Senior Engineer (Plant Thermal Hydraulics Validations)

Our client is seeking a Contractor to supports validation activities for the Natrium Reactor's plant-scale thermal-hydraulic analysis tools. Reporting to the Manager, Plant Thermal Hydraulics Validation, the engineer supports verification, validation, uncertainty quantification, and comprehensive code assessment.

The position requires expertise in system-level thermal-hydraulics, thermal-fluids behavior, fluid-structure interaction, and benchmarking computational models against high-quality experimental data.

Tasks:

• Support verification, validation, and uncertainty quantification activities for plant scale thermal-hydraulic analysis tools.
• Perform system-level steady-state and transient thermal-hydraulic simulations to evaluate model behavior, accuracy, and limitations.
• Interpret and apply experimental data from separate effects and integral test facilities to support model validation and closure of technical gaps.
• Define validation needs, develop test requirements, and collaborate closely with test engineering teams to ensure alignment between model gaps and experimental programs.
• Document V&V methodologies, model assumptions, validation results, and uncertainty analyses for internal design processes and regulatory submittals.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to support plant design, safety analysis, and licensing workflows.
• Apply and improve client's SQA and NQA1 modeling quality practices and ensure traceability and configuration control of analysis inputs, models, and results.

Key Qualifications and Skills:

• Degree in Mechanical, Nuclear, Chemical Engineering, or similar field, with a minimum 6+ years of experience for level 10; advanced-degree equivalencies apply.
• Experience should include system-level thermal hydraulic analysis and code assessment for nuclear or complex energy systems.
• Demonstrated experience in code assessment, including model-to-test comparison, validation metric development, and uncertainty quantification.
• Hands on experience working with experimental thermal hydraulic data, including data analysis, uncertainty evaluation, and comparison against system level predictions.
• Experience with system analysis tools (e.g., RELAP5 3D, TRACE, SAS, or equivalent) applied to plant scale transient and steady-state evaluations.
• Strong foundation in thermal-fluid and reactor system behavior considerations relevant to advanced reactor designs.
• Experience with SQA and NQA 1 quality assurance practices for modeling workflows is highly preferred.
• Strong analytical thinking, clear technical communication, and the ability to manage multiple validation tasks in parallel.