Kathryn D Huff

Kathryn D Huff
Kathryn D Huff
Associate Professor
(217) 300-3132
118 Talbot Laboratory

For More Information

Education

  • University of Wisconsin-Madison, Ph.D., Nuclear Engineering, 2013
  • University of Chicago, B.A., Physics, 2008

Biography

The Honorable Kathryn D. Huff, PhD, is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She is on unpaid leave of absence while serving as the Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy in the U.S. Department of Energy. She was previously a Blue Waters Assistant Professor at UIUC. Before joining UIUC, she was a Postdoctoral Fellow with both the Nuclear Science and Security Consortium and the Berkeley Institute for Data Science at the University of California - Berkeley. As a PhD student, she helped to reimagine the GENIUSv2 fuel cycle simulator and became the primary developer of the Cyclus simulator in its initial phase. In addition, she collaborated with the Systems Analysis group at Idaho National Laboratory to develop the Fuel Cycle Simulator Software Requirements that defined the goals and expectations for the Next Generation Fuel Cycle Simulator. She received her PhD in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in August 2013 as a student of Professor Paul P.H. Wilson. Her undergraduate degree was in Physics from the University of Chicago. Her PhD dissertation and postdoctoral work both focused on development of software for nuclear engineering applications such as the Cyclus simulator, PyNE, and extensions to MOOSE. She is particularly interested in robust modeling and simulation of advanced reactors emphasizing scientific software engineering best practices.

Academic Positions

  • May-Aug 2003, Research Assistant, LANSCE-3, Los Alamos Neutron Science Center
  • Jun-Sep 2004, Research Assistant, LANSCE-3, Los Alamos Neutron Science Center
  • Jun-Sep 2006, Research Assistant, Chicago-Chile Research Exchange Program, Universidad de Chile, Physics Dept.
  • Jan 2005-Jun 2008, Research Assistant, Laboratory for Astrophysics and Space Research, Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics
  • Jun-Aug 2010, Graduate Research Assistant, Systems Analysis Campaign, Idaho National Laboratory
  • Jun 2008-Aug 2013, Graduate Research Assistant, Computational Nuclear Engineering Research Group, University of Wisconsin - Madison
  • Jun 2011-Aug 2013, Laboratory Graduate Research Appointee, Argonne National Laboratory
  • Sep 2013-Aug 2014 (100%), Postdoctoral Scholar, University of California - Berkeley, Nuclear Science and Security Consortium
  • Sep 2013-Jul 2016 (50%), Postdoctoral Scholar, University of California - Berkeley, Nuclear Science and Security Consortium
  • Aug 2014-Jul 2016 (50%), Data Science Fellow, Berkeley Institute for Data Science
  • Aug 2016-May 10, 2021 (100%), Assistant Professor, Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, University of Illinois
  • Aug 2016-Present (0%), Affiliate Faculty, National Center for Supercomputing Applications, University of Illinois
  • Aug 2016-Present (0%), Blue Waters Assistant Professor, University of Illinois
  • Jan 2017-Present (0%), Affiliate Faculty, Computational Science and Engineering, University of Illinois
  • May 10, 2021-Present (0%), Extended Unpaid Leave of Absence, NPRE, University of Illinois
  • May 10, 2021- Jan 1, 2022 (100%), Principal Assistant Deputy Secretary and Acting Assistant Secretary, Office of Nuclear Energy, U.S. Department of Energy
  • Jan, 2022 - May, 2022 (100%), Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Energy on Nuclear Energy, U.S. Department of Energy
  • May 10, 2022 - Present (100%), Assistant Secretary, Office of Nuclear Energy, U.S. Department of Energy

Major Consulting Activities

  • Subject Matter Expert, Institute of Nuclear Power Operations (INPO) Academic Program Review, Thomas Edison State University, Trenton, NJ, 2018-2019

Other Professional Activities

  • Member, Program Advisory Board, Digital Information Technology Program, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, 630 Fifth Avenue, Suite 2200, New York, NY, 10111​, 2018-present

Student Organizations

  • UIUC Women in Nuclear, Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, 2017-2019
  • UIUC American Nuclear Society, Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, 2016-present
  • UIUC The Hacker Within Scientific Computing Group, Department of Computational Science and Engineering, 2016-2019

