Research Grants Related to Precious Metals
Research Grants Related to Precious Metals support researchers developing new technologies, materials, processes, and products using or applicable to precious metals for a more sustainable future.
Funder: Tanaka Memorial Foundation
Due Dates: September 1, 2026, 9:00 (Applications open) | November 30, 2026, 17:00 (Application deadline) | Late March 2027 (Results announcement)
Funding Amounts: ¥500,000–¥10 million per award; total funding capped at ¥20 million; no fixed usage period
Summary: Supports new research, technologies, and products using or applicable to precious metals that contribute to a sustainable future.
Key Information: Applicants must have an eligible Japanese institutional or research-group affiliation; applications must be in Japanese.
Description
The Tanaka Memorial Foundation’s annual research grant program supports challenges that open new fields for precious metals. Its 2026 competition, the 28th edition, seeks research and development that combines researchers’ creativity with the potential of precious metals to build a better, more sustainable future.
The program covers new precious-metal technologies, including materials, processing methods, and process development; research that advances product development through new functions, processes, or computational science; and development of new products using precious metals. Eligible work must use precious metals or be applicable to them. The foundation defines precious metals as eight elements: platinum, gold, silver, palladium, rhodium, iridium, ruthenium, and osmium.
