Introduction to the Safety of Reactor Operation (UNIPV)

Introduction to Safety of Reactor Operation (UNIPV)

Date:

13.10.2025 – 16.10.2025 (4 working days)

Venue:

L.E.N.A., Pavia, Italy

Organizer:

University of Pavia (UNIPV), Italy, under the management of the European Nuclear Experimental Educational Platform (ENEEP)

Language:

English

Purpose:

The ENEEP course Reactor Physics is intended for people interested in gaining practical experience in reactor physics. The purpose of the course is to give a theoretical overview of the main topics and perform exercises using the TRIGA Mk II reactor to become familiar with the measurement and control procedures of the main reactor parameters. Using the reactor and under the supervision of the technical staff (Operator/Supervisor), students will learn in detail:

  • To get familiar with the reactor console instrumentation for operation and control
  • To manage the reactor control procedure before start-up, with the reactor in a critical state, and after shut-down
  • The control rod calibration procedure, as well as the calculation of shutdown margin and core reactivity excess
  • The measurement procedure of the void coefficient
  • The measurement procedure of the fuel prompt temperature coefficient
  • The procedure of reactor power calibration
  • The effect of reactivity on reactor period
  • Collect physical data from reactor instrumentation

The knowledge acquired during the course will provide students with dedicated theoretical lessons and practical experiments to be able to apply what has been learned to other research reactor centers.

Participants’ qualifications:

The course is aimed at students in bachelor's and master’s degree programs studying nuclear engineering as the major curriculum. It is also suitable for students studying various major engineering curricula, such as power engineering, mechanical engineering, and electrical engineering, with future assignments in various nuclear curricula.

Course program:

  • Monday, 13.10.2025
    • Welcome, course opening, pre-test
    • Presentations, visit to the LENA facility and reactor control room
  • Tuesday, 14.10.2025
    • Reactor exercise I - Reactor operation exercise
    • Reactor exercise II - Control rod worth calibration
  • Wednesday, 15.10.2025
    • Reactor exercise III - Measurement of the fuel temperature reactivity coefficient
    • Reactor exercise IV - Measurement of the void reactivity coefficient
  • Thursday, 16.10.2025
    • Teamwork, process flow chart definition, and presentation of results
    • Takeaways, Post-test, Collection of feedback

Course directors:

Daniele Alloni (UNIPV)

Contact person:

Andrea Salvini (UNIPV)

Jakub Lüley (ENEEP)

Course fee, fellowship:

The course fee for participants is 1,000 € without TAX. The course fee includes course materials, full access to all exercises, and online tutoring before and after the course. The course fee does not include accommodation, per diem, or transportation of the participants.

The minimum number of total participants to open a course is 5. If the number of eligible applications exceeds the maximum number defined for the course, an extra course might be opened.

Application deadline:

July 4, 2025, 23.59 CET

Application Procedure:

To apply to the course, the applicant should fill in the ENEEP APPLICATION FORM and submit the following documents:

  • filled-in application form,
  • curriculum vitae,
  • motivation letter

The ENEEP evaluation committee will inform all applicants about the results of the application procedure by July 11, 2025, at 23.59 CET.

Acknowledgement:

This event has been partially supported by the ENEN2plus project (HORIZON-EURATOM-2021-NRT-01-13 101061677) founded by the European Union.

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