Universities’ Nuclear Technology Forum 2024
         
 
        
            UNTF stands as one of the oldest nuclear engineering meetings globally, offering a platform for early-career researchers to showcase their projects as well as expand their nuclear networks.
With a mix of research talks, poster presentations and networking activities, the Forum is an excellent opportunity to hear about the latest research across 7 diverse themes: Waste management and disposal; Decommissioning and remediation; Reactors (fission and fusion); Recycle and fuels; Materials; Robotics and Radiochemistry.
Conference Research Themes 
- Waste management and disposal
- Decommissioning and remediation
- Reactors (fission and fusion)
- Recycle and fuels
- Materials
- Robotics
- Radiochemistry
Conference Details
Registration: £150 
Accommodation: On-campus rooms available at £55 per night: https://tinyurl.com/yc57vruk 
Any queries, questions and to send title submissions, please email UNTF2024@leeds.ac.uk
 
Keynote Speakers confirmed
Dr Paul Nevitt (National Nuclear Laboratory) – UK nuclear, what does the future hold?
Dr Matthew Jackson (Sellafield Ltd.) – Translating from PhD to industry
Jon Smith–Moorhouse (Rolls-Royce) – Mobilising and evolving the workforce required to support the UK's growing nuclear sector
Monday, 8th July
| Time | LTBLecture Theatre B, School of Chemical and Process Engineering | LTCLecture Theatre C,  School of Chemical and Process Engineering | 
| 10:30 - 11:00 | Registration | - | 
| 11:00 - 11:10 | Welcome | 
| 11:10 - 11:45 | Keynote 1: Dr Paul Nevitt (NNL) - UK nuclear, what does the future hold? | - | 
| 11:45 - 12:05 | Plenary: Dr. Lee Mortimer and Dr. Alastair Baker (Leeds) – Overview of Nuclear research in SCAPE | - | 
| 12:05 - 13:00 | Speed networking event (SCAPE Foyer) |  | 
| 13:00 - 13:45 | Lunch | 
| 13:45 - 14:00 | Nick Bramah (Lancaster) - Studies into the effect of insoluble fission products on the generation of Ag2+ for the dissolution of MOx fuel | Hasnain Gulzar (Liverpool) - Unification of Physics with Machine Learning for simulating Nuclear Reactor Core | 
| 14:00 - 14:15 | Megan Pritchard (Manchester) - Development of high-temperature-steam resistant UN via the addition of UB2 | Madinka Bright Mweetwa (Bangor) - Evaluation of safety limits and margins for a soluble boron-free small modular reactor core | 
| 14:15 - 14:30 | Stephen Ogezo (Lancaster) - The Role of Mass Transfer and Chemical Complexation Kinetics in Advanced Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing | Hannah Tipping (Bristol) - Simulating thermal transient damage from fusion plasma excursions using combined plasma-laser exposure | 
| 14:30 - 14:45 | Cintia Leite Goncalves (Bangor) - Conductivity of Uranium Nitride with Impurities and Fission Products | Sam Rohunsingh (Leeds) - Deploying Small Modular Reactors: The licensing and financing implications | 
| 14:45 - 15:00 | Stephen Byrne (Lancaster) - Safe Management of Spent Nuclear Fuel under Wet Storage Conditions | - | 
| 15:00 - 15:20 | Coffee Break | 
| 15:25 - 15:40 | Bibi Shehrbano (Lancaster) - Understanding Ruthenium Volatility in Nuclear Fuel Recycling | Ewan Woodbridge (Bristol) - The Utilization of Legacy Mine Sites as Training Environments for Radiological Emergency Response Preparedness | 
| 15:40 - 15:55 | Brendan Green (Lancaster) - Neutronic Analogues for Water Detection Studies in Spent Nuclear Fuel | Geraldyne Ule Duque (Bangor) - Sensitivity analysis for radionuclide production data in nuclear reactors | 
| 15:55 - 16:10 | Hannah Lane (Lancaster) - An exploration of the contamination of AISI 304L stainless steel when corroded in nitric acid-based spent nuclear fuel reprocessing dissolver simulant | Lauren Walker (Manchester) - Improved quantification of f-element fission products | 
| 16:10 - 16:25 | Tom Shaw (Leeds) - Efficient Manufacture of DEHiBA Through Industry 4. | Yannick Verbelen (Bristol) - Decentralised radioisotope production using open source proton accelerators | 
| 16:25 - 16:55 | Poster - Flash Presentations | - | 
| 16:55 - 17:00 | End of Day 1 | 
| 17:00 - 17:40 | MULTIForm lab facilities tour | - | 
| 18:30 - 19:00 | Arrive at The Faversham | 
 
