Nuclear engineering Graduate certificate
Course Descriptions
ENGR/ME 2100: FUNDAMENTALS OF NUCLEAR ENGINEERING (3 units)
This course provides an introduction to application of theory to practical aspects of nuclear science and technology. It reviews basic concepts of both the nuclear fuel cycle and the world’s major nuclear power reactor systems. It provides the fundamental theoretical concepts of nuclear physics, radiation protection, reactor physics, reactor kinetics, fuel depletion and energy removal. A feature of the course is an emphasis on the interfaces among engineering disciplines involved with the design of a reactor core and the reactor coolant system for light water reactors. This course is intended as a ramp-up course for non-nuclear engineers who wish to pursue a graduate level certificate in nuclear engineering at the University of Pittsburgh. Graduate level content is assured by use of open-ended assignments and group discussions via an electronic blackboard. The course is designed to accommodate working adults who must travel from time to time.
PRE-REQ: bachelor of science degree in engineering or science.
ENGR/ME 2101: NUCLEAR CORE DYNAMICS (3 units)
This course reviews the mathematics of nuclear reactor kinetics. Linear systems of ordinary differential equations are solved by state vector techniques, Laplace transform techniques, or finite difference techniques including the treatment of discretization errors resulting from various finite differencing approximations. A review of the physics of nuclear kinetics is followed by treatments of the kinetics equations including the effect of uncertainties, approximate solutions, and the interpretation of experiments to measure kinetics parameters. Representations and the physical basis of reactivity feedback mechanisms are treated. Lumped and distributed parameter models of fuel, coolant, and fission products are derived and applied to develop quantitative static relationships and qualitative dynamic results for transient conditions. The course provides an introduction to space dependent reactor kinetics.
PRE-REQ: ENGR/ME 2100 or an undergraduate degree in nuclear engineering.
ENGR/ME 2102: NUCLEAR PLANT DYNAMICS AND CONTROL (3 units)
This course provides an integrated engineering examination of a nuclear power plant from the perspective of instrumentation and control systems used to infer the condition of the nuclear plants and its systems, control its normal operation, and provide protection during transient situations as well as assess core damage during severe accident situations. Students will apply previous knowledge of analog, digital, and microprocessor electronics techniques to nuclear power plant design and operation and reactor protection and safety considerations that influence the design of the reactor plant. Smart instrumentation and wireless communications will be introduced. A major outcome of this course will be an integrated understanding of the interaction between the physics of nuclear plant control (reactivity and heat balance) and the control and protection systems. This integrated plant understanding will be essential for the successful completion of the Integrated Nuclear Power Plant Operations course.
PRE-REQ: ENGR/ME 2101.
ENGR/ME 2103: INTEGRATION OF NUCLEAR PLANT SYSTEMS WITH THE REACTOR CORE (3 units)
This course examines design bases for major systems and components in a nuclear plant and evaluates how the systems function in an integrated fashion. The student will examine a typical nuclear power plant and those components and systems of the nuclear plant complex that have the potential for affecting core power, and whose failure could be an initiating event for a plant transient. Emphasis is on how operations of and faults in systems and components can influence reactivity and core behavior. Through classroom discussions the students will assess engineering problems and operational problems that have been experienced in historical nuclear plant operations. The intended outcome is an aptitude for predicting complex interactions among systems and transient behavior of the integrated nuclear plant considering factors that are important for safe and efficient operation: reactivity management and control, coolant inventory control, and core heat removal.
PRE-REQ: ENGR/ME 2100 or an undergraduate degree in nuclear engineering with the instructor's permission.
ENGR/ME 2104: NUCLEAR OPERATIONS SAFETY (3 units)
This course reviews the development of reactor safety concepts, the emergence of safety strategies and culture, and the perspectives of severe accidents and how they can be mitigated. Risk-influenced regulatory practices will be introduced and quantitative use of probabilistic risk assessment will be described in terms of its use as a guide to intelligent decision-making. The characteristics of accident progression in the reactor vessel and containment in the unlikely event of core melting and relocation of fuel material will be explained. Offsite impacts of such severe accidents will be introduced. Source terms, dispersion of radionuclides, and dose projections will be developed for both conservative and realistic evolutions. Protective actions and emergency preparedness will be introduced. This course will cover the regulatory aspects of nuclear operations and the roles that the NRC, INPO, WANO and the IAEA play and what impact each has on plant operations. An introduction into regulatory requirements, the Safety Analysis Report, and nuclear safety and licensing will be provided.
