college of engineering nersnotes€¦ · ulty (ziya akcasu and terry kammash), two major...

University of Michigan

College of Engineering

INSIDE

Chair’s Message ................. 2

CNNC Visit ........................... 3

Faculty News ...................4-5

Student Activities ............6-7

Akcasu Honored ................. 8

Staff Addition ...................... 8

Alumni Society Award ........ 9

MMPP Mission .................... 9

Alumni Notes ..................... 10

Undergrad Scholarships .. 11

NERSNotesThe Newsletter of

the Department of

Nuclear Engineering and

Radiological Sciences

CONT INUED ON PAGE 8

FALL 2005

Over one million people get cancer every year. One of the major modes of treatment for cancer is radiotherapy, in which radiation is used to kill the tumor cells. Radiotherapy treatment planning involves ensuring that the tumor receives the maximum possible radia-tion dose while surrounding normal tissues receive a tolerable or even minimal dose. This is a diffi cult problem that requires computing the radiation dose that will be delivered throughout a patient’s body. If these compu-tations can be done rapidly, then the treat-ment planner can explore many potential ways to deliver the radiation for maximum effect against the tumor while minimizing the effect on healthy tissue. One means to compute the radiation dose delivered in a radiotherapy treatment is Monte Carlo, in which millions of radiation particles are tracked through the geometry of the patient’s body. If only a few particles are tracked, the computation can run quickly, but the results of these computations will be noisy and diffi cult to assess.

NERS researchers Samuela Pollack and Alex Bielajew have developed a novel tech-nique to extract information from the noisy dose profi les that are generated by Monte Carlo treatment planning codes. Their tech-nique has the potential of producing a 10- or 100-fold increase in the effi ciency of Monte 100-fold increase in the effi ciency of Monte Carlo based radiotherapy treatment planning,

The contour lines in the top figure are lines of constant dose from 20 MeV electrons impinging from the left onto a phantom made of water and air. These isodose lines are rapidly computed u s i n g o n l y 1 0 6

simulated electrons, but the noise makes it difficult to see the main features of the data. The contour l ines in the middle figure are the result of the new contour l i n e s m o o t h i n g a lgor i thm. The key features of the data are much more apparen t , and are nearly as clear as those that would result from a simulation based on 100 times as many simulated electrons, shown a t t h e b o t t o m .

thereby allowing much better treatments to be planned.

As part of Dr. Pollack’s recently completed As part of Dr. Pollack’s recently completed doctoral research, she and Prof. Bielajew wished

Novel technique for Novel technique for radiotherapy treatment planning developed

2 www.ners.engin.umich.edu / NUCLEAR ENGINEERING AND RADIOLOGICAL SCIENCES / COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

Welcome to the 2005-06 academic year! This is my second year as depart-ment chair, having succeeded John Lee in September 2004.

I would like to take this opportu-nity, belated as it is, to thank John for his dedicated and selfl ess leader-ship during his fi ve years as chair. Not only did John preside over substantial growth in undergraduate enrollment, graduate enrollment, and sponsored research activity, but he was a staunch supporter of the Ford Nuclear Reactor (FNR) and led the ultimately unsuc-cessful battle to keep the FNR at Michigan. The NERS community salutes John for his efforts, both on behalf of the FNR as well as the department. John has returned to full-time research and teaching and seems to be enjoying his new view on the second fl oor of Cooley!

This past year has been an eventful year for the department, and I urge you to fi nd out for yourself and read this interesting and informative news-letter from cover to cover! If you follow my advice, you will fi nd that we have one new teaching faculty (Lumin Wang), three new research fac-ulty (Dave Hammig, Ling-Jian Meng, and Sebastien Teysseyre), national

NERSNotes is published by:

Nuclear Engineeringand Radiological SciencesUniversity of Michigan1906 Cooley Building2355 Bonisteel BoulevardAnn Arbor, MI 48109-2104

(734) 764-4260(734) 763-4540 [email protected]

