SoCal OASIS™ Build to Scale

Access to Testbeds

A critical step in any innovation startup is to demonstrate their product in real world operation. Recognizing this, UCR has developed a partnership with dozens of laboratories and testbeds within the Inland SoCal region in a wide variety of areas. Four predominate areas are described below. 

E-mobility and Transportation 

The university regularly collaborates with state agencies like the City and County of Riverside, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and the Southern California Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) as well as our UC sister campuses in testing and deployment of new technologies like intelligent routing systems or heavy duty electric trucks. Thus, the region is a prime location for developing and demonstrating new e-mobility technologies with the goal of impacting everything from personal transportation to world-wide logistics. Testbed features include connected highways, featuring hardware throughout City roadways, connected intelligent vehicles, heavy duty and marine testing and verification laboratories, and state of the science e-mobility vehicle laboratory that simulates vehicle-in-the-loop driving simulations.  

Clean Energy and Fuels

UCR CE-CERT features many testbed facilities for grid management, optimization, renewable energy and fuel production, and storage solutions. Technical consulting and testbed facilities include: 

• SIGI: Sustainable Integrated Grid Initiative Testbed 
• DERL Distributed Energy Resources Laboratory 
• Field Testing and HIL Testing of Smart Grid Monitoring and Control 
• V2G: Vehicle to Grid 
• Battery and Solar Energy Materials and Devices 
• Electric Motor System Testing Laboratories 
• Water Energy Nexus 
• Hydrogen Blending and Exposure Testing 

Agriculture 

UCR Agricultural Operations (AgOps) manages and operates greenhouses, screenhouses, and two field stations that include 480 acres of research land located adjacent to campus and 540 acres in the Coachella Valley Agricultural Research Station. The two stations represent different agro-ecologies representative of the main production systems from sub-tropical to desertic. UCR regularly conducts “Field Trials” to provide industry an opportunity to test their products in a Proof-of-Concept environment prior to industry scaling.  

UCR has partnered with the City of Riverside and LampLighter Energy in the creation of the Northside Agriculture Innovation Center, an 8-acre facility that will house more than 44,000 ft² of solar greenhouses, Agri voltaic facilities, and plots for organic cultivation of climate smart crops. The facility will be used for training and incubation of community and academic entrepreneurs in the region.  

Critical Minerals 

UCR is currently working on the design and construction of critical minerals and certification laboratory to be in its Palm Desert Campus. The planned test bed facility will include programs for training local students in analytical chemistry, quality control and laboratory operations, electrolytic hydrogen production, to supply the expected workforce needed by companies locating into the Lithium Valley area. 

Assistance with Calseed and CalTestBed Program

CalSEED provides funding and professional development assistance to diverse clean energy entrepreneurs to advance your clean energy, efficiency, or storage concept to commercial readiness. The program incubates energy concepts and readies them for investment and deployment by providing mentorship, non-dilutive grant funding to support commercialization, and access to CalTestbed and Southern California Energy Innovation Network. UCR is a proud member of the CalTestBed Program and the Southern California Energy Innovation Network. CalTestbed offers a wide collection of assets, facilities, infrastructure, and resources on a global scale to clean energy entrepreneurs. CalTestBed's initiative will provide $8.8 million in testing vouchers to clean energy innovators to use at one of nearly 30 testing facilities in California. 

Technical Consulting from CE-CERT

UCR CE-CERT’s mission is to be a recognized leader in environmental education, a collaborator with industry and government to improve the technical basis for regulations and policy, a creative source of new technology, and a contributor to a better understanding of the environment. Established in 1992 and now operating as the largest research center at the University of California at Riverside, CE-CERT brings together multiple disciplines throughout campus to address society’s most pressing environmental challenges in air quality, climate change, energy, and transportation. CE-CERT’s activities encompass all three aspects of the University of California’s overarching mission: research, education, and public service.  

Identification of Partners for Pilot Demonstrations

We work with our network of over 50 industry and government partners to identify facilities and operations that can test your technology in real world applications. Examples include partnering with Riverside Public Utilities to test a new products and methodologies in their wastewater treatment plant, working with the County of Riverside fleet services to demonstrate a new vehicle/fuel, identifying a local battery manufacture to build a prototype battery for demonstration purposes, collaborating with the local school district to place prototype air quality sensors throughout the campus, or working with a local industry’s facility services to implement prototype algorithms for improved energy management.