Renewable/Sustainable Energy-Related Courses at the University of Colorado-Boulder

The following is a list of courses offered at CU-Boulder relating to renewable and/or sustainable energy.  Most are offered every year though a few may not be offered this year.  Please submit any updates to this list to bklein@colorado.edu.

AREN 3130-020 Building Energy Laboratory (3 credits). Two lectures, one 3-hour lab per week. Offers a laboratory course on mechanical systems in buildings, focusing on building applications of thermodynamics, fluid dynamics, and heat transfer. Applications include solar collectors, pumps, fans, heat exchangers, and air conditioning and refrigeration systems. Prereq., AREN 3010.  Brandemuehl.

ASEN 4519/5519 Energy Systems for Earth and Aerospace Applications. The main alternative energy systems that are nowadays heralded as “sustainable” or “renewable” for Earth applications have long been used in Space systems. The aerospace industry has spearheaded the development of these energy systems. The goal of the course is to provide engineering students with basic and in depth knowledge of the scientific foundation for four alternative  energy resources for space and Earth applications.  Prereq: Junior level background in Materials Science,Thermodynamics, Fluid Mechanics, Physics, Chemistry.  Koster. Flyer

BCOR 4000/ENVS 4100 Assessing Sustainable Energy Technologies (3 credits). The course focuses on the technological, cost, and environmental “fundamentals” of emerging sources of energy, including solar, wind, biomass, oceanic, geothermal, hydropower, fuel cell (hydrogen) and nuclear.  Stockton.

CHEM 5171 Electroanalytical Chemistry (with emphasis on Energy Conversion and Storage).  This course will cover the following topics: Physical Chem. of Conducting Solids, Ionic Solutions & Electrochemical Cells, Instrumentation and Techniques, and Energy Conversion and Storage.  Carl Koval.  Flyer

CHEN 4838-001 Energy Fundamentals: Global and Future Perspectives (3 credits). This course is the study of the earth's energy past, present and future from a fundamental, scientific point of view.  The primary learning objective is to gain a scientifically-based understanding of energy sources and demands that will allow the student to grasp our energy future from a realistic perspective.  Energy sources will include nuclear, biomass, solar, hydro and wind.  Demands will include transportation, manufacturing, agriculture, lighting, heating and air conditioning.  The environmental impacts of our energy future will be considered.  Having completed this course, students will be able to engage in policy discussions, planning and decision-making on energy matters with a sound, factual foundation.  Prerequisite: thermodynamics.  Clough. Flyer

CVEN 4838/5838 Sustainability and the Built Environment (3 credits). This course introduces students to the fundamental concepts of sustainability and sustainable development. Special emphasis is placed on understanding the interaction of the built environment with natural systems and the role of technical and non-technical issues in shaping engineering decisions. Issues such as green development, renewable energies, appropriate technology, and systems thinking are discussed.  Amadei.   

CVEN 5020 Building Energy Audits (3 credits). Analyzes and measures performance of HVAC systems, envelopes, lighting and hot water systems, and modifications to reduce energy use. Emphasizes existing buildings. Prereq., AREN 3010 or equivalent.  Krarti.

CVEN 5050 Advanced Solar Design (3 credits). Predicts performance and analyzes economics of high temperature, photovoltaic, and other innovative solar systems. Also includes performance prediction methods for solar processes. Prereq., AREN 2010 or equivalent.  Brandemuehl. 

CVEN 5830-002/CVEN4830 Sustainable Building Design. Buildings can be designed to produce less greenhouse gases while being more comfortable, healthy and economical through the proper application of sustainable design principles. This course will review sustainable building technologies and provide insight into evolving design principles. The course will explore aspects of building thermal performance, indoor and outdoor environmental quality, occupant comfort, and climate relevant to building design. Topics include sustainable building elements, climate and comfort parameters, passive and active energy systems, and environmental implications of building. Advanced architectural design concepts and methods will be applied to energy-efficient and environmentally responsible building design. The prevailing building simulation tools for building materials selection, ventilation design, energy calculation, and climate analysis will be introduced. The course emphasizes both a fundamental understanding and practical applications of sustainable building design strategies.  Zhai.