Department ChairWilliam R. Martin

Newsletter StaffAnn BellPam DerryJames Paul HollowayEmily Koopmann

The Regents

of the University of Michigan

David A. Brandon, Ann Arbor

Laurence B. Deitch, Bingham Farms

Olivia P. Maynard, Goodrich

Rebecca McGowan, Ann Arbor

Andrea Fischer Newman, Ann Arbor

Andrew C. Richner, Grosse Pointe Park

S. Martin Taylor, Grosse Pointe Farms

Katherine E. White, Ann Arbor

Mary Sue Coleman, ex offi cio

NERS Advisory BoardForrest Brown Los Alamos National LaboratoryJames A. Fici Westinghouse Electric CompanyJames D. Kurfess Naval Research LaboratorySimon E. Labov Lawrence Livermore National LaboratoryRandy G. Lott Westinghouse Electric CompanyThomas A. Mehlhorn Sandia National LaboratoriesEdward L. Nickoloff Columbia UniversityWilliam T. O’Connor, Jr. DTE Energy – Fermi 2Robert L. Sindelar Savannah River National LaboratoryThomas A. Spencer Air Force Research Laboratory Kirtland AFB

Greetings from the Greetings from the Greetings from the Department Chair

William R. Martin

honors and awards to two emeritus fac-ulty (Ziya Akcasu and Terry Kammash), two major initiatives related to nuclear engineering and nuclear energy in China, and a national award (the Glasstone Award) to our ANS Student Chapter! And these are just a few of the events that are included in this issue of NERS Notes.

I am pleased to report that the enrollment trends in NERS are con-tinuing to increase. As of spring 2005, NERS had 97 undergraduate students and 87 graduate students. These enroll-ments represents approximately 5-10% increases for both cohorts. We also have 28 new graduate students starting this fall term, more than enough to make up for expected graduations during the spring and summer.

Our sponsored research activity is also continuing to increase at a rapid rate. Total research expenditures in NERS in 2003-04 (the most recent year tabulated) was $9.7M, com-pared to $7.7M the previous year, a 25% increase! The $9.7M total corre-sponds to an average research expen-diture per faculty member (including research faculty) of $510k, which is 40% greater than the College of Engineering average!

So our vital statistics are looking very good, due in part to what some observers on the national scene call the “nuclear renaissance.” The new Energy Bill and recent articles in the national press, some even authored by “green” advocates, advocate nuclear power as an essential component in our energy port-folio, noting that nuclear energy is the only large-scale energy source that does not yield greenhouse emissions. These encouraging signs bode well for the

3C O L L E G E O F E N G I N E E R I N G / NUCLEAR ENGINEERING AND RADIOLOGICAL SCIENCES / www.ners.engin.umich.edu

China has embarked on an ambi-tious plan for nuclear power devel-opment, with about 30 new nuclear power plants to be built over the next 15 years. This growth requires a large number of highly-educated individ-uals in both technical and administra-tive areas.

With this future in mind, a unique international educational initia-tive was established seven years ago in the NERS department at the University of Michigan. The initia-tive was started in 1999 as a partner-ship of three nuclear organizations: Westinghouse Electric Company, the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), and the Department of Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences (NERS) at the University of Michigan. Two CNNC employees are selected annually by NERS faculty from a list of prospective students in a company-wide competition organized by CNNC. The selected students, named Westinghouse-CNNC Fellows, pursue a one-year MS program in nuclear engineering and radiological sciences at Michigan, culminating in a two-month summer practicum at Westinghouse. Westinghouse has provided generous fi nancial support

for this program, totaling in excess of $750,000 since its inception in 1999.

Nine CNNC employees have already graduated and returned to work at CNNC with a solid educa-tion in nuclear engineering with an emphasis on reactor safety.

A class reunion for former CNNC/Westinghouse fellows was held in Beijing in November 2004. The reunion was sponsored by Senior Executive Vice President Jim Fici of Westinghouse Electric Company. Also attending were Professors Bill Martin and Lumin Wang of NERS, Peggy Gramer also from NERS, and many senior CNNC offi cials including CNNC Vice President Mr. Qin Sun. Representatives from NERS, CNNC and Westinghouse spoke very highly of the CNNC/Westinghouse Fellows program and of the educational program at NERS.

Two CNNC employees, Qun Yu and Yidan Yuan, completed their Westinghouse practicums in August 2005 and have returned to China. Two more new graduate students from CNNC, Zhi Wang and Yongping Qiu, will start their MS programs at NERS in Ann Arbor in September 2005.

