Naval Enterprise Partnership Teaming with Universities for National Excellence (NEPTUNE)
The Office of Naval Research (ONR 33) NEPTUNE program aligns university research with the National Defense Strategy (NDS) and establishes entrepreneurial practices to accelerate delivery of university-derived technologies and products to the defense and commercial sectors. Each selected project will have at least one Problem Sponsor, and a research team consisting of University researchers and military or veteran students. NEPTUNE establishes long-term university and Navy's Naval Research and Development Establishment (NRDE) partnerships to evaluate the feasibility, viability, and desirability of university-derived technologies and products to meet DoN operational needs. Program participants engage in interdisciplinary research across multiple energy-related areas of study. This collaborative approach accelerates progress by identifying upstream or downstream roadblocks, and potential solutions in rapid timeframes.
Research Concentration Areas
- Cyber-physical security
- Electronic systems and energy management
- Fuels and batteries
- Hacking for Defense (H4D)
- Microgrids
- Wearable electronics
Research Challenges and Opportunities
Some examples of focus areas for research are listed below. This list is not all-encompassing. Please reach out to the program officer listed for further information:
- Access to wearable, flexible, and lightweight electronics; such as solar cells, batteries and sensors
- Development of low-cost, catalyst materials for portable hydrogen generation and on-demand power
- Development of low-cost, high-performance electrode materials for Na-ion batteries
- Fundamental studies on composition/performance correlations for aviation fuels
- Heterogeneous surface wettability for manipulation of dry out hydrodynamics and bubble departure during high-heat-flux boiling processes
- Improvements in Department of Defense electronic systems; including radars, communication, navigation, and munitions’ electronics
For More Information

Attendees at the NEPTUNE meeting held at UC Davis
UPDATED: November 2020
Program Contact Information
How to Submit
For detailed application and submission information for this research topic, please see our Funding Opportunities page and refer to broad agency announcement (BAA) No. N00014-22-S-B001.
- Contracts: All white papers and full proposals for contracts must be submitted through FedConnect; instructions are included in the BAA.
- Grants: All white papers for grants must be submitted through FedConnect, and full proposals for grants must be submitted through grants.gov; instructions are included in the BAA.