Technology Readiness Levels

There are nine Technology Readiness Levels (TRL), moving from concept (TRL-1) up through commercial launch (TRL-9). Federal grants are available to support the development of innovations at all nine Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs).

 

• The National Science Foundation offers over 10,000 grants a year for TRLs 1-4

• U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy (ARPA-E) also offers grants to support energy-related innovations for TRLs 1-4

• Almost a dozen federal agencies offer Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grants that support technology development in three phases (TRLs 2-3, 4-5, and 6-8)

• Grants and loan guarantees also are available to move promising new technologies up through TRL 8 and 9 to full commercialization and deployment.

 

American Diversified Energy Consulting Services (ADE) can assist with securing funding for all nine Technology Readiness Levels and for utilizing existing, commercially available technologies.

 

Here's a directory compiled by ADE that lists all of the federal funding opportunities for each TRL, along with a list of 40 common mistakes that eliminate 72 percent of the funding applications and proposals submitted to federal agencies.