Anyone know about inital training for BWR Reactor Engineers?

[ChemGirl]

I am starting a new job as a reactor eng. in a BWR plant (in Alabama) in a week or so. I was wondering if anyone knew what the initial training is usually like and what to expect...that sort of thing...

Any suggestions on what to brush up on and what to expect will be appreciated!

Thanks!

 

[LinkNuc]

Training is similar no matter where you go in the Nulclear Power Plant game, It will take about 6 months but most plants like to spead it out over a year, like 1 week of training a week in the office. The training usually consists of "academic" which is Thermo, Reactor Physics (watered down), fluid mechanics, yadda yadda yadda, then you will do systems which is the meat of the training and some various other stuff, you will be required to take exams and pass with at least an 80%, but its not bad. Remember though after this you are done with the hard stuff but YOU WILL have to attend training in some faction for the rest of your career, have fun!!

 

[xnuke]

Try:

http://www.nrc.gov/NRC/REACTOR/OL/OLhome.html

Specifically, check out the link to the Generic Fundamentals Examination information.
There is a lot of other information on the NRC site as well, but you have to comb through it to find what you are interested in.

Best wishes in the nuclear field.

 

[tstead]

Since you stated "reactor engineer" I assume that you will be an actual "reactor engineer" and not an operator.

Reactor Engineers basically manage the fuel cycle from new fuel to spent fuel and how core loading impacts the neutron management of the core.

Are you a degreed nuclear engineer? If so, I would brush up on topics such as neutron transport, fuel management, transient analysis, and neutron detection (since you will need to have a good understanding of incore instrumentation - source, intermediate, and power range).

Reactor Engieners generally work in teams of three. You will probably be issued a pager (not right away) because the reactor engineer needs to be on call should something happen. You will probably be in training as a reactor engineer for about three years and this is trianing over and above that described by LinkNuc (which is standard training for all technical personnel at nuke plants.)

Also, count on some long nights when doing start-up because your function will be in low power physics testing and start-up are not always done M-F 8-5. Rest assured (no pun intended) that you will not have sleepless nights because the NRC places strict limits on the amount of hours you are allowed to work in any 24 hour period.

Regards,
Tim S.

 

[LinkNuc]

Tim S. Pretty much hit it right on the head. Word of advice, learn as much as you can about the systems other than the one's dealing with RE's. It'll help you so much especially when you become an SRO candidate and it will make you invaluable at your work place. No doubt you'll be in the control room at least once a day, as that is a huge part of an RE's job, Ops. Support. Currently we have only myself and our Senior RE, so we are getting overworked, (we have 2 units here at Beaver Valley), but things will get better and it's fun work. Luckily we have an STA that was an RE and we get some help from other qualified individuals.....are you ready for your 1st outage? Typically 1 month long(some shorter some longer) you'll be on 12 hours a day for 7 days a week, makes for a nice Christmas, but it is intense. Got my degree from Penn State hw bout you?

 

[tstead]

ChemGirl,

I hope you enjoy your new job - just make sure that you will have an employer for a bunch of years and are not going to work for a company whose plant will be shut down in 5-10 years.

Nuclear engineering is a fascinating field - and a field that I have been out of for about 4 years but are trying to get back in. I received my B.S. in Nuclear Engineering form the Univ. of Mo-Rolla in '93 but never had a job as a "nuclear engineer." My job function at a nuclear plant was as a secondary-side system engineer dealing with electrical and mechanical systems. What I wouldn't give to be a reactor engineer right about now at a prospering plant with a bright future. If you are in such a capacity, then have fun doing what you enjoy!

Regards,
Tim S.

P.S. Anyone who is interested, visit my new website at

http://www.ntirs.org

and let me know what you think - suggestions, improvements needed, etc.