NERS in China’s Nuclear FutureNERS in China’s Nuclear Future

Attendees at the CNNC/Westinghouse-U-M fellows reunion in Beijing included representatives from the three organizations and graduates (top row) Shengjie Gu, Zhenghui Liu, Hui Xing, and Kaiwen Du; (bottom row) Xiaoping Li and Yawei Mao. (Graduates unable to attend were Tong Liu, Rui Shu, and Fang Tong.)

Assistant Research Scientist Jeremy T. Busby (NERS MSE ’99, PhD ’01) has Busby (NERS MSE ’99, PhD ’01) has Busby

joined the research and development staff in the Nuclear Mate-rials Science and Tech-nology Group at Oak Ridge National Labo-

ratory in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. He also has an appointment as Adjunct Assistant Professor of NERS.Professor Donald Umstadter left NERS in January of this year to become the Leland J. and Dorothy H. Olson Chan-cellors’ Distinguished Chair in the Physics and Astronomy Department of

the Uni-versity of Nebraska, Lincoln. Don also has an appoint-

ment in NERS as Adjunct Professor. He is shown receiving some Michigan mementos at his farewell reception.

Farewells

future of nuclear power, leading to more future of nuclear power, leading to more employment opportunities for our stu-dents and prospective students as well as exciting new reactor designs (Generation IV) and new research opportunities for our faculty and students. But other research areas are also seeing substantial growth, including plasmas and fusion, radiation measurements and imaging, and materials.

This is shaping up to be a good year for NERS and I hope all of you have as productive a year as I believe NERS will have. Please send us a note to include in next year’s newsletter!

Finally, I would like to acknowledge who really deserves the credit for this newsletter. Ann Bell is the editor of NERS Notes, and she, along with the rest of the Newsletter Staff (see box on page 2), deserve our compliments and appreci-ation for this outstanding newsletter.


Dr. Lumin Wang has been promoted to Professor of NERS. He joined NERS in 1997 as associate research scientist and was promoted to research scientist in 2002. Professor Wang’s

research expertise is in the fi eld of radiation effects on materials, especially ceramic materials and materials of interest in nuclear

waste management. He has also been appointed director of the Electron Mi-crobeam Analysis Laboratory (EMAL). He is an internationally recognized scholar in electron microscopy study of irradiated materials and has con-tributed signifi cantly to the success of EMAL since his arrival.

Associate Professor Zhong He was awarded the NERS Faculty Merit Award for Outstanding Achieve-ment.

Stephen S. Attwood Professor Emeritus Terry Kammash has been selected as the recipient of the 2005 ANS Special Award – Space

Nuclear Power. The award is presented for Terry’s “pioneer-

ing contributions as a researcher and educator in plasma physics and its applications to advanced space nuclear power and propul-sion systems.”

Professor Bill Martin was awarded the NERS Faculty Merit Award for

Teaching. He was selected by the NERS students.

Professor Gary S. Was received the Outstanding Achievement Award from the Materials Science and Technology Division of the Ameri-can Nuclear Society. The award recognizes individuals who have made unique or sustained out-standing achievements in the fi eld of materials science and technol-ogy contributing to the develop-ment of nuclear energy.

Adjunct Professor Ruth F. Weinerwas named ANS Fellow for “outstanding work in risk analysis and dissemination of information about the safety of transporting radioactive materials. Her leader-ship as a teacher, textbook author and public speaker is an inspiration to the profession.”

Associate Professor James Paul Holloway has been promoted to Professor of NERS. Professor Hol-loway is interested in the mathemati-cal and computational modeling of engineered systems, including terres-

trial and space nuclear power systems, reactor dynamics and nonlin-ear control, compu-tational methods for spherical harmonics

based radiation transport, and inverse problems involving radiation measure-ments. He is also a recent convert to the study and development of the Monte Carlo method, which he had heretofore wrongly abhorred as an abandonment of Newton’s dictum that “it is useful to solve differential equations.” Recently Professor Hol-loway has been teaching senior design for radiation shielding and other radiological systems, and an introduc-tion to the fundamentals of nuclear engineering and radiological sciences for sophomores. He also created, co-ordinates, and teaches the College of Engineering’s current fi rst-year course in programming and algorithmic prob-lem-solving for engineers.

