Undergraduate Course: Solar Energy Conversion 5 (ELEE11085)
Course Outline
| School | School of Engineering |
College | College of Science and Engineering |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Year 5 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 10 |
ECTS Credits | 5 |
| Summary | This course presents and assesses the fundamentals of solar energy conversion. It starts with a discussion of the resource and the mechanisms of its propagation through the atmosphere up to the point of conversion. It then discusses the various conversion processes (solar heating/cooling, concentrated thermal power generation and the photovoltaic phenomenon). The state-of-the-art of each of these technologies is then discussed, including their market and economic aspects. The course includes a project, for which the students undertake the design and dimensioning of a solar energy conversion system. |
| Course description |
Topics covered:
- The sun and the solar spectrum
- Effects of Earth¿s atmosphere, orbit and rotation on insolation at ground level
- Solar space heating and cooling
- Solar water heating systems
- Solar thermal power generation
- Semiconductors for photovoltaics
- Power electronics for photovoltaics
- Grid-connected PV systems
- Isolated PV systems & storage
- Economics and externalities of solar energy conversion
- Network integration ¿ standards, codes and practice
- Network integration ¿ distributed generation impacts
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Any visiting student registering to this course should possess the following:
- Solid understanding of electrical engineering principles
- Competency in Power Systems
- Competency in Power Electronics
- Basic understanding in thermal processes. |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2015/16, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
100
(
Lecture Hours 22,
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 6,
Formative Assessment Hours 1,
Summative Assessment Hours 4,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 2,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
65 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
80 %,
Coursework
20 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
Assignment (20%) Final Exam (80%) |
| Feedback |
Not entered |
| Exam Information |
| Exam Diet |
Paper Name |
Hours & Minutes |
|
| Main Exam Diet S2 (April/May) | | 2:00 | |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, students will be able to:
- understand the nature of the solar energy resource;
- appreciate the mechanisms and the technologies of solar energy conversion including passive and active solar heating, concentrated solar thermal power generation and photovoltaics;
- appreciate the market dynamics and the economics of solar energy;
- complete a simple dimensioning and design project for a solar thermal and/or photovoltaic system.
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Reading List
Kalogirou, S. A. Solar Energy Engineering: Processes and Systems, Academic Press, 2009, ISBN-10: 0123745012
Messenger, R. A., Ventre, J., Photovoltaic Systems Engineering, 2nd ed., CRC Press, 2003, ISBN-10: 0849317932
Brownson, J. R. S., Solar Energy Conversion Systems, Academic Press Inc., ISBN-10: 0123970210
Goswami, D. Y., Kreith, F., Kreider, J. F., Principles of Solar Engineering, CRC Press, 2000, ISBN-10: 1560327146
Foster, R., Ghassemi, M., Cota, A., Solar Energy: Renewable Energy and the Environment, CRC Press, 2009, ISBN-10: 1420075667
Boyle, G. Renewable Energy, 2nd ed., OUP Oxford, 2004, ISBN-10: 0199261784 |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Special Arrangements |
A design assignment will be partially completed using software such as RetScreen (freely available, Windows only).
This course is only available to students of the MEng Electrical Engineering with Renewable Energy and MEng Mechanical Engineering with Renewable Energy programmes.
The course is also available to students of the MSc Sustainable Energy Systems programme under the name ¿Solar Energy & Photovoltaic Systems¿. |
| Keywords | Solar Energy, Solar Power, Photovoltaics |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Aristides Kiprakis
Tel: (0131 6)50 5586
Email: |
Course secretary | Mrs Sharon Potter
Tel: (0131 6)51 7079
Email: |
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