Course syllabus for Nuclear reactor technology: Past, present and future

The course syllabus contains changes
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Course syllabus adopted 2024-03-13 by Head of Programme (or corresponding).

Overview

  • Swedish nameKärnreaktorteknik: dåtid, nutid och framtid
  • CodeTRA410
  • Credits7.5 Credits
  • OwnerTRACKS
  • Education cycleSecond-cycle
  • DepartmentTRACKS
  • GradingTH - Pass with distinction (5), Pass with credit (4), Pass (3), Fail

Course round 1

  • Teaching language English
  • Application code 97169
  • Minimum participants8
  • Open for exchange studentsYes

Credit distribution

0124 Project 7.5 c
Grading: TH		3.8 c3.7 c

In programmes

Examiner

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Eligibility

General entry requirements for bachelor's level (first cycle)

Specific entry requirements

Applicants needs to have 90 ECTS at the time for application.
English 6/B.

Course specific prerequisites

Letter of motivation.
Selection is based on an overall assessment of the applicants' merits and letter of motivation.

Aim

The course provides a platform to work and solve challenging cross-disciplinary authentic problems from different stakeholders in society such as the academy, industry or public institutions. Additionally, the aim is that students from different educational programs practice working efficiently in multidisciplinary development teams

This course describes the technology and physics of nuclear reactors and their role in/impact on society. After introducing the history of nuclear power development and the basic principles of nuclear reactor technology, the course then focuses on the part of the system specific to nuclear reactors, i.e., the nuclear core containing the nuclear fuel assemblies. The physics governing the physics of such systems is presented from a phenomenological perspective and the main governing equations are derived accordingly. The course also largely focuses on solving those equations in simple situations to gain physical understanding. The course ends by discussing and reflecting on the societal aspects of nuclear reactor technology and its role in climate mitigation.

Learning outcomes (after completion of the course the student should be able to)

General learning outcomes for Tracks courses
  • work in multidisciplinary teams and collaborate in teams with different compositions
  • show insights about and deal with the impact of architecture and/or engineering solutions in a global, economic, environment and societal context.
  • identify ethical aspects and discuss and judge their consequences in relation to the specific problem
  • orally and in writing explain and discuss information, problems, methods, design/development processes and solutions
Course specific learning outcomes
  • Explain the working principles of nuclear power plants and of the various reactor generations/technologies.
  • Discuss and weigh their advantages, disadvantages, and limitations, taking ethical aspects into consideration.
  • Appreciate the impacts of nuclear power technology in a climate-change mitigation perspective.
  • Reflect upon the use of different reactor technologies depending on various factors, such as resource maximization, waste minimization, etc.
  • Know the governing equations describing neutron transport, flow transport, and heat transfer in nuclear reactors.
  • Solve such governing equations for simple systems.
  • Understand the multi-physics and multi-scale aspects of nuclear reactors.
  • Understand the behavior of nuclear reactors during nominal and off-nominal conditions.

Content

Three main themes are covered in the course:
  • History of nuclear power development. After introducing some elementary concepts in nuclear physics and radiation science, as well the basic working principles of nuclear reactors, the history of nuclear power development is presented. The different generations of nuclear reactors are also detailed.
  • Technology and physics of nuclear reactors. The entire fuel cycle in relation to nuclear reactors is first introduced. The technological aspects of nuclear power plants are then presented, before focusing on the nuclear core, i.e., the part of the system containing the nuclear fuel assemblies. The various physical phenomena of importance in the core are described, and the corresponding governing equations derived. Such equations are solved in simple enough situations/configurations to gain physical understanding. The control and operation of nuclear reactors are finally tackled, before introducing the basic principles of nuclear power safety.
  • Nuclear power, saving the world? The last part of the course focuses on nuclear fuel resources, the risks associated with nuclear reactor technology in general and the proliferation risks in particular, and the future prospects of this technology. The ethical aspects of nuclear power are also covered.

Organisation

The course is run by a teaching team.
The main part of the course is a challenge driven project. The challenge may range from being broad societal to profound research driven. The project task is solved in a group. The course is supplemented by on-demand teaching and learning of the skills necessary for the project. The project team will have one university examiner, one or a pole of university supervisors and one or a pole of external co-supervisors if applicable.

The course is a flipped course, which means that self-paced learning elements are provided on each chapter, followed by teacher-led interactive sessions promoting active learning. Those interactive sessions are offered in a hybrid set-up and can thus be attended onsite at Chalmers or remotely on the web (Chalmers students are required to participate onsite). In the remote attendance option, the course is thus entirely web based. The sessions are typically organized on Friday afternoons and are largely based on group work/activities promoting intercultural and interdisciplinary collaborations between peers. In addition, the groups need to work on some projects offered throughout the course. By applying the learned concepts on practical examples and via the support from the teaching staff, the students will develop an in-depth understanding of the technology and physics of nuclear reactors.

Literature

With input from the teaching team, students will develop the ability to identify and acquire relevant literature throughout their projects.

Examination including compulsory elements

The examination is based on continuous assignments throughout all course modules. The assignments are related to the in-class activities, as well as to the preparatory work ahead of those activities. One should successfully solve a sufficient number of those assignments for each course module to pass the course.

The course examiner may assess individual students in other ways than what is stated above if there are special reasons for doing so, for example if a student has a decision from Chalmers on educational support due to disability.

The course syllabus contains changes

  • Changes to course:
    • 2024-03-10: Learning outcomes Learning outcomes changed by UOL
      Updated learning outcome