CONTINUATION OF GREEN INITIATIVE IN CAMPUS AND THE CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT OF A SECOND COURSE CONCENTRATING ON SELECTED CHOICES OF ALTERNATIVE ENERGY SOURCES IN EET PROGRAM THROUGH GLOBAL ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS

摘要

Energy systems play a critical role in everyday life and an important part of engineering. Now a day, non-traditional (green) energy sources are the area of interest in the academia, business and industry alike. There is an urgent demand for a well trained workforce to develope, process, utilize and manage these green sources in an environmentally and economically feasible way. Obviously, the quest for alternative to fossil fuels will add to the growing global effort to combat climate change. The author thinks that more emphasis should be given to the sun tracking solar power system as it can utilize solar power to its full potential followed by the wind energy. As I mentioned in my last paper, Northwestern State University at Natchitoches, LA has been taken an initiative to promote a green, healthy, and environmentally friendly campus. The progress in that area will be documented here. In order to make this process more attractive and meaningful I offered one survey course online for all disciplines in alternative energy during summer 2010. The findings will be reported in this paper. In continuation, a second course will be offered in classroom environment during spring 2011 with more technical concepts, design aspects, and implementation suitable for EET and IET students. The author will justify the concentration on sun tracking solar and wind energies over other alternative energy sources in terms of economic aspects and environmental issues. A comparison study in this field with some Asian countries will also be discussed. The experts are expecting a solar market tornado as it has transformed into a worldwide movement and the growth will be around US$ 30 billion and US$ 200 billion in 2010 and 2020 respectively. The impact of alternative energy on global economy is undeniable and its proper use is highly desirable. The students will be motivated by understanding that a career in alternative energy is both rewarding and a positive contribution to the fight against global warming. Knowledge in this emerging and lucrative field of alternative energy engineering will broaden the undergraduate experience of technology and enhance their employment opportunities greatly.