Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms: First Steps Author: Joe Foy, West High School RET Project Supported by National Science Foundation and Department of Energy Grant No

1-2 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms Early interest in STEM topics and applications is particularly important as an influence in future career plans. “Preparing the Next Generation of STEM innovators” (NSB 10-33)

1-3 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms Educator preparation will enhance the learning infrastructure support system for students “Preparing the Next Generation of STEM innovators” (NSB 10-33)

1-4 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms First steps  Continue learning the technologies of power generation, transmission, and distribution.  Learn renewable energy sources  Wind  Solar  Open ocean (OTEC)

1-5 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms First steps (continued)  Acquire basic understanding of Matlab, discover how it can be used to assist lesson development and presentation  Use Matlab to explore wind characteristics for selected sites in Pacific Northwest

1-6 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms First steps (continued)  Scale the effort: move awareness of power technologies into mathematics classrooms  Develop four application worksheets, correlated to state (Tennessee) Algebra 1 and Algebra 2 Course Level Expectations (CLEs) and State Performance Indicators (SPIs)  Develop matrix of RC circuit values which can be used in Algebra 2 and Precalculus courses, during study of exponential functions

1-7 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms Four application problems  How Big a Battery is needed to store 10 hours of 900 MWatts of Power?  Answer:  26, 650 m 3 (941,000 ft 3 )  59,800 tons  $11.1 billion  (545,000 new Chevy Volts, assuming 100% discharge)  (180,000 of the cabinets behind EPRI)

1-8 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms “How big a battery” problem:  Excellent reference for other analysis, in other courses  Economics: impact of EV penetration on power generation  Environmental: impact of reduced transportation emissions on pollution  (others….)  (I will pursue this, this year at West High)

1-9 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms Second application problem  How much coal is needed to generate 900 MWatts of power?  Answer:  7,400 tons per day  2.7 million tons per year

1-10 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms Third application problem  How much U-235 is needed to generate 900 MWatts of power?  Answer:  1.33 tons per year

1-11 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms “How much U-235” problem:  Also an excellent reference for other analysis, in other courses

1-12 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms Fourth application problem  What is the difference in transmitting at 161,000 volts vs. 13,200 volts?  Answer:  Line losses of 13,200 V transmission for KUB peak demand are more than 97% of a 900 MWatt (output) generation station  Line losses at 161,000 V are 22%

1-13 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms Initial programming in Matlab  RC circuit simulation  Available wind power analysis

1-14 Matlab RC Circuit Code and Output Plots t = 0:.002:.2; %t is a vector from 0 to.01 in steps of.0001 %Use a loop to evaluate the voltage and current equations Rin = input('Enter resistance value(ohms): '); CinuF = input('Enter capacitance value (microfarads):'); Cin = CinuF*1e-6; for i=1:length(t); low= -0.4; high = 0.4; rval=low+(high-low)*rand; vc(i) = 12*(1-exp(-t(i)/(Rin*Cin)))+rval; ic(i) = 12*exp(-t(i)/(Rin*Cin))+rval; end

1-15 Matlab generated output file xlswrite('C:\Joe\AP Physics\CURENT\RET\RC_data',Time,'Sheet1','A3'); xlswrite('C:\Joe\AP Physics\CURENT\RET\RC_data',Volts,'Sheet1','B3'); xlswrite('C:\Joe\AP Physics\CURENT\RET\RC_data',Current,'Sheet1','C3'); Excel output file, input to TIConnect software

1-16 TI Connect (free PC software) TI84

1-17 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms Initial programming in Matlab  RC circuit simulation  Available wind power analysis

1-18 Matlab as a wind analysis tool Generalizations:  Wind has higher velocity at higher elevations  Wind has higher velocity early in the night Increasing altitude

1-19 Matlab as a wind analysis tool Generalizations:  Wind velocity is not as high in the summer

1-20 Matlab as a wind analysis tool Generalizations:  Wind velocity is high in late fall

1-21 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms 2012 – 2013 Curriculum:  Purchased materials for rotational motion physics lab, a version of which may be taught in upper level math classes  Identified materials for a renewable energy (wind) physics lab  Laser phototach (purchased)  Anemometer  Voltage probe  (subsets of lab could also be math activities)

1-22 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms The Educator as a Student  Continued study of wind power texts (2)  Continued study of renewable energy text  Reviewed Executive summary of the Fukushima Nuclear Accident Independent Investigation Commission (released 5 July)  “It was a profoundly man-made disaster that could and should have been foreseen and prevented. Its effects could have been mitigated by a more effective human response”…. Message from the chairman of the commission

1-23 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms Next Steps include  Continue learning power generation, transmission, and distribution technologies  Use renewable energy (wind) lab in physics and math courses  Develop PV solar lab for use in physics and math courses  Submit AP Physics-C (Mechanics) syllabus to regulating organization, the syllabus identifies several renewable energy labs and connections (submitted 13 July 2012)

1-24 Bringing Power Technologies into High School Classrooms