Postdoc: AI-Driven CFD for Nuclear Energy Systems

Oak Ridge National Laboratory; Oak Ridge (TN); On-site; USD 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical plan

Retirement plan

Flexible work hours

Relocation assistance

Job summary

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Oak Ridge, TN, seeks a Postdoctoral Research Associate to advance AI agents, CFD simulations, and FEM tools for nuclear energy applications, including fission and fusion systems.

You will develop and qualify CFD methods, run large-scale simulations on HPC platforms, apply ML and Bayesian calibration, and contribute to multi-physics workflows and publications. A PhD and strong programming experience are required, with collaboration across groups encouraged.

Qualifications

• PhD or equivalent completed within the last 5 years.
• Experience with CFD codes for nuclear or thermal energy systems.
• Experience with OpenFOAM, Nek5000, STAR-CCM+, ANSYS or COMSOL.
• Knowledge of finite element simulations methods and parallel Linux computing.

Responsibilities

• Develop next-generation CFD methods (finite volume/finite element) for nuclear energy systems.
• Perform large-scale simulations of fission and fusion systems.
• Apply machine learning and Bayesian calibration to multi-physics models.
• Complete verification, validation, uncertainty quantification, and documentation.

Skills

Python

C/C++

Parallel computing

Git

Paraview

Education

PhD in nuclear/mechanical/chemical engineering or related field

Tools

OpenFOAM

Nek5000

STAR-CCM+

ANSYS

COMSOL

Job description

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Oak Ridge, TN, seeks a Postdoctoral Research Associate to advance AI agents, CFD simulations, and FEM tools for nuclear energy applications, including fission and fusion systems.

You will develop and qualify CFD methods, run large-scale simulations on HPC platforms, apply ML and Bayesian calibration, and contribute to multi-physics workflows and publications. A PhD and strong programming experience are required, with collaboration across groups encouraged.