Accessibility
Language
Material Hub Initiative MaterialNeutral funding guideline
17.12.2025
As part of the specialist programme "Material Innovations for the Transformation of Economy and Society (Mat2Twin)" of the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space (BMFTR), the funding guideline supports projects within the framework of the Material Hub Initiative "Resource Sovereignty through Material Innovations" (MaterialNeutral) Module 3 "Resource Conservation through Life Cycle Optimized Material Design".
Materials are often the beginning of many value chains. Accordingly, the innovative development of new materials is always of great interest. Material development is understood as a life cycle-oriented process - from conception to end of life - with the aim of reducing emissions, increasing recyclability and extending usability. Here
The funding guideline supports high-risk, application-oriented and pre-competitive R&D projects that are intended to promote a sustainable, circular and resource-efficient economy. The focus is on material innovations with a technology readiness level (TRL) of between 3 and 6, with the aim of increasing this by at least one level over the course of the project. Individual projects with a lower TRL can also be funded under certain circumstances (see the details in the guidelines). The projects must achieve a high industrial leverage effect and/or improve the sustainability of the materials. The projects must clearly exceed the state of the art and demonstrate a clear industrial interest and scalability.
Funding is available for projects in three priority areas:
- A: Sustainable development and life cycle optimization (e.g. recyclability, durability, material consumption),
- B: Improving material performance and reusability (e.g. protective layers, modular systems),
- C: Integration of material functions for sustainability (e.g. hybrid systems, intelligent materials).
Sustainability assessment over the entire life cycle is mandatory, and cooperation with the "MaterialDigital" platform is also expected. Excluded are battery materials, hydrogen storage, PFAS substitution and applications in the food and cosmetics sectors.
The deadline for submitting project outlines for the first stage of the process is February 23, 2026.
