NUCLEAR EDUCATION IN CANADA
Dr. John C. Luxat Professor & NSERC/UNENE Senior Industrial Research Chair in
Nuclear Safety Analysis
McMaster University
Presentation to Canada’s Nuclear Industry Capabilities SeminarSantiago, Chile
November 26, 2009
UNIVERSITIES WITH NUCLEAR PROGRAMS & INDUSTRY IN CANADA
NEW BRUNSWICKUNBNEW BRUNSWICK
UNB
QUEBECEcole Polytechnique de Montreal
QUEBECEcole Polytechnique de Montreal
ONTARIOMcMasterQueen’s, RMC, UOITU of T, UWOWaterloo
ONTARIOMcMasterQueen’s, RMC, UOITU of T, UWOWaterloo
SASKATCHEWANU SaskatchewanSASKATCHEWAN
U Saskatchewan
ONTARIOOPG, Bruce Power, AECL, COG, Cameco, AMEC-NSS, Kinectrics, CANDESCO, OCI, International Safety Research, Stern Labs, BC Instruments, NRCan Gen IV, NRCan CANMET-MTL, NRC-CNBC
ONTARIOOPG, Bruce Power, AECL, COG, Cameco, AMEC-NSS, Kinectrics, CANDESCO, OCI, International Safety Research, Stern Labs, BC Instruments, NRCan Gen IV, NRCan CANMET-MTL, NRC-CNBC
NEW BRUNSWICKNB Power
NEW BRUNSWICKNB Power
QUEBECHydro Quebec
QUEBECHydro Quebec
SASKATCHEWANCameco
SASKATCHEWANCameco
UNIVERSITIES
INDUSTRY / GOVERNMENT
NUCLEAR ENGINEERING AND ACADEMIC DISCIPLINES
NUCLEAR FIELD DISCIPLINE
Reactor Physics Nuclear Engineering; Engineering Physics; Physics
Thermal Hydraulics (Heat Transfer, Fluid Dynamics)
Nuclear Engineering, Engineering Physics, Mechanical Engineering
Nuclear Fuel Design and Performance Nuclear Engineering, Materials Science, Engineering Physics
Reactor Materials Nuclear Engineering, Materials Science
Containment Design and Performance Nuclear Engineering, Civil Engineering
Reactor Control Electrical & Computer Engineering; Reactor Physics
Nuclear Safety All of the above nuclear fields + Mathematics
UNIVERSITY NETWORK OF EXCELLENCE IN NUCLEAR ENGINEERING (UNENE)
Formed in response to concerns with skilled nuclear work force Consortia of industry
Primary Funding Sponsors• Utilities (OPG, BP), Designer and R&D (AECL)
Associate Members• Regulator (Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission), Service providers
(NSS, Candesco, Stern Laboratories).
Two major components Education
• M.Eng. Program Research
• NSERC IRC program • 7 university chairs spanning all aspects of nuclear engineering.
UNENE Objectives
UNENE was established by industry to: Develop nuclear research capabilities at key universities. Ensure HQP in a vital economic area. Develop university and industrial collaborations Ensure technical expertise for industrial or public consultations.
UNENE Structure
UNENE UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS
Unique Training Programs
Typical M.Eng 3 courses Research intensive
Graduate Diploma 4 courses Distance learning
pilot Focus on industry
needs
UNENE M.Eng 8-10 courses Small research
project Distance learning
pilot Focus on industry
needs
Typical UNENE Grad Student
Funding from University and UNENE ~900 / month from
UNENE ~900 / month from
University (TA) Some variations
24 month Masters 48 month PhD
Exchanges Fund travel and
continue graduate payments
Additional funds from host institution to cover accommodations/ additional cost of living
Summer exchanges (4 month) or longer.
Cost ~20k per year.
