Nuclear energy is drawing renewed attention as the world considers reliable power, advanced reactors, safety and its energy future. At the University of South Carolina’s Molinaroli College of Engineering and Computing, researchers are studying the technologies and challenges shaping nuclear’s next chapter.
This curated list connects journalists with USC faculty experts studying how nuclear reactors work, how their fuels and materials perform, how to make them safer, and how new technologies—from computer modeling to artificial intelligence—are shaping the field’s future.
To arrange an interview, contact Public Relations Coordinator Gregory Hardy, ghardy@sc.edu, 352-362-7052.
Travis Knight
Expertise: Nuclear energy; advanced reactors; South Carolina’s nuclear future
Travis Knight is chair of mechanical engineering and director of the Nuclear Engineering Graduate Program at the Molinaroli College of Engineering and Computing, where he is a leading voice on the technology, workforce and policy issues shaping the future of nuclear energy.
- With more than 25 years of experience, Knight’s research spans advanced nuclear fuels and materials, spent fuel storage and management, microreactors, space nuclear power and nuclear applications for industrial decarbonization.
- He brings a South Carolina perspective to national nuclear issues as a member of the Governor’s Nuclear Advisory Council and an expert on developing the workforce and technologies needed for the industry’s next generation.
He can comment on:
- The future of nuclear energy in the U.S. and what is driving renewed investment.
- Small modular reactors, microreactors and other next-generation nuclear technologies.
- South Carolina’s nuclear industry and its impact on the state’s economy, energy supply and workforce.
- USC’s role in nuclear research, innovation and educating the next generation of nuclear engineers.
- Nuclear fuel, spent fuel management and the technical challenges facing an expanding nuclear industry.
Theodore M. Besmann
Expertise: Nuclear energy; molten salt reactors; advanced nuclear fuels and materials
Theodore M. “Ted” Besmann is Professor and General Atomics SmartState Chair for Transformational Nuclear Technologies at the Molinaroli College of Engineering and Computing. His research helps advance the nuclear fuels, materials and reactor technologies that could shape the future of nuclear energy in the United States.
- A nationally recognized expert in nuclear materials and thermodynamics, he spent nearly 40 years at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and now leads research on nuclear fuels, including molten salt nuclear fuels, which combine nuclear fuel and coolant in a liquid salt mixture, an approach that could enable smaller, more flexible nuclear reactors.
- Under a U.S. Department of Energy-funded program, his team has developed and is expanding a thermodynamic database used by universities, national laboratories, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to understand the chemistry, corrosion, safety, and performance of next-generation molten salt reactors.
He can comment on:
- How advanced reactor technologies could make nuclear power more flexible and cost-effective.
- Molten salt reactors and how they differ from today’s conventional water-cooled nuclear plants.
- The technical challenges of nuclear fuels and materials involved in bringing next-generation reactors to market.
- Nuclear safety, reactor chemistry, corrosion and the role of scientific data and modeling in reactor design.
- USC’s role in supporting a nuclear industry that already supplies more than half of South Carolina’s electricity.
Sourav Banerjee
Expertise: AI-driven sensing, monitoring and digital twins for nuclear infrastructure
and geological systems; nuclear waste site characterization
Sourav Banerjee is a mechanical engineering professor whose background spans civil engineering, geophysics and earth and environmental science, combined with deep expertise in acoustics, ultrasonics and wave propagation. That cross-disciplinary foundation drives his work applying AI, sensor networks and physics-based modeling to problems in nuclear energy: from monitoring the structural health (SHM) of reactors and small modular reactors (SMRs) to finding safe underground sites for long-term nuclear waste disposal.
Through the Department of Energy’s Genesis Mission, Banerjee is gaining funding and access to powerful AI and computing tools to develop a system for identifying safer, more reliable nuclear-waste disposal sites.
- He builds "digital twins" — virtual models continuously updated with real-world sensor data that let engineers spot damage or predict maintenance needs in critical structures and equipment without physically inspecting or disassembling them.
- He leads a U.S. Department of Energy-funded project (AI-STRATA3D) that pairs AI with physics-based subsurface modeling to screen candidate underground sites for nuclear waste disposal faster and more reliably.
- His work rests on the principle that AI must be grounded in real physics and engineering data, not treated as a black box before it can be trusted for safety-critical decisions.
He can comment on:
- How AI, ultrasonic sensing and wave-propagation techniques can detect early signs of damage in nuclear structures and equipment, catching small flaws before they become large problems.
