Students must be familiar with closed-loop steam cycles and the coupling between thermal-hydraulic conditions in the core and nuclear-reactivity. This course compares/contrasts many different types of reactor systems, including GENERATION IV nuclear reactor systems. However, knowledge of LWR details provides an important reference base.

Course objectives: Our intention would be to...

expose students to the principles of the conversion of nuclear energy to useful power.

detail the various types of nuclear power plants that have been designed, built and operated.

cover advanced and future types of nuclear power plants that are in the design or developing stages (e.g., GENIV).

cover the reactor designs of power plants, their energy conversion principles, cycles and load-following characteristics.

review the economics of nuclear vs. other types of power plants.

prepare the students for career opportunities in the nuclear power plant design and utility industries.

Course Outcomes: Students must be able to...

solve problems involving core hydrodynamics of boiling-water reactors, their void and pressure coefficients, stability, and their effects on the design of the balance-of-plant.

solve problems related to detailed features of pressurized water reactor components, including steam generators, pressurizers and chemical-shim control systems.

solve problems related to features of gas-cooled reactor cycles and components, and compare/contrast those features with those of conventional LWRs. Examples include, but are not limited to, fuel geometries (hex vs rod vs pebble-bed), fuel type (uranium vs thorium) and coolant type (helium vs water).

solve problems related to conversion, breeding and doubling times of fast breeder reactors.

explain how the difference in neutron spectrum and fuel type between a fast reactor and a LWR affect fast reactor physics and performance. Examples include, but are not limited to, fast reactor kinetics, sodium void coefficients and designs to suppress reactivity excursions.

describe methods of direct nuclear energy conversion such as thermionic, thermoelectric, betavoltaic and fission-electric cells.

review the economics of nuclear power plants, accounting for capital costs, fuel costs and O&M (operations and maintenance) costs, as well as environmental aspects - sustainability, proliferation, safety. Compare and contrast the relative merits of different types of power plants.

NEEP 550 meets two-three times a week for standard 50-75 minute lectures.

The following statement indicates which of the following considerations are included in this course: economic, environmental, ethical, political, societal, health and safety, manufacturability, sustainability.

NEEP 550 provides a forum for discussing many different types of nuclear power conversion systems. The differences between those systems are frequently driven by both safety and economic concerns, and there is a distinct module devoted to assessing the economic impact of the different systems.

This is a cross-listed course (with ME) serving students in both NE and ME. It serves as either a technical elective for seniors or a breadth elective for graduate students. In terms of NE program objectives, NEEP 550 prepares students for a career in the nuclear power industry and provides a forum for discussing the relative merits of different nuclear generation systems in terms of their economic and environmental impacts. It also provides a design experience (see assessment below) in which students are required to work as a team.