1. Alternative materials, particularly materials available in abundance within the United States and not subject to potential supply restrictions, that lessen the need for critical materials;
2. alternative energy technologies or alternative designs of existing energy technologies
3. technologies or process improvements that minimize the use and content, or lead to more efficient use, of critical materials across the full supply chain;
4. innovative technologies and practices to diversify commercially viable and sustainable domestic sources of critical materials
5. technologies, process improvements, or design optimizations that facilitate the recycling of critical materials
6. advanced critical material extraction, production, separation, alloying, or processing technologies that decrease the energy consumption, environmental impact, and costs of those activities
7. commercial markets, advanced storage methods, energy applications, and other beneficial uses of critical materials; and
8. advanced theoretical, computational, and experimental tools necessary to support the crosscutting research and development needs of diverse critical minerals stakeholders.

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Estimated application opening date end of year, 2023.