Principal Core Thermal Hydraulics Engineer in Bellevue, Washington at TerraPower

TerraPower is a nuclear technology company based in Bellevue, Washington. At its core, the company is working to raise living standards globally through a more affordable, secure, and environmentally friendly form of nuclear energy along with innovations in medical isotopes to improve human health. In 2006, TerraPower originated with Bill Gates and a group of like-minded visionaries who evaluated the fundamental challenges to raising living standards around the world. They recognized energy access was crucial to the health and economic well-being of communities and decided that the private sector needed to take action and create energy sources that would advance global energy deployment. TerraPowers mission is to be a world leader in new nuclear technologies, while developing innovators and future leaders in the nuclear field. As a result, the companys activities in the fields of nuclear energy and related sciences are yielding significant innovations in the safety and economics of nuclear power, hybrid energy and medical applications all for significant human health benefits.

TerraPower is seeking to hire highly motivated and forward-thinking professionals who are interested in focusing on advanced nuclear reactor research and development and influencing change within the nuclear power landscape and bringing forward the critical production of medical isotopes. TerraPower is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We do not discriminate in hiring on the basis of sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, religious creed, national origin, physical or mental disability, protected Veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local law.

Principal Core Thermal Hydraulics Engineer

TerraPower is seeking a highly motivated Principal Core Thermal Hydraulic Engineer to support the sodium-cooled Natrium Reactor program. Reporting to the Manager of Core Thermal Hydraulic Methods & Analysis, you will be leading the development and validation of thermal-hydraulic methodologies, software, and analyses, providing technical guidance to ensure successful project completion and interfacing cross-disciplinary engineering teams in the company. As a principal engineer, you will address the technical challenges in refining reactor and core assembly designs and evaluation of their thermal-hydraulic behaviors under various conditions in advanced nuclear reactor systems.

Responsibilities:

• Lead the technical effort to develop and validate thermal hydraulic methodologies, software, and analysis for sodium-cooled fast reactor design
• Develop, qualify, and maintain the computer code to analyze the steady-state nuclear reactor core thermal-hydraulics
• Have an ownership of the qualified software for the reactor core thermal-hydraulic software
• Support the technical decision to address the critical challenges in reactor core design
• Support the project planning and define the work scopes for the critical path of the project
• Perform thermal hydraulic analysis and engineering calculation/assessment of nuclear reactor core components and structures in exploration of reactor architecture options including component selections, configurations, and sizing in support of the design of Natrium demonstration reactor system using in-house thermal-hydraulic software and/or hand calculations
• Work with cross-disciplinary teams to analyze the thermal and mechanical design considerations for the safety of the reactor and its components
• Provide technical presentations on analyses performed to the broader team.
• Prepare informal and formal reports to document findings and make reasoned recommendations, and report to core thermal hydraulic team manager/lead
• Support licensing activities related to the Natrium demonstration project by assisting in the preparation of licensing submittals
• Support design reviews as plant system and subsystem designs are established and refined
• Provide Support and oversight during test execution, evaluation of test results, and reporting of test results
• Establish and maintain system requirements and design basis documents for reactor core design and core thermal hydraulics

Key Qualifications and Skills

• B.S., M.S., or Ph.D in Mechanical, Nuclear, or other relevant technical Engineering area from an accredited university
• A minimum of 15 years of related experience with a Bachelors degree; or 8 years and a Masters degree; or a PhD with 5 years of experience with demonstrated ability to perform the thermal-hydraulic analysis of nuclear reactor core components for simulation-based design
• 5+ years of technical leadership and/or project management experience
• Strong background in nuclear thermal-hydraulics analysis, with demonstrated expertise in evaluating and performing engineering calculations related to heat and mass transfer in nuclear reactor cores, and hydraulic characterization of reactor core components, as proven through university research, publications, and/or work experience
• Proven problem-solving skills and a willingness to apply those skills to a variety of engineering problems.
• Ability to handle projects that include many competing objectives and design constraints, with ability to resolve conflicts between objectives
• Demonstrated expertise and experience with python programming and software development, qualification, and verification & validation. Proficiency in C++ programming is highly preferred
• Experience working with high-performance computing (HPC) environments preferred
• Experience in Software Quality Assurance (SQA) program and Nuclear Quality Assurance (NQA-1) standards highly preferred
• Strong knowledge and experience in liquid metal thermal-hydraulics or experience with nuclear reactor analysis codes (subchannel analysis code or system thermal-hydraulic codes)
• Must have strong verbal and written communication skills to meet NQA-1 requirements, including the formal documentation of calculations.
• Actual position starting level and title will be determined based on assessment of qualifications
• The successful candidate will possess a high degree of trust and integrity, communicate openly and display respect and a desire to foster teamwork.

This position is subject to qualification requirements in accordance with ANSI/ANS 3.1. Candidates must meet the minimum education and experience criteria applicable to the role, including relevant nuclear industry experience where required. Verification of data will be part of the hiring process.

Job Functions:

Job Functions are physical actions and/or working conditions associated with the position. These functions may also constitute essential functions for the job which the employee must be able to fulfill, with or without accommodation. Information provided below is to help describe the job so that the applicant has a reasonable understanding of the job duties/expectations. An applicant's ability to perform and/or tolerate these actions and conditions will be discussed and workplace accommodations may be made on a case-by-case basis following an individualized assessment of the applicant and other considerations, including but not limited to any governing safety standards.

• Motor Abilities: Sitting for extended periods, bending/stooping, grasping/gripping, fine motor control (hands)
• Physical exertion and/or requirements: Minimal, with ability to safely lift up to 25 pounds.
• Repetitive work: Prolonged
• Special Senses: Visual and audio focused work
• Work Conditions: Stairs, typing/keyboard, standard and/or sitting working environment of >8 hours/day
• Travel required 0-10%

TerraPowers technology is controlled for export by various agencies of the U.S. Government. TerraPower must evaluate applicants who are foreign nationals (other than asylees, refugees, or lawful permanent residents) in accordance with U.S. Government export control requirements. To facilitate TerraPowers export control reviews, you will be asked as part of the application process to identify whether you are a U.S. Citizen or national, asylee, refugee, or lawful permanent resident of the United States. Government export authorization approval times vary. Based on the business needs for a particular position, TerraPower may not consider a foreign national from a country if it is impracticable to obtain timely Government export approval.

Job details

Salary Range: $168,316 - $252,475

Any salary offered within the posted salary band is based on market data and commensurate with the selected candidates qualifications and experience. This range is specific to Washington State.

Job Type: Full-time

Benefits:

• Competitive Compensation
• Salary, eligible to participate in discretionary short-term incentive payments
• Comprehensive Medical and Wellness Benefits
  • Medical
  • Vision
  • Dental
  • Life and Disability
  • Gender Affirmation Benefits
• Parental Leave
• 401k Plan
• Generous Paid Time Off (PTO)
  • 21 days of annually accrued PTO
• Generous Holiday Schedule
  • 10 paid holidays
• Relocation Assistance
• Professional and Educational Support Opportunities

TerraPower Career and Benefits information: https://www.terrapower.com/contact-us/careers/