Professors John C. Lee and William R. Martin recently taught a two-credit course on Reactor Safety Analysis to an enthusiastic class of undergraduate and graduate students in the Depart-ment of Nuclear Science and System Engineering (NSSE) within the School of Mechanical Engineering at Shang-hai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). The course had to be offered on an acceler-ated basis due to the academic sched-ules of SJTU and Michigan, and was taught over a span of three weeks in May 2005. Nevertheless, 35 students attended the course, 27 for credit, and

comments from both the students and faculty were very positive. The course included a comprehensive treatment of modern reactor safety analysis principles and methodology, includ-ing an emphasis on probabilistic risk assessment techniques for modern nuclear power plants. SJTU is one of the premier universities in China, and its NSSE Department is growing rapidly. This is partly due to the deci-sion by the Chinese government to rely heavily on nuclear power to meet a substantial fraction of its growing electricity demands.

NERS faculty teach “Reactor Safety NERS faculty teach “Reactor Safety NERS faculty teach “Reactor Safety Analysis” at Shanghai Jiao Tong University

Prof. Martin lectures on reactor safety analysis at the Mihang campus of Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

Faculty NewsPromotions

Accolades


Last November, researchers from across the land converged on North Campus to honor Professor Ed Larsen on the occasion of his 60th birthday. The event, planned secretly by a few of Ed’s colleagues with help from his wife Julie, was a complete surprise to Pro-fessor Larsen. Festivities were kicked off during the Friday afternoon col-loquium when out-of-town colleagues emerged from behind the stage as Professor Bill Martin was saying a few words to acknowledge Ed’s upcoming birthday. Ed was presented with a special issue of the journal Annals of Nuclear Energy, dedicated to his 60th birthday. [Annals of Nuclear Energy, Volume 31, No. 17 (2004).] Partici-pants then moved to the Lurie Engi-neering Center to tell Larsen stories and enjoy a fi ne dinner. One Larsen story, delivered by Professor Todd Palmer of Oregon State University,

explained how Ed received the nickname “El Guapo.” The expla-nation was aided by video clips from the movie The Three Amigos.

Saturday was spent with Ed’s col-leagues delivering technical talks, the fi rst of which was a summary of Ed’s many signifi cant research accomplish-ments. Other talks described research that built on work that Ed had done at some point in his stellar career. Ed ended the afternoon session with remarks on how much the two-day event had meant to him. The group then adjourned for an evening of food and fun at the Larsen residence.

Ed Larsen: Gentleman, Unrivaled Asymptoticist, Professor, Oracle (EL GUAPO)

Many of Ed’s colleagues and former Ph.D. students attended the celebration.

Dr. Mark Hammig received his PhD from U-M NERS in December 2004, with specializa-tion in radiation measurements and applications. He is the recipient of the 2005 Ivor K. McIvor Award in Applied Mechanics awarded by the U-M College of Engi-neering to a graduate student in recognition of outstanding scho-lastic and research performance in Applied Mechanics. Mark is developing micro-mechanical sen-sors that defl ect by angstroms when impacted by a radiation quanta. Using momentum rather than energy transfer, these microsensors offer an entirely different approach to the radiation detection problem.

Dr. Ling-Jian Meng received his PhD from the University of South-hampton (UK) in 2001. Ling is leading a major research program funded by NIH on combined SPECT/CT (Single photon Emis-sion Computed Tomography/CT) for small animal imaging. He is also working on another project developing HgI2 gamma-ray spec-trometers for the Department of Defense.

Dr. Sebastien Teysseyre received his PhD from Ecole Nationale Superieure des Mines de Saint Eti-enne (France) in 2001. Sebastien is leading a project to develop the capability to conduct stress cor-rosion cracking experiments on neutron irradiated materials in a supercritical water (SCW) environ-ment, similar to what is expected in the SCW reactor, one of the Gener-ation IV advanced reactor designs.

NERS welcomes new research faculty


NERS has contributed successfully to the Detroit Area Pre-College Engi-neering Program (DAPCEP) for eight years now. DAPCEP helps seventh and eighth grade students learn about engineering and science before they go to college. The concepts that students learn in the fi ve consecutive Saturday sessions can help change the way the students view the world. NERS con-tributes to DAPCEP with the Glow Blue Program, whose goal is to intro-

duce the basic subjects of the fi eld, including atomic and molecular struc-ture, basic radia-

tion types, radiation detectors, nuclear fi ssion reactors, medical imaging, nuclear materials and nuclear waste transportation. Coordinated by the NERS Department and the Minority Engineering Program Offi ce at the College of Engineering, this program’s success is due to the time and effort of the NERS students. This year six undergraduates and two graduate stu-dents interacted with a class of seven

Detroit Area Pre-College Engineering Program

The ANS Student Chapter and the NERS Department worked together to host a High School Shadow Day in March, 2005. The goal of Shadow Day was to introduce the students to the department and give them a dif-ferent perspective on college – one that cannot be given in a campus tour or information session. High school seniors who had applied for the NERS Merit Scholarship were invited to campus to spend the day with current undergraduates, and seven accepted the invitation.

