PHYS 112 / ENST 115

Energy Technology, Society, and the Environment

Winter Term, 2006

Meeting Time: 9:00 - 10:50 TuTh, Youngchild 136

Instructor: Matthew Stoneking

Office: Youngchild 110, phone: 832-6724, email: stonekim

Office Hours: or by appt.

Course Description:

This course explores current and emerging technologies for energy conversion (“production”), storage, and use. The environmental and socio-economic impact associated with energy technology will be discussed in the context of limitations imposed by the laws of physics

Required Text:

Energy: Its Use and the Environment, 4th Edition, by Roger A. Hinrichs and Merlin Kleinbach, Brooks Cole Publishing (2005).

Grades:

Final grades will be based on the following weighted components:

· Final Exam 25 %

· Small Group Project

o Presentation 15%

o Paper 10%

· Midterm Exam 20 %

· Homework Assignments 15 %

· Leading Discussion, Participation, Preparation, & Attendance 15 %

Exams:

Small Group Project:

Students will work in pairs to prepare a briefing for a policymaker based on a selected energy-related topic. Each group will make a 20 minute presentation and prepare a 5-10 page document on the subject of the brief.

Homework:

Preparation, Attendance, & Participation:

Class Schedule:

1. Thursday 5 January: Introduction

2. Tuesday 10 January Mechanics: Work and Energy

Reading: Chapters 1,2, and 3

3. Thursday 12 January Hydropower, Wind Power

Reading: Chapter 12 (sections E, F, and G)

4. Tuesday 17 January Electricity and Magnetism

Reading: Chapters 10 and 11

5. Thursday 19 January Electric Power Generation and Distribution

6. Tuesday 24 January Field Trip to Hydroplant and Substation??

7. Thursday 26 January Thermodynamics and Combustion

Reading: Chapter 4

Visiting Lecturer: Dan Alger??

8. Tuesday 31 January Fossil Fuels I

Reading: Chapter 7

9. Thursday 2 February Fossil Fuels II

Reading: Chapter 8 and 9

10. Tuesday 7 February MIDTERM EXAM

Thursday 9 February Midterm Reading Period No Class

11. Tuesday 14 February Light and Solar Power

Reading: Chapters 5, 6, and 12

Visiting Lecturer: Joe Gregg??

12. Thursday 16 February Nuclear Physics

Reading: Chapter 13

13. Tuesday 21 February Nuclear Power

Reading: Chapters 14 and 15

14. Thursday 23 February Field Trip to Nuclear Power Plant??

15. Tuesday 28 February The Future of Energy Technology

Reading: Chapters 16, 17 and 18

16. Thursday 2 March Recap and Integration

17. Tuesday 7 March Group Presentations

18. Thursday 9 March: Group Presentations

Course Outline:

I. Introduction

• Overview of Energy Sources, Uses, and Environmental Consequences
• Units of Energy
• Historical Trends in Energy Use
• History of Energy Technology

II. Wind and Hydro- Power

• Mechanics
• Work and Kinetic Energy
• Wind Energy, Wave and Tidal Energy
• Gravitational Potential Energy
• Hydroelectric Power
• Environmental Impact of Wind and Hydro-Power

III. Electric Power

• Electricity and Magnetism
• Electromagnetic Generators and Electric Motors
• Wind and Hydro- Power Revisited
• Transformers and the Distribution of Electric Power

IV. Thermodynamics and Fossil Fuels

• Atomic and Molecular Physics
• Combustion Chemistry
• Thermodynamics and Heat Engines
• Fossil Fuels and Electricity Generation: Turbines
• Fossil Fuels and Heating
• The Internal Combustion Engine
• Fossil Fuels and Transportation
• Environmental Impact of Burning Fossil Fuels
• Air Pollution
• Global Climate Change
• Hybrid Vehicles
• Hydrogen Fuel Cells
• Alternative Sources of Heat: Geothermal Energy and Energy from Biomass

V. Solar Power

• Physics of Light
• Blackbody Radiation
• Solar Heating
• Photovoltaic Cells and Solar Electricity Generation
• Lighting

VI. Nuclear Power

• Radiation
• Isotopes and Nuclear Physics
• Nuclear Fission
• Nuclear Power Plants
• Safety, Nuclear Proliferation and Waste Disposal Issues
• Nuclear Fusion

VII. Recap and Integration