- The University of Manchester – School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering
- Academic Supervisors: Peter R Green, Barry Lennox
- Industrial Supervisor: Neil Cockbain
- Project timeline: Apr 2017 to Apr 2020
- Research areas of interest: Wireless communications, Radiation effects, Wireless sensor networks and remote sensing
- Academic Qualifications: Master of Science in Nuclear Engineering – The University of Pisa
- University profile, LinkedIn page
Wireless Communications in Nuclear Decommissioning Environments
The aim of my research project is to analyse the challenges and opportunities related to the use of wireless communication in the nuclear industry, specifically when using wireless communication to deliver remote sensing in a high radiation area. The use of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) within industry and agriculture is rapidly increasing. In the nuclear industry a considerable effort has been made to use wireless sensor networks for instrumentation and control. However there are some challenges related to the specific environment encountered in the nuclear decommissioning industry, which we need to address to demonstrate that it is possible to use wireless communication efficiently and securely. These challenges include limited sources of power, the radiation tolerance of the sensor and communication system components, the severe attenuation of wireless signals through reinforced wall structures, and the need to deliver secure, interoperable and reliable communication. The final outcome of my project will be the design, the implementation and experimental evaluation of a Wireless Sensor Network to monitor temperature and humidity in the nuclear decommissioning environment. Since the beginning of my studies I have shown interest in the field of nuclear decommissioning and waste management. Doing my PhD at the Centre for Innovative Nuclear Decommissioning will give me the opportunity to develop a prototype for a real industrial application to show the outcomes of this research.
Outputs
Conference paper: A. Di Buono, P. R. Green, B. Lennox, N. Cockbain and X. Poteau, “Design of a Wireless Sensing System for Deployment in Nuclear Decommissioning Environments”, 11th International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Plant Instrumentation, Control and Human Machine Interface Technologies, NPIC & HMIT 2019. American Nuclear Society ANS, (2019).