PRR Project

Summary

Regardless of their diversity, the operation of complex infrastructures and facilities in the fields of fusion and fission energy technologies, of high energy and high intensity particle accelerators for fundamental and applied research, of proton and other light ion particle accelerators for Medicine or for industrial applications, have in common the need to undertake detailed calculations using state-of-the-art Monte Carlo computer programs for neutronics, dose calculations, radiation safety and shielding assessment, among others. Depending on the type of facility, these calculations aim at determining operating parameters such as the temperature distribution of structural materials, radiation damage, spatial particle flux and dose distributions and to perform the radiation safety assessment of workers and members of the public, both in normal operation and in transient situations potentially leading to radiological and nuclear incidents or accidents.In the last decades, a number of nuclear technology concepts have been proposed, encompassing ITER and DEMO for the deployment of nuclear fusion energy, of several emerging and advanced nuclear fission reactor technologies exploiting high temperature ranges, different coolants, different nuclear fuels, different operating power, under the Gen IV international initiative and in recent years a huge variety of Small and Modular Reactors (SMRs) concepts. Also, particle accelerators in operation or being designed in international laboratories such as CERN, of high intensity and high power proton accelerators for targets and irradiation facilities (namely Spallation Neutron Sources, ESS, in Europe), of Radioactive Ion Beam facilities (in operation in laboratories in several countries) dictate the need to perform accurate calculations involving multidisciplinary, cross-cutting and leading edge scientific, technological and engineering topics.Considering the complexity of the radiological and nuclear topics and issues at stake, common to several of the aforementioned infrastructures and facilities and their associated huge financial costs, detailed and sophisticated computational studies must be undertaken to support their design, project construction and operation. These studies include modeling and simulation using state-of-the-art Monte Carlo computer programs to simulate particle transport and their interactions along their path in the materials. These computer programs and methods allow the implementation of the source terms, of the geometry and constituent materials, the selection of the physics processes to be simulated and the tallying and scoring of relevant quantities (energy deposition, dose, fluence/flux, etc.) and require a high-level of competence and advanced skills.A critical issue related to the deployment and operation of these nuclear energy and particle accelerator concepts is related to the radiological and nuclear safety, in order to minimize the probability of potential incidents and accidents and the mitigation of their consequences. One of the issues pertaining to the operation of the facility is related to the exposure of workers of members of the public to unintended doses of ionizing radiation and their potentially detrimental effects. Another topic of utmost relevance is related to the activation of structural components (targets, vessels, containers, supports, etc.) and the assessment of the corresponding residual dose rates, conditioning the access to the equipment for inspection and repair.The design and assessment work must be performed, for the majority of the aforementioned concepts, in a multinational context in the framework of international collaborations and consortia of several tens of institutions.The development of skills in the nuclear energy and particle accelerator scientific, technology and engineering topics at stake, will allow to consolidate the on-going participation of IST in international consortia and collaborations and to leverage the involvement in new or emerging activities.The candidate to be recruited is expected to deploy his/her skills in research projects and activities encompassing the Monte Carlo simulation and modeling of i) nuclear systems (including both fusion and fission energy related concepts) and ii) radiation protection, dosimetry and shielding aspects pertaining to the operation of these nuclear systems as well as to the operation of particle accelerators in basic and applied research and in the medical applications of ionizing radiation.Several candidates exist, with a robust curriculum in the scientific areas at stake, featuring knowledge, skills and competence acquired in past or on-going involvement of international facilities. A process of scouting including interviews of these potential candidates allowed to assess their skills and interest to apply for the position being proposed.