The day began with a continental breakfast and introductions. The high school seniors were then paired up with current undergraduates in the department and the pairs spent the rest of the day together attending classes. The classes attended with the NERS students included an introduc-tory NERS course, sophomore and senior level mathematics, biology, materials science, and the fi rst-year

computer programming course. The day’s activities also included lunch and tours of the Michigan Ion Beam Laboratory and the Intense Energy Beam Interaction Laboratory.

The feedback from everyone partici-pating in this event was very positive. For a couple of students, participation in Shadow Day helped them decide that the University of Michigan is where they want to spend their college years. The ANS Student Chapter and the NERS Department look forward to hosting this event in the future.

middle-school students. As in previous years, NERS alumna Syreeta Cheatom supported the program by visiting with the students and talking about her career in nuclear engineering.

Shadow Day

The University of Michigan Student Branch of the American Nuclear Society (U-M ANS) offi cers gave their group a series of goals for the 2004-05 academic year. These included increasing the frequency of meet-ings and making them more interac-tive; assisting the department with recruiting and retention; increasing involvement with the Michigan Sec-tion ANS and the National ANS; edu-cating elementary, middle and high school students about nuclear technol-ogies; and emphasizing professional development, employment and leader-

American Nuclear Society Student Chapter

Continuing Student Activities

Left to right: DAPCEP students at Hands-On Museum, Syreeta Cheatom talking to DAPCEP students, and ANS students with the Nuclear Jeopardy! board at Tech Day


A kick-off lecture was held on Thursday, November 4, 2004 for the Eighth Industry Forum and Career Fair. University Professor James J. Duderstadt gave a presentation on “Rebooting the U.S. Civilian Nuclear Program.” This talk summarized the efforts of the Department of Energy and industry to sustain the nuclear power option in the United States. This year’s industry participants

included: Aerotek Energy Services, American Electric Power, Argonne National Laboratory-West, Eli Lilly & Company, Framatome ANP, Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Lawrence Liver-more National Laboratory, and West-inghouse Corporation. The career fair is a great opportunity for NERS students to interact with company and laboratory representatives. The students welcome the chance to talk with practicing engineers and alumni as well as the opportunity to pass on their résumés for summer intern-ships and permanent employment. Although the presentations are brief at the forum, the students learn a great deal about the activities of the compa-nies and laboratories.

If you would like to represent your company or laboratory in the next Industry Forum and Fair to be held November 4, 2005, please con-tact Pam Derry at (734) 936-3130 or [email protected]. This is a great opportunity for you to visit Ann Arbor and the department, to talk with faculty, and to meet the students who are the future of the nuclear engi-neering fi eld.

Industry Forum and Career Fair

ship opportunities.These goals were achieved in

many ways. U-M ANS participated in College of Engineering events including Welcome Day, Tech Day, E-Week, and the Detroit Area Pre-college Engineering Program (DAPCEP – see Article on page 6). They also helped organize the First-Year Mentorship Program and Shadow Day, wrote fi ve articles which appear in the col-lege-wide University of Michigan Engineering Council newsletter, ini-tiated the Industry Networking and Mentorship Program, and donated to the tsunami relief efforts by orga-nizing a successful penny war.

U-M ANS monthly meetings included information sessions from Los Alamos National Laboratory and Knolls Atomic Power Laboratory. They also sponsored talks by Kurt Haas of the Big Rock Power Nuclear Facility (“Big Rock Point Restora-tion Project – Traveling the Road to Green”) and William Lipton of

Detroit Edison (“Malicious Misuse of Radioactive Material in an Occupa-tional Setting”).

Other activities this year included visits to high school chemistry classes, science fair judging, a tour of D.C. Cook Nuclear Power Plant, Salvation Army Thanksgiving Canned Food Drive, American Reads Children’s Book Drive, SAFE House Volunteering, ice skating, bowling, and intramural sports.

