Reactors Research Group

Research Focus Areas

Reactor Design

We apply modeling and simulation tools to evaluate both light water reactors and advanced reactor concepts

Optimization

We create scalable, multi-objective optimization algorithms to accelerate the design process of nuclear reactors, especially in high-fidelity and computationally intensive simulations.

Neutron Transport

We design advanced numerical methods to efficiently solve neutron transport problems relevant to nuclear reactor applications.

Multiphysics Simulations

We conduct coupled simulations involving neutronics, thermal-hydraulics, and fuel performance to gain deeper insights into the safety and behavior of advanced reactors.

Multifidelity Modeling

We develop neural network-based surrogate models to predict high-fidelity outcomes from low-fidelity simulations, enabling more efficient analysis.

Recent Publications

Multi-objective combinatorial methodology for nuclear reactor site assessment: A case study for the United States

2025

Energy Conversion and Management: X

Multiphysics Modeling of Heat Pipe Microreactor with Critical Control Drum Position Search

2024

Nuclear Science and Engineering

Thermal Modeling of an eVinci™-like heat pipe microreactor using OpenFOAM

2023

Nuclear Engineering and Design

View Paper

NEORL: NeuroEvolution Optimization with Reinforcement Learning—Applications to carbon-free energy systems

2023

Nuclear Engineering and Design

View Paper

Multiobjective optimization of nuclear microreactor reactivity control system operation with swarm and evolutionary algorithms

2022

Nuclear Engineering and Design

View Paper

Recent Funded and Ongoing Projects

•Safety analysis and design optimization of small modular reactors, with a focus on NuScale and Holtec SMR-300 systems
(Further read:
Work in progress
)
•Acceleration of CFD-based reactor safety analysis using multifidelity surrogate models for improved computational efficiency
(Further read:
Work in progress
)
•Application of tensor-train decompositions and isogeometric analysis to enhance the efficiency of neutron transport simulations
(Further read:
Work in progress
)
•Combinatorial optimization strategies for nuclear reactor site selection and evaluation
(Further read: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecmx.2025.100923)
•Development of scalable ensemble - based optimization algorithms integrated with online surrogate models to accelerate nuclear reactor design under computationally expensive simulations
(Further read: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00521-022-07878-y)
•Model-agnostic explainability methods for trustworthy and licensable AI in nuclear applications
(Further read: https://arxiv.org/abs/2504.03913)
•Coupled multiphysics simulations and criticality search for optimal drum placement in eVinci™-like microreactors
(Further read: https://doi.org/10.1080/00295639.2024.2409582)
•Physics-informed reinforcement learning for optimizing nuclear reactor cores and assemblies at large scale
(Further read: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2020.110966)
•Advanced simulation and depletion modeling for precise isotopic predictions in boiling water reactor fuel assemblies
(Further read: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pnucene.2019.01.010)
•Criticality safety and accident scenario modeling for spent fuel in boiling water reactors
(Further read: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pnucene.2019.03.039)
•Propagation of delayed neutron data uncertainties into macroscopic kinetics parameters for light water reactors
(Further read: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2018.11.043)