Post-Doctoral Research Opportunities

http://arfc.npre.illinois.edu/positions/postdoc/

Graduate Research Opportunities

http://arfc.npre.illinois.edu/positions/grad/

Undergraduate Research Opportunities

http://arfc.npre.illinois.edu/positions/ugrad/

Research Interests

  • Molten Salt Reactors, High-Temperature Gas Reactors, Micro-Reactors, Fluoride-Salt-Cooled High-Temperature Reactors
  • Scientific computing education
  • Repository system performance modeling
  • Open & reproducible scientific computing
  • Computational methods for optimization and prediction
  • Advanced data analysis for radioisotope identification
  • Coupled multi-physics simulation
  • Reactor neutronics and kinetics
  • Nuclear fuel cycle simulation
  • Advanced nuclear reactor modeling and simulation

Research Areas

  • Advanced Reactor Designs
  • Multi-Physics Modeling and Simulation
  • Reactor Physics
  • Reliability and Risk

Books Authored or Co-Authored (Original Editions)

Chapters in Books

Selected Articles in Journals

Articles in Conference Proceedings

Magazine Articles

Reports

  • S. G. Dotson, A. M. Bachmann, Z. M. Richter, N. R. Panczyk, N. S. Ryan, A. C. Balla, and E. R. Fanning., with K. D. Huff and M. Munk, “Economic and Carbon Impacts of Potential Illinois Nuclear Plant Closures: The Cost of Closures,” University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, Technical Report UIUC-ARFC-2021-02, May 2021.
  • M. Turkmen et al. “Milestone 2.3 Report: SaltProc Sensitivity Analysis, Fuel processing system design,” University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, Milestone Report UIUC-ARFC-2021-01, Mar. 2021.
  • A. J. H. Lee, T. Kozlowksi, and K. Huff, Milestone 3.2 Report: Thermal-Hydraulics Analysis of Core LoadFollowing Operation, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, Milestone Report UIUC-ARTS-2020-02, August 2020.
  • A. Rykhlevskii and K. Huff, Milestone 2.1 Report: Demonstration of SaltProc, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, Milestone Report UIUC-ARFC-2019-04 DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.3355649, June 2019.
  • G. Chee, R. Fairhurst, and K. Huff, Transition Scenario Demonstrations of CYCAMORE Demand Driven Deployment Capabilities, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, Technical Report UIUC-ARFC-2019-03, June 2019.
  • A. Chaube and K. D. Huff, Dynamic Transition Analysis With The Integrated Markal-EFOM System (TIMES): International Institute for Carbon-Neutral Energy Research (I2CNER) Project Report, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, Technical Report UIUC-ARFC-2019-02, May 2019.
  • P. Sabharwall, N. Anderson, P. Marotta, and R. Christensen, MicroNuclear Battery Thermal and Fluid Analysis and Multiphysics Modeling Challenges, Idaho National Laboratory, Idaho Falls, ID, INL Limited Distribution INL/LTD-19-52963, February 2019.
  • K. D. Huff, Identifying MSR Multiphysics Modeling Challenges, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, Technical Report UIUC-ARFC-2019-01, February 2019.
  • A. L. Heald, E. A. Miernicki, R. E. Fairhurst, A. J. Margenot, K. D. Huff, and C. S. Brooks, Investigation of Agricultural Uses of Nuclear Waste Heat. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, UIUC Technical Report, October 2018.
  • J. W. Bae, G. Chee, and K. Huff, Numerical Experiments for Verifying Demand Driven Deployment Algorithms, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, Graduate Report UIUC-ARFC-2018-01, April 2018.
  • J.W. Bae, K.D. Huff, Non-algorithmic capability gaps for cyclus and cycamore transition analyses, Graduate Report UIUC-ARFC-2017-02, Urbana, IL: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, November 2017.
  • G. Ridley, A. Lindsay, M. Turk, K. Huff, Multiphysics analysis of molten salt reactor transients, Undergraduate Report UIUC-ARFC-2017-01, Urbana, IL: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, August 2017.
  • C. Andreades, A.T. Cisneros, J.K. Choi, A.Y.K. Chong, D.L. Krumwiede, L.R. Huddar, K. Huff, M.R. Laufer, M.O. Munk, R.O. Scarlat, J. Seifried, N. Zweibaum, E. Greenspan, P.F. Peterson, Technical description of the Mark 1 pebble-bed fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor (PB-FHR) power plant, U.C. Berkeley Nuclear Engineering, Report UCBTH-14-002, 2014.
  • K. Huff, T.H. Bauer, Benchmarking a new closed-form thermal analysis technique against a traditional lumped parameter, Finite-Difference method, Argonne National Laboratory, (FCRD-UFD-2012-000142), July 2012.
  • K. Huff, W.M. Nutt, FY12 Sensitivity studies using the UFD clay generic disposal system model, Argonne National Laboratory, July 2012.
  • K. Huff, B. Dixon, L. Braase, Next generation fuel cycle simulator functions and requirements document, Idaho National Laboratory (FCRD-SYSA-2010-000110), July 2010.
  • K. Huff, Digital filtering application to the lead slowing down spectrometer, Los Alamos Neutron Science Center, August 2004. (awarded Los Alamos distinguished student award.)
  • K. Huff, Excess single event effects in the second chip of a series, Los Alamos Neutron Science Center, August 2003.