CVEN5830-005 Building Energy Systems. This is a fundamental course for graduate students entering the Building Systems Program (BSP) but without general Civil or Architectural Engineering background.  The course mainly covers three parts of materials: (1) building thermal systems, which will present the application of heat transfer and flow mechanism in building (including heat transfer principles, heat transfer through envelope and fenestration, heat transfer via ventilation and infiltration, solar heat transfer, building load calculation, thermal comfort, and indoor air quality); (2) building electrical systems (including general fundamentals and applications); (3) building lighting systems (including basic lighting terminologies, analysis method, and system configurations).  The course will prepare students with general knowledge and skills that are required by the following advanced technical courses offered at BSP.  The course also offers an overview of integrated building systems and design that create a comfortable, safe, healthy, productive, and efficient building environment.  Zhai.

ECE Energy Courses

ECEN 2060 Renewable Sources and Efficient Electrical Energy Systems. Introduction to present and future electrical power systems, including renewable power sources, interface to the utility grid, and efficient utilization of power. The major topics covered are: the nation's electrical power system, photovoltaic power systems, wind power systems, hybrid and electric vehicles, energy efficiency in buildings, lighting, HVAC, computer systems.  Erickson, Fuchs, Maksimovic, Zane. Website

ECEN 3170 Energy Conversion 1 (3 credits). Architectures, block diagrams, and operation of electromechanical systems. Energy system components, including renewable energy sources, controllers, power electronic circuits, inductors, transformers, rotating/linear machines (motors and generators), and mechanical loads.  Fuchs.

ECEN 4517/5517 Renewable Energy and Power Electronics Laboratory. Hands-on design, construction and testing of a photovoltaic power system, including solar panels, battery storage, and power electronics: switched-mode power converters for peak power tracking and battery charge control, dc-dc voltage step-up converters, and dc-to-ac inverters. Website

ECEN 5017 Conventional and Renewable Energy Issues. The structure of the electric utility system is changing due to the deployment of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind power plants in the MW range, and distributed plants (e.g., on roof tops) in the kW ranges. The effects of these changes within the power system call for a study and evaluation of present-day load and frequency control approaches. The reliance on intermittent power generation complicates short-term load forecasting. The frequency- and load control for islanding and interconnected power pools plays an important role for power system operation. Improved conventional and emerging renewable energy sources including energy storage facilities will be designed within the framework of homework assignments that is, case studies. Various techniques for the optimal power flow, reactive power compensation, and filtering within a distribution feeder will be applied. Prereq: ECEN 3170 (Energy Conversion I) or equivalent.  Fuchs.

ENVS 4100/5100 Energy Science and Technology (3 credits). This course will provide an understanding of the basics of energy science and technologies.  We’ll start with energy concepts (such as ‘power, ‘resources.’ and ‘carriers’), and then move on to a closer look at how we produce, transform, and consume energy in the U.S.  We’ll explore how energy use contributes to environmental challenges, notably climate change.  And we’ll assess alternatives, including renewables and energy efficiency, to better understand their potentials and limitations.  No technical background is required.  Komor. 

ENVS 4100-002 Carbon neutral CU. University of Colorado at Boulder’s Chancellor Bud Peterson recently signed the climate-neutrality pledge for UCB’s campus as detailed in the American College and University President and Chancellor’s Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). The pledge requires UCB to implement certain short term carbon mitigation activities—and a two year process to create a robust plan and forecast date by which to attain campus climate-neutrality. Climate neutrality is defined by the ACUPCC as “no net emissions of GHGs.” Under the ACUPCC commitment, UCB must complete its “Comprehensive Plan for Climate Neutrality,” by September 15, 2009.  Students will learn the concepts that inform this definition of climate-neutrality, the technical approaches available to the campus that can be employed, develop an analytical framework by which to evaluate these options, and draft a proposed strategic plan that would guide an implementation analysis of available options.  Newport.

