Energy Resources and Renewable Technologies

Providing energy for the entire planet without causing catastrophic climate change requires profound Energy Change. Major developments are occurring in the energy sector, both with energy technologies and the economic, social and policy measures that accompany them. This course focuses on renewable energy resources – the technologies that will comprise a large part of global Energy Change. It aims to help students identify the major ‘big picture’ questions in the area of energy resources and develop technically sound ways of quantitatively answering them. The course commences with an overview of world energy resources, the scientific evidence for climate change, and an introduction to asking good questions - with a focus on ball-park analysis and appropriate physical units. We next look at individual energy resources in detail (solar PV, nuclear, wind, solar thermal, hydro, bio, geothermal and tidal). We examine their scientific and technical foundations, available resources, integration with the grid, and broader economic and social issues to assess their ultimate potential as well as their practical limitations. Alongside the technical assessment of energy resources, we dedicated individual lectures to calculating the levelized cost of electricity, understanding the current and future electrical grid, and examining broader social and political issues concerned with energy use. Because of the rapid pace of change in this field, the course focuses on developing students’ skills in framing questions and finding answers, as well as being able to critically evaluate those answers and support them with scientific evidence.