| Unit name | Power Electronics Systems |
|---|---|
| Unit code | EEMEM0008 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Professor. Stark |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | School of Electrical, Electronic and Mechanical Engineering |
| Faculty | Faculty of Engineering |
Why is this unit important?
This is a unit on power electronics for those wanting to understand the type of electronics that processes high electric powers, as opposed to electronics that carries out computations or signal processing. It is targeted at the practice of creating technical solutions in areas of engineering where there is no perfect answer. The subject matter ranges from interpreting power semiconductor measurements to simulating the nation-wide electricity grid. You will learn to break down complex power circuits such as 3-phase inverters into more manageable fundamental converter topologies and analyse or refine these. You will be able to predict and sketch waveforms and operating signals, estimate performance, and propose ways of integrating them into larger systems such as solar farms or vehicles. You will be able to evaluate AC & DC transmission systems together using the Gauss-Seidel load flow iterative method to predict how our evolving electricity grid will cope with the necessary changes to address climate change, including offshore power transmission from wind farms.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
This unit is optional on undergraduate programmes. There are no prerequisites, however depending on your programme, you may need to take time in the first week to read up on basic network analysis, phasors, fundamental power electronic building blocks, and a few other basic skills. The unit contains weekly activities that puts your previous learning (electronics, control, system design, etc) into the context of renewable energy generation, electric vehicle drives, and electronic product design.
Students say they really appreciate the weekly opportunity to do real-world engineering in the interactive sessions, the solving of practical and relevant challenges, and the instant personal feedback during the weekly sessions, in the computer lab, and on the discussion forum.
The unit will give you the opportunity to practice the breaking down of complex circuits into different abstraction levels so that they can be understood, simulated, designed, improved etc. This will help you write your final year project report and also help ensure that your future engineering reports are impactful. The simulation methods we use will help you go back and understand previously taught electronics that might have felt daunting at the time.
An overview of the content
The course is application oriented, using renewable energy generation, grid-tied inverters, and electric vehicles as prime examples. You will:
How will students, personally be different as a result of this unit
Students report that they have become better engineers, and feel much more confident in tackling open-ended design challenges where there is no single solution, no obvious method to tackle the problem, and where assumption and engineering trade-offs need to be made.
Learning outcomes
Having completed this unit, you will be able to:
Reflective weekly teaching sessions made up of engineering-problem-based group work, and simulation labs.
Self-study via short interactive videos containing short bursts of theory followed by activities, tips, and solutions.
Actively managed forum and regular Q&A sessions.
How you will be assessed
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Short, end-of-week (unassessed) quizzes to help you check your understanding.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
The unit will be assessed by a single open-book computer-based exam in the TB1 assessment period. The exam will assess all Learning Outcomes.
When assessment does not go to plan
In the event of unsatisfactory performance in the examinations, there may be an opportunity to resit an exam of a similar nature during the reassessment period.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. EEMEM0008).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
