In 2020, Quintessa established an annual prize for the best dissertation on the MSc Course in Nuclear Science and Engineering at the University of Bristol. The prize was established in recognition of the vision, enthusiasm and ethos of our founder, David Hodgkinson, who has encouraged many people to pursue a career in the nuclear industry.
Quintessa recognises need to support the development of new talent entering the nuclear industry and, as such, is delighted to be able to support the MSc course which has been developed and delivered in partnership with industry and aims to provide a thorough grounding in the science and engineering that underpins today’s nuclear energy systems. David, a University of Bristol alumnus, and Richard Little, Quintessa’s current Managing Director, visited the South West Nuclear Hub at the University of Bristol on 14th April to present the Quintessa prize to the 2020 and 2021 winners, Rosie Smart and Matthew Townsend. Rosie’s dissertation explored the possible photocatalytic activity of uranium oxides to better understand the long-term behaviour of spent nuclear fuel, whilst Matthew’s focussed on the use of muography for locating radioactive sources within two submarine compartments housing previously operational nuclear reactors.