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The American Chemical Society announced last week that grants from the ACS Petroleum Research Fund (ACS PRF) will increase from $18 million in 2001 to $25 million for 2002. This additional funding will expand the size of individual grants to amounts ranging from $35,000 to $120,000, depending on the specific grant program.

"We are so pleased to be in a position to increase our contribution to scientific research," says Lawrence A. Funke, Ph.D., Program Director of the ACS PRF. "The additional funds will raise the value of each ACS PRF grant. Often, our grants are critical in getting scientists started in new research areas. ACS PRF grants complement those of other research-funding agencies, emphasizing support for new investigators, for faculty at undergraduate institutions, and for established investigators to explore new lines of research."

ACS PRF grants currently support research in chemistry, earth sciences, chemical engineering, and related fields such as polymers and material science. ACS PRF offers several different grant programs for advanced scientific education and fundamental research involving undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral students. Grants are awarded to nonprofit institutions in the United States and other countries.

In January 2001, the Petroleum Research Fund Trust was dissolved by order of the New York Supreme Court and the assets transferred to the American Chemical Society. The Fund was subsequently renamed the American Chemical Society Petroleum Research Fund. This now makes the Society responsible for managing the assets (reconstituted as an endowment rather than a trust), while it continues to fulfill its traditional role as income recipient. ACS will establish the Fund's investment policy and select the investment manager(s) and custodian. The purposes for which these funds may be used are unchanged under the new arrangement.

As a result of the transfer, the ACS PRF will increase the maximum annual amount of grants by more than 30 percent. The increase in funding will allow the Fund to award more grants and more 3-year grants.

For more information and application materials for grants, visit the ACS PRF website at http://www.chemistry.org/prf, e-mail: prfinfo@acs.org, or call (202) 872-4481.

 

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