuring water balance and

demonstrating freeze-thaw capability.

DOE also seeks to update existing cost

analyses incorporating the principles of

design for manufacturability. (2) Fuel

cell component R&D, including

development of CO tolerant anodes,

higher activity cathodes, manufacturing

technologies, air compressor/expanders,

controls and sensors, coolants, stack

sealants, gaskets, and adhesives for

stack durability. (3) Fuel processing

R&D, including CO clean-up and design

for manufacturability of preferential

oxidation system(s), start-up and

transient response, durability, and

innovative ideas for reducing size,

weight, and cost of the fuel processing

system. (4) The Fuel Cell for Buildings

Program seeks advanced components for

PEM fuel cell cogeneration systems

which are simple in construction with

no heavily loaded mechanical

subsystems that limit life and reliability;

operate at a pressure of 1.5 atm or

below; have heat rejection temperatures

in excess of 100°C to provide access to

a broad range of applications for

cogeneration systems and reduce the

cost of heat rejection when operating in

a power only mode; and are highly

reliable during long-term operation on

natural gas reformate from low-cost fuel

processors. PEM fuel cell technologies

based on NafionTM or similar materials

as an electrolyte are unlikely to meet

these system requirements. In an

activity which cross-cuts with the needs

of the transportation fuel cell program,

the Fuel Cell for Buildings Program

seeks to acquire research and

development of advanced high

temperature membrane(s) with

performance equal to or better than that

of NafionTM.

Topic 2 includes research in three

areas: (1) Compression-ignition direct

injection engines (CIDI), (2) sparkignition direct injection engines (SIDI),

and (3) innovative concepts. The

primary technical barrier facing

automotive DI engines is the

development of combustion and

emission control technology able to

reliably meet stringent emission

regulations. (1) The focus of the CIDI

engine research is on NOX and

particulate matter (PM) emissions

control technology for light-duty vehicle

applications. Emission control

component development includes

research on advanced after-treatment

technologies that will enable PNGVcandidate CIDI engines (operating on

low-sulfur diesel fuel) and SIDI engines

(operating on reformulated gasoline) to

meet NOX and PM emissions targets (0.2

g/mi NOX and 0.01 g/mi PM) as well as

other requirements (e.g., cost and

efficiency). Examples of components

being sought are advanced fuel injection

systems (high-pressure, rate shaping)

and exhaust gas recirculation in

combination with after-treatment

approaches such as lean NOX catalysts,

non-thermal plasma, and regenerative

particulate traps. (2) The focus of the

SIDI efforts will be the development of

durable fuel injectors and associated

equipment for light-duty vehicles. After

treatment devices and associated

sensors for SIDI engines are needed as

well. (3) In addition, proposals are

sought for innovative, high-risk research

into novel means of reducing emissions

or improving the efficiency of SIDI, CIDI

or conventional gasoline-fueled, sparkignition engines. New, forward thinking

devices and systems that make

significant improvements in engine

performance and are practical to

implement are sought.

Topic 3 includes research on fuels

and lubricants. Proposals are sought in

four areas: (1) Optimized CIDI fuels,

including research on advanced fuel

formulations, fuel characterization test

development, and lubricity additive

performance mechanisms. Advanced

CIDI fuel formulations including but not

limited to oxygenate additives and

cetane enhancers which facilitate

meeting future passenger car emission

standards are being sought.

Recommendations for fuel

characterization test methods may

include, among others, means for

determining compatibility with CIDI

after-treatment systems, storage

stability, thermal stability, fuel system

and engine deposit forming potential,

compatibility with engine and fuel

system materials, blending

compatibility with petroleum fuels,

combustion particulate forming

potential, cold start, and lowtemperature operation. Determination of

CIDI fuel lubricity additive performance

will include evaluation of additive

mechanisms such as surface adsorption

at the temperature and pressure of

operation. (2) CIDI engine lubrication

research, including advanced lubricant

formulations to help meet vehicle fuel

economy and exhaust emission targets,

demonstrated through lubricant bench

test characterization methods. (3)

Research to identify, characterize, and

test fuels specifically optimized for

automotive fuel cells. The work may

include an analysis and/or formulation

of fuels that offer advantages for onboard reforming processes (e.g., less

coking, ease of operation at extreme

ambient conditions, greater hydrogen

yield, and emissions reductions) and a

determination of the cost of producing

these fuels and the impact of these fuels

on the fueling infrastructure and oil

imports. Offerors should assess

candidate fuels using current

automotive-type partial oxidation

reformers as the fuel processing

baseline. (4) Research on innovative

natural gas compressors to reduce the

size, noise, and cost of the compressor

island, significantly lower energy
Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 92 /Wednesday, May 13, 1998 / Notices 26589

1See, 22 FERC ¶ 62,330 (1983).

2On January 26, 1998, the Kansas Corporation

Commission filed a timely protest in Docket No.

CP98–114–000. Since the protest was neither

withdrawn nor resolved within the 30-day

resolution period the prior notice request converted

to a Section 7 proceeding.

consumption for compression, and

reduce maintenance requirements.

Innovative concepts for gas storage, gas

dispensing, operating strategies for the

storage capacity, and providing the

small amount of highest-pressure gas

needed to complete vehicle fueling are

desired. Research is also sought in the

area of truly conformable tank

technology (i.e., storage devices that are

integral to the vehicle), either with or

without storage density enhancement

techniques. The objective is to develop

storage vessels in non-cylindrical

shapes that are conducive to

incorporation into automobiles and light

trucks.