The American Nuclear Society awarded the U-M ANS the 2005 Samuel Glasstone Award, given to the outstanding student section for “accomplish-ing the most notable achievements in public service and the advancements of nuclear engineering.”


Professor Emeritus Ziya Akcasu was honored on October 28th, 2004, by the University of Michigan’s Macromolec-ular Science

and Engineering program. While the excuse for the celebration was Pro-fessor Akcasu’s 80th birthday, its real purpose was to recognize his many contributions to the understanding of the dynamics of polymer solutions.

Starting in the 1970s and con-tinuing to the present day, he has developed techniques of analysis that are widely used in the understanding of single and multi-component polymer solutions. Using methods that he developed, Professor Akcasu was fi rst able to clarify the analysis of dynamic scattering experiments on bimodal systems, and understand scat-tering from these solutions in terms of collective diffusion and interdiffu-sion modes. The signifi cance of his contributions to the study of polymers has previously been recognized by the American Chemical Society, which in 1994 honored him by designating six special sessions of their annual meeting as “Ziya Akcasu Special

Sessions.” Ziya Akcasu has also made innu-

merable contributions to the analysis of nuclear reactor systems, including the fi rst detailed theoretical analysis of the feedback mechanism in boiling water reactors. His achievements in nuclear reactor dynamics and noise analysis are the seminal works on which many later nuclear engineers have built. His work on the interpre-tation of source driven noise methods for measuring subcriticality also defi ned that fi eld.

Today Professor Akcasu is working on radiation transport in stochastic media, and has developed a powerful general approach to compute both the

mean behavior and the variance. Often on the weekend or early in the morning Ziya can be

found in the Cooley building, and when passing the dark offi ces of his colleagues, he is heard to say “Who retired anyway?”

Ziya Akcasu honored Ziya Akcasu honored on 80th birthday

RadiotherapyRadiotherapyRadiotherapyCONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Ziya with granddaughter Nora

Emily Koopmann joined NERS in February of this year. She previ-ously worked for Parking Services at University of Michigan for three years. Currently a student at Washtenaw Community College, she is pursuing a degree in computer forensics. She likes to travel and watch movies, and is enjoying learning how to cook new recipes.

Staff Addition

to develop a computational algo-rithm that could do what a skilled human could do: look at a noisy plot of radiation dose and “see” the key features while overlooking the noise. While one way to reduce the noise is to increase the number of particles tracked in the simulation, this slows down the computation—having the computer track 10 times as many particles takes 10 times as long. This would limit the number of patients whose treatments can be planned.

Dr. Pollack’s algorithm takes a plot of radiation dose and reduces the noise in it by extracting con-tours of constant dose and then smoothing those contours. This approach is a unique one and allows physical constraints concerning the contours to be used in the smoothing process. For example, in doing the smoothing, contour lines retain their nested ordering, and are prevented from crossing each other or themselves. The smoothing itself is done using a wavelet fi lter. This allows the contours to pre-serve localized features that would otherwise be greatly smeared out by a standard fi lter. By working with the contour lines, Drs. Pollack and Bielajew also hope in the future to use feature recognition techniques to detect and clarify specifi c features in the data.

The American Cancer Society estimates that one in every two or three Americans will get cancer during their lifetime. The work of Drs. Pollack and Bielajew to improve the planning of radio-therapy can have a huge impact on millions of people.


Thomas A. Mehlhorn is manager of High Energy Density Physics and Iner-tial Confi nement Fusion (ICF) Target Design at Sandia National Laborato-ries. In his current position he over-sees dynamic hohlraum ICF design and experiments and integrated target design for Sandia’s ICF program. He is leading the development of radiation transport and MHD (magnetohydro-dynamics) codes for ICF target design, and the development of hybrid fl uid-PIC (particle in cell) codes for simu-lating the generation of high-energy particles in ultrahigh intensity laser plasma interactions.

