Issue link: https://htpgraphics.uberflip.com/i/1385717
LEAD RESEARCHER: DAVID MEGSON-SMITH I develop a diverse range of computational and physical systems for characterising and modelling extreme nuclear environments. These range from the robotically deployed Raman sensors for characterising nuclear waste, computational models for determining radiation distribution and wildfire spread rates, to in-field robotic deployments of new radiation sensing technologies. I believe that, more than ever, sound scientific outcomes rely on a strong synergy between software and hardware systems. This is especially true when developing novel systems for the nuclear industry. To this end I work in both software and hardware development. From a hardware perspective I am interested in demonstrating new sensing technologies to the nuclear industry, be it stand-off Raman or portable gamma spectrometers. On the software side I seek to ensure we glean every bit of information from our precious datasets by developing new data collection and analysis methodologies. SUMMARY // As selected highlights, (A) robotic Raman, (B) Chernobyl gamma scanning and (C) Chernobyl wild-fire propagation modelling, are showcased. A) For predictable long- term storage of nuclear waste, it is important to identify the radioactive characteristics along with the chemical composition; incompatible chemistries can have undesired consequences over time. Although it is possible to identify the chemical structure of materials in laboratory settings it is not commercially viable to chemically test, characterise and record every item prior to disposal; Raman spectroscopy could be a solution. B) In October 2020 I was part of a 6-person team that deployed a range of robotically delivered radiation sensors around and within the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in the Ukraine. C) In April 2020 a large wildfire struck the Chernobyl Exclusion zone. The fire burned for 8 days and reached as close as 400m to the ChNPP. Unfortunately, it also burned over the Red Forest which is the most contaminated area within the Chernobyl Exclusion zone potentially generating a considerable radioactive smoke plume. I was requested to rapidly develop a fire propagation model that simulated the evolution of the fire. HARDWARE-SOFTWARE SYNERGY FOR NUCLEAR CHARACTERISATION, RISK MITIGATION AND DECOMMISSIONING SYSTEMS 36 UNIQUENESS // My research is unique in many areas. Consider the 3 topics discussed above. A) Raman: we are the first team to demonstrate the automated robotic inspection of nuclear waste using Raman spectroscopy. Alongside this we also demonstrated automatic Raman identification of nuclear waste materials for the first time. B) Chernobyl gamma characterisations: To demonstrate the broader applicability of our systems we tested them in Chernobyl. Specifically, we were the first team to deploy a quadrupedal robot within the New Safe Confinement of the former Chernobyl nuclear power plant. This delivered a collimated radiation scanner that was the first such system to image the radiation emissions coming from the former power plant. C) Chernobyl fire modelling: This is the first such demonstration of remote fire modelling of a nuclear fallout zone. We believe these are the first such models based purely upon publicly available data sources.