NSFC has announced a few funding opportunities which are summarized below. Please roll down to check the details and contact RSO via email, research-support@dukekunshan.edu.cn, by specifying which one(s) you are interested in. Thanks.

1. Joint Fund for Railway Innovation and Development Program Guidelines
2. Joint Fund for Innovative Regional Development I
3. Joint Fund for Innovative Regional Development II
4. National Security Academic Fund with the China Academy of Engineering Physics 
5. Key projects for scientific foundation and control mechanism of efficient multi-physics flight
6. The next-generation artificial intelligence methods that are explainable and generalizable
7. French-speaking Community of Belgium (FNRS) International Communication Programs
8. NSFC announced the 2024 Announcement of Joint Fund for Railway Innovation and Development Program Guidelines  link to announcement 

The FY2024 Joint Fund for Railway Innovation and Development is funded in the form of a focused support program for four years, with an average direct cost funding intensity of approximately 2.6 million RMB per project. Research topics such as : 10kV withstand voltage grade SiC-based power device design and fabrication technology; Condition Inspection and Health Assessment of Key Components of Heavy Duty Rolling Stock Traveling Parts; Anti-impact/vibration and noise reduction design and application of new materials for key components of high-speed trains; Theory and key technology of traction power supply system for through-flexible railroads et. Please check the link to the announcement for more information. 

Award:  2.6 million RMB to each grant, 4 years.

Eligibility: 1）Proposal PI must be leading PI in relevant projects before.  2）Applicant shall have senior titles such as professorship or research scientist. 

Due date:  Please submit the proposal in the NSFC system before April 15th, 2024.

2. NSFC announced the 2024 NSFC Joint Fund for Innovative Regional Development I  link to announcement 

Focusing on the urgent needs in industrial development and the core scientific problems in key technology fields, carrying out basic research, promoting the integration of the knowledge innovation system and technology innovation system, and promoting the enhancement of the independent innovation capability of Chinese enterprises. Please check the specific research topics in the announcement. 

This program supports:

1)           Energy & Chemicals, research cooperation with State Energy Investment Group Limited Liability Company 国家能源投资集团有限责任公司. 

2)           Electronic information, cooperation with China United Network Communications Corporation Limited中国联合网络通信有限公司

The applicant must cooperate with the researchers from the companies above to jointly develop a proposal and 

Award: 2.6-10 million RMB per each grant, 4 years.

Eligibility: 1）Proposal PI must be leading PI in relevant projects before.  2）Applicant shall have senior titles such as professorship or research scientist. 

Due date:  Please submit the proposal in the NSFC system before April 15th, 2024.

3. NSFC announced the 2024 NSFC Joint Fund for Innovative Regional Development II  link to announcement 

Focusing on the urgent needs in industrial development and the core scientific problems in key technology fields, carrying out basic research, promoting the integration of the knowledge innovation system and technology innovation system, and promoting the enhancement of the independent innovation capability of Chinese enterprises. Please check the specific research topics in the announcement. 

This program supports:

1)       Biological and agricultural fields, 

1. Based on the strategic needs for high-quality development of biological and agricultural fields in Jiangsu Province,  will carry out relevant basic research or applied basic research on key scientific issues in the fields of synthetic biology regulatory mechanisms, endangered animal protection, crop molecular design and breeding, and prevention and control of the spread of livestock and poultry pathogens.
2. Based on the development needs of life sciences in Jiangxi Province, focusing on key scientific issues in the fields of food science, developmental biology, etc., to carry out relevant basic research or applied basic research.
3. Based on the development needs of Shaanxi Province’s agricultural and biological fields, carry out basic research or applied basic research centering on key scientific issues in the mechanisms of stress resistance and excellent trait formation in important grain and cash crops as well as grass-fed livestock.

Applicants for the above research directions outside of Jiangsu, Jiangxi and Shaanxi Province should apply in cooperation with higher education institutions, research institutes or enterprises in each Province, respectively.

