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A Pilot Course as a Step towards New Academic Programs in Renewable Energies

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Conference

2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Location

Minneapolis, MN

Publication Date

August 23, 2022

Start Date

June 26, 2022

End Date

June 29, 2022

Conference Session

ETD Technical Session 6 - Curriculum and Programs III

Page Count

9

DOI

10.18260/1-2--40670

Permanent URL

https://peer.asee.org/40670

Download Count

235

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Paper Authors

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Otilia Popescu Old Dominion University

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Associate Professor, Old Dominion University

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Orlando Ayala Old Dominion University

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Dr. Ayala received his BS in Mechanical Engineering with honors (Cum Laude) from Universidad de Oriente (Venezuela) in 1995, MS in 2001 and PhD in 2005, both from University of Delaware (USA). Dr. Ayala is currently serving as Associate Professor in the Engineering Technology Department at Old Dominion University.
Prior to joining ODU in 2013, Dr. Ayala spent 3 years as a Postdoc at the University of Delaware where he expanded his knowledge on simulation of multiphase flows while acquiring skills in high-performance parallel computing and scientific computation. Before that, Dr. Ayala held a faculty position at Universidad de Oriente where he taught and developed courses for a number of subjects such as Fluid Mechanics, Heat Transfer, Thermodynamics, Multiphase Flows, Hydraulic Machinery, as well as different Laboratory courses.
Additionally, Dr. Ayala has had the opportunity to work for a number of engineering consulting companies, which have given him an important perspective and exposure to the industry. He has been directly involved in at least 20 different engineering projects related to a wide range of industries. Dr. Ayala has provided service to professional organizations such as ASME, since 2008 he has been a member of the Committee of Spanish Translation of ASME Codes.
Dr. Ayala has published over one hundred journal and peer-reviewed conference papers. His work has been presented in several international forums in Austria, the USA, Venezuela, Japan, France, Mexico, and Argentina. Dr. Ayala has an average citation per year of all his published work of 42.80.

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Isaac Flory Old Dominion University

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Jose Fernandez Old Dominion University

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Vukica Jovanovic Old Dominion University

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She is a Chair, Batten Endowed Professor, and Associate Professor of Engineering Technology. She holds a Ph.D. from Purdue University in Mechanical Engineering Technology, focus on Digital Manufacturing.

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Abstract

The challenges arising from climate change have never before in human history been more pressing for solutions. Addressing pollution and the transition to clean energies are essential problems to solve in the upcoming decades. The process of transitioning to renewable energies has started already, with some states leading the process. As the development of industries sees a fast growth, the supply of qualified engineers and technicians to support these industries needs to keep up. At the community college level, some efforts have already started to introduce courses on renewable energies as well as boot camps or certifications to prepare the workforce to install and operate renewable energy systems. Four-year universities are catching up with these initiatives, but at a much slower pace, and at the graduate level the pace is even slower than the training initiatives at the undergraduate level. With the development of a major renewable energy industry in the area, the XXX University plans to develop more specific programs in renewable energies and to incorporate along with technical courses some coverage of the business and geopolitical aspects of the renewable energy subject. In anticipation of the actual development of new programs for either undergraduate or graduate students, a pilot course in renewable energies was conducted during the summer of 2021. The course was offered for junior/senior undergraduate students and had a broad presentation of renewable energies, theories, and practices associated with each. For this pilot course, a series of invited speaker lectures were offered. Experts in the field covered technical aspects of solar, wind, and bioenergy, as well as business, legislative and geopolitical aspects. Students taking the course participated in an end-of-semester survey about their perception of renewable energies, the associated industries, and their interest in pursuing jobs related to them. This paper will present the details of the course and the specifics of the pilot conducted this summer, as well as the analysis of the student feedback.

Popescu, O., & Ayala, O., & Flory, I., & Fernandez, J., & Jovanovic, V. (2022, August), A Pilot Course as a Step towards New Academic Programs in Renewable Energies Paper presented at 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Minneapolis, MN. 10.18260/1-2--40670

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