RADIANT INNOVATION LLC — Department of Agriculture SBIR Phase II: 8.5

RADIANT INNOVATION LLC — SBIR Phase II award from Department of Agriculture.

Amount
$650,000
Agency
Department of Agriculture
Program / Phase
SBIR · Phase II
Topic
8.5
Solicitation
USDA-NIFA-SBIR-009642
NAICS
Place of performance
CO
Period
2023-08-11 → 2025-08-31

Description

ProjectSummary Lackofavailabilityofreliabledistributedcoldstorageco-locatedwithfoodproductionand distributionposeslimitationsforlocalfoodsupplychainsforfarmersandmarketers.Radiant InnovationLLC(Radiant)seekstoaddressthedemandforclimatefriendlyoff-gridcoldstorage andincollaborationwithColoradoStateUniversity(CSU)proposestocalibrateanddeployour model-predictive-controlstrategywithfoodquality/safetyassessmentintooursolar-powered refrigeratedcontainersforreliableoff-gridcoldstoragetosupportlocalfooddistribution.The modelwillintegratedynamicweatherforecastingandmodel-trainingtosustainreliablebattery energymanagementandovercomelimitationsofothersolar-poweredcoldstoragesystems. Radiantproposestoachievethefollowingtechnicalobjectivesforfacilitatingcommercial deploymentofoff-gridsolar-poweredrefrigeratedshippingcontainers:1)improvethermaland ventilationmodelsforpredictivecontrolswithdata-drivenmodeltrainingforoff-gridoperation; 2)integratefoodqualityandsafetyforventilationderivedfromtestinginR&Dsolar-powerunit; and3)developacommercializationstrategytoaccessmarketsthataddressUSDAstrategicgoals forfoodsafetyfoodaccessandeconomicdevelopment. Successfulcontrolsdevelopmentand demonstrationforreliableoff-gridoperationofsolar-poweredrefrigeratedcontainerswilldrive customerconfidenceintheseunitsforreliabledistributedcoldstorage. InthiseffortRadiantwillestablishasolar-poweredrefrigerationresearchunittousefor controlledexperimentsinimplementingdesignchanges;updateanddeployenergyand air-conditioningmodelsforcloud-basedmodel-predictivecontrolsandadaptivemodeltraining; developandtestmodelsforassessingfreshproducequalityandproliferationoffoodborne pathogensformaintainingfoodsafety;refineenergyair-conditioningandfood-storagecontrol modelsforcommercialdeployment;anddevelopcommercializationstrategiesforlocal/regional foodsupplychains. AttheendofPhaseIIRadiantwillhavevalidateddesignchangesthatprovidecustomerswith reliablecoldstorageinavarietyofclimatezonesandacrossvariousweatherevents.Thegoalof thisworkistoshowthatproducestoredintheoff-gridunitsmaintainssafetyandsalabilityat leastaslongason-gridcommercialcoldstorageoptions.Thesetwocomponentswillgive customersconfidenceinthisoff-gridcoldstoragesolutionandallowRadianttoexpandsalesto customerswhodesireareliableclimate-friendlyoff-grideasilydeployablecoldstorageoption.