Seminar: Instrumentation and Controls for Advanced Reactor Deployment

Dr. Kenneth W. Tobin, Oak Ridge National Laboratory

All dates for this event occur in the past.

E141 Scott Lab
E141 Scott Lab
201 W. 19th Ave.
Columbus, OH 43210
United States

Nuclear energy provides the most reliable, clean, and safe power in the nation. However, in the next few decades, many of our existing power plants will be coming to the end of their useful life and will begin shutting down. To revitalize the nation’s nuclear energy infrastructure, the U.S. will need to begin building new power plants by the 2030s to keep up with plant retirements. To address the high capital cost of construction, energy market competition, safety, and safeguards associated with new nuclear power, there is a vibrant community of venture- and industry-backed companies entering the market with concepts for the design and commercialization of advanced reactors. Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has a long and storied history in the development of the science and technology of nuclear energy along with the materials, electronics, sensors, measurements, and regulatory guidance necessary to develop monitor, and control the high-temperature, harsh environment of advanced reactors. This presentation will address a number of topics related to ongoing research in instrumentation and controls by ORNL along with a discussion of sensors and sensing requirements for advanced reactors and methods of non-destructive testing for new materials and engineered systems of materials using neutron radiography. 

About the Speaker

Dr. Kenneth W. Tobin is the Director of the Reactor and Nuclear Systems Division (RNSD) in the Nuclear Science and Engineering Directorate at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). In this role, he provides science and technology leadership and strategic planning in support of the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Nuclear Energy, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and U.S. Industry. RNSD provides science and technology capabilities to extend the life of our existing light water reactor fleet, create concepts for advanced reactor technologies, develop accident tolerant and proliferation resistant nuclear fuel cycles, and support modernization of the U.S. nuclear regulatory infrastructure.  Dr. Tobin’s personal research over his 30-year career at ORNL encompassed photonics, neutronics, x-ray, scanning electron microscopy, and optical microscopy for computational imaging and image-based informatics. Dr. Tobin was named an ORNL Corporate Research Fellow in 2003 for his contributions to the field of applied computer vision research.  He has authored and co-authored over 174 publications and he currently holds fourteen U.S. Patents in areas of computer vision, photonics, radiography, and microscopy. Dr. Tobin is a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and a Fellow of the International Society for Optics and Photonics. Dr. Tobin has a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Virginia, an M.S. in Nuclear Engineering from Virginia Tech, and a B.S. in Physics also from Virginia Tech.