INTRODUCTION TO NUCLEAR ENGINEERING

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  • DURATION
    40 HOURS
  • SUBJECT AREA
    Climate Transition
    Energy
  • COURSE LEVEL
    First Cycle
  • CREDITS
    0.0 HP
  • INSTITUTIONS
    Chalmers University of Technology
    Open for the Climate
  • STUDY TYPE
    MOOC

COURSE DESCRIPTION

Nuclear power technology has been a major asset since the mid-70s for decarbonizing electricity generation and for decreasing our reliance on fossil fuel. With more than 400 nuclear reactors currently in operation worldwide (more than 90 being in Western Europe) and more than 50 under construction, nuclear reactors will play a significant role for many years to come. By following this course, you will be able to understand the development of this technology from its early days, how it works, its advantages, disadvantages, limitations, and how it may contribute to climate-change mitigation. This course provides a holistic perspective and increased knowledge in nuclear reactor technology.

 

Topics

Part 1: Nuclear power: an old story...: 3 chapters detailing the underlying principles of nuclear reactors for the purpose of understanding the history of the development of nuclear power:

  • Elementary concepts in nuclear physics.
  • Working principles of nuclear reactors.
  • History of world nuclear power development.

Part 2: Nuclear reactor technology: 11 chapters focusing on how a nuclear reactor works, with emphasis on Light Water Reactor (LWR) technology. Both the phenomenological and engineering aspects of nuclear reactors are covered.

  • Electricity production.
  • Reactor generations.
  • Light Water Reactor (LWR) technology.
  • Thermodynamic analysis of LWRs.
  • Neutron cycle.
  • Fuel depletion.
  • Reactor control.
  • Reactor dynamics.
  • Reactor operation.
  • Fundamental principles of reactor safety.
  • Nuclear fuel.

Part 3: Nuclear power, saving the world? 5 chapters explaining the aspects of nuclear power to be considered in a climate mitigation perspective, and the advantages/disadvantages/limitations of this technology.

  • Nuclear fuel, waste and resources.
  • Proliferation risks.
  • Risks.
  • Cost of electricity.
  • Conclusions.

 

Course structure and set-up

This is a self-paced course made of video lectures and interactive quizzes, which means that you can start and finish the course whenever you want. The course is free of charge and is given in English.

The resources need to be studied sequentially. You cannot bypass given resources unless all previous learning activities were taken:

  • For the video lectures, this means watching the video recording.
  • For the quizzes, this means correctly answering the quiz questions, for which an unlimited number of attempts is allowed. For a few quizzes slightly more involved, you will be able to access the following resources even if you fail to find the correct answer.

After completing the course, you will be issued a course certificate. Completing the course means reaching the end of the course, for which you need to have watched all video lectures and attempted all quizzes (the vast majority of the quizzes also require to have found the correct answer to the quiz questions).

 

Expected amount of work

Completing the entire course takes about 40 hours of work.


Level of the course

Basic. A BSc in Engineering or similar knowledge is required. As all principles presented in the course are derived from scratch, any participant with an engineering background will be able to comprehend the course.

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