Virtual Sensing-Enabled Digital Twin Framework for Real-Time Monitoring of Nuclear Systems Leveraging Deep Neural Operators
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Abstract (arXiv)
Effective real-time monitoring is a foundation of digital twin technology, crucial for detecting material degradation and maintaining the structural integrity of nuclear systems to ensure both safety and operational efficiency. Traditional physical sensor systems face limitations such as installation challenges, high costs, and difficulty measuring critical parameters in hard-to-reach or harsh environments, often resulting in incomplete data coverage. Machine learning-driven virtual sensors, integrated within a digital twin framework, offer a transformative solution by enhancing physical sensor capabilities to monitor critical degradation indicators like pressure, velocity, and turbulence. However, conventional machine learning models struggle with real-time monitoring due to the high-dimensional nature of reactor data and the need for frequent retraining. This paper introduces the use of Deep Operator Networks (DeepONet) as a core component of a digital twin framework to predict key thermal-hydraulic parameters in the hot leg of an AP-1000 Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR). DeepONet serves as a dynamic and scalable virtual sensor by accurately mapping the interplay between operational input parameters and spatially distributed system behaviors. In this study, DeepONet is trained with different operational conditions, which relaxes the requirement of continuous retraining, making it suitable for online and real-time prediction components for digital twin. Our results show that DeepONet achieves accurate predictions with low mean squared error and relative L2 error and can make predictions on unknown data 1400 times faster than traditional CFD simulations. This speed and accuracy enable DeepONet to synchronize with the physical system in real-time, functioning as a dynamic virtual sensor that tracks degradation-contributing conditions.
Key facts. Cited by 12 papers in the map (data through 13 Oct 2026). Builds on 14 of its 55 references that are in the map. First posted on arXiv 17 Oct 2024.
Builds on
14 of 55 references.
References · 14
- 2020Fourier Neural Operator for Parametric Partial Differential Equationscited by 2,857
- 2019DeepONet: Learning nonlinear operators for identifying differential equations based on the universal approximation theorem of operatorscited by 1,989
- 2022MIONet: Learning multiple-input operators via tensor productcited by 181
- 2023Sequential Deep Operator Networks (S-DeepONet) for Predicting Full-field Solutions Under Time-dependent Loadscited by 47
- 2024Integrating Neural Operators with Diffusion Models Improves Spectral Representation in Turbulence Modelingcited by 36
- 2023Novel DeepONet architecture to predict stresses in elastoplastic structures with variable complex geometries and loadscited by 33
- 2023Deep Neural Operator Driven Real Time Inference for Nuclear Systems to Enable Digital Twin Solutionscited by 22
- 2023Explainable, Interpretable & Trustworthy AI for Intelligent Digital Twin: Case Study on Remaining Useful Lifecited by 19
- 2023Improved generalization with deep neural operators for engineering systems: Path towards digital twincited by 19
- 2024Graph Neural Networks for Virtual Sensing in Complex Systems: Addressing Heterogeneous Temporal Dynamicscited by 7
- 2022Digital Twin-Centered Hybrid Data-Driven Multi-Stage Deep Learning Framework for Enhanced Nuclear Reactor Power Predictioncited by 6
- 2024Physics-Enhanced Graph Neural Networks For Soft Sensing in Industrial Internet of Thingscited by 6
Built on by
Citing papers per year: 2025: 5; 2026: 7.
12 papers.
- 2025From Models To Experiments: Shallow Recurrent Decoder Networks on the DYNASTY Experimental Facilitycited by 6
- 2026Real-Time Sensing of Inaccessible Physical Fields via an Edge-Deployable Hardware-Portable Graph Neural Operatorcited by 4
- 2026CTF4Nuclear: Common Task Framework for Nuclear Fission and Fusion Modelscited by 4
- 2025Distribution-Free Uncertainty-Aware Virtual Sensing via Conformalized Neural Operatorscited by 3
- 2025Single vs. Multiple Branches in DeepONet and S-DeepONet: Network Architecture Follows Coupling in Multiphysics Systemscited by 2
- 2025Agentic Physical AI toward a Domain-Specific Foundation Model for Energy Systems: A Case Study on Nuclear Reactor Controlcited by 2
- 2026Beyond Uniform Sampling: Synergistic Active Learning and Input Denoising for Robust Neural Operatorscited by 2
- 2026Energy-efficient operation of neural operators for virtual sensingcited by 1
- 2025Sensing Without Colocation: Operator-Based Virtual Instrumentation for Domains Beyond Physical Reachcited by 0
- 2026Gradient-Free Continual Learning in Spiking Neural Networks via Inter-Spike Interval Regularizationcited by 0
- 2026Information Density as a Quantitative Measure for AI-enabled Virtual Sensing: Feasibility and Limitscited by 0
- 2026NuclearDiffusion: Text-to-Image Foundation Models for Learning Nuclear Energy Conceptscited by 0
- 2026Energy-efficient operation of neural operators for virtual sensing24 Sep 2026
- 2026NuclearDiffusion: Text-to-Image Foundation Models for Learning Nuclear Energy Concepts1 Aug 2026
- 2026CTF4Nuclear: Common Task Framework for Nuclear Fission and Fusion Models15 May 2026
- 2026Information Density as a Quantitative Measure for AI-enabled Virtual Sensing: Feasibility and Limits5 May 2026
- 2026Gradient-Free Continual Learning in Spiking Neural Networks via Inter-Spike Interval Regularization14 Apr 2026
- 2026Beyond Uniform Sampling: Synergistic Active Learning and Input Denoising for Robust Neural Operators14 Apr 2026
- 2026Real-Time Sensing of Inaccessible Physical Fields via an Edge-Deployable Hardware-Portable Graph Neural Operator2 Apr 2026
- 2025Agentic Physical AI toward a Domain-Specific Foundation Model for Energy Systems: A Case Study on Nuclear Reactor Control29 Dec 2025
- 2025Sensing Without Colocation: Operator-Based Virtual Instrumentation for Domains Beyond Physical Reach20 Oct 2025
- 2025Distribution-Free Uncertainty-Aware Virtual Sensing via Conformalized Neural Operators15 Jul 2025
- 2025Single vs. Multiple Branches in DeepONet and S-DeepONet: Network Architecture Follows Coupling in Multiphysics Systems4 Jul 2025
- 2025From Models To Experiments: Shallow Recurrent Decoder Networks on the DYNASTY Experimental Facility11 Mar 2025