UNENE Spin-off Successes
Grant Application Awards ORF-RE “Nuclear Ontario” $ 4.9M [2008] CFI-NIF / ORF-RI Centre for Advanced Nuclear Systems (CANS) -
McMaster $23.4M [2009] CFI-NIF / ORF-RI Testing of Nuclear Materials in a Simulated
Reactor Environment – Queen’s U $14M [2009]
ACRONYMS
ORF-RE = Ontario Research Fund – Research Excellence
CFI-NIF =Canada Foundation for Innovation – New Initiatives Fund
ORF-RI = Ontario Research Fund – Research Infrastructure
ORF - Nuclear OntarioAdvanced Reactors
Focus 3 – examine key components and phenomena related to advanced nuclear reactors.
GEN-IV safety Leverage existing AECL-NSERC contribution (McMaster)
GEN-IV thermalhydraulics Leverage AECL contribution of SCW test facility (Carleton) SCW small scale TH heat transfer testing
GEN III+ and GEN-IV• Core material analysis (Queens)
COLLABORATIONS WITHIN UNIVERSITY(McMaster Example)
Collaborations include research projects, equipment sharing and co-supervision of students.
University departments Engineering Physics, Material Science and Engineering,
Mechanical Engineering, Computer and Software Engineering, Applied Mathematics.
Software certification (ORF-RE funded project: IRC is a collaborating researcher)
McMaster Nuclear Reactor and Accelerator Labs Research Centers
Centre for Advanced Nuclear Systems (CANS) – CFI & ORF-RI McMaster Institute for Applied Radiation Science (McIARS) Centre for Probe Development and Commercialization (CPDC) Canada Centre for Electron Microscopy (CCEM)
COLLABORATIONS: NATIONAL
Industrial Major collaboration with AECL-CRL on fuel cycle and
physics and Gen IV thermal hydraulics. Led by Dr. J. Luxat (McMaster) and Dr. R. Duffey (AECL Chief Scientist). Linked to ORF-RE Nuclear Ontario research network award
Safety analysis codes and methods with OPG, Bruce Power, Amec NSS and AECL-CRL.
Universities Collaborations between Royal Military College,
Queen’s U, U of Western Ontario, U of Toronto and Carleton U.
COLLABORATIONS: INTERNATIONAL
Collaborations established with IPNG-Grenoble, U of Pisa, Penn State.
Significant expansion of international collaborations: Industrial
• EdF, EPRI, TEPCo Universities
• Penn State, Purdue, Trinity College, Dalton Institute - Univ. of Manchester plus others.
Interactions With Industry
Research Technical Advisory Committee (AECL, BP, OPG)
• Detailed discussion on research directions and opportunities.• Ensures industrial-university technical research objectives are met.• Very positive feedback.
Technical exchanges• Industrial “site-visits” initiated
Graduate student presentations to key industry personnel• Industrial intern placements
Industrial R&D Student conference attendance and presentations Opportunity to present/interact with external utilities and
researchers.
Benefits to Canada
Significant increase in HQP in a vitally needed area of expertise. Research benefits
Resolution of regulatory issues Methodology prototyping Assist in power uprating Safety improvements
Consultations Leveraging industry government investment expansion well
beyond original UNENE vision. Expansion of UNENE university partners/collaborators. Expert support of the industry/public
QUESTIONS?
Example of Interactions With Industry Consultations and Technical Activities
Luxat• AECL Board of Directors• Advisory Board – IASMiRT; Exec Committee ANS TH Division• Chair – ACR-1000 Independent Safety Review• AECL Nuclear Safety Committee reviewing ACR-1000• Member External Licensing Advisory Group for ACR-1000• Chair – Independent PIRT Panel BEAU analysis• Technical expert – Independent Expert Panels: High Temperature Fuel Behaviour;
Fuel Element Deformation (Bowing)• Safety consultant – fuel channel integrity, high temperature fuel behaviour, ECCS
performance, SG flow induced vibration, ageing in PSA, nuclear technology• IAEA expert missions assessing safety in Pakistan and Argentina