Tuesday, 9th July
| Time | LTB | LTC | 
| 08:30 - 10:00 | Poster session (tea, coffee, pastries) | 
| 10:00 - 10:35 | Keynote 2: Jon Smith-Moorhouse, B.Eng M.Sc (RR) - Mobilising and evolving the workforce required to support the UKs growing nuclear sector | - | 
| 10:40 - 10:55 | Jack Rolfe (Lancaster) - Disposal MOX – Immobilising the UK’s Plutonium Inventory | Jake Smith (Manchester) - Improving the technology readiness levels of hydrogels for deployment in decommissioning scenarios | 
| 10:55 - 11:10 | George Cook (Manchester) - Use of Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS) for characterization in underwater environments | Aron Webster (Leeds) - Cost-Optimal Cutting and Packing for Decommissioning Nuclear Structures | 
| 11:10 - 11:25 | Emine Comert (Liverpool) - Irradiation study of the effects of doping Nb2O5 and SrO on ZrO2 in ceramic pyrochlore as waste matrices | Jiaxin Hu (Leeds) - Enhanced removal of cesium from clay minerals by capacitive deionization process with surfactant | 
| 11:25 - 11:40 | Jack Morris (NNL) - Cements for a Net-Zero World: Impact on the Encapsulation of Nuclear Waste | Tom King (Bristol) - Investigating Molten Lead Corrosion of Steel and Other Nuclear Specification Alloys and Coatings | 
| 11:40 - 11:55 | - | Faisal Altamimi (Manchester) - Cobalt Ion Irradiation for Simulating Graphite Damage and Contamination | 
| 11:55 - 12:40 | Lunch | 
| 12:40 - 13:15 | Keynote 3: Dr. Matthew Jackson (SL) - Translating from PhD to industry | - | 
| 13:20 - 13:35 | Md Prodhan (Leeds) - Population balance modelling of solid particle flocculation through a pipe/channel' | Mariia Zimina (Bristol) - Neutron irradiated materials studies: challenges and prospects | 
| 13:35 - 13:50 | Gamuchirai Sibanda (Leeds) - Simulation and Imaging of Hydrogen Bubble Release Dynamics in Granular Nuclear Waste Material | Archana Prasad (Bangor) - Evaluating the impact of magnetohydrodynamics on the thermophysical properties of liquid lead | 
| 13:50 - 14:05 | David Batty (Liverpool) - Radiation Aware Navigation and Planning for Exploration of Hazardous Semi-Known Environments Using a Mobile Robot Platform | Zihao Wang (Oxford) - Stress corrosion cracking behavior of 316L with in-situ diffusible hydrogen charging in high-temperature water | 
| 14:05 - 14:20 | Alex Carpenter (Bristol) - Automated Object Detection and Position Extraction of Legacy Nuclear Waste Using a Robotic Manipulator | Jessica Marshall (Warwick) - Microhardness and EBSD depth profiles of radiation-induced changes in radiation-dense cWC and RSBs | 
| 14:20 - 14:35 | Ashley Dickson (Lancaster) - Radiation damage in YBa2Cu3O7 high temperature superconductors: an ab initio molecular dynamics study | Chandra Bhusan Yadav (Bristol) - Characterization of Irradiation Damage in Fe-5Cr and Fe-3Cr: A Study on the Effects of Chromium Content, Dose Rate, & Temperature | 
| 14:35 - 15:00 | Coffee | 
| 15:00 - 15:20 | Prizes and final words | - | 
| 15:20 | Conference closes |