The future of clean energy is hot. Temperatures hit 800 Celsius in parts of solar energy plants and advanced nuclear reactors. Finding materials that can stand that type of heat is tough. So experts look to Mark Messner for answers. A principal mechanical engineer at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory, Messner is among a group of engineers who are discovering better ways to predict how materials will behave under high temperatures and pressures.

Looking for a shortcut, he found that neural networks, a type of artificial intelligence (AI) that uncovers patterns in huge data sets, can accurately predict …

A new take on artificial intelligence may open many doors for 3D printing and designing advanced nuclear reactors. The future of clean energy is hot. Temperatures hit 800 Celsius in parts of solar energy plants and advanced nuclear reactors. Finding materials that can stand that type of heat is tough. So experts look to Mark Messner for answers.