Two University of South Carolina faculty were recently awarded significant grants as part of the first wave projects selected for the Department of Energy’s Genesis Mission.
Designed to bring together a national consortium of researchers and pair them with Department of Energy resources, the Genesis Mission will help build AI-enabled workflows to expediate discoveries in energy, national security and more.
Only 278 of the thousands applications were chosen with USC the only institution in the state to have multiple projects selected. USC joins four other SEC schools — Kentucky, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Texas — with multiple projects picked.
"Congratulations to Sourav Bannerjee and David Tedeschi, along with their collaborators, on having their projects selected for funding through the highly competitive DOE Genesis program," says Julius Fridriksson, vice president for research at USC. "I commend these outstanding researchers for taking up the challenge laid out by the Department of Energy—and our university—to develop innovative new AI applications to solve problems facing our state and our nation."
Sourav Banerjee, a mechanical engineering professor in the Molinaroli College of Engineering and Computing, was awarded a grant for his work combining artificial intelligence and physics-based modeling.
The project, AI-STRATA3D, uses AI systems to help experts find sites to dispose of nuclear waste quicker and with more clarity and reliability. The goal is to make safer, faster and more defensible decisions on the disposal of nuclear waste while reducing the environmental or water contamination.
"Choosing where to permanently store nuclear waste is one of the most consequential decisions we can make. Get it wrong, and you risk contaminating water and land for generations," Banerjee says. "This grant lets us build an AI system that applies real physics, not guesswork, to certify a site is safe before any waste ever goes into the ground. I'm honored to lead this effort with Deep Isolation, SRNL and the DOE, and excited about what it means for safer, faster, more defensible nuclear waste disposal in this country."
Physics professor David Tedeschi was the other faculty member to receive funding, doing so for his work in particle astrophysics. The work being supported by the Department of Energy studies fundamental particle physics to better understasnd the basic structure and matter of the university.
Tedeschi’s research focuses on studying how we understand the universe by using AI agents to monitor different physics experiments, run simulations, build robust databases, execute various programs and make documentation easier.
"We make the case for basic science improving how we live through the development of both ideas and people. We can look back over the past century to see how the discovery of first electricity and then the component of the atom have lead to a technology based society and excellent medical care," Tedeschi says.
"Therefore, a strong society invests in its future by funding basic science. We are developing the next generation of scientists that will work on new problems for society. This type of manpower development is critical for a society that wants to continue to grow as science changes."
According to the Department of Energy, recipients will get access to the Genesis Mission Platform, which includes advanced AI frameworks and models as well as high-performance computing resources across the departments laboratories and partner facilities.
USC has positioned itself as one of the emerging leaders in artificial intelligence, developing the Artificial Intelligence Institute — which is designed to support research, workforce and economic development in the state through education, technology and commercialization — as well as the Garnet AI Foundry providing resources to students, faculty and staff.
The Board of Trustees gave initial approvals in August for USC to build the Nuclear Innovation Center, which will position the university as a leader in nuclear research, manufacturing and workforce development.