NE301 - Fundamentals of Nuclear Engineering
NE301 is a Nuclear Engineering course taught at North Carolina State University
The course has been taught by Dr. Scott Palmtag for the last ten years (2014-2023)
Required textbooks:
(1) Fundamentals of Nuclear Reactor Physics by E.E. Lewis (2008) ISBN: 978-0-12-370631-7
(2) Fundamentals of Nuclear Science and Engineering, by Shultis and Faw, 3rd Edition (2016) ISBN: 978-1498769297
Introductory Information
Part 1 - Nuclear Reactions
Part 2 - Diffusion and Kinetics
Part 3 - Reactors
- History of the discovery of Xenon
- PWR Description from Westinghouse
- BWR6 Description from GE
- ABWR Description from GE
- Video on Molten Salt Reactor Experiment
- Reactor Presentation (Part 1)
- Reactor Presentation (Part 2)
Course Outline
- Nuclear Reactions and Decay
- Equivalence of mass and energy, binding energy
- Types of radioactive decay
- Activity
- Saturation activity
- Multiple nuclide decay
- Numerical solution to decay equations (Computer Project 1)
- Calculate number densities
- Reactions Rates and Diffusion Theory
- Reaction Rates
- Depletion (combine reaction rates and decay)
- Energy Dependence of flux and cross sections
- Neutron Balance Equation
- Neutron Diffusion Equation
- Solution of non-multiplying systems
- Solution of multiplying systems, bare cores
- K-criticality
- Multiple Regions / Reflectors
- Reflector Savings
- Monte Carlo Method (Computer Project 2)
- 2-Energy Groups
- Kinetics
- delayed neutron precursors
- point kinetics equations
- prompt critical
- prompt jump
- in-hour equation
- general solution to in-hour equation (7 roots)
- stable period
- operations – reactor period, doubling time
- Reactivity Coefficients
- definition of reactivity
- units ($, pcm, millik)
- Doppler coefficient
- Moderator Temperature Coefficient (MTC)
- Power defect
- Boron, Void, Control Rods
- Depletion, excess reactivity
- Reactors
- PWR
- BWR
- CANDU
- Fast Reactors