FY2025 obligations by the NAICS code on the award
97% of the $1.7B obligated under AC22 in FY2025 went to awards coded NAICS 541715.
- 541712 Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)not in NAICS 2022$13.1M
- 927110 Space Research and Technology$11.7M
FY2025 federal contract obligations, USAspending.gov
PSC AC22 covers applied research funded under the atomic energy defense activities subfunction of the National Defense budget function. In practice that is the nuclear security enterprise: weapons science, stockpile stewardship research, and the applied work performed at and around the national security laboratories. FY2025 obligations were $1.72 billion.
The most concentrated code in this set
Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences R&D (541715) took $1.67 billion, roughly 97 percent of the total. The remainder is a rounding error: 541511 at $20 million, 541712 at $13 million, 927110, Space Research and Technology, at $12 million, and 541713, Research and Development in Nanotechnology, at $1 million. A code this concentrated is effectively a small number of very large management and operating relationships, not a competitive open market.
PSC and NAICS, in a line
The PSC comes from the budget: which function, which research stage. The NAICS code comes from the solicitation: which industry the work belongs to.
For a commercial research firm, AC22 is not a code to prospect against directly. The realistic route into atomic energy defense research runs through subcontracts with the laboratory operators, and your visible federal footprint will more likely appear under AC23 experimental development or the AC1x DoD military series.
PSC AC22 FAQ
What does PSC AC22 cover?
Applied research under the atomic energy defense activities subfunction: nuclear weapons science, stockpile stewardship research, and related applied work directed at specific practical objectives.
What NAICS codes win AC22 work?
Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences R&D (541715) took $1.67 billion of $1.72 billion in FY2025, about 97 percent. No other code reaches $20 million by a meaningful margin.
Can a small business win AC22 work directly?
Rarely. The code's concentration reflects large management and operating relationships at the national security laboratories. Subcontracting is the realistic path.
What are the other atomic energy defense R&D codes?
AC21 basic research, AC22 applied research, AC23 experimental development, AC24 R&D administrative expenses, and AC25 R&D facilities and major equipment.