THE ANNUAL REPORT OF THE NUCLEAR AND RADIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING AND THE MEDICAL PHYSICS PROGRAMS 2004-2005 George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering GEORGIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY MESSAGE FROM THE LETTER FROM THE CHAIR OF WOODRUFF SCHOOL CHAIR THE NRE AND MP PROGRAMS Dear Friends: Dear Colleagues and Friends: We are pleased to bring you Welcome to the fourth edition of the another annual report of the annual report for the Nuclear and Nuclear and Radiological Radiological Engineering and Medical Engineering and Medical Physics Physics (NRE/MP) Programs. The Programs of the George W. NRE/MP programs enjoy a healthy Woodruff School. This report enrollment of 146 undergraduate and 73 covers the academic year ending graduate students. These correspond to in June 2005. enrollment increases of 62 percent and 70 This was another very percent, respectively, since fall 2002, soon successful year for the Nuclear after the reorganization of the program. and Radiological Engineering and Medical Physics Programs. We Two factors contributing to the enrollment trend are the increased have again experienced significant increases in enrollment at both student recruiting effort by the faculty and the undergraduate the undergraduate and graduate levels. In the undergraduate scholarship program funded by our industry sponsors and the program, nuclear engineering enrollment is rapidly growing as a Department of Energy matching grant. Additionally, the sponsored result of the quality of our programs and the increased interest in funds have helped us attract high quality students into the program. the country in nuclear power as a possible solution to meeting the Fall 2005 is the start of the second year of the Georgia Tech country's energy needs as well as helping with environmental and Emory University cooperative on-campus and distance learning issues. The medical physics graduate program has grown consid- graduate program in medical physics. In addition to the M.S.M.P. erably in its second year, with a strong increase in the distance degree, students may now pursue a Ph.D. degree as an option learning program. The program's involvement with Emory University under the nuclear engineering program. I am also pleased to has been expanded and solidified, and we have managed to obtain announce that the Memorial Health University Medical Center at participation of additional medical institutions to help provide the Savannah, Georgia has agreed to be affiliated with the medical clinical rotations required in the program. physics program and will take on three students for the clinical Given the fact that the NRE/MP programs are directly involved rotation each summer, beginning in 2006. This has helped us in three of the more important social issues of our time - energy, the increase the on-campus M.S.M.P. student enrollment. Dr. Nasser environment, and health care - I fully expect the programs to Maleki, Director of Medical Physics, will lead the clinical rotation continue to grow rapidly in size and stature. We owe thanks to program at Memorial Health. Farzad Rahnema, the Chair of the programs, for the excellent job One of the major challenges in the coming academic year is to he has done in program development. expand the faculty and upgrade the radiation detection laboratory in I hope you find this report informative and that you will help us response to the enrollment increase. One of our sponsors, Areva, is advance the programs even further. If you have any comments or making a sizeable contribution toward the upgrade of the detection wish to discuss the programs, please contact Farzad Rahnema or me. laboratory. Finally, the faculty will consider an expansion of the medical physics graduate curriculum and review the undergraduate and graduate NRE curricula in response to the enrollment increase and the resurgence in the nuclear power industry. Ward O. Winer, Ph.D. I would like to welcome Drs. ZongJian (Z.J.) Cao of the Medical Eugene C. Gwaltney, Jr. Chair of the College of Georgia, Eric Elder of Emory University, and Dr. Nasser Woodruff School Maleki of Memorial Health University Medical Center to the medical physics program. Including Dr. Tim Fox, we now have four faculty October 2005 members from outside institutions who are affiliated with the medical Atlanta, Georgia physics program. I hope that you find this report interesting and useful. Please address any questions and comments about this report and the programs in nuclear and radiological engineering and medical CONTENTS physics to me at (404) 894-3718 or EVENTS............................................................................1 [email protected]. PROGRAMS.....................................................................2 