A major DOE program objective is to

increase the involvement of the

automotive industry supplier base in

key engine-related R&D programs.

The Department of Energy anticipates

that approximately twenty-five

cooperative agreements will result from

this solicitation. Under Topic 1 there

will be approximately twelve awards,

with periods of performance ranging

from eighteen to thirty months and total

estimated DOE funding of

$10,000,000.00 to $30,000,000.00.

Under Topic 2 there will be

approximately five awards, with periods

of performance of thirty months and

total estimated DOE funding of

$40,000,000.00. Under Topic 3 there

will be approximately eight awards with

periods of performance of thirty-six

months and total estimated DOE

funding of $10,000,000.00. Cost sharing

requirements will vary from zero to fifty

percent, depending on the topic area,

and will be specified in the solicitation.

Awards are subject to the availability of

funds and the solicitation will not

obligate DOE to make any award(s). Any

non-profit or for-profit organization,

university or other institution of higher

education, or non-federal agency or

entity is eligible to apply. Federal

laboratory participation shall be

minimal and will be subject to DOE

approval. The solicitation will provide

further guidance in this area. Awards

resulting from this solicitation will be

subject to the requirements of the

Energy Policy Act of 1992 which in

general requires that the awardee be a

United States-owned company

(including certain non-profits) or that

the foreign country in which the parent

company is located meets certain

conditions of reciprocity in the

treatment of investments, access to

research and development programs,

and protection of intellectual property.

All responsible sources, as indicated

above, may submit an application which

shall be considered by the government.

Issued in Chicago, Illinois on May 4, 1998.

J. D. Greenwood,

Acquisition and Assistance Group Manager.

[FR Doc. 98–12677 Filed 5–12–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6450–01–P

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission

[Docket No. CP98–114–001]

K N Interstate Gas Transmission

Company; Notice of Amendment to

Application

May 7, 1998.

Take notice that on May 1, 1998, K N

Interstate Gas Transmission Company

(Applicant), P.O. Box 281304,

Lakewood, Colorado 80228, filed a

request in Docket No. CP98–114–001 to

amend its application filed December 4,

1997, in Docket No. CP98–114–000.

Applicant had filed in Docket No.

CP98–114–000 pursuant to Sections

157.205 and 157.212 of the

Commission’s Regulations under the

Natural Gas Act for authorization to

construct and operate thirteen new

delivery taps, under blanket certificate

issued in Docket No. CP83–140–000, et

al.1 Applicant’s application to amend its

request for authorization is on file with

the Commission and open for public

inspection.

Applicant proposed in Docket No.

CP98–114–000 to construct thirteen new

delivery taps located in Adams,

Antelope, Buffalo, Custer, Pierce, and

Sherman Counties, Nebraska and

Kearny County, Kansas.2 Pursuant to

Rule 215 of the Commission’s Rules of

Practice and Procedure, Applicant

proposes to amend its application

pending in Docket No. CP98–114–000 to

delete from its request ten delivery tap

facilities. Applicant has been advised

that certain of the retail customers who

initially requested service at the

proposed taps described in Docket No.

CP98–114–000 as Tap Nos. 1 through 6,

9 through 11, and 13 no longer desire

natural gas service at the locations

specified in that application.

Any person desiring to be heard or to

make any protest with reference to said

application should on or before May 14,

1998, file with the Federal Energy

Regulatory Commission, Washington,

D.C. 20426, a petition to intervene or a

protest in accordance with the

requirements of the Commission’s Rules

of Practice and Procedure (18 CFR

385.214 or 385.211) and the Regulations

under the Natural Gas Act (18 CFR

157.10). All protests filed with the

Commission will be considered by it in

determining the appropriate action to be

taken but will not serve to make the

protestants parties to the proceeding.

Any person wishing to become a party

to a proceeding or to participate as a

party in any hearing therein must file a

petition to intervene in accordance with

the Commission’s Rules.

Take further notice that, pursuant to

the authority contained in and subject to

the jurisdiction conferred upon the

Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

by Sections 7 and 15 of the Natural Gas

Act and the Commission’s Rules of

Practice and Procedure, a hearing will

be held without further notice before the

Commission or its designee on this

application if no petition to intervene is

filed within the time required herein, if

the Commission on its own review of

the matter finds that a grant of the

certificate is required by the public

convenience and necessity. If a petition

for leave is timely filed, or if the

Commission on its own motion believes

that a formal hearing is require, further

notice of such hearing will be duly

given.

Under the procedure provided for,

unless otherwise advised, it will be

unnecessary for Applicant to appear or

be represented at the hearing.

Linwood A. Watson, Jr.,

Acting Secretary.

[FR Doc. 98–12663 Filed 5–12–98; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6717–01–M

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission

[Docket No. CP–403–000]

NorAm Gas Transmission Company;

Notice of Application for Abandonment

May 7, 1998.

Take notice that on April 29, 1998,

NorAm Gas Transmission Company

(NGT), 1111 Louisiana Street, Houston

Texas 77210–4455 filed in Docket No.

CP98–403–000, an application pursuant

to Section 7(b) of the Natural Gas Act

and Part 157 of the Commission’s

Regulations for an order permitting and

approving the abandonment of certain

pipeline facilities in Panola County,

Texas, all as more fully set forth in the

request which is on file with the

Commission and open to public

inspection.