Conference Session

Trends in Mechanical Engineering II

Collection

2011 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Authors

Michael Rex Maixner, U.S. Air Force Academy

Tagged Divisions

Mechanical Engineering

areavailable, it is anticipated that the project will provide students with a practical application of theprinciples of basic thermodynamics and heat transfer, and of the specific principles associatedwith solar energy harvesting. Details of the project are provided, along with possible extensionsand variations for future course offerings.2. BackgroundA new course in renewable/sustainable energy has been developed for the mechanicalengineering curriculum at USAFA, and is being taught for the first time in the Spring 2011 term.As opposed to many of the texts in the renewable/sustainable energy field, the text selected1provides a computationally intense basis for most of the topics in the course syllabus. Guestlecturers and a field trip to the National