CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY

Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

ELEC 437/ELEC6421 Renewable Energy Systems
Course Outline: Winter 2015
Course: Pragasen Pillay (coordinator)
Instructors: Office: EV5.111 Telephone: (514) 848-2424, ext. 3108
E-mail: pillay@encs.concordia.ca
Office hours: Thursdays 14:00-16:00 hs, in room EV5.113
Course Web site: Moodle will be used
Lectures:, Fridays 14:45-17:30 hs. H 553
Tutorials: None Scheduled
Teaching Assistant: Maher El Badri, email: maheralabbasy@gmail.com; Nathan Curry email:

nathanacurry@gmail.com.
Submission of Homeworks, Projects and all other Submissions: These will be uploaded to the EAS
website: https://fis.encs.concordia.ca/eas
Textbook:
Renewable Energy Resources, 2nd Edition, John Twidell and Tony Weir, ISBN
978-0-419-25330-3.
Reference Texts:
Photovoltaic Systems Engineering by Roger Messenger and Jerry Ventre,
ISBN 0 8493 2017 8. Wind and Solar Power Systems by M.K. Patel, ISBN 0
8493 1605 7.
Course Notes:
Some notes will be placed on the website and some will be available for pickup
at Rubics, 2148 Rue Mackay.
Course Outline:
This course will focus on the electrical aspects of wind energy, solar energy
and energy from water, with an introduction to biomass waste to energy. The
course will cover the basics of solar energy (in particular but not limited to the
electrical models of photo-voltaic cells, the development of electrical modules
from cells and their application for example to street lighting), wind energy (in
particular converting wind energy to electrical energy), wave energy, tidal
energy and micro-hydro (and conversion of this energy into electrical energy).
Electrical engineering design implications will be discussed. Design
assignments will be given to reinforce the theoretical derivations.
Tentative topics (subject to change):
Lecture Topic
1. Introduction to renewable energy systems
2. Solar photo-voltaic cell electrical modeling for electrical power generation
3. Solar panel orientation and tracking for electrical power generation
4. Sizing of panels for example for street lighting with emphasis on electrical aspects
5. Solar thermal power generation
6. Introduction to wind energy for electrical power generation
7. Mid-Term EXAM on all work up to lecture 6; Wind resource assessment
8. Wind resource modeling
9. Electrical power generation from wind
10. Introduction to biomass waste to energy for electrical power generation
11. Biomass waste to energy calculations
12. Energy from water resources: Part 1: Wave power
13. Part 2: Micro-hydro power


ELEC437gradingsystem
Homework/Assignments

10%

Midterm

30%(February20th,inclass)

Exam

60%

100%

Total

If you do better on the final exam than on the midterm test, then the final exam will count
for 90% of your grade. The homework/assignments will count for the remaining 10%.
If you are absent for the class test for any reason then the final exam will count for 90%.
If you are absent from the final exam and your total grade for the homework/assignments
plus the mid-term is less than 20/40, or you were absent from the midterm exam, you will
receive the R grade and you will have to repeat the course.

ELEC6421gradingsystem

Homework/Assignments

10%

Midterm

30%(February20th,inclass)

Project20%
Exam

Total

40%

100%

If you do better on the final exam than on the class test, then the final exam will count for
70% of your grade. The homework/assignments will count for 10% and the project for
20%.
If you are absent for the class test for any reason then the final exam will count for 70%.
If you are absent from the final exam and your total grade for the homework/assignments
plus the mid-term plus the project is less than 30/60, or you were absent from the
midterm exam, you will receive the R grade and you will have to repeat the course.

Classes
1. You are expected to attend all classes.
2. You are expected to make your own notes during class, any figures presented in class will be
posted on the website.
Exams
1. The exams are closed book, so no textbook or notes are allowed. A sheet of formulas will be
made available during exams and a copy of it will be posted on the course website, before the

exams.
2. During exams, possession of a cell phone or other communication device is forbidden by a
Senate regulation. Please note that turning the cell phone off is not acceptable. You must not
have a cell phone in your possession. With communication modes such as text messaging, the
exams process can be compromised by the mere presence of these devices. The exams office
personnel are going to be very strict and issue an Academic Misconduct Incident Report to any
student who is in possession of an unauthorized electronic device in a final exam.
3. The only calculators allowed in ENCS undergraduate midterm and final exams are those with
an ENCS sticker, available at the help desk on the 7th floor of the EV building.

Homework & Assignments: Homework and Assignments are due on the due date at midnight. NO
LATE HOMEWORKS AND ASSIGNMENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED.
Homework and Assignments are to be uploaded to
https://fis.encs.concordia.ca/eas
If there is a problem, please email the homework and assignments to the TA.
Do NOT email the Professor. Grades will be given for HW problems attempted
and grades will also be given for correct solutions. Because of the size of
the class, not all Homework will be graded and not all problems in a given HW
will be graded, however in order to obtain the grade for problems attempted,
all homework should be submitted.

Professionalism: Employers expect our graduates to behave like professionals.

1) A professional is reliable - gets the job done on time
2) A professional follows up on all the details.
3) A professional has initiative finds out what he/she does not know.
4) A professional accepts responsibility fully does not blame others for
failure.
5) A professional is respectful to others.
Academic Code of Conduct

All Concordia University students must abide by the University's Code of Conduct (Academic)
which can be found in the Concordia University Undergraduate Calendar, Section 16.3.14. Any
suspected violation of the Code will be reported to the Associate Dean for investigation.
Penalties can be as severe as dismissal from the University.
Soft Skills
The soft skill for this course is life-long learning, also called self learning.
Self learning includes reading the latest professional Journals and articles, textbooks, many of
which are now available electronically. Some work will be given which requires independent
study which will help develop this skill. This material will not be covered in class, yet it is a
necessary part of the class.