Research Projects

Postgraduate research topics currently available are listed on the following Research theme(s):

• Nuclear Engineering

Research grants

Research themes and Research centers

• Nuclear engineering

Tim Abram has held the Westinghouse Chair in Nuclear Engineering at the University of Manchester since 2008. Prior to this he gained over 20 years research experience in nuclear fuels and advanced reactors technology in the UK (BNFL, UKNNL) and USA (Westinghouse). His experience covers the design and analysis of all major reactor types and their associated fuels, including MOX, Accident Tolerant Fuels, and Coated Particle Fuels (TRISO). He has participated in over 15 EU Framework projects and is the UK's representative on the IAEA Technical Working Group on Gas-Cooled Reactors. He co-authored the first Gen-IV Roadmap for Fuels and Materials, was Chair of the VHTR Fuel Cycle Board, and is currently the UK’s representative on the VHTR SSC. At UKNNL, Prof. Abram is the Visiting Senior Research Fellow for Fuels and Reactor Systems. He has been an External Examiner for the Royal Navy’s nuclear engineering programmes, and for the University of Cambridge MPhil in Nuclear Engineering. He was a member of the UK Government’s Nuclear Innovation and Research Advisory Board from 2014-20, serves on the UK Nuclear Regulator’s Independent Advisory Board, and is the Director of the Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre for Nuclear Science and Engineering. He initiated Urenco's U-Battery HTGR development project at Manchester in 2009 and subsequently served as Head of Engineering and Design Authority. He has been Chief Technologist for USNC’s UK-MMR project, Senior Technical Advisor to UKNNL's Advanced Modular Reactor Project, and is a Founding Director of the BAE Systems spin-out Nuclear Turbines Ltd (www.nuclearturbines.com). He has been the main supervisor for over 30 PhD students and has authored over 150 peer-reviewed journal and industry reports. In 2023 he was elected a Fellow of the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering.

• nuclear fuel and fuel cycle technology
• reactor systems technology