2)       Environment and Ecology

1. Based on the major needs of ecological environmental protection in Jiangsu Province, will carry out basic research or applied basic research centering on the key scientific issues in the fields of carbon-neutral frontier technology, environmental pollution control, ecological hydrology and water resources, and so on.
2. Focusing on the major needs of ecological environmental protection and social development in Shaanxi Province, focusing on key scientific issues such as ecological environment restoration, sustainable utilization of mineral resources, and prevention and control of wet subsidence loess disaster, carry out basic research or applied basic research.

Applicants for the above research directions outside of Jiangsu and Shaanxi Province should apply in cooperation with higher education institutions, research institutes or enterprises in each Province, respectively.

3)       Energy & Chemicals

1. Focusing on the development needs of Jiangsu Province in the field of clean energy and green chemical industry, will carry out relevant basic research or applied basic research on key scientific issues in the fields of clean energy conversion and utilization, high-efficiency energy storage technology and smart grid.
2. Focusing on the development needs of the energy and chemical industry in Jiangxi Province, carry out basic or applied basic research on major scientific issues in the fields of mining and metallurgical engineering, metal energy and environmental engineering.
3. Focusing on industrial upgrading and technological renewal in the field of energy and chemical industry in Shaanxi, focusing on key scientific issues in the direction of deep energy extraction, utilization of renewable energy, and development of high-value chemical products, to carry out basic research or applied basic research.

Applicants for the above research directions outside of Jiangsu, Jiangxi and Shaanxi Province should apply in cooperation with higher education institutions, research institutes or enterprises in each Province, respectively.

4)       New Materials and Advanced Manufacturing

1. In response to the development needs of Jiangsu Province in the field of new materials and advanced manufacturing, focusing on the design and preparation of new materials, micro-nano and precision manufacturing and other key scientific issues in the field, to carry out relevant basic research or applied basic research.
2. Based on the development needs of Jiangxi Province in the field of new materials and advanced manufacturing, focusing on the design and preparation of new materials, mechanical design and manufacturing of key scientific issues in the field, to carry out relevant basic research or applied basic research.
3. Based on the major needs of the high-quality development of new materials and advanced manufacturing in Shaanxi Province, focusing on key scientific issues in the design and efficient preparation of new materials, high-performance manufacturing of complex structures, etc., to carry out basic or applied basic research.

Applicants for the above research directions outside of Jiangsu, Jiangxi and Shaanxi Province should apply in cooperation with higher education institutions, research institutes or enterprises in each Province, respectively.

5)       Electronic information field

1. In response to the major needs of the development of electronic information, artificial intelligence and other fields in Jiangsu Province, to carry out relevant basic research or applied basic research on key scientific issues such as future network communications, core algorithms and future computing, artificial intelligence, new materials and new information devices, integrated circuits, and quantum information.
2. To carry out basic or applied research on image information processing, medical optics and optoelectronic imaging in response to the development needs of the electronic information field in Jiangxi Province.
3. Focusing on the major needs of the development of the electronic information and communication industry in Shaanxi Province, focusing on key scientific issues in the direction of cloud computing and future networks, high-performance computing and artificial intelligence, microelectronics and optoelectronics, etc., and carrying out basic research or applied basic research.

Applicants for the above research directions outside of Jiangsu, Jiangxi and Shaanxi Province should apply in cooperation with higher education institutions, research institutes or enterprises in each Province, respectively.

6)       Population and health

1. Focusing on the life and health needs of the people of Jiangsu Province and facing the major needs of the development of modern medicine and biomedical industries, we will carry out basic research or application foundation on key scientific issues such as drug lead compounds, in-body organoid construction, and immune imbalance mechanisms of viral diseases.
2. Based on the development needs of the population and health field in Shaanxi Province, carry out basic research or applied basic research on the pathogenesis, precise diagnosis and treatment of major diseases, rare diseases and high incidence in areas, as well as key scientific issues in the development and utilization of Qin medicines.

Applicants for the above research directions outside of Jiangsu and Shaanxi Province should apply in cooperation with higher education institutions, research institutes or enterprises in each Province, respectively.

Award: 2.6 million RMB per grant, 4 years.

Eligibility: 1）Proposal PI must be leading PI in relevant projects before.  2）Applicant shall have senior titles such as professorship or research scientist. 

Due date:  Please submit the proposal in the NSFC system before April 15th, 2024.

