Early 1970s Energy crisis
DOE establishes the first Department of Energy (DOE) combustion research user facility in the 1970s at Sandia Labs. At its core, the CRF founded in two missions: do excellent science and create results immediately useful to industry.DOE ECUT begins engine research
DOE ECUT Begins engine research and designated as a DOE collaborative research facility in 2008, the Combustion Research Facility (CRF)
Light-duty engine working groups with industry, national labs, and universities
DISC, DHC, Knock
Laser diagnostic development and application in engines begins
CRF opens to researchers: March 1981
Much of the benefit delivered from the CRF can be traced directly to an intense pursuit of collaboration—a strategy that dates back to the CRF’s inception as a DOE user research facility. However, the CRF operates differently from typical user facilities, which provide staff scientist support and access to major equipment and facilities for users with research proposals judged sound by their peers. Instead, the CRF accepts collaboration only on research topics of interest to the CRF mission, as well as to the partner. In recognition of this unique operating model, DOE changed the CRF’s designation from user facility to collaborative research facility in 2008.