- What a "digital twin" is, and how it can guide maintenance and safety decisions for nuclear facilities and SMRs.
- The challenges of applying AI, sensing and geological/geophysical modeling to identify safe underground sites for long-term nuclear waste disposal.
- How expertise from outside traditional nuclear engineering (e.g. mechanical, civil, geotechnical and earth-science disciplines) are increasingly essential to solving nuclear energy infrastructure challenges.
Lingyu Yu
Expertise: Nuclear safety; spent fuel storage; structural health monitoring
Lingyu Yu conducts research to help make nuclear energy operated safer by finding hidden cracks and corrosion in the structures used to store and support spent nuclear fuel.
- Yu develops ultrasonic inspection methods that can detect and track damage in metal and composite structures, from steel bridges and aircraft components to nuclear spent fuel-storage canisters.
- Her U.S. Department of Energy-supported research uses laser-generated ultrasound, computer modeling and machine learning to inspect spent-fuel canisters and other nuclear components without damaging them.
She can comment on:
- The safety challenges of storing spent nuclear fuel and detecting corrosion or cracks before they compromise a storage canister.
- Why spent-fuel canisters in coastal areas can be vulnerable to corrosion from salt-bearing air.
- How computer modeling and machine learning can help researchers interpret inspection data and strengthen nuclear safety monitoring.
- USC’s partnership with Savannah River National Laboratory to develop nuclear-safety technology and help prepare students for careers in the field.
Krishna Mandal
Expertise: Nuclear safety technology; radiation detection; nuclear batteries
Krishna Mandal develops the tiny but powerful semiconductor technologies that help make nuclear energy safer and expand what it can do—from detecting radiation and fuel leaks to generating electricity from radioactive decay.
- His diamond-and-silicon-carbide radiation detectors are designed to work in extreme heat and high-radiation environments, including nuclear facilities and space missions.
- Mandal is adapting this technology for “nuclear batteries,” which are compact devices that can turn radiation into long-lasting electricity for specialized uses.
He can comment on:
- How next-generation materials can help nuclear equipment withstand extreme conditions.
- Radiation detection at nuclear facilities and in extreme environments such as deep-space missions—and why high heat and radiation can defeat conventional electronics.
- Nuclear batteries: what they are, how they work and where they could be useful.
- The role of advanced semiconductor technology in America’s nuclear-energy future.
Austin Downey
Expertise: Small modular reactors; artificial intelligence; nuclear energy technology
Austin Downey is helping develop a USC small modular reactor test system that lets researchers study how advanced reactors could be controlled and interact with the electric grid.
- He leads USC’s Autonomous Real-Time Systems Laboratory, where researchers develop fast computer models, sensors and artificial intelligence that help complex machines respond to changing conditions using live data.
- Downey brings that expertise to a USC research team using a small-scale system that models reactor behavior and a simulated power-generation cycle, allowing researchers to test control strategies in real time.
He can comment on:
- How artificial intelligence, sensors and computer models can help researchers test new reactor-control approaches.
- How researchers are studying the interaction between small modular reactors and the electric grid.
- The role of real-time data and monitoring in understanding complex engineering systems.
- What a small modular reactor test system is and why researchers use one.
Juliano Schorne-Pinto
Expertise: Molten salt reactors; nuclear materials; high-temperature chemistry and
thermodynamics
Juliano Schorne-Pinto is an assistant professor in the nuclear engineering program at USC's Molinaroli College of Engineering and Computing, and he conducts research that helps build the materials-science foundation for next-generation molten salt reactors.
- His team conducts high-temperature experiments, including salt synthesis and purification with oxygen quantification and high-accuracy calorimetry, to better understand how molten salts that serve as reactor fuel, coolant, or both behave under the demanding conditions inside advanced reactors.
- He co-develops the Molten Salt Database - Thermochemical (MSD-TC), a publicly available, license-free U.S. Department of Energy-supported resource that combines experimental measurements and thermodynamic models to help researchers predict the chemistry and phase behavior of molten salt reactor fuels and coolants.
He can comment on:
- Why molten salt reactors operate at near-ambient pressure and what that means for safety.
- What happens to uranium and fission products dissolved in a hot salt.
- How laboratory measurements and thermodynamic modeling are combined to evaluate new nuclear fuels, coolants, and reactor materials.
- USC's work to develop and train students needed for advanced-reactor research.