Carolinas Engine Drives Grid Modernization with Nuclear Innovation

The Carolinas Engine for Grid Modernization (Carolinas Engine) — a finalist in the National Science Foundation’s Regional Innovation Engines Program (NSF Engines) — is modernizing the U.S. nuclear infrastructure and capitalizing on place-based innovation to strengthen the nation’s energy grid.

The Trump administration issued several directives over the summer promoting the nationwide expansion of AI, a move expected to drive up energy consumption. Carolinas Engine for Grid Modernization‘s Principal Investigator John Daniels told GovCIO Media & Research that the U.S. power grid will need significant modernization to meet these growing demands.

The Department of Energy (DOE) began investing in grid modernization efforts in 2015 to decrease energy costs and strengthen the aging grid’s resiliency against natural disasters and cyberattacks. A 2024 DOE report found U.S. data centers accounted for roughly 4.4% of total electricity in 2023. The report also estimated that by 2028, that number will increase anywhere from 6.7 to 12% as AI and data centers grow.

“There’s actual technologies out there now that could be used to accelerate [grid modernization] now, however, you need to test some of those technologies under field relevant conditions,” Daniels added.

Daniels said the Carolinas Engine, if selected as NSF’s awardee, will help the U.S. “meet the moment” to accelerate grid modernization efforts because of the resources in the region.

Advancing the U.S. Nuclear Infrastructure

North and South Carolina are home to several nuclear power plants. According to Daniels, the main challenges facing the nuclear energy sector stem not from the technology itself, but from the complexities involved in constructing new facilities. To address this, the Carolinas Engine is leveraging small modular reactors (SMRs) and digital twin technology to improve how nuclear energy infrastructure is designed and deployed.

“Digital twinning, a computer-based replica of what you’re trying to build, allows us to quickly understand which parts and components need to be built when and helps prevent delays,” Daniels explained.

SMRs make it easier to integrate nuclear power into the existing energy grid. The small reactors are more predictable, Daniels said, which means they can be built quicker and at a lower cost. The Carolinas Engine is exploring how to connect SMRs to help offset peak energy demand or provide supplemental power to communities experiencing growth, such as towns adding new data centers.

“You have to be mindful of that flow when thinking about the grid — the transformers, the wires, the power flow controllers — all of those components need to work together and be optimized,” Daniels said.

Collaborative Testbeds Accelerate Real-World Solutions

Place-based innovation, funded through NSF’s Engines program, drives economic and technological growth in targeted regions by uniting researchers, institutions and industry. The goal is to build self-sustaining ecosystems that spark innovation, create jobs and expand opportunities in communities previously left out of major tech advances.

“Place-based innovation creates a replicable model for innovation hubs,” said Daniels. “The big picture is that — by harnessing all of the key organizations in our region, which is the highest concentration for grid tech — we can accelerate the pace of innovation for grid technologies and the energy sector more broadly.”

The Carolinas Engine partners with universities, Duke Energy and the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) to operate several testbeds that assess transmission line capacity and explore ways to optimize existing infrastructure for faster, more cost-effective power delivery. The testbeds — all located within roughly 30 minutes from each other — help validate technologies that previously could take years to enter the market.

“All the components that collectively go together to get electricity, from the point A to point B … have to be tested, not just in a laboratory. They need to be tested under field relevant conditions,” said Daniels. “There is no other part of the country which has both developed labs focused on grid technologies as well as full buy in from a utility, because [our] relationships have existed for generations.”

Daniels said grid modernization cannot be done alone.

“That’s what makes the engine program so powerful. It intentionally recognizes that if you really want to move the needle, you really want to make progress, it’s going to take a lot of people and a lot of organizations working together,” said Daniels.