Syllabus¶
| Course number: | ENGY 5050 |
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| Instructor: |
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| Office hours: | Tuesdays and Thursdays, 1:00-3:00 PM |
| Course website: |
You are welcome to stop by my office anytime if you have questions, need some help, or just want to chat. I suggest calling or emailing first, just to make sure I am in my office. My office is in the 301 office suite, at the top of the main Pinanski stairwell. My office is all the way in the back of the suite. (If the suite door is locked it means no one is home!)
See this short video for what “office hours” can do for you (and possible side effects).
Course Description¶
In this course we will explore the fundamental principles of nuclear reactor physics and the mathematical descriptions thereof. We will do this by focusing on problems. Fundamentally there is only one problem that reactor physicists aim to solve: determine where and how much power a nuclear reactor is going to generate. This course exists because that is a tough problem–a problem which preoccuppied many of the top physicists and mathematicians of the early-to-mid twentieth century. While many of the fundamental technical challenges have been worked out, reactor physics continues to be an active area of research today, as engineers seek to design reactors that are safer, more efficient, and more accident-tolerant.
We are going to unfold reactor physics by decomposing the fundamental problem into smaller subproblems so that, by the end, we will have a decent picture of what it takes to perform reactor analyses. The sequencing of problems will follow a logical, though not necessarily linear, flow. Starting from basic physics we will work our way up to transport theory, then ply that theory into something useful for an engineering analysis.
Expectations¶
By taking this course, I assume that you have some prior exposure to basic radiation science, differential equations, and basic numerical methods, presumably all at the undergraduate level. I will provide only brief reviews of the relevant information from these areas where appropriate.
Class periods will primarily focus on discussion and problem solving. Many of the concepts will be introduced thorugh reading assignments issued before the given class period. These reading assignments are a critical component of the course structure, so it is imperative that you take them seriously.
Some problems in this class will require the use of a programming language amenable to computation and plotting. Matlab is sufficient. Python is also a good choice.
Learning Objectives¶
By the end of this course you should be able to describe the fundamental physical principles underlying fission-based thermal power generation, including the mathematical formulations of that problem. That is not a simple a task. To achieve it you will learn how to blend basic nuclear physics with neutral particle transport theory to predict the distribution of the fission reaction rate in geometries typical of nuclear power reactors.
Reference Material¶
There is no required textbook for this class. Reference material and instructor notes will be made available via the website. The content for this course, however, is drawn from several reference texts. These texts are listed below.
- James Duderstand and Louis Hamilton, Nuclear Reactor Analysis
- George Bell and Samuel Glasstone, Nuclear Reactor Theory (out of print)
- Alain Hebert, Applied Reactor Physics
- Weston Stacey, Nuclear Reactor Physics
Assessments and Grading¶
The graded assessments for this course will consist of homework assignments and projects. Class participation is also critical and will contribute to your final grade.
| Homework | 30% |
| Projects | 60% |
| Participation | 10% |
Feedback¶
Your feedback is encouraged at any time throughout the course. If you are struggling with the pace of the class (too fast or too slow), the texts, the technical concepts, the presentation style, software, etc., please let me know in person, by phone or by email. I want all of you to be able to succeed in this class.
Upon completion of the course, a formal student questionnaire will be given. This will be your opportunity to provide feedback concerning your overall experience in the class, your success in meeting the course objectives, and general suggestions so that I can improve the quality of this course.