4. NSFC announced National Security Academic Fund with the China Academy of Engineering Physics NSAF link to the announcement 

It aims to give full play to the platform and management advantages of the National Natural Science Foundation, attract and mobilize the strength of colleges and universities and scientific research institutions across the country to carry out basic research related to national security, explore new research directions, cultivate high-tech national defense talents, and promote national security. Improvement of source innovation capabilities in related fields

The large scientific facilities opened this year are: China Mianyang Research Reactor and its neutron science platform, “Starlight III” laser facility, and high average power terahertz free electron laser facility. （中国绵阳研究堆及其中子科学平台、“星光III”激光装置、高平均功率太赫兹自由电子激光装置）Please check the specific research topics in the announcement. 

Award: 2.6 million RMB per grant, 4 years.

Eligibility: 1）Proposal PI must be leading PI in relevant projects before.  2）Applicant shall have senior titles such as professorship or research scientist. 

Due date:  Please submit the proposal in the NSFC system before April 15th, 2024.

5. NSFC announced the Key projects for scientific foundation and control mechanism of efficient multi-physics flight (多物理场高效飞行科学基础与调控机理) link to the announcement 

This program supports research in 1) Multi-physics coupling mechanism of metamorphic materials and mechanisms; 2) Cross-domain unsteady flow model and control mechanism; 3) Integrated intelligent control of allostery and flight

Award: 

1. Cultivation Project 800,000 RMB , 3 years,  9-11 awards;
2. Key Project, 3 million RMB, 4 years, 5-7awards
3. Integrated Project, 12 million RMB, 3 years, 2 awards.

Eligibility: 1）Proposal PI must be leading PI in relevant projects before.  2）Applicant shall have senior titles such as professorship or research scientist.

Due date:  Please submit the proposal in the NSFC system before April 16th, 2024.

6. NSFC announced the Key Projects for releasing next-generation artificial intelligence methods that are explainable and generalizable （可解释、可通用的下一代人工智能) link to the announcement 

The project focuses on

(1) Basic principles of deep learning.

Deeply explore the dependence of deep learning models on hyperparameters, understand the working principles behind deep learning, and establish the approximation theory of deep learning methods, generalization error analysis theory, and convergence theory of optimization algorithms.

(2) Next-generation artificial intelligence methods that are explainable and universal.

By combining rules and learning, we can establish new artificial intelligence methods that are highly accurate, interpretable, universal and do not rely on large amounts of labeled data. Develop the database and model training platform required for the next generation of artificial intelligence methods, and improve the infrastructure driven by the next generation of artificial intelligence methods.

(3) Application of next-generation artificial intelligence methods in scientific fields.

Develop new physical models and algorithms, build open-source scientific databases, knowledge bases, physical model libraries and algorithm libraries, and promote the exemplary application of new artificial intelligence methods in solving complex problems in the scientific field.

Award: 

1. Cultivation Project 800,000 RMB , 3 years,  25 awards;
2. Key Project, 3 million RMB, 4 years, 6awards

Eligibility: 1）Proposal PI must be leading PI in relevant projects before.  2）Applicant shall have senior titles such as professorship or research scientist.

Due date:  Please submit the proposal in the NSFC system before April 16th, 2024.

7.  NSFC announced the 2024 NSFC and Foundation for Basic Research in the French-speaking Community of Belgium (FNRS) International Communication Programs  link to the announcement

The two sides will continue to co-finance collaborative exchange programs between researchers from the two countries. The research fields include Mathematics and Physics, Chemistry, Life Sciences, Geosciences, Engineering and Materials Science, Information Science, Management Science, and Medical Science.

NSFC supports Chinese researchers’ international travel (economy class air ticket), accommodation, meals and inter-city transportation during their stay in Belgium, while FNRS is responsible for supporting the international travel, accommodation, meals and inter-city transportation of Belgian researchers during their stay in China.

Award: NSFC provides 100,000 RMB to each grant,  FNRS provides 15,000 Euros to each grant.

Eligibility: 1）Proposal PI must be leading PI or participant PI in any ongoing NSFC projects that last at least 3 years.  2）The proposals must be submitted to NSFC and FNRS respectively.

Due date:  Please submit the proposal in the NSFC system before May 23th, 2024.