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Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering
NPRE at 50: A Golden Celebration!
Holding the over-sized check, NPRE Department Head Jim Stubbins (left) accepts nearly $740,000 in grant money from NRC Chairman Dale E. Klein. NPRE students and faculty join in the presentation.
Fifty years of nuclear engineering programs at the University of Illinois were celebrated in golden style September 11-13, as alumni and friends of Nuclear, Plasma and Radiological Engineering reflected on past accomplishments and learned more about plans and challenges for the future.
NRC Chairman Dale E. Klein Visit
The celebration featured a star-studded group of speakers, including Dale E. Klein, Chairman of the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Klein came early in the day September 11 to officially present NPRE Department Head Jim Stubbins with an NRC check for nearly $740,000. The funds will support scholarships and fellowships in the Department, as well as Prof. Rizwan Uddin’s research on the VisBox, a 3-D visual system designed to simulate a nuclear power plant’s operations.
“Vision for the Future of Nuclear Energy” panel, from left, Dale E. Klein, William E. Burchill and Charles "Chip" Pardee. Standing and moderating is NPRE Department Head Jim Stubbins.
Klein was joined later that afternoon by William E. Burchill, NPRE alumnus and American Nuclear Society President, and Charles “Chip” Pardee, Chief Nuclear Officer, Exelon Nuclear; Senior Vice President, Exelon Corporation, in a panel discussion, “Vision for the Future of Nuclear Energy,” held at the Alice Campbell Alumni Center. Later in the evening, John B. Ritch III, Director General of the World Nuclear Association, presented the lecture, “Accelerating the Nuclear Renaissance: A Human and Environmental Imperative.”
Invited Talks
Activities September 12 included a day's worth of invited talks by these speakers:
• Brian L. Renwick, Executive Vice President, Sargent & Lundy LLC, "The University of Illinois-Sargent & Lundy Relationship"
• David D. Carlson, Sandia National Laboratory, "The Role of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Laboratories in Securing National Security"
• Mark T. Peters, Deputy Associate Laboratory Director for Science Programs, Energy Sciences & Engineering, Argonne National Laboratory, "The Role of Long-Term R&D and the National Laboratories in Securing a Sustainable Energy Future"
• William W. Moses, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,"Positron Emission Tomography Instrumentation: Present Status and Future Directions"
• Robert L. Hirsch, Senior Energy Advisor at MISI,"Oil Peaking & Mitigation"
• David N. Ruzic, Director, Center for Plasma Material Interactions; NPRE Professor,"Plasma Engineering--Absolutely Essential for Modern Life"
Unveiling the memorial paver are (l to r) Dan Hang, Roy Axford, Jim Stubbins, Barclay Jones, and George Miley.
In the gallery area just outside the Alice Campbell Ballroom where the talks were going on, NPRE students hosted a poster session, with 30 posters informing viewers about the students' work. Many of the posters will continue to be displayed in Talbot Laboratory.
Paver, Reactor cake
Toward evening, the 50th Anniversary was officially commemorated with the dedication of a paver near the east entrance to Alice Campbell Alumni Center. Joining in the dedication were Stubbins and long-time NPRE faculty members, Emeritus Prof. Dan Han and Profs. Roy Axford, Barclay Jones and George Miley. Guests attending the reception and dinner that followed got to wish the beloved professors well, and marvel at the unique cake, a replica of the now-decommissioned TRIGA nuclear reactor.
The cake in the shape of the TRIGA reactor was the centerpiece and topic of conversation.
The evening events included the presentation of NPRE's very first Distinguished Alumni Awards to Burchill and Hirsch (click here for more on Burchill and Hirsch). Another highlight was a video that presented the department’s powerful past, current endeavors, and promising future. A DVD of that video, including chapter-length interviews of Hang, Axford, Jones and Miley can be purchased in a package with a DVD featuring all the anniversary talks and all photos from the event. (click here for more information on the DVD sets).
Saturday tent party, tours
On Saturday, September 13, the final day of festivities, guests joined in a tent party on the Engineering Quad, then took a tour of NPRE and Engineering College facilities. The highlight for many of the guests was walking through the now-closed Nuclear Reactor Building and getting to see for one last time the decommissioned TRIGA reactor.
Alumni, faculty and friends pose on the bridge of the TRIGA reactor.
"We believe this event was an excellent public service in that we gathered together so many experts who are knowledgeable about nuclear energy and the needs we will have of it in the future," Stubbins said of the 50th celebration. "Meanwhile, we appreciate that so many alumni and friends returned to visit with faculty and long-time acquaintances. Our celebration was greatly enhanced by the generosity of our sponsors, Exelon Corporation, Sargent & LundyLLC, Starfire Industries, the College of Engineering Dean’s Office and the University of Illinois Center for Advanced Study."
Writer: Susan Mumm editor/alumni affairs coordinator, Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, 217/244-5382 (campus office), 217/821-6866 (cell) 217/347-2166 (home office).
(posted 15 Oct 2008)
© 2008 The Board of Trustees at the University of Illinois