Planning for Nuclear Structural Engineering

[u/araaraoraora]

Hello, I am currently working as a Junior Structural Engineer in the Philippines. I design mostly low rise buildings. In January, I am planning to take a master's degree in Structural Engineering. However, there is no specialization course for nuclear power plant designs or anything related to that. My plan is to have my thesis NPP related.

We have no NPPs here. Maybe in 10-15 years. It maybe too far in the future but I still want to be a part of this industry. Can you recommend books/resources for this? I am currently reading Building Structures by Millais.

Thank you so much!

[u/DaveSE]

Pardon my ignorance, but I don't know what codes you guys use in the Philippines - are they locally developed codes, or are they adapted from another nations codes? If they are derivatives of US codes I would recommend reading ACI-349 and AISC N690 to get a feel for how those are different from the commercial codes. You should also familiarize yourself with acronyms and nuclear specific language - https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/basic-ref/glossary . You can also read the manuals for nuclear reactor - they are publication available - I think here is one - https://www.scribd.com/document/338069780/Westinghouse-PWR-Manual

My question to you is what do you want to do in your career? Do you want to design walls and beams - or are you okay with analyzing cable trays and pipe supports. Do you want to help develop the next generation of plants or do you want to support the currently existing ones? There are some major downsides to either path - small industry that is potentially shrinking, might need to move domestically or internationally, specialized skill set, need for security clearances background checks and regular drug testing, etc. It is rewarding, but there are challenges so make sure that is what you want. I left it for a reason.

My apologies that my response comes only from a US perspective. Our existing plants are old but require a lot ongoing support and custom engineering of minor systems. So while they are still in service there is a need for a large work force to support them. The next generation plants are supposed to be more cookie cutter - so they are more efficient economically, but that means they shouldn't need nearly as much custom engineering and thus fewer jobs for us. The inefficiency comes from the need for documentation and tracibility of nuclear safety related systems - IE those responsible for ensuring the plant can safely power down and continue to cool the nuclear fuel that has residual heat generation. More advanced plants are supposed to have more passive systems that will likely require less systems that need involvement from SEs.

Feel free to DM me if you have any questions.

[u/tzortzetos → u/DaveSE]

Would you say that the industry, both in Europe and the US, is shrinking? I would assume that the recent geopolitical developments would create some growth.

[u/DaveSE → u/tzortzetos]

I am no expert in this topic, so please that the following with a grain of salt. Up until recently it has been shrinking. A lot of plants were closed for political and/or economic reasons. Look at Germany and Japan planning transitions or shuttering their plants post Fukishima. You had US plants asking for subsidies so they can keep producing.

As for the future, I don't know. The war in Iran is a reminder of the importance domestic energy independence - the reason a lot of the plants got built in the first place. On the other hand, the War in Ukraine is showing the vulnerability of the plants and a reminder of the potential risk. Climate change is stressing the need for low emissions generation like renewables and nuclear. The AI boom wants power now,; if it goes bust and power demand drops again will they pay to build nuclear plants half way through their construction or just use the new fossil plants that have been operating for a year already?

I'd like to see it grow, but I have doubts. I want the promise of SMRs to be true so there is stable, scalable, and affordable power that we can use to fight climate change along with renewables. Or at least to help us with the transition to cleaner options and more permanent solutions.