SCRToken: A Scientific Cloud Resource Token System Based on Consortium Chain

In the new paradigm of data-driven scientific research, the scientific community requires extensive cloud computing resources for discovery. However, the distribution of cloud resources among research institutions is highly imbalanced, and there is no trusted environment and unified mechanism for cross-institutional resource sharing, leading to significant waste of resources within the scientific community. This paper proposes a scientific cloud resource token system based on consortium chain (SCRToken) through which institutions can efficiently exchange cloud resources. A three-layer architecture consisting of institutional nodes, community broker nodes, and the consortium chain is proposed to resolve the trust issues between institutions and regions. A resource-pledge-based mechanism for token issuance, circulation, and recycling is implemented to ensure fairness in cross-institutional cloud resource sharing. A prototype system for virtual machine resource sharing has been developed. The functional and performance test results verify the feasibility and effectiveness of cross-institutional cloud resource sharing using SCRToken.