ENVS 5100 Energy Policy Research Seminar (1 credit). Presentations by CU faculty and others on energy policy research. Komor.

ENVS 5820 Renewable Energy Policy (3 credits). Renewable conversion technologies have shown remarkable cost and performance improvements in recent years. Although renewables (excluding large hydro) currently supply less than four percent of U.S. energy needs, they could provide much more. However, plentiful resources and working technologies are necessary but not sufficient to ensure widespread use. This course will use a mix of lectures, guest speakers, discussions, mock debates, and student presentations to tease apart the complex process through which renewable technologies move from niche markets to widespread use. The focus is on renewable technologies for on-grid electricity generation.  Komor.

EVEN 4830-3: Technoeconomic analysis for environmental engineering. Introduces the basic quantitative tools and reasoning approaches for analyzing the economic effects of technical data (including assumptions) on process (and product) designs, and thus influences decision making, especially with respect to environmental and sustainability goals. Topics include fundmentals of process design; basic economic analysis and cost estimating techniques; life cycle analysis; and a variety of case studies drawn from biofuels, water use, and others. Pellegrino.

GEOL 3500 Earth Resources and Environment. Examines Earth's most important natural resources and their impact on society and the environment. Addresses the geology, occurrence, production, and use of petroleum, coal, mineral, and water resources. Future world energy supply and demand, conservation, and the transition from fossil fuels to non-polluting renewable resources are discussed. Pranter.

HONR 4000 Sustainable Energy. The goal of this course is to provide a framework for assessing policy options that can lead to a paradigm shift from fossil to renewable energy sources.  We will examine available and future technologies in the context of their environmental impact as well as their technical and economic viability.  Kreith. 

LAWS 7122 Mining and Energy Law. Addresses major issues affecting the development of mineral resources through mining activity. Includes the regulation of the impacts of mining on the environment on both public and private land. Covers the Mining Law of 1872, the Federal Coal Leasing Amendments, and state regulation of the impacts of mining on the environment.  Website

LAWS 7132-001 Energy Insecurity and Sustainable Energy. Part I will deal with the phenomena and meaning of energy security. It will examine energy insecurity in the United States, and the international community of nations, caused by reliance on hydrocarbons, and specifically by oil dependence. Part II of the course will survey the corpus of existing United States and International Laws relevant to this question. Part III will canvass the legal response to these challenges through sustainable and renewable energy laws and policies.  Guruswamy. Website

MBAX 6830-800 Sustainable Energy Venturing. This course focuses on the entrepreneurial opportunities that result from the growing global need for alternative energy options. Through case studies, guest speakers, and a research project, this course examines how entrepreneurs capture market opportunities in new energy technologies.  Lawrence. 

MCEN 4228/5228-01 Climate Solutions.  Contact department for details.  Kutscher

MCEN 4228/5228 Energy Conversion and Storage. For large-scale solar or wind based electrical generation to be sustainable, the development of new energy conversion and storage systems will be critical to meeting continuous energy demands and effectively leveling the cyclic nature of these energy sources. This course is designed to be a comprehensive introduction to the basic principles of electrochemistry and their application to energy conversion and storage systems.  Lee. 

PHYS 3070/ ENVS 3070-001 Energy and the Environment (3 credits). Contemporary issues in energy consumption and its environmental impact, including fossil fuel use and depletion; nuclear energy and waste disposal; solar, wind, hydroelectric, and other renewable sources; home heating; energy storage; fuel cells; and alternative transportation vehicles. Included are some basic physical concepts and principles that often constrain choices. No background in physics is required. Approved for arts and sciences core curriculum: natural science. Website

SYST 6820 Assessing Sustainable Energy Technologies. The objective of this course is to provide participants with a foundation in the technological and economic fundamentals of important and emerging sustainable energy technologies.  Lawrence.