Inner and outer-space: nuclear batteries and space reactorsnuclear batteries and space reactors

All welcome!

Engage – a series of lectures on a range of Engineering, Computing and Design topics, organised by Bangor University's IEEE Student Branch and School of Computer Science and Engineering.
 
Join us on Wednesday the 25th October, at 12 p.m. in MLT, Dean Street where we will have a special lecture from Michael Rushton on "Inner and outer-space: nuclear batteries and space reactors"

Nuclear power is normally associated with power stations delivering large amounts of electricity to national grids. In this talk I will explain how nuclear technology is far more flexible than this and is able to serve as a very long term mobile power source, in a diverse range of applications. These range from implantable medical devices, through to deep space probes and even moon bases.

Nuclear radio thermal generators and how they work, will be introduced and their use in the atomic heart pacemakers of the 1970s will be described. Some of these devices were able to sustain patients for multiple decades with minimal intervention, showing longevity far exceeding the chemical batteries of the day. Similar devices were also used to power ocean buoys and continue to allow space probes to travel beyond our solar system. These will be described and alongside the prospects for future devices.

Radio thermal generators rely on the heat generated from nuclear decay. If more power is required, small nuclear fission reactors can be used. Work is ongoing in Bangor University’s Nuclear Futures Institute to develop nuclear fuels that can be used in small reactors for space propulsion and to power the bases required by future missions to the Moon and to Mars. The capabilities of these power sources and how Bangor’s efforts contribute will be described.

Dr. Michael J.D. Rushton is a Senior Lecturer at Bangor University, previously with experience at Imperial College London's Centre for Nuclear Engineering. His research focuses on energy materials, particularly nuclear materials, with expertise in developing precise atomic models for actinide oxides across wide temperature ranges. Using methods like molecular dynamics and lattice simulations, he explores the interaction between fission gas bubbles and nuclear fuel, improving our understanding of fuel performance in diverse conditions. Beyond nuclear materials, he contributes to battery and fuel cell research, emphasizing engineered-strains for enhanced performance. Dr. Rushton also engages in collaborative projects, including predicting radiolytic heating in water treatment at Fukushima-Daiichi and participating in the international NFIR fuels program for EPRI. He's actively involved in teaching and serves on the Materials Chemistry Committee for The Institute of Materials, Minerals, and Mining, promoting phase equilibria and phase diagram determination.