Two essential parts of renewable energy systems installations are measurement, and control. This course will introduce various transducers that are encountered in renewable energy systems as this foundation is necessary for the installation, maintenance, and troubleshooting of analog devices and programmable devices used in renewable energy systems. Students will make power, signal, and communication connections for the programmable relay, and interpret and write programs. Numerous troubleshooting exercises will be completed. Topics covered include installation, interfacing, closed loop control, monitoring, trouble-shooting and testing and safety.

This course is an introduction to the renewable energy systems concepts necessary for installation and maintenance. The course will review and expand upon the fundamentals of electric circuits, analyzing electric circuits at an intermediate level. Other topics are power quality, and the interpretation of energy system installation drawings and prints. Work, power, and energy concepts will allow students to convert between units for mechanical, electrical, and thermal systems. The Canadian Electrical Code for renewable energy systems installations is introduced. To encourage the use of online resources and teamwork a remote system monitoring project is undertaken. A significant part of the course is dedicated to practical activities that reinforce the theory. Introduction to the transfer and conversion of various forms of energy.

The Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) course will build on principles that were introduced in the Programmable Relays and Analog Devices course. PLCs are most commonly encountered in fluid-driven and fuel cell Renewable Energy Systems. Topics covered include installation, interfacing, communications, monitoring, troubleshooting and testing, and safety. Students will make power, signal, and communication connections for the PLC, and interpret and write programs. Prerequisites: REES 5010

This course will familiarize students with installation and operational requirements for electrical machines and variable-frequency drives in renewable energy systems. DC machine theory and generator loading will be reviewed. Students will be introduced to the renewable energy systems applications of Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs) including their installation needs, classifications, operation on a single-phase supply, harmonics generation, and parameterization. The control of VFDs and troubleshooting will also be covered. A significant part of the course is dedicated to application activities that reinforce the theory. Prerequisites: REES 5020

The motion of wind and water are two of the three main sources of renewable energy. The main goal of this course is to familiarize students with installation and operational requirements for several types of renewable energy systems that are wind and water driven. The specifics of wind vs. water power generation will be covered after common electrical principles have been discussed. A significant part of the course is dedicated to application activities that reinforce the theory. At the end of the course a student will be comfortable doing installation, maintenance, and troubleshooting of wind and micro-hydro power systems. Prerequisites: REES 5030 and REES 5040

Upon completion of this course students will be prepared for the installation, maintenance, and troubleshooting of geothermal and solar thermal renewable energy systems. Many aspects of geothermal, heat pump, and solar thermal technologies are already familiar to electricians and electrical engineering practitioners. Temperature sensing, pumping, electrical controls and monitoring of systems, are examples. But in order to commission, troubleshoot, and maintain such systems, a knowledge of thermodynamics at a rudimentary quantitative level is required, including the conversion between electrical and thermodynamic units. Principles are emphasized by student experience which is gained through using lab simulators for geothermal and solar thermal systems. The Canadian Electrical Code requirements for geothermal and solar thermal energy systems is covered. Prerequisites: REES 5030 and REES 5040

Most forms of renewable energy production can be subject to climatic and environmental conditions; solar, wind, micro-hydro, and tidal are examples. This reality has given rise to the development of various improvements and innovations in energy storage technologies such as batteries, capacitors, and mechanical systems. The main topics in this course build upon the foundation provided in earlier courses and include: storing energy and retrieving the stored energy for use when required, electrical code requirements for stored energy systems, production of electrical energy by fuel cells, and monitoring of fuel cell and energy storage systems. Principles are emphasized by student experience which is gained through using lab simulators for fuel cell and battery charging systems. The Canadian Electrical Code requirements for fuel cell and energy storage systems are covered. Prerequisites: REES 5030 and REES 5040

In this course students will learn the principles of photovoltaic electrical energy production, system design principles and to install, maintain, and troubleshoot solar photovoltaic power systems. In the lab, students will graph the output of a solar module, combine solar modules to supply a charge controller, connect to an inverter to feed onto the power grid, compare micro-inverter PV modules with DC modules, configure data logging, and troubleshoot. In the field, students will work within existing systems in BCIT building SE1 and the OASIS project. Students will explore the principles of photovoltaic energy production, system installation, and troubleshooting as well as analyze energy production data logs, including from the BCIT Microgrid. Students will design systems where they will estimate the energy production of a grid-tie photovoltaic system, review site-specific design and installation documents in order to develop an implementation strategy, perform hazard analysis and risk assessment in order to manage safety risks, specify components for a small photovoltaic grid-tie system that includes a generator, and ensure that there is compliance with Canadian Electrical Code requirements, manufacturers’ instructions, and supply authority protocols. Prerequisites: REES 6030