Dr. Mehlhorn began his career at Sandia in 1978 as a member of the technical staff. In his fi rst position, he

Tom Mehlhorn named Alumni Society Merit Award recipient

served as chief theorist for ion diode experiments on both Particle Beam Fusion Accelerator (PBFA) I and II, and developed atomic/plasma theory of ion stopping power in partially ion-ized materials based on the analysis of experiments he designed. He subse-quently held the positions of man-ager of the Diagnostic Theory, Target Physics Analysis and Ion Beam Physics departments. As manager of the Beam Focus and Energy Accounting depart-ment, he led a combined theoretical and experimental team to achieve a world record lithium beam intensity of 2 TW/cm2 and heating a hohlraum to 63eV. This accomplishment earned him a Sandia Award for Excellence in 1995. He also managed the Dynamic Hohlraum ICF Team, which won the 2004 Lockheed Martin NOVA Award for producing thermonuclear neutrons from dynamic hohlraum ICF targets.

Dr. Mehlhorn serves on the advi-sory board of the Department of Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences. He is the Sandia National Laboratories PhD recruiter for the University, where he earned his bache-lor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in nuclear engineering in 1974, 1976 and 1978 respectively.

Dean Stephen W. Director and Tom Mehlhorn

Hatice Akkurt, SchlumbergerUsing Neutrons for Oil Well Logging Peggy Christenson, Sandia Nat LabsHybrid Plasma Simulation Techniques

Tom Mehlhorn, Sandia Nat LabsFusion Neutron Production from ICF

Target Implosions by Z-Pinch RadiationSources: A Quest that Began in NE-312in 1973

Joe SchumerJoe Schumer, Naval Research LabAdvanced Energetics Using NuclearIsomers

If you would like to give a talk, please contact Professor Ed Larsen ([email protected])

NERS alumni present Friday colloquia

The Michigan Memorial Phoenix Project (MMPP) was established in 1948 as a World War II memo-rial dedicated to the peaceful po-tential of nuclear energy. Since then, signifi cant progress has been made in putting nuclear energy to use for peaceful pur-poses. Today, nuclear science is used routinely in medicine, engineering, geology, anthropol-ogy, and a host of other fi elds in order to advance knowledge and improve the human condition. Such progress notwithstanding, two major challenges embodied in MMPP remain as relevant and intractable today as they were in the late 1940s: the need for a viable, long-term energy policy and the continued need to fi nd ways for people and nations to live together peacefully.

To assure that its WW II memorial remain a relevant and lasting tribute to those who fought and gave their lives dur-ing the War, the University will refocus the mission of MMPP to include research on the devel-opment of energy sources and energy policies that will promote world peace, the responsible use of the environment, and economic prosperity. In doing so, it is envisioned that MMPP will become the coordinating center for research activities from a variety of disciplines that are presently dispersed across multiple schools and colleges. Research areas will include energy generation from sources such as nuclear, hydrogen, solar, wind, and geothermal, as well as energy storage, energy management, and energy policy. Research perspectives will con-tinue to encompass the natural and social sciences, engineer-ing, medicine, and the arts and humanities.

U-M TO RE-FOCUS MISSION OF MMPP


Awards Luncheon. He was recognized for his outstanding contributions and exceptional dedication to the advancement of space nuclear power and propulsion systems and for his unique expertise in space reactor design.

Clair J. Sullivan (BS ’97, MS ’98, PhD ’02)volunteered (along with her husband

Michael) to work with the Los Alamos High School’s marching band. Clair is the instructor for the 13 student drummers in the drumline section. She works in the Advanced Nuclear Technology section at Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Douglas C. Wood (MSE ’74) was the recipi-ent of an Outstanding Engineering Alumnus award from the Pennsylvania State Universi-ty’s College of Engineering. He is currently the vice president of Advent Engineering Services Inc., which provides engineering services and management consulting to the commercial nuclear power industry and government agencies.

Sha Zhu (PhD ’03) is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at U-M, working with Prof. Lumin Wang on the irradiation induced nano-struc-tures on ceramics and alloys. Sha and Dam-ing Wang are the proud parents of Sophia Wang, born January 29, 2005. She weighed 6 pounds, 11 ounces at birth and now weighs over 15 pounds.

University Summer Institute in September 2004. His wife has been hired as the assistant coordinator. They moved to London to the World Nuclear University’s headquarters, home of the Summer Institute. In June, they moved to Idaho Falls, where the Summer Institute will take place from July 9 to August 20. The program is hosted by the Idaho Na-tional Laboratory, the Center for Advanced Energy Studies and the Idaho Universities.

Helmut Koehler (PhD ’68) retired from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (Lawrence, CA) in 1993. He continues to work two days a week at the Lab, where he is enjoying the interaction with his former colleagues and especially learning new things from the younger generation.