PRE-REQs: ENGR/ME 2100 or an undergraduate degree in nuclear engineering with the instructor's permission.
ENGR/ME 2105: INTEGRATED NUCLEAR POWER PLANT OPERATIONS (3 units)
This course promotes understanding of how the integrated nuclear plant works and the challenges an operator faces. It helps an engineer “speak operations” with interfacing groups. Use of the replica simulator is an effective way for students to understand accident control, Emergency Operating Procedures, and how the control room interfaces with the rest of the plant. Emphasis is placed on understanding plant characteristics and controls, rather than on developing control manipulation skills. Intended outcomes are an aptitude for predicting transient behavior of the integrated plant and a command of reactivity management and control that is important for efficient operation of a nuclear plant complex. The course presumes knowledge of the major systems in a nuclear power plant and will emphasize how operations of and faults in those systems and components can affect reactivity and core transient behavior.
PRE-REQs: ENGR/ME 2102 and 2103.
ENGR/ME 2110: NUCLEAR MATERIALS (3 units)
This course begins with an overview on materials of construction and materials issues associated with the design and operation of nuclear power plants. The first part of the course covers fundamental aspects of materials, such as crystal structure, crystal defects (vacancies, interstitial and substitutional impurities, dislocations, etc.), phase diagrams, diffusion, plasticity, and brittle fracture in order to provide the background required to understand the core and plant materials used in commercial nuclear power plants. The micro-structural changes that result from reactor exposure (including radiation damage and defect cluster evolution) are discussed in detail. The aim is to create a linkage between changes in the material microstructure and changes in the macroscopic behavior of the material.
Also covered in this course is the evolutionary development of UO2-based fuel systems and zirconium-based fuel rod cladding, including the latest materials advances. The effects of impurities, alloy additions, and processing conditions on the performance of these materials are also discussed. Similar discussions on the evolution of iron-based and nickel-based alloys for use as plant materials in nuclear reactors are also provided. In addition, the most important near-term issues and problems with respect to commercial PWR applications are discussed. A comprehensive discussion of welding and bonding techniques are also included in this course
PRE-REQ: an undergraduate course in materials science or instructor's permission.
ENGR/ME 2115: HEAT TRANSFER AND FLUID FLOW IN NUCLEAR PLANTS (3 units)
This course provides advanced knowledge to promote understanding and application of thermal and hydraulic tools and procedures used in reactor plant design and analysis. It assumes that the student has a fundamental knowledge base in fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, and heat transfer and reactor thermal analysis. The focus of the course is on physical and mathematical concepts useful for design and analysis of light water nuclear reactor plants. Applications of mass, momentum, and energy balances are combined with use of water properties to analyze the entire reactor plant complex as a whole. Principles may be applied through the application of major industry codes to specific cases.
PRE-REQ: an undergraduate course in heat transfer and fluid flow or instructor's permission.
ENGR/ME 2120: NUCLEAR PLANT SECURITY (3 units)
This course will be designed in conjunction with colleagues at the University’s Center for National Preparedness. This broad, multidisciplinary, collaborative enterprise engages the University’s scientists, engineers, policy experts, and clinical faculty in issues related to security and safety. Members of the Center possess expertise in biomedical research, public health, medicine, national security policy, engineering, and information technology. The Center synthesizes efforts in place in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the Graduate School of Public Health, the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs, and the Schools of Engineering, Information Sciences, Law, Medicine, and Nursing. Research, education, and training are the foundation of this enterprise. The Center communicates the innovative research of the University’s faculty to the broader public through the educational and training programs in which students, policymakers, and other interested parties participate. The Center supports research and applications that are directed at the University’s numerous constituencies. The Center contributes to local, state, and national preparedness.
ENGR/ME 2130: ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES AND SOLUTINS FOR NUCLEAR POWER (3 units)
This course will be developed in conjunction with University of Pittsburgh faculty with an interest in environmental issues impacting the nuclear power industry including School of Engineering faculty involved with the Mascaro Sustainability Initiative, faculty from the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and faculty from the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs. The course will address such topics as sustainable energy resources, engineering and societal ethical concerns, risk analysis, and future energy supplies in general and as each of these topics relates to such specific issues as the nuclear fuel cycle, nuclear reactor safety, nuclear waste disposal and transportation, and GEN IV and the hydrogen economy. Students will better understand the socio-economic issues surrounding achieving a sustainable nuclear power future as it impacts fuel acquisition, plant operation and waste disposal.
