2025 (Current Year) Faculty Courses School of Environment and Society Undergraduate major in Transdisciplinary Science and Engineering

Introduction to Nuclear Engineering

Academic unit or major: Undergraduate major in Transdisciplinary Science and Engineering
Instructor(s): Toru Obara / Hiroshi Akatsuka / Hiroshige Kikura / Tatsuya Katabuchi / Hiroaki Tsutsui
Class Format: Lecture
Media-enhanced courses: -
Day of week/Period (Classrooms)
Class: -
Course Code: TSE.A311
Number of credits: 200
Course offered: 2025
Offered quarter: 4Q
Syllabus updated: Mar 24, 2025
Language: Japanese

Syllabus

Course overview and goals

[Outline]
Fission reactor systems and nuclear fusion reactor development in nuclear engineering are taken up in this class. First, basic nuclear characteristics, nuclear decay and radiation, and nuclear reaction physics are explained. Second, criticality, kinetics, and combustion characteristics of fission reactors are explained as well as reactor thermal hydrodynamics, nuclear system safety, and nuclear fuel cycles. Finally, basic plasma physics, nuclear fusion reactions and fusion plasma are explained as well as the history and present status of nuclear fusion reactor development.
[Aim]
To understand and obtain basic knowledge on physics in nuclear engineering, the mechanisms and safety of fission reactors, reactor thermal hydrodynamics, nuclear fuel cycles, fusion plasma, and the present status of nuclear fusion reactor development.

Course description and aims

By taking this course, the students are expected to obtain a wide range of basic knowledge on nuclear engineering and to apply that knowledge to understand the content of higher-level courses in nuclear engineering.

Keywords

energy self-sufficiency rate, energy security, nuclear force, nuclear structure, nuclear binding energy, critical, nuclear reactor, safety, innovative nuclear energy systems, nuclear fuel, uranium enrichment, reprocessing of nuclear spent fuel, disposal of nuclear waste

Competencies

Specialist skills
Intercultural skills
Communication skills
Critical thinking skills
Practical and/or problem-solving skills

Class flow

This omnibus course overviewing nuclear engineering, consists of six lecturers from their respective specialist fields.

Course schedule/Objectives

	Course schedule	Objectives
Class 1	Outline of this class, Energy situation in Japan	Students must be able to explain the energy security situation of Japan based on energy self-sufficiency rate, etc.
Class 2	Nuclear structure, Nuclear Binding Energy	Students must be able to explain the basic of nuclear engineering such as nuclear force, nuclear structure, nuclear binding energy, etc.
Class 3	Nuclear disintegration and radiation interactions	Students must be able to explain the generation mechanism of nuclear radiations due to the decay of unstable atomic nuclei and the interaction of the radiation with matter.
Class 4	Nuclear reactions and chain reactions of nuclear fission	Students must be able to explain the mechanisms of nuclear reactions and neutron-induced fission of heavy nuclei such as uranium.
Class 5	Criticality of nuclear reactor and reactor kinetics	Students must be able to explain the principal of criticality conditions to achieve it in a nuclear reactor and the change in reactor power by reactivity change.
Class 6	Reactor burnup, safety, and nuclear systems	Students must be able to explain the effect by the change of fuel composition by reactor operation.
Class 7	Nuclear systems, Nuclear safety, Innovative nuclear systems	Student must be able to expain, safety, conventional nuclear systems, and the concept of innvative nuclear reactors.
Class 8	Fundamentals of thermal-hydraulics	Students must be able to explain the fundamentals of thermal-hydraulics in nuclear reactors.
Class 9	Thermal-hydraulics in nuclear reactors	Students must be able to explain the thermal-hydraulic characteristic of nuclear reactors such as heat generation, boiling heat transfer, critical heat flux and so on, and to explain the differences of thermal-hydraulics between BWR and PWR.
Class 10	Nuclear fuel cycle	Students must be able to explain the nuclear fuel cycle, i.e. nuclear fuels, uranium enrichment, burn-up in nuclear reactors, reprocessing and disposal of nuclear spent fuels.
Class 11	Nuclear fusion reactions and magnetic confinement	Students must be able to explain fundamentals of plasma science and engineering. They must be also able to explain about applications of plasma science from the aspect of fundamental natural phenomena and of various industrial applications.
Class 12	Heating methods and diagnostics of fusion plasmas	Students must be able to explain nuclear fusion reactions in stars as a source of energy, and magnetic plasma confinement to achieve fusion reactions on earth.
Class 13	Nuclear fusion reactions and magnetic confinement	Students must be able to explain the heating methods of plasmas to trigger enough fusion reactions and the diagnostic schemes to measure the temperature and density of plasmas.
Class 14	History and present status of fusion reactor development, report themes	Students must be able to explain the history and present status of research and development to realize fusion reactors.

Study advice (preparation and review)

To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.

Textbook(s)

None. Material for each class can be provided by the lecturer.

Reference books, course materials, etc.

Material for each class can be provided by the lecturer.

Evaluation methods and criteria

Einal examination (100%)

Related courses

CAP.E361 ： Radiation Chemistry
CAP.E362 ： Nuclear Chemical Engineering

Prerequisites

None

Contact information (e-mail and phone) Notice : Please replace from ”[at]” to ”@”(half-width character).

tobara[at]zc.iir.isct.ac.jp (Prof. Obara)

Office hours

Prior appointment by e-mail is necessary.