Mike Lopez (MSE ’02, PhD ’03) and his wife Shannon have a new baby boy, Michael James, born July 10 and weighing 8 pounds, 15

ounces. He is shown here with his sister Elena.

Jim Platte (BSE ’01, MSE ’02) obtained an MA in Science, Technology and Public Policy from the George Washington University in May 2005 and is currently spending one year at the Department of Energy headquarters in Germantown, Maryland as a Nonprolifera-tion Graduate Program intern with the Na-tional Nuclear Security Administration. He is working on the Highly Enriched Uranium Transparency Program, which ensures that Russian HEU from dismantled weapons is blended down to reactor grade uranium and sold to the United States for use in civilian nuclear power reactors. He helps in managing the material monitoring equipment placed in Russian facilities.

David I. Poston (PhD ’94) was awarded the ANS Special Award for Space Nuclear Power at the ANS June 2005 meeting Honors and

Marvin L. Adams (MSE ’84, PhD ’86)became Associate Vice President for Research at Texas A&M University. This 25% appoint-ment began March 1. He is continuing his research and teaching in the remaining 75%.

John C. Engdahl (BSENE ’74, MSE ’75, PhD ’78) has been appointed the Donald V. Fites Chair of Engineering and Technology at Bradley University College of Engineering and Technology in Peoria, Illinois. The photo

(left to right) shows Gerry VanNoordennen (BSENE ’74), Dan Grady (BSENE ’76, MSE ’77, PhD ’81) and John. The occasion was the wedding of the Engdahls’ daughter Annie last summer.

John Hubbell (BS ’49 Engineering Physics; MS ’50 Physics) has been traveling with his wife Jean. The fi rst trip they took was to McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada, where he was an invited speaker at the 6th

International Topical Meeting on Industrial Radiation and Radioisotope Measurement Applications. His topic was “Faster Than a Speeding Photon: Some Remarks on the Life and Work of Pavel Alekseevich Cherenkov.” Their second adventure was to Albuquer-que for a biennial meeting of the Hubbell Family Historical Society, where he and Jean celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. He will be in all three of Marquis’ 2006 Who’s Who editions. Edward Klevans (MS ’58, PhD ’62) became the Chief Coordinator for the World Nuclear

Alumni Notes

Antonio Andrade (MSE ’80, PhD ’81) died February 10, 2005 at age 48. He had worked at Los Alamos National Laboratory since 1981 in various capacities. Most recently he was director of the Omega West Reactor, and in 2001 was appointed by President George W. Bush to the President’s Advisory Board on Radiation and Worker Health.

In Memoriam2005 ALUMNI SOCIETY MERIT AWARDEE

Thomas KnollAnn Arbor, Michigan


You make the difference Every year we strive to offer our students in Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences the best possible educational and research opportunities. A strong

faculty and a focus on cutting-edge programs are, of course, the foremost components of these opportunities. However, being able to offer scholarship aid to a

few more outstanding students often makes the difference between just being good and being the best. Your annual gifts to the Department provide the funding

for that margin of excellence which prepares our graduates to compete successfully in today’s world and to contribute substantially to society. A scholarship can

provide the fi nancial boost to allow a student the opportunity to study a fi eld of his or her choice, or it may help one more deserving student to complete his or

her education. We count on you to help us continue our offering of exceptional educational opportunities in NERS.

All gifts received by December 31, 2005 are tax deductible for the year 2005. Please use the form below to send your gift.

Nuclear Engineering and Radiological SciencesPlease designate my gift to:

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Signature _______________________________________NERS Department 1906 Cooley Building University of Michigan 2355 Bonisteel Boulevard Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2104

Undergraduates benefi t from scholarship funds

NERS Undergraduate Scholarship Fund

NERS Kikuchi Scholarship Fund

Enclosed is my gift of $1,000 $500 $100 Other _______

(Make checks payable to the University of Michigan)

Enclosed is my (or my spouse’s) employer matching gift form

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Kikuchi Award winner Jonathan Fritz with Professor Martin

Professor Martin presents Second Year Merit Awards to NERS sophomores Allen Fisher, Kathryn Masi, and Kelsey Hansen at the Spring Banquet.

Nuclear Engineering and Radiological Sciences1906 Cooley Building2355 Bonisteel BoulevardAnn Arbor, MI 48109-2104

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