Carleton’s latest green-inspired program could mean big things for the future of energy production and may result in big savings for average consumers.
This term has launched the new Faculty of Engineering and Design’s master’s degree in sustainable energy engineering and policy. The first of its kind, the program will train students in environmentally friendly methods of generating energy that could eventually be sold back to power companies.
Unused energy generated from sustainable sources such as solar panels, wind turbines and hydroelectric power could be pushed back to the power grid to be used elsewhere, according to Rafik Goubran, the faculty’s dean.
“You could, in your own home, generate energy and then sell it back to the utility as opposed to utilising it,” Goubran said.
This technology, commonly referred to as smart grids, has already proved successful in other areas of the world, such as Korea, and can significantly reduce energy consumption.
The program will cover both the engineering and public policy aspects of sustainable energy generation and distribution. Students are required to take courses from both aspects of the program in order to gain a thorough understanding of all aspects of sustainable energy engineering.
“It’s an excellent program and we have a lot of demand for it,” Goubran said.
Erin Tabah, a student in the new program, has an engineering background, having graduated with a degree in materials engineering.
“The program’s strength is that it’s interdisciplinary,” Tabah said.
The program’s diversity is not only in its cross-discipline nature, however. International students from a variety of different countries are among the first to study the master’s degree, which Tabah said will “bring a different perspective” into the classroom.
Classes began two weeks ago for the program, which follows the launch of the first bachelor’s degree in renewable engineering sciences at Carleton two years ago.
Ian Beausoleil-Morrison, one of the professors teaching the bachelor’s program, said interest in both courses has been even higher than expected.
“A couple more centuries of consumption will deplete fossil fuels,” Beausoleil-Morrison said, emphasising the importance of developing new energy systems that will not impact the environment.
The undergraduate program was launched with only 30 students, but this year’s class has seen an increased intake of 50.
Although the faculty’s current facilities only allow for a small number of students, the department is looking to increase the size of the program and plans are already underway to expand the department. The new Canal Building, set to open this winter, will have two floors dedicated to the field.
The civil and environmental engineering department already has additional programs in the works, with a bachelor’s degree in architectural conservation and sustainability launching in September 2011.