Today, 13 February 2025, at the EN:Lab building of the Department of Energy of Politecnico di Milano, the award ceremony of the first edition of the “Giovanni Pastore” Master’s Degree Prize took place.

The prize, which was established thanks to a donation from Giovanni Pastore’s family in collaboration with the Department of Energy, is dedicated to the memory of the alumnus and researcher whose scientific contribution in the field of nuclear fuel modelling has had a strong international impact.

After a careful evaluation of the applications, the Jury awarded the prize ex aequo to two theses that stand out for their high relevance to the topic of fission gas behaviour and for their scientific and methodological rigour:

• Arianna Pagani, with her thesis “An AI-Enhanced Model of Athermal Fission Gas Release in SCIANTIX“, which proposes an extension of the model developed by Giovanni Pastore, applying it to lower temperatures and integrating innovative artificial intelligence methodologies.
• Elia Cerini, with the thesis “Comparison of physics-based fission gas behaviour models in fast reactor applications“, which develops Pastore’s model for fast reactor applications, in collaboration with a company in the sector.

The “Giovanni Pastore” Prize is awarded to master’s graduates in Nuclear Engineering at Politecnico di Milano and rewards the best thesis work on nuclear fuel and fission gas behaviour.

This initiative not only commemorates Giovanni Pastore’s valuable contribution, but also aims to enhance innovative research in the field of nuclear engineering, promoting academic and scientific excellence among recent graduates.

The Selection Committee was chaired by Prof. Lelio Luzzi, lecturer at the Department of Energy, and composed as experts by: Dr. Davide Pizzocri, researcher at the Department of Energy POLIMI, Prof. Andrea Pola, coordinator of the Study Course in Nuclear Engineering POLIMI, Dr. Paul Van Uffelen, researcher at the Joint Research Centre in Karlsruhe and Dr. Tommaso Barani, researcher at the Commissariat à l’Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives.

Giovanni Pastore, a Politecnico di Milano alumnus in Nuclear Engineering, has dedicated his career to modelling the behaviour of nuclear fuels. After experience at prestigious international research institutes, he returned to Italy to contribute to the development of next-generation nuclear reactors. He died prematurely at the age of 39, and the prize named after him honours his memory and scientific legacy.