Revised 8-19-11

Syllabus
OEES265 Special Topics: Solar Energy
NMSU Grants Campus
Electronics/Electrical Department Web Site: mounttaylor.com

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Links to frequently-used sections of this syllabus. (Click on them.)
General course content Textbook and materials Classroom conduct policy Phone numbers, etc. Office hours and class meeting times
How this course will be conducted
 Attendance policy Grading Weekly topics

Master Syllabus (Information pertaining to the course regardless of which semester it is being taught, or which instructor teaches it.)
Course Description in Catalog: "Topic to be announced in the Schedule of Classes."
Additional Description: A seminar class with focus on the following aspects of solar energy: Basic principles of photovoltaic cells, solar thermal electricity generation, and solar heating; recent developments in solar energy; equipment for residential photovoltaic systems; design calculations, such as amount of solar energy available at a site. Students will put material onto a Web site containing the information we have acquired during the semester.
Credit Hours: 1
Contact Hours: 1 hour of lecture
Prerequisites: Consent of instructor.

Learning Outcomes
After completing this course, you should be able to successfully do the following:
  • Answer questions about the following:
    • The basic principles of photovoltaic and solar thermal systems.
    • The different types of equipment used in typical residential photovoltaic systems.
  • Calculate the daily watt-hours required for a particular set of appliances and other electrical devices.
  • Calculate the sizes of photovoltaic equipment needed at a particular physical site.
Course Overview/Content and Scope
  • Silicon solar cells.
  • Other types of solar cells.
  • Solar thermal electricity generating systems.
  • Solar heating systems..
  • Stand-alone DC to AC inverters.
  • Grid-tie DC to AC inverters.
  • Deep cycle batteries.
  • Use of online tools for determining angles of the sun at different times of the day and different times of the year.
  • Calculating the amount of energy available for a particular site and for different solar panel positioning/tracking systems.
  • Determining the cost of a photovoltaic system.
  • Conducting effective Internet searches and putting information onto Web pages, using a Web page editor.
Performance Assessment – Grading and Evaluation
The following methods will be used to measure your performance and determine your grade for the course:
  • Points earned for homework, class exercises, presentations, attendance, etc.
  • Quizzes.
  • Final exam.
  • Instructor’s observation of your knowledge and abilities.
Textbook and Materials
  • Book: None (extensive material will be researched on the Internet).
  • Flash drive (sometimes called “jump drive”).
    • For saving Web pages, spreadsheets, etc.
    • Even the smallest flash drive is more than enough for this class. The cost is something like $10.
    • Floppy disks are too small, too slow, and too unreliable.
Special Fees: None

Web sites
Classroom Conduct Policy
In this department, we like to run our classes in an informal manner. However, sometimes there are students who interfere with the learning of others. Thus, we have the following rules:
  • Electronic devices: Use of cell phones, mp3 players, etc., is prohibited during lecture time.
    • If you must be available for your children, etc., you may set your cell phone to vibrate-only mode during lecture time. If you have forgotten to set your phone to vibrate-only, and your phone rings during lecture time, please exit the room immediately and answer the phone once you are outside.
    • Tell those who might call you to avoid times you’re in class. (You’ll have an easier time learning if you’re not interrupted.)
  • Texting is only allowed during officially declared break times.
    • This is also true for other uses of your phone, PDA, etc.
  • Computer use: We’re supposed to be teaching good work habits, and we’ll expect you to conduct yourself as if you were at a workplace. The following are a few of the things you shouldn’t do during our classes or when at a job:
    • View pornographic or hate Web sites.
    • Play computer games, except during breaks.
    • Listen to music out loud. (The instructor will indicate whether or not it’s OK to listen with earphones.)
  • You’re expected to contribute to a positive learning environment. Conduct that is detrimental to this end can lead to your dismissal. Examples of such conduct are rudeness, disruptive behavior, poor hygiene &/or distractive clothing. In extreme cases, we may ask you to leave.
Academic Misconduct
Any student found guilty of academic misconduct shall be subject to disciplinary action. Academic misconduct includes, but is not limited to, the following actions: CHEATING; PLAGIARISM; UNAUTHORIZED POSSESSION OF EXAMINATIONS, RESERVE LIBRARY MATERIALS OR LABORATORY MATERIALS; UNAUTHORIZED CHANGING OF GRADES ON AN EXAMINATION, INSTRUCTOR’S GRADE BOOK OR GRADE REPORT; NONDISCLOSURE OR MISREPRESENTATION IN FILLING OUT APPLICATIONS OR OTHER COLLEGE RECORDS. The following disciplinary actions and sanctions may be imposed for any of the above infractions or regulations: disciplinary probation, disciplinary suspension, dismissal, expulsion.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
If you have, or think you may have, a disability that interferes with your performance as a student in this class, you are encouraged for academic reasons to discuss this on a confidential basis with your instructor, and/or The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Coordinator in the Main Office, or at 287-7981. If you have a condition which may affect your ability to exit from the premises in case of an emergency, you are urged, for safety reasons, to notify the ADA coordinator.

Last reviewed by Bruce McDowell on 8-19-11
 
Operational Syllabus (Information pertaining to the course as it is being taught this semester and by this instructor)
Fall 2011
Instructor: Bruce McDowell

Recommended Preparation
A knowledge of how to use the Internet effectively would be helpful. However, if your knowledge is limited, the instructor will help you become proficient.

