Department of Mechanical Engineering, Unit Catalogue 2008/09 |
ME40055 Energy & the environment |
| Credits: 6 |
| Level: Masters |
| Semester: 1 |
| Assessment: CW 40%, EX 60% |
| Requisites: |
| Before taking this unit you must take ME30068 |
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Aims:
* To understand the energy balances within the major regions of the world, their environmental consequences and sustainability. * To introduce assessment techniques for evaluating projects in terms of energy use and environmental impact. * To understand the relationship between alternative energy technologies and the societies in which they develop and to participate in discussion of energy and environmental options. Learning Outcomes: After taking this unit the student should be able to: * Evaluate the life cycle of major energy projects, and present the results in a form that will enable decision makers to comprehend fully their energy and environmental consequences. * Develop the key features of sustainable energy strategies for countries from different regions of the world in terms of their economic development, indigenous energy resources, and environmental consequences. * Participate in local and national debates over large and small-scale development projects with an understanding of limitations placed on them by economic, physical, and environmental constraints. Skills: Problem solving,; written communication; working independently. Content: ENERGY RESOURCES: Fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, coal); Primary electricity (hydro and nuclear power); Renewable energy sources; Substitutable and non-substitutable resources. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION: Pollutant emissions from fossil fuel combustion: local, regional and global effects; nuclear power and environmental sustainability: technologies, radioactive emissions and waste disposal; Environmental and related impacts of renewable energy systems. ASSESSMENT TECHNIQUES : Economic assessment (including discounted cash flow investment appraisal); Thermodynamic (energy and exergy) analysis; Environmental life-cycle assessment; Qualitative environmental risks. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: "People, planet and prosperity"; the sustainability equation; principles and practice of sustainable development; 'The Natural Step' and its system conditions; Environmental footprint analysis; Local Agenda 21; Sustainable energy options. ENERGY AND SOCIETY : The technology-society relationship; Alternative energy technologies; Energy conservation; Energy and transport. ENERGY STRATEGIES: Major world producers and users; Energy systems modelling; UK energy issues and. Strategies; Energy and the developing world: basic human needs, the role of biofuels, and 'appropriate' energy technologies; Case study: comparative energy studies of selected industrialised and developing countries. Topics for self study that could be examined. |