Nuclear systems involve technologies designed to make use of properties of atomic nuclei to carry out work in a range of domains, including agriculture, environmental monitoring, medicine, security, mining, power generation, and beyond. While the beneficial uses of such systems are significant – providing societies with access to medical imaging, cancer treatment, security screening, efficient mineral processing, and more – there are considerable safety and security considerations involved in designing, creating, operating, maintaining, and decommissioning such systems. This major is designed to train systems engineers with an awareness of, and means of designing for, some of the key considerations involved in working on nuclear systems, with a focus on fostering an awareness of the safety and security requirements of working with such systems and ensuring graduates can proactively help sustain safety and security cultures within their workplaces. This awareness will be achieved through coursework providing foundational knowledge in nuclear physics, thermal physics, fluid mechanics, control systems, materials sciences, systems sciences, and the nuclear fuel cycle. Students will gain experience in both hands-on and computational work of relevance to nuclear systems through laboratory and project work and will benefit from the expertise and facilities available through the ANU Heavy Ion Accelerator Facility – one of Australia’s premier nuclear accelerator facilities – and the ANU Department of Nuclear Physics and Accelerator Applications as well as collaborations and guest lectures from experts with a range of expertise working on all stages of the lifecycles of nuclear systems.
Learning Outcomes
- Apply systematic design-oriented science and engineering principles, including those aided by mathematical modelling and computer simulation, to analyse and design the safe and secure operation, maintenance and decommissioning of nuclear systems relevant to power, environmental monitoring, waste management, radiological sciences, industrial applications, and nuclear non-proliferation.
- Evaluate solutions to engineering problems in?nuclear systems, by selecting and applying theoretical principles and methods from relevant fields such as the sciences, mathematics, computing, and systems theory.
- Demonstrate proficiency with advanced knowledge and tools for the safe and responsible design, operations, maintenance and decommissioning of?nuclear systems, including nuclear physics, thermal physics, control systems engineering, radiation detection, and health physics.
- Identify, compare, and assess the safety and security considerations of current developments and emerging trends?in contemporary and prospective nuclear systems, such as the potential integration of small modular reactors in energy grids, autonomous control and monitoring systems in nuclear facilities and applications of artificial intelligence in nuclear facilities.
- Use?disciplinary knowledge?and effective communication skills?to critically appraise self and others' engineering designs and solutions, in ways that foster an effective and sustainable culture of safe and responsible practice appropriate for nuclear systems work.?
- Undertake critical reflection and independent research in nuclear systems with appropriate consideration for the health, safety and welfare of the public, as well as historical, sociocultural, economic, regulatory and environmental factors shaping and being shaped by their operations.
- Work effectively within teams, demonstrating autonomy, ethical conduct, well developed judgement, adaptability and responsibility to achieve engineering outcomes at the high standard required to sustain a culture of nuclear safety, security, and responsibility.
Relevant Degrees
Requirements
This major requires the completion of 48 units, which must come from the completion of the following compulsory courses:
ENGN2222 Engineering Thermodynamics (6 units)
ENGN2228 Signals and Systems (6 units)
ENGN3223 Control Systems (6 units)
ENGN3224 Fluid Mechanics and Heat Transfer (6 units)
ENGN4549 Engineering Nuclear Systems (6 units)
ENGN4204 Fundamentals of Nuclear Radiation (6 units)
ENGN4205 Nuclear Fuel Cycle (6 units)
ENGN4222 Advanced Reactor Science (6 units)
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