Ph D or “loadsamoney”?

It is a brave person who opts for a Ph D after slogging away for a hard-earned first degree. Most of us do it in a vain attempt to continue in a relaxed environment and to become a "Doc". To do a Ph D is to sentence oneself to three more years of poverty, long arduous hours and the stress of writing a thesis, when one could easily go elsewhere and carn "loadsa money" to pay off the overdraft accumulated as an undergraduate. Most Ph D students realise they are used as pawns by their supervisors, in empire-building exercises, in a world where British science is crumbling to its foundations. However, a Ph D can be an enjoyable pursuit, with easy-going attitudes not found outside academia (to stroll in to work late in the morning is just one of the small perks)

Modelling and measuring reactor core graphite properties and performance

Gas-cooled, graphite-moderated nuclear reactors suffer ageing and degradation to the graphite during service posing a threat to the functionality of the core, and potentially, the safe operation of the reactor. Thus, the importance of modelling and measuring reactor core graphite properties and performance increases especially as continued use beyond the designed life time becomes significant. This book captures the proceedings from the third in a series of meetings addressing the extensive research and analysis performed to ensure the continuing safe performance of the graphite cores. Covering four broad themes: mechanistic; statistical; empirical; and, plant performance, this book should appeal to a wide range of readers from engineers and reactor operators to policy makers

Creating an Integrated Curriculum for a STEM Discipline

Tertiary education in the UK for STEM subjects is facing a growing challenge to excite and motivate students with tangible and visible examples of the real life careers that they aspire to but which generally require budgets that are not available in a tertiary education environment. An excellent example is the Formula Student competition that is hugely popular in Universities all over the world but which, as a result of budget limitations, is not generally available to all students in all years of their course. At the same time as providing a stimulating and satisfying curriculum it is necessary to incorporate the key theories, disciplines, through appropriate processes and practices that are less exciting but equally necessary to a successful STEM career. These issues have been addressed at Oxford Brookes Universitiy by the department of Mechanical Engineering and Mathematical Sciences by developing an integrated first year curriculum that has at its core a design and build project for a low temperature gamma type Stirling Engine. Typically Engineering degrees require students to gain hands on experience of manufacturing processes, previously known as EA1, and this was achieved by making static components such as clamps, screwdrivers, toolboxes, cold chisels or similar. The new project requires each student to create a dynamic product that ensures the successful transfer of manufacturing skills and processes as well as feeding all other modules in the curriculum. The result is an integrated, but explicit, curriculum that is constructively aligned to both the assessment and the role of a professional engineer. This, in turn, engenders “deep learning” and enhances the student experience and sense of achievement. The project requires that the students work in a simulated business environment where they must create a company to manufacture, market and sell the product using a suitable business model. The feedback from students to staff so far has shown that the new curriculum has created an expression of enthusiasm and satisfaction for the whole course that surpasses anything previously experienced

Creep and recovery in graphites at ambient temperature: an acoustic emission study

Nuclear graphites subject to compressive or tensile stress cycling show a Felicity effect, that is, acoustic emission (AE) is detected at stresses less than the previous peak stress. This is attributed to recovery processes that occur upon unloading and at zero stress. The extent of recovery increases with time (up to 105 mins) at zero stress between cycles. For two graphites (IM1-24 and PGA) held under constant compressive or tensile strain, AE over ∼16 h is attributed to creep. For the same graphites at zero stress (after application of a compressive or tensile prestress), AE over ∼16 h is attributed to creep recovery. Both types of AE time curve follow logarithmic rate laws similar to those derived earlier for high-temperature primary creep and creep recovery. The micromechanical processes that give rise to creep and AE on loading graphites are basal plane shear and microcracking; creep recovery is attributed to the reverse of these processes