Photovoltaic Design Projects as an Innovation in Our Fundamentals of Electric Circuits Course
- Conference
- Location
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State College,, Pennsylvania
- Publication Date
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March 30, 2023
- Start Date
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March 30, 2023
- End Date
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April 12, 2023
- Page Count
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13
- DOI
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10.18260/1-2--44706
- Permanent URL
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https://peer.asee.org/44706
- Download Count
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197
Paper Authors
Peter Mark Jansson Bucknell University
Professor Jansson currently is engaged as an Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering at Bucknell University where he is responsible for pedagogy and research in the power systems, smart grid and analog systems areas. His specialties include grid integration of large scale renewables and research of novel sensor and energy technologies.
Devin Connor Whalen Bucknell University
Devin Whalen is a graduate student at Bucknell University, pursuing a master’s degree in electrical engineering. His research focuses on microgrids and energy harvesting, and aligns with his passion for renewable energy and sustainable solutions. In 2022, Devin graduated summa cum laude with a B.S.E.E. from Bucknell, where he developed a strong foundation in electrical engineering. He demonstrates his dedication to his field through his involvement in curriculum development, academic and research-related activities, and presenting his findings at national and global conferences and workshops.
Abstract
As engineering instructors we continue to review and test novel pedagogical ideas which can more engage engineers in learning the challenging fundamentals of our often rigorous engineering curricula. This paper explores one significant change to the laboratories of our fundamental circuits course (ECEG 210) at Bucknell University. After many core laboratories were completed during the first half of the semester, student teams were challenged to consider new applications of solar photovoltaic technology in the provision of reliable electricity to a variety of electrical end-uses at the residential level (off-grid). The students came up with many creative applications and developed and tested minimum viable product demonstrations of their ideas over the last six weeks of the semester. The results were very encouraging from this project-based learning innovation to our course labs. It was our intent to reinforce the fundamentals of circuits they had learned through the course with a real-world challenge to see just how many more things PV may be able to economically power in the future. This paper shares the exciting project results as well as the student assessment of this novel lab addition.
Jansson, P. M., & Whalen, D. C. (2023, March), Photovoltaic Design Projects as an Innovation in Our Fundamentals of Electric Circuits Course Paper presented at ASEE Zone 1 Conference - Spring 2023, State College,, Pennsylvania. 10.18260/1-2--44706
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