Journal Editorships

  • Editorial Board, Papers in Physics, 2020-present
  • Editorial Board, Nuclear Engineering and Design, 2020-present
  • Editorial Advisory Board, Nuclear Technology, 2018-present
  • Editorial Board, Journal of Open Source Education, 2018-present
  • Editorial Board, Journal of Open Source Software, 2016-present
  • Co-Editor, Proceedings of the SciPy Scientific Python Conference 2013, 2015, & 2017

Conferences Organized or Chaired

  • Technical Program Committee, Physics of Reactors (PHYSOR), 2021
  • Technical Program Committee, Technical Workshop on Nuclear Fuel Cycle Simulation, Paris, France, 2020
  • Chair, Technical Workshop on Nuclear Fuel Cycle Simulation, Urbana, IL, 2019
  • Publications Chair, GLOBAL Nuclear Fuel Cycle Conference, Seattle, WA, 2019
  • Program Committee & Proceedings Chair, Scientific Python Conference, Austin, TX, 2017
  • Organizing Committee, Technical Workshop on Nuclear Fuel Cycle Simulation, Columbia, SC, 2017
  • Technical Program Committee, International High Level Radioactive Waste Management, Charlotte, NC, 2017

Presentations

Other Scholarly Activities

  • OECD-NEA Fluoride-Salt-Cooled High-Temperature Reactor Neutronics and Multiphysics Benchmark Exercise Participant
  • Nuclear Energy Institute, Advanced Reactor Working Group, Washington, DC, 2019-present
  • SciFoo Camper, 2018. Google X, Mountain View, CA

Professional Societies

  • Executive Committee and Diversity & Inclusion Subcommittee, Mathematics and Computation Division, American Nuclear Society, 2020-2023
  • Chair, Nuclear Nonproliferation and Policy Division, American Nuclear Society, 2020-2021
  • Subcommittee Member, Young Members Group, Honors and Awards Committee and Member Retention Committee, 2020
  • Vice Chair, Nuclear Nonproliferation and Policy Division, American Nuclear Society, 2019-2020
  • Immediate Past Chair, Ex-Officio, Fuel Cycle & Waste Management Division, American Nuclear Society, 2017-2018
  • Chair, Fuel Cycle & Waste Management Division, American Nuclear Society, 2016-2017
  • Vice Chair, Fuel Cycle & Waste Management Division, American Nuclear Society, 2015-2016
  • Secretary-Treasurer, Fuel Cycle & Waste Management Division, American Nuclear Society, 2013-2015
  • Secretary, Young Members Group, American Nuclear Society, 2013-2014
  • Member, Next Generation Leadership Committee, Waste Management Symposium, 2013-2014

Service on College Committees

  • Program in Arms Control & Domestic & International Security (ACDIS) Summer Fellowship Review Committee, 2021
  • Grainger College of Engineering (GCOE) Faculty Professional Development and Mentoring Ad Hoc Committee, 2021
  • Member, Engineering IT Governance Education Working Group, 2020-2021
  • ENG/TE Liaison Committee, 2020-2021
  • Selection Committee, Clare Boothe Luce (CBL) Research Scholars, 2020-2021
  • ARISE program Faculty mentor, 2019-2020
  • Member, College of Engineering Marketing Strategic Planning Workgroup, 2019
  • Member, Instructional Facility Working Group, 2017-2018