ENROLLMENT .................................................................4 SCHOLARSHIPS..............................................................5 Farzad Rahnema, Ph.D. DEGREES ........................................................................6 Associate Chair of the Woodruff School and FACULTY ..........................................................................7 Chair of the NRE/MP Programs DONORS ........................................................................10 ALUMNI ..........................................................................10 HISTORY ........................................................................13 NUCLEAR AND RADIOLOGICAL ENGINEERING/MEDICAL PHYSICS PROGRAMS EVENTS Vijay K. Dhir, UCLA, Nucleate Boiling in Reduced Gravity - Numerical Simulations and Experiments; Timothy Donovan, Knolls THE ANNUAL WOODRUFF DISTINGUISHED LECTURE Atomic Power Laboratory, Monte-Carlo Prticle Transport Through a Binary Stochastic Mixture Using Chord Length Sampling; Sandra Mr. Thomas A. Christopher, President and Chief Executive Officer of Dulla, Politecnico de Torino, Models and Methods in the Neutronics Framatome AP, Inc. and CEO and Vice Chairman of AREVA of Fluid Fuel Reactors; Larry Foulke, Bettis, Space Nuclear Power; Enterprises, Inc. presented the Woodruff Distinguished Lecture on Steve Herring, INEEL, Hydrogen Producing Using Nuclear Energy; April 12, 2005. His talk was titled, The Energy Highway...Where David Holcomb, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Nuclear Power Does Your Road Lead? He spoke about electricity and the fact that Instrumentation Research at ORNL; Frederick Kelley, Instiutut fur we all take it for granted. He answered these questions: How does Plasmaphysik Forschungszentrum Julich, Effect of Transport the price of coal, natural gas, and oil affect our society? Will we Changes by the Dynamic Ergodic Divertor on the Marfe Density have enough energy sources to maintain our way of life? What role Limit in Textor; Robert R. Meyer, Automated Beam Angle Selection does nuclear energy play? How do all these old and new and a Related Cyberinfrastructure; Peter Newby, Framatome ANP, technologies affect the future and the future of our children? What's Happening at Framatome ANP, An AREVA and Siemens According to Mr. Christopher, there is a strong future in the electric Company, and In the Nuclear Industry; Mihaela Rosu, University of power industry. New Michigan, Dose Evaluation in Moving/Deforming Anatomy: Methods power plants are being and Clinical Implication; John Russell, A Quantitative Theory of Cold constructed around the Fusion and Its Future with Nanotechnology; Jim Smathers, UCLA, world. These new Nuclear Engineering and Medical Physics; John Sheffield, Joint power plants need Institute for Energy and Environment, Future World Energy Demand people to help design and Supply: China and India and the Potential Role of Fusion and operate them in a Energy; Brian Stewart, NASA, Evaporative Cooling of Solid State world of increasing Laser Crystal; Harold L. Sumner, Jr., Southern Nuclear Operating electric demand. Co., The Present Status of the Domestic Nuclear Power Industry. Thomas A. Christopher joined Framatome ANP (Advanced Nuclear Power), Inc. as President and Chief Executive Officer in April 2000. In addition, he became CEO and Vice-Chairman of AREVA Enterprises, Inc., the U.S. headquarters of the parent company, in early 2003. Prior to joining Framatome ANP, Christopher was most recently the Vice President and General Manager of the Siemens Westinghouse Power Corporation's Energy Services Divisions. Before that, he was General Manager of the Westinghouse Power Generation Business Unit's Energy Divisions. He joined Westinghouse Nuclear Energy Division in 1973 and served in various management positions. He was General Manager of the Westinghouse Nuclear Service Division from 1982 to1995. Christopher holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering from the U.S. Naval Academy and a Master of Science degree in Engineering Mechanics (1968) from Georgia Tech. He graduated from the Naval Nuclear Program and was a licensed engineering officer of Operating Nuclear Submarines. In 1980, Christopher earned a Master of Business degree from the University of Pittsburgh. SEMINARS COOKOUTS There were two cookouts especially for Seminars that discuss new developments in nuclear and radiological NRE and MP students, faculty, and staff: engineering and medical physics are presented by well-known one in the spring and one in the fall. speakers during the academic year. Speakers come from These get-togethers are an opportunity for academia, industry, governmental, and professional organizations, undergraduate and graduate students to meet and get to know the and represent various areas