Posted By Alberto Milocco
I am an open-minded graduate wishing to pursue a career in the area of risk assessment.
In 2002 I obtained a degree in Nuclear Engineering, mathematical and physical orientation for nuclear technology, at the Politecnico di Milano, Italy. Politecnico di Milano is a member of CASAER (Conference of European Schools for Advanced Engineering Education and Research). The Academic title released after a five - year course by the universities participating in the conference is generally considered equivalent to a Masters of Science. The Politecnico di Milano is very selective and competitive; graduate students are widely recognized by the top level Universities and Companies. One has moreover to take into account that before entering the University the students have to follow a 13 year educational system.
My one - year degree thesis was worked out at the LASAR (Laboratory of Signal Analysis and Risk Analysis, Department of Nuclear Engineering, Milan, Italy), a well-known research group in the area of Nuclear Safety. The nominal scenario is the scram of a PWR plant. I analysed the effects of the failures of the turbine trip valve and the steam bypass valve. The simulations were carried out by means of the code UTSG (U-Tube steam generator). A main concern in safety analysis is the availability and reliability of the measures. The task was to recognise the malfunctioning of the valves from the available signals of the steam generators. I studied the feasibility of an innovative approach of neural computation techniques. Patterns from simulations were processed by the Code Nest (NEural Simulation Tool) in order to train, optimise and test a feed forward neural network. The model can accurately diagnose the faults of the valves in few seconds, thus providing a potential contribution in matter of ‘defence in depth’ of Nuclear Power Plants.
Final degree mark was 85/100, corresponding to 3,4 of the 4.0 grade point system. When required, I provide the translated certificates and the reference letter of my thesis coordinator, Professor Enrico Zio.
In 2003 I was in Pavia, Italy, and attended the ESAS (European School of Advanced Studies in ‘Nuclear and Ionising Radiation Technology’). The School is organized by the University Institute for Advanced Studies, which is an emanation of the University of Pavia and the Italian Ministry of Education and Research, in cooperation with the IAEA of Wien. The first part of the Master consists of an intensive course of 400 h theoretical lectures and laboratories with the duration of 4 months. The theoretical course is followed by the training stage within external institutions and industries. The overall course has the duration of one year. After the discussion of a thesis on the working experience, I obtained the Diploma of International University Master in ‘Nuclear and Ionising Radiation Technology’. No marks are awarded.
During the industrial placement I joined the Nuclear Power Plant ‘E. Fermi’ at Trino, Italy, and provided engineering collaboration in the Health and Safety team for a decommissioning project, namely the decontamination of the steam generators, and for a maintenance project, i. e. the new water supply system of the plant. As a common issue, I wrote down procedures on the basis of systems layouts. The programme required also the assessment of the dose commitment for a set of maintenance instructions.
NPP “E. Fermi” is a PWR located between Milan and Turin. It operated from 1965 till 1987, when it was definitively shut down as a consequence of a national referendum that banned the production of nuclear power in Italy. Sogin Spa manages the Italian nuclear facilities being decommissioned. In late 2004 Sogin invited me for an interview, but was not employed.
As obvious now, I am Italian. In April 2005 I came in London in order to practise English and to look for a job. Current one is only a part time collaboration for a charity. I live in the North of London, where an English family rents a room for me. Joining you would mean a splendid experience for my life and profession. I am friendly and keen on the safety issues, especially when this involves modern methodologies for the safe management of engineering practise.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours Faithfully
Alberto Milocco