Service on Campus Committees

  • Steering Committee Member, Illinois Data Science Initiative, 2018

Service to Federal and State Government

  • Department of Energy, Nuclear Energy University Program, Fellowship Review Panel, 2021
  • Volunteer Election Judge, Champaign County, 2020
  • Department of Energy, Nuclear Energy University Program, Scholarship Review Panel, 2019, 2020

Other Outside Service

  • Reviewer, DOE Small Business Innovation Research
  • Reviewer, PLoS Biology
  • Reviewer, Nuclear Science and Engineering
  • Reviewer, Nuclear Engineering and Design
  • Reviewer, Nuclear Technology
  • Reviewer, International Journal of Energy Research
  • Reviewer, IEEE Computing in Science and Engineering
  • Reviewer, Nuclear Engineering and Technology
  • Reviewer, Annals of Nuclear Energy
  • Reviewer, Progress in Nuclear Energy
  • Member, Advanced Reactor Working Group, Nuclear Energy Institute, 2019-2020
  • Executive Committee Member, Moore-Sloan Data Science Environments Alumni Committee, 2019-2020
  • Proceedings Co-Chair, SciPy, Scientific Python Conference, 2015, 2017
  • Chair, Steering Committee, Software Carpentry Foundation 2014-2015
  • Technical Program Co-Chair, SciPy, Scientific Python Conference, 2013-2014
  • Co-Founder, Nuclear Pride, LGBTQA Organization, 2011-2013
  • Moderator, Organizer, Panelist, inSCIght Scientific Computing Podcast, 2011-2013
  • Co-Founder, Treasurer, President, Hacker Within Scientific Computing Group, 2008-2011
  • Governor, Treasurer, University of Wisconsin, American Nuclear Society, student section 2008-2010

Teaching Honors

  • Spring 2020 Teacher Ranking, Outstanding (Top 10%) (Spring 2020)
  • Stanley H. Pierce Award, Engineering Council, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. (April 12, 2019)
  • AE3, Collins Scholars Program Certificate of Completion (Spring 2017)
  • NPRE Teacher of the Year (Spring 2017, Spring 2021 )
  • Fall 2016 Teacher Ranking (Fall 2016)

Research Honors

  • Mary Jane Oestmann Professional Women's Achievement Award, American Nuclear Society (Oct. 30, 2017)
  • Young Member Excellence Award, American Nuclear Society (Nov. 06, 2016)
  • Data Science Fellowship, Berkeley Institute for Data Science, UC Berkeley (2014 - 2016)
  • Nuclear Science and Security Consortium Postdoctoral Fellowship, UC Berkeley (2013 - 2016)
  • Roy G Post Foundation Nuclear Waste Management Graduate Scholarship (2011)
  • John Randall Memorial Scholarship, American Nuclear Society FCWMD (2009)
  • Los Alamos Distinguished Student Performance Award, Los Alamos National Lab (2004)

Public Service Honors

  • Secretary's Honor Award: Achievement Award, U.S. Department of Energy (February 2024)

Other Honors

  • University Scholar Award, University of Chicago (2004 - 2008)
  • J.A McDeavitt Scholarship, University of Chicago (2007 - 2008)

Improvement Activities

  • Upcoming: Participant, French Section of the American Nuclear Society 2021 Technical tour of French Nuclear Facilities
  • Participant, Sandia Academic Alliance Program Field Day. Sandia National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, 2018
  • Participant, It's About Time: Effective Task Management for Pre-Tenure Faculty, UIUC Office of the Provost, 2017
  • Participant, UIUC Faculty Retreat on Teaching, 2017
  • Certified Data Carpentry Instructor, Data Carpentry Foundation, 2017
  • AE3 Collins Scholars Program, College of Engineering, University of Illinois, 2016-2017
  • Certified Software Carpentry Instructor, Software Carpentry Foundation, 2010-Present

Recent Courses Taught

  • NPRE 247 - Modeling Nuclear Energy System
  • NPRE 412 - Nuclear Power Econ & Fuel Mgmt
  • NPRE 446 - Radiation Interact w/Matter I
  • NPRE 555 - Reactor Theory I
  • NPRE 560 - Reactor Kinetics and Dynamics