Contact Information
Office phone: 287-6636; home phone: 285-4600; e-mail: bruce@mounttaylor.com.
Office Hours
Mondays 3:00 to 4:00; Wednesdays and Fridays 1:00 to 2:00. You may also make appointments.

Class Meetings
Fridays, 4:00 - 4:50 p.m., Martinez Hall, room 50.

How This Course Will Be Conducted
I will be presenting most of the material, but a sizeable amount of material will be researched by individual students and presented to the rest of the class. This researched material may be presented orally &/or it may be put onto Web pages that will be incorporated into a Web site for the class.

Attendance Policy
During lecture time, there will occasionally be class exercises, for which you will get points. Because of the interactive nature of class exercises, they may not be made up if you are absent. (If there is a handout for a class exercise you missed, you are welcome to get a copy of the handout. However, completing the work on the handout will not earn you any points.)

For each hour of class you will receive 5 points for being there to participate. This course meets for approximately one hour each time. Thus, you will receive 5 points each time you attend class. These points reflect the fact that you were present and learning something. No matter how good your reasons are for being absent, you still won’t get attendance points for class periods you miss. If you are sick or have some other legitimate reason for missing class, you can compensate by coming in during office hours to earn attendance points.

Grade for the Course  

Points grade (Homework, class exercises, presentations, attendance, etc.)  80%
Quizzes 5%
Instructor’s evaluation (A subjective assessment taking into account observations of your knowledge, attendance, giving help to other students, getting help from other students. Will normally be used only to raise your grade if warranted. It can have a negative effect on your grade if your attendance or behavior has been a problem.)  10%
Final Exam 5

+%
Total 100%


Grading Scale for the Course
95 - 100%    A
90 - 94%    B
70 - 89%    C
60 - 69%    D
0 - 59%    F

Why This Grading Scale?

We believe that the basics are highly important, and we stress them a lot in quizzes and assignments. Our quizzes and assignments are easier than they would be with the more common 90%=A, 80%=B, etc. grading scale. Because of this, the 90%=A scale would result in too many A’s and B’s. The good news is that with this grading scale, you’d have to be a total goof-off to get lower than a C in the class! We feel that anyone who has mastered the basics deserves at least a C.

Homework, Class Exercises, and Lab Work, and Other Ways of Earning Points
The main part of your Points Grade is determined by homework, class exercises, and presentations. The following are some rules regarding these types of work:
  • For the first day a homework or lab assignment is late, you will lose 10%. After that you will lose 10% for each week the assignment is late.
  • Class exercises cannot be made up. You can compensate for a missed class exercise by working on additional Internet research projects and presentations.
At the end of the semester, I will tally points for everything to get a total for each student. I will then make a grading curve for the class (i.e., so many points = A, so many = B, etc.)

Quizzes
  • Most or all of the quizzes will be surprise quizzes. We give surprise quizzes in order to gauge what’s actually in your head to stay (as opposed to what was crammed in there the night before!). These surprise quizzes will be easier than if they were announced quizzes. Also, about 70% of the problems will be based on the fundamentals for this course—in other words, you should be able to earn at least a C if you understand the fundamentals.
  • Instead of makeup quizzes, we will use your final exam grade for any quizzes you’ve missed.
Weekly Topics
The following list is only an approximation. An up to date list of topics and assignments will be maintained on the class’s Web site (go to mounttaylor.com and click the link for this class).
Week Topics Week Topics
1
  • An overview of solar energy.
 9
  • Available online tools for determining angles of the sun at different times of the day and different times of the year.
  • How a grid-tie inverter works.
  • Calculation of what size DC to AC inverter is needed.
2
  • Internet search engine techniques
  • Other ways of locating information on the Internet (Web sites with links, etc.)
  • Saving Web pages
  • Putting material onto Web pages
 10
  • Using online tools to calculate how much daily energy is available for a site, taking into account photovoltaic-array wattage, latitude, hours of cloud-free sunlight for different times of the year, solar panel angle, and tracking/no-tracking of the sun.
  • Calculating what size photovoltaic array is needed for an application.
3
  • How photovoltaic cells work
  • Types of photovoltaic cells
  • Recent photovoltaic advances
 11
  • Topics of special interest to students in the class.
4
  • Costs of available photovoltaic panels.
  • Different types of solar thermal systems
 12
  • In-depth knowledge of lead-acid deep cycle batteries. 
  • Other types of batteries.
5
  • Topics of special interest to students in the class.
 13
  • Different types of solar heating systems.
  • Determining how many BTUs per day are needed.
  • Calculations of size of heating system
6
  • Basic electrical power and energy calculations
  • Basic Heat calculations
 14
  • Payback period
  • Monthly cost of having money tied up that could have been invested elsewhere
7
  • Calculation of how many watt-hours per day are needed for a given set of appliances, etc.
  • Calculation of what size deep-cycle battery bank is needed for a stand-alone photovoltaic system.
 15
  • Consolidation of information found since the start of the semester onto a collaborative Web site for the course.
8
  • Costs of available deep-cycle batteries.
  • Factors affecting how much energy is available from sunlight at different times of the day and different times of the year.
 16
  • Final exam



Modifications to This Syllabus
This syllabus may be modified as necessary during the semester to meet the needs of the class. Major changes will be discussed and announced a minimum of one week in advance.

Reviewed by Bruce McDowell 8-19-11

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