Nuclear Engineering
Utah Nuclear Engineering Program (UNEP)
Housed within the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, UNEP has developed a Nuclear Engineering curriculum that fills critical educational and competency gaps for engineers and scientists involved in the nuclear power and radioactive waste industries, nuclear medicine, homeland security, radiation safety, and nuclear materials detection. UNEP has an undergraduate minor and two graduate degrees (M.S. non-thesis and Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering). The requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree are established to meet the expectations of nuclear industry in the state of Utah, the nation, and the world.
State-of-the-Art Labs
The University of Utah's TRIGA Nuclear Reactor
About Our Nuclear Reactor
The University of Utah is one of the few institutions in the nation that houses its own nuclear reactor, right here on campus. We've been conducting research and training on the TRIGA reactor since 1975. TRIGA stands for Training, Research, Isotopes General Atomics. There are currently only 35 TRIGA reactors operating in the world, with 17 in the United States.
Having our own nuclear reactor enables us to conduct research for nuclear medicine, nuclear forensics, radiation detection, and more.
About
UNEP is responsible for educating the next generation workforce in critical nuclear engineering fields and developing innovative procedures and technologies for the advancement of nuclear applications.
Our curriculum is designed for engineers and scientists involved in the nuclear power and radioactive waste industries, nuclear medicine, homeland security, radiation safety, and nuclear materials detection.
Explore what our professors specialize in:
Mission
Our mission is to provide outstanding educational and research training that prepares students for rewarding careers and leadership positions in the development and application of nuclear processes, instrumentation, and nuclear systems while insuring proper safeguards essential for maximizing the societal benefits of nuclear energy and radioactive materials. Using our TRIGA Nuclear Research Reactor as a core training and educational facility, UNEP’s overarching goal is to continually make strides in the advancement of multidisciplinary nuclear-related fields such as
- actinide synthesis,
- electronics nesting,
- energy,
- medical isotope production,
- nuclear forensics,
- nuclear safeguards,
- and radiation detection.
Join the Future of Nuclear Engineering
Nuclear News
Nuclear Detective: U of U Professor’s Research is Enhancing National Security
Supported by a $400,000 grant from the National Nuclear Security Administration, Dr. Ed Cazalas’s project will leverage the unique properties of 2-D materials and quantum dots to enhance radiation detection. The research will investigate how 2-D materials and quantum dots respond to nuclear radiation by exposing them to controlled irradiation and analyzing the resulting signals.
Using Targeted Alpha Therapy to Fight Alzheimer’s Disease
Cametrius Warren's research project, “Targeted Alpha Therapy for the Treatment of Alzheimer's Disease,” recently earned her a prestigious grant from the Society of Nuclear Medicine & Molecular Imaging (SNMMI). SNMMI’s student research grants are designed to build the future workforce in nuclear medicine, a field rapidly expanding with new diagnostics, radiopharmaceutical therapies, and innovative imaging technologies.
+$1.3 Million Research Award to Dr. McDonald by U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Dr. Luther McDonald‘s research has received the 2023 Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction: Nuclear Forensics Research Award (NFRA), with a budget of $1,395,000 to support 36-months of laboratory experiments and student development.
Innovative Alzheimer’s Treatment Developed at the U Featured in Journal of Nuclear Medicine
Dr. Aidan Bender, a UNEP PhD graduate, spearheaded pioneering research on Alzheimer’s disease. His remarkable work is being published in the Journal of Nuclear Medicine, the premier journal in the field.
The research received funding from the University of Utah’s 1U4U initiative, which aims to bring together research and projects from health sciences and the U’s main campus to increase their societal impact. 1U4U’s support of this project underscores the value of Dr. Bender’s contributions.