Chairholders

Profile

Kirk Atkinson

Faculty of Energy Systems and Nuclear Science
Ontario Tech University

Chair title

NSERC/UNENE Industrial Research Chair in Health Physics and Environmental Safety

Chair program

Industrial Research Chairs program

Role

Associate Chair since 2020

Summary

Nuclear power generation provides half the electricity in Ontario and a third of the electricity in New Brunswick. At present, Ontario Power Generation and Bruce Power are retiring old nuclear plants and extending the working lives of existing nuclear stations via major refurbishment projects. Future electricity, co-generation and process heat innovation may result in the deployment of small modular reactors in remote communities in the North and in the Prairies. In all cases, radioactive wastes are being either produced, removed, stored or disposed of. If these radioactive materials are not managed correctly, and their locations and transport not well understood, they could present a radiation risk to people and the environment.

Helping partners in the University Network of Excellence in Nuclear Engineering (UNENE) address these risks, the Chair will train the next generation of radiation scientists and nuclear engineers in health physics and environmental safety through industry-relevant research projects. This research will focus on the development of two mutually reinforcing technologies that will lead to major improvements over current practice, reducing both risk and cost. The development of a multiscale coupled shielding and radiological environmental impact code for improved dose rate and radiological consequence models in, around and far from nuclear facilities addresses a shortfall in current Canadian capabilities. This eventual world-class capability for fully coupled predictive simulations of reactor accidents and radiological releases will leverage radiation transport methods, computational fluid dynamics, environmental models, geographic and meteorological information and computational dosimetry to reduce uncertainties and provide more accurate assessments for radiation emergency planning and response, thereby reducing potential risks to Canada and Canadians.

Hand in hand with a better understanding of where radioactive materials travel, the development of a unique gamma ray imaging system will allow better measurements of radioactive inventories in engineering systems and the environment. This non-invasive, field-deployable capability will leverage high-efficiency solid-state radiation detectors, consumer grade and open-source electronics and advanced iterative reconstruction techniques to reduce potential radiation risks to workers through a better understanding of the radiological composition of materials. This will facilitate more rapid maintenance and an improved knowledge of plant performance, as well as helping Canada meet its international obligations with respect to nuclear safeguards.

The Chairholder is an expert in both subjects, having previously led a multi-million-dollar project to develop a high-throughput gamma emission tomography system for the imaging and characterization of spent nuclear fuel, and having long-standing collaborations in multiphysics modelling and simulation with Idaho National Laboratory and leading international universities. The Chairholder has more than 20 years’ experience in applied radiation physics and nuclear engineering, including a decade in the UK Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program (NNPP) as technical lead for both Radiation Physics and Criticality, and Reactor Physics and High-Performance Computing (HPC). He is the founding director of the Centre for Small Modular Reactors at Ontario Tech University.

Partners

• NSERC/CRSNG
• UNENE (University Network of Excellence in Nuclear Engineering)

Contact information

Faculty of Energy Systems and Nuclear Science
Ontario Tech University