Jadzia Graves and her teammates started the U of I’s Engineering Design EXPO by helping K-12 students understand their senior capstone design project, letting the students work with a simulated glovebox and explaining how to manipulate objects in an inert environment. Then Jadzia’s group presented their project, Nuclear Fuel Pin Jacket Production, in front of industry leaders and professionals. The EXPO packs a lot into one day, but as she’s done throughout her U of I career, Jadzia is taking on the challenge with a sharp intellect and endless energy. Jadzia had her eye on aerospace engineering after graduating from Kuna High School, and she landed an internship at NASA’s Ames Research Center after her sophomore year. But her studies piqued her interest in the Naval Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) that same year, and an internship in 2021 with the company that conducts nuclear engineering for the U.S. Navy sealed the deal. Jadzia appreciated the collaborative culture and mission-oriented atmosphere so much that she accepted a job offer. After a short summer respite, Jadzia will resume her go-go-go schedule in the fall. She’s starting as a full-time employee at NNL’s Bettis Atomic Laboratory in Pittsburgh, Pa. She also plans to take classes at Carnegie Mellon University to begin work on her master’s degree. “I’ve really enjoyed my U of I experience,” Jadzia said. “Engineering is so collaborative and on our capstone project, we’re all go-getters. I know my experience is going to help me in my career.” Idaho National Laboratory sponsored their capstone project, seeking out students to create a key component for its sodium-cooled fast nuclear reactor. Jadzia and her teammates Julia Bean, Alexander Chambers, Ryan Oliver and Maxwell Vavricka worked on an automated system to extrude sodium wire into a fuel pin jacket – a secure storage container for the highly sensitive material. The team used a glovebox to keep the sodium from reacting with outside elements, and designed an extrusion press to place the sodium in fuel pin jackets. “Our project is a mix of a normal design project and a research project,” said Jadzia, who will graduate May 14 with bachelor’s degrees in mechanical engineering and materials science and engineering. “We’ve had to figure things out together, talk to a lot of people, and try a whole bunch of different ideas to get it right. I’ve definitely learned how to work with different people and look at different sides of the problem.” The group hopes to have its research published in the Journal of Nuclear Engineering and their work is drawing interest from other companies in addition to INL. It’s a model project for the College of Engineering’s Interdisciplinary Capstone Design Program, which was ranked top seven in the nation by the National Academy of Engineers for infusing real-world experience into engineering education. Today’s Engineering Design EXPO technical presentations are available to view online. |