AAE-E3090 - Renewable Energy Engineering, Lecture, 7.1.2025-1.4.2025

Please note! Course description is confirmed for two academic years, which means that in general, e.g. Learning outcomes, assessment methods and key content stays unchanged. However, via course syllabus, it is possible to specify or change the course execution in each realization of the course, such as how the contact sessions are organized, assessment methods weighted or materials used.

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Students should be able to

  • Understand what makes the use of renewable energy sources necessary but challenging.
  • Understand the capacity requirements for wind and solar power plant technologies.
  • Evaluate and analyze principles of wind and solar power plant operation.
  • Evaluate and analyze principles of heat pump operation for heating and cooling purposes.
  • Evaluate economical feasibility of these processes including levelized cost of energy.
  • Understand the challenges and solutions of coupling renewable energy sources into a future energy systems.
  • Analyze the available raw materials, land availability and other resources.

Credits: 5

Schedule: 07.01.2025 - 01.04.2025

Teacher in charge (valid for whole curriculum period):

Teacher in charge (applies in this implementation): Mika Järvinen

Contact information for the course (applies in this implementation):

CEFR level (valid for whole curriculum period):

Language of instruction and studies (applies in this implementation):

Teaching language: English. Languages of study attainment: English

CONTENT, ASSESSMENT AND WORKLOAD

Content

  • valid for whole curriculum period:

    In order to decrease the CO2 emissions from energy, transport and buildings sectors, and especially emissions coming from the fossil fuel combustion, we need to increase the share of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power. As an integral part, heat pumps will play an important role in future energy systems as they are used to produce heat with affordable renewable electricity, instead of using combustion heat as energy source.

    This course gives a compact theory review on the wind and solar power plants and heat pumps for heating and cooling applications, their operation and design principles. In addition to this, we discuss the capacity requirements and critically evaluate the available sources, including material availability issues, land use and other environmental considerations for wind and solar power. We also discuss the challenges when implementing renewable energy into a traditional energy system.

Assessment Methods and Criteria

  • valid for whole curriculum period:

    Personal assignments, projects work.

Workload

  • valid for whole curriculum period:

    • Contact sessions (lectures, homework tutorials, seminars) 50h
    • Interdependent work (video lectures, homework) 70 h

     

DETAILS

Study Material

  • valid for whole curriculum period:

    • Lecture materials and lecture videos.
    • Renewable energy engineering (Wind and Solar parts), Jenkins, N. and Ekanayake, J. Cambridge University Press, ISBN-978-1-107-68022-7.
    • Fundamental of Engineering thermodynamics, Moran, M.J. and Shapiro, H.N. John Whiley, ISBN 0-471-59275-7, Chapter 10 - Refrigeration and heat pump systems, pp. 409-439.
    • Nikolai, V. Khartchenko, Advanced energy systems, Taylor and Francis, ISBN 1-56032-611-5, all topics (140 copies available to borrow).

Substitutes for Courses
Prerequisites
SDG: Sustainable Development Goals

    7 Affordable and Clean Energy

    12 Responsible Production and Consumption

    13 Climate Action

FURTHER INFORMATION

Further Information

  • valid for whole curriculum period:

    Teaching Language: English

    Teaching Period: 2024-2025 Spring III - IV
    2025-2026 Spring III - IV

    Registration:

    Registration for the course via Sisu (sisu.aalto.fi).

Rules of Conduct - Students´ Rights and Responsibilities (in force from 1 August 2020)

Aalto University Code of Academic